Queen’s Students Win Silver in Safe Design Competition

Published on: 2010/07/29 - in News

A team of chemical engineering undergrads recently won silver in a Canada-wide safe design competition.

Jeremy Langburt, Wilson McKinnon, Kevin Smiley and Jesse Williams-Kovacs received $1,500 for their detailed analysis of process hazards and risk mitigation measures associated with the design of a bio diesel production facility.

“Winning the second-place award and $1,500, although secondary to the learning experience, was a rewarding finale to the hard work that was completed,” Mr. William-Kovacs said.

The award was created in 2006 by Minerva Canada to encourage students and engineering faculty members to raise awareness and integrate safety into design.

“Our Process Hazard Analysis considered all possible hazards that could occur, from mechanical failure to human error,” says Mr. William-Kovacs. “We provided not only standard control solutions but also inherently safer design concepts which attempt to eliminate hazards instead of implementing techniques to control them. These additional considerations are often not emphasized enough, not only in academia but also in industry practice, which likely set our design above others.”

For more information visit safetymanagementeducation.com.

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Photo and article courtesy of the Queen’s University News Centre and reprinted with permission.