Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ASME Newsletter June03
ASME Newsletter June03
Major Event
In this issue
2
Message
from the Section
Chair
3
Secretary
Column
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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Message from the Section Chair
Ir C W TSO
I am very honoured and delighted to be elected as the Chair of ASME
International Hong Kong Section for the session 2003/2004 at the AGM held on 14
March 2003. Year 2002/2003 was an exciting one and indeed a great success in both
quantity and quality. I believe that it was a result of your unfailing support and active
participation in activities, the resourcefulness and hard work of our past Executive
Committee and most importantly the unquestionable dedication and visionary
leadership of our Past Chair Dr Chris Chao. Chris has set a very impressive track record on all fronts that I
certainly find it very difficult to match. On behalf of Hong Kong Section, I wish to register our deep
appreciation to Chris for his tremendous contributions during his two years tenure of Section Chair.
Trust you recall that the outbreak of Atypical Pneumonia in Hong Kong took place few months ago with
the first case of SARs recorded on 10 March 2003. It was in the interest of the heath and safety of participants
that the Executive Committee had to cancel the 6th Asia-Pacific Rim sROB Meeting scheduled on April 25-26,
2003, thus missing the rare opportunity to meet our President and Executive Director from HQs. Australia
Section has now agreed to host the next Asia Pacific Rim sROB Meeting on September 25-26, 2003 in Sydney,
and representatives from our Section will attend.
I would like to take this opportunity to share with you my thought on the threat to job security in the
current economic climate. We are all aware that many countries are still suffering from the global economic
downturn and the situation in Hong Kong is even more difficult as a result of the onslaught of SARs. In order
to stay in business in today’s knowledge-based, highly competitive marketplace, almost every organization
including our Government is striving to cut costs by various means, such as streamlining operation process,
outsourcing non-core service and work, cutting employment benefits, downsizing the work force, etc.
In order to survive and thrive, we have to prove to our employers that we are cost effective and are useful
assets to them. This means that we must keep on learning, and be versatile to acquire wider and needed
knowledge and skills to take up the challenges of today’s fast-changing business environment. I am of the view
that activities organized by the Hong Kong Section can facilitate interactions with engineering practitioners and
related professionals from the industry, universities, government authorities, and other professional institutions
to share information, to exchange experience and to build up contacts. I believe that this can help all of us
acquire some of the knowledge and skill needed to gain competitive advantages in our pursuit of career
advancement.
Finally, I must say that the Section is very fortunate to have in place very dedicated, energetic and talented
Executive Committee and Sub-committees. This together with your continued support, suggestions and
encouragement, I am confident that we can have another fruitful year so that our Hong Kong Section can grow
from strength to strength. ¶
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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The International Hong Kong Section of Secretary Column
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Having served the Executive Committee of Student
c/o Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hong Kong Section for the past four years, I am honoured and
Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. delighted to be elected as the Secretary of the Hong Kong
Imm. Past Chair business, finance, accounting or non-engineering disciplines. This is based on
Ir Dr Chris CHAO the belief that as Hong Kong is shifting more and more to become a “servicing”
Email: meyhchao@ust.hk business hub there are more opportunities for employment and better career
Advisory Committee Chair timely and work out necessary action plans, the Executive Committee meeting
Ir W K CHOW is now being held on a monthly basis. The Executive Committee has also
Email: wkchow@clp.com.hk decided the need to align with the calendar adopted by our Headquarters on the
following:
Education Committee Chair
Ir K K LO -- Session starts in the month of July (instead of March/April in
Email: mmkklo@polyu.edu.hk the past) and so does the fiscal year
Industrial Committee Chair -- Next AGM will be held in June 2004 to facilitate the
Email: yh.wong@towngas.com
As the Section has to move with time to meet the needs and expectation of
Liaison Committee Chair members, the Executive Committee has set up a task force led by Ir Janet Lam,
Ir Henry HO Section Vice Chair, with the support of Ir W K Chow, Past Section Chair, to
Email: Henry.Ho@hko.gases.boc.com conduct a thorough review of the Section’s By-Laws and Terms of Reference. A
Publication Committee Chair copy of the current version of the aforesaid is posted on the Section’s Website
Samuel W H NG and suggestions from members are most welcome. Proposed amendments will
Email: ngw@asme.org be issued to members in the second quarter of 2004 and an EGM for
Dr Anthony LAW Finally, I sincerely hope to meet all of you all in our activities and look forward
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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News from the Liason Sub-Committee We will keep you up-date about the progress of our
Ir Henry HO functions and you are most welcome to give us your comments !
Being a sub-committee of the ASME HK Section, the Excom Members 2003 -2004
Liaison Committee is responsible for the liaison with the other
various activities.
In the last couple of years, the joint events that we have FOCUS
organized in the industrial aspects included seminars on various
[1] Application of Smart Materials and Hybrid
useful topics such as Project Management, Essential Skill for
Composites in the Modern Mechanical Design
Engineers, etc. On the educational aspects, we have the Best
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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sunshine or environmental impacts or even applied as the of Mechanical Engineering in respect of the design of
chemical containers under a wide range of operating curriculum for combustion and air pollution.
pressures.
Based on these substantial achievements, a set of
theoretical models combining the classical mechanics and
constitutive law for SMA was also successfully developed
to determine the ideal actuation levels for SMA-reinforced
composites, which optimized the mechanical response as
well as the interfacial properties between the actuators and
the surrounding matrix materials. The feasibility study of
an overall material system incorporated with strain sensors,
SMA actuators and signal processing unit for the optimum
control will be finalized in the next few months. Above: Prof Lee and Prof So at the ME Dept of HKPolyU
By Lawrence C.K. Poon ( PhD Candidate in ME Dept. of HKPolyU ) [4] Joint Spring Dinner
The chairmen of six engineering societies (ASME HK
[2] New ASME Fellow in Hong Kong – Prof Zohar Section, HKIE-MMNC Division, HKIMT, HKJB, IMechE
Prof. Yitshak Zohar received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in and HKIOA) thanked the participants of the joint spring
aeronautical engineering from The Technion-Israel dinner held at the World Trade Centre, Causeway Bay, HK.
[3] Outstanding PolyU Alumni Award 2003 engineering students from HKU and HKUST.
I still remember the first day of my college study at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; the lecture hall was filled with
male students and I was the only girl in the class. I felt a little weird as I used to study in a girl school and had not been
prepared for working and studying with so many men. I sensed that they found me unusual and I must admit, at that
moment, I too felt unusual.
My four-year college life had its ups and downs. Needless to say, the conflicts between Mars and the only Venus were great
and everyone knew such difficulties in the course of study and group projects. First of all, I was being laughed at in the
engineering drawing class because of my poor free hand sketching skill and my spending much time in familiarizing with
AutoCAD. Then I had to beg my classmate to take me as a group-mate for group project. The lesson learnt in school was
‘being proactive’, be proactive for learning, finding partners for group projects and seeking good opportunities for future
development. I could certainly say that this period was full of challenges both socially and academically.
I graduated from higher diploma and degree studies, and had the opportunity to gain summer employment in the
engineering department of a local airline as an industrial trainee. During the three-month training, I had a chance to stand on
the skeleton of an aircraft, exploring the whole system of the plane and learnt the method to find out the defects on plane.
The most impressive experience was a one-day trip on board. I was able to sit at the jump-sit right at the back of the captain
and flight operators. The beautiful scenery of Hong Kong can never be forgotten.
I have made a number of good friends from the class who have become my companions in study and work. Of course, I
have to thank several professors that I have met during my higher diploma and degree study. They guided me a lot in the
study and in obtaining professional knowledge that focused my energy and they encouraged me in pursuing my vocation
development.
After graduation from PolyU, I became a technical engineer in an acoustic engineering firm. I was so lucky to have the
chances of participating in several infrastructure projects. Since the company was on the contractor side, I found the site
working experience most useful and that trained me to become a tough person. I do not want to exaggerate my site
experience as I think most of the readers know the details already. Generally speaking, the difficulties and problems
encountered in site work were the same for both male and female engineers. I admitted that men and women physically
were not of the same strength and we might need our partners to give us a hand under some situations, especially on-site
working. This aspect of the work had caused me to change job.
Currently I am working in the engineering unit of a consultant firm specialized in environmental management. Under the
current economic recession, the vigorous competitions between companies become a pressure; however, I find this presents
a new set of interesting challenges. The challenges that I have dealt with in the past have enabled me to develop and cope
with difficult situations without compromise. ¶
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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Members’ Column
Having graduated in Mechanical Engineering, I have been devoted myself to the construction
industry for nearly fifteen years. I come to realize that the knowledge learned during the
university life is only a key and groundwork for me to adapt to the ever-changing
construction environment and evolving technology. It does not mean the difficulty and
hazards one would have to face within this particular industry. On the other hand, it implies that it is a challenge for
engineers who intend to apply the engineering principles and judgment in their career. Although the infrastructure projects
development slow down nowadays in Hong Kong, there still exists opportunities in Hong Kong and neighboring areas for
the construction industry to survive.
In the construction industry, it is necessary to cooperate with team members in a
partnering culture no matter you are acting as a client, a consultant, a contractor, a
supplier or a manufacturer. The construction industry is basically a teamwork industry. It
involves a lot of engineering products, engineering processes, engineering management
and different professional disciplines. Engineering knowledge and evolving technology
or even innovation is only part of the industry. No one can complete the project without
the participation of other project partners. Managing a project to complete within budget and with accepted quality in a
given time frame is not a simple issue.
My experience is mainly in project management, road transportation, railway transportation and building services. The
two most memorable projects in my mind are the Route 3 Country Park Section Tai Lam Tunnel project, which I have spent
three years, and MTRC Tseung Kwan O station project, which I have spent two and a half years. I believe that my hard
work in these projects is worthwhile.
My work experience is tabulated below and members are welcomed to exchange any interesting ideas and experience
regarding these projects:
Disciplines System Projects
Tunnel Ventilation, Power Supply, Tunnel • Tate’s Cairn Tunnel
Road Lighting, Fire Protection, Plumbing and • Junk Bay Tunnel
Transportation Drainage, Building Services, Traffic • Route 3 – Country Park Section, Tai Lam Tunnel and
Control and Surveillance, Toll Collection Yuen Long Approach
Railway Contracts with Mass Transit Railway and • Western Harbour Crossing
Transportation KCRC • Highway projects including Cheung Ching Tunnel,
Traffic Control Lantau Fixed Crossing, Airport tunnel
Highway project, design and build projects
and Surveillance • MTRC projects including Island Line, Tsuen Wan
System extension, Lantau Airport Railway, Quarry Bay
Congestion Relief Works, Tseung Kwan O Extension,
Penny’s Bay Line
We have involved in large numbers of
• Eastern Harbour Crossing
Building Services building services contracts during the past
twenty years • KCRC west Rail – DB320 Kwai Tsing tunnel
• KCRCEast Tsim Sha Tsui station
• Hong Kong International Airport
Power Supply, Trackside auxiliaries, • Mass Transit Railway
Facilities
Building services, Traffic control and • KCRC
Management
surveillance system
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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Industrial Committee
By Ir Y H WONG & H S Lee
Professional Development ASME B31.8 Gas Transmission and Awaiting response from
Q1 2004
Program Distribution Piping Systems ASME HQ
©ASME International HK Section. June 2003. Feel free to copy without alteration.
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