Editorial

 New Technologies Are the Solutions to Overcome Shortages of Energy Resources. A Challenge for Engineers

The availability of energy resources is key to the global economy, but guaranteeing a safe, secure and sustainable supply – and doing so in line with global commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – is increasingly problematic. With predictions of a 37% increase in oil demand over current levels by 2030, the World Economic Forum Report Global Risks 2008 sees limited scope for a fall in energy prices over the next decade. This may be good news for oil and gas producers, but it creates an inherent mismatch between those who bear risk and reward, which should be addressed through better dialogue at all levels.

“Global Risks 2008 points to a future of tremendous challenges, but also opportunities for business and government decision-makers to demonstrate their leadership,” said Prof. Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum. “The interconnectedness of global risks discussed in this report reflects the need for a collaborative framework for response”. The 2008 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting (22-27 January 2008) provided a framework for those discussions. With oil prices approaching US$ 100 a barrel, new technologies for efficient energy generation and storage are rapidly emerging. A session was scheduled to explore the dynamics of clean energy innovation and the barriers to scalability and implementation .

Energy supply is also a crucial issue. The global economy has demonstrated remarkable resilience to increases in energy prices since 2004. But the limits of resilience may be close to being reached. Over the next two decades the supply of primary fossil fuel will become tighter with the world economy becoming much more vulnerable to price shocks as a result. The report urges better dialogue at all levels - between emerging and developed countries and between the corporate sector and government and regulators. A move towards a forward-looking regulatory framework is needed in order to ensure long-term economic viability. This framework should seek to unlock investment and innovation in cleaner energy and, ultimately, deliver an economic price for carbon.

When the Green City Becomes a Reality

The US magazine Business Week from 24.12.2007 reported in an article (http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_52/b4064057939494.htm?chan=search) entitled “Guess Who's Building a Green City ? - In a delicious irony, Abu Dhabi is pouring oil billions into zero-emissions metropolis in the desert” about a new exceptional city. The city includes among others the establishment of a new university and a research center. WFEO CCB former chairman Russel Jones is working currently with a team to achieve this objective.
An ambitious plan is acting to transform 6-million-square-meter of sand dotted with small, forlorn trees. There, a top concrete slabs, engineers are preparing to test solar collectors. Those collectors are scheduled to power futuristic 100,000 resident city called Masdar that will rise from this sandy wasteland by the Persian Gulf . The goal is to create the world first metropolis that emits not a single extra molecule of carbon dioxide, the cause of global warming.
In January 2008, the Swiss Magazine “ Weltwoche ” published a comprehensive report about this mega project highlighting that the building of human capital is at the stake in Abu Dhabi- at least, this is what the American Russel Jones sees  in his mission as Director of the new Research Center aiming to make from the oil city a Silicon Valley for renewable energies. Next year, the first hundred students will be enrolled. Until 2015, Jones expects an increase to 800 academicians coming from all over the world, from India, China, Europe, America, and not only from the Gulf States.
http://www.weltwoche.ch/artikel/?AssetID=18184&CategoryID=91
In April 2006, Abu Dhabi took a bold and historic decision to embrace renewable and sustainable energy technologies. Masdar envsions to be a carbon-neutral, zero-waste walled city within a city. Power to the whole locale will be supplied by a large photovoltaic system, and the entire city will be car-free; walking is encouraged by placing buildings close to each other so residents won't need to drive. Future plans also include wind farms to supply sustainable power. Early designs were unveiled this year; completion of the complex will roll out in phases, with an end date yet to be confirmed .

WFEO News

WFEO activities on Anticorruption and the Global ACET:
Anti-Corruption Education & Training Project

A meeting was held recently in Spain between José Medem President of the WCCE and former chairman of the WFEO Working Group on Anti-Corruption (TFAC) and WFEO Past President Kamel Ayadi the chairman of the newly created standing Committee on Anticorruption. During that meeting the TFAC and the related documents were formally handed over in a convivial atmosphere to the new chair to ensure a smooth transition of this activity. The WCCE which was accepted at the last GA as international member has expressed its will to continue to support the WFEO efforts on anticorruption and has nominated its President Elect Emilio Colon as a member of the Standing Committee. This committee will operate from the WFEO Tunis Office. After that meeting José Medem and Kamel Ayadi took part in the meeting of the Global Anti-Corruption Education and Training Project that was held in Austin on 23-24 January. Kamel Ayadi has also participated in the ASCE Global Principles for Professional Conducts (GPPC) meeting that was held immediately after the ACET meeting. Kamel Ayadi is a member of the GPPC, which is currently chaired by Robert A. Crist. Bill Henry former President of the ASCE has also attended both meetings. Bill is active on anticorruption. The ASCE boasts a large expertise on this issue. It is expected that synergies will be created between the WFEO Committee on Anti-Corruption and the GPPC.
The Global ACET Project which is being led by Prof Jimmy H. Smith is a collaborative effort by organizations from around the world to combat corruption in the engineering/construction industry, including the International Federation of Consulting Engineers, World Federation of Engineering Organizations, World Economic Forum's Partnership Against Corruption Initiative, Transparency International and others.
Objective: The ACET Project will develop and distribute a comprehensive education and training program devoted to the importance of individual integrity among all participants in the performance of engineering/construction projects. The materials that will be created for the program include a high-quality DVD, PowerPoint presentations, a teaching guide and train-the-trainer materials. The Global ACET Project activity is supported by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), in collaboration with others.
The project will focus on the importance of individual integrity and will result in information conveying the negative aspects of corruption. The audience will include owners, engineers, consultants, contractors, suppliers and lenders involved in the production of engineering and construction projects. The program will also be designed to be useful for engineering students.
Rationale: The primary reason for producing products stressing individual integrity is that a number of resources are available that provide professional and ethical guidance to engineering and construction firms, societies and other organizations. However, many, if not most, corrupt actions begin with poor decisions made by individuals. Thus, the objective of the entire project is to develop products for promoting greater ethical decision-making and moral courage among engineers and those who work with engineers.

WFEO Technical Standing Committees  News

Committee on Technology, ComTech : The Institution of Engineers India (IEI) has, with honour, accepted to host the WFEO Committee on Technology as decided by the WFEO General Assembly held in New Delhi , November 2007.The Council of the Institution has designated Mr. R P Gupta, FIE as the Chairman of the ComTech for its full term.  Mr. Gupta is also the current President of the IEI. The Institution of Engineers India will provide the secretarial help to the ComTech as had been done for the WFEO Committee on Engineering and Environment (CEE).
Mr Rajeshwar Prasad Gupta is a graduate in Metallurgical Engineering. He started his career in the year 1964 with the National Engineering Industries (NEI), Jaipur, a leading bearing manufacturer in India , which manufactures a wide variety and range of bearings, to the tune of nearly 2.2 million bearings per month in over 500 different sizes. He served the company for 36 years occupying key technical and managerial positions in the different plants of the organization gaining wide exposure and experience in the company. Mr Gupta has a wide experience of more than three decades in planning, installing, developing and controlling metallurgical units engaged in mass metallurgical production, heat treatment and quality control in engineering industries, especially in bearing industries, cooperating in this field with international manufactures in USA and Europe .
Mr. Gupta was responsible for implementation of the International Quality Systems like ISO: 900I, ISO: 14000, QS: 9000 and Quality Circles at NEI, Jaipur. He had also been engaged for preparation of standards for metallurgical quality control and audit system.
Mr Gupta has been associated with The Institution of Engineers ( India ) for more than three decades and has served the Institution in different capacities. He also had the distinction of serving as the Vice President of the Institution during the session 2003-04. He is a Life Member of the Indian Institute of Metals and Quality Circles forum of India . Mr Gupta has also been a pioneer in the field of education as Executive Director, Bansal Classes, Jaipur, a renowned name in educating young minds towards getting into the The Indian Institutes of Technology, IITs .

The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are a group of seven autonomous engineering and technology-oriented institutes of higher education established and declared as Institutes of National Importance by the Government of India. The IITs were created to train scientists and engineers, with the aim of developing a skilled workforce to support the economic and social development of India after independence in 1947. The students and alumni of IITs are colloquially referred to as IITians. In order of establishment, the seven IITs are located at Kharagpur, Mumbai ( Bombay ), Chennai ( Madras ), Kanpur , Delhi , Guwahati, and Roorkee. Some IITs were established with financial assistance and technical expertise from UNESCO, Germany , the United States , and the Soviet Union . Each IIT is an autonomous university, linked to the others through a common IIT Council, which oversees their administration. They have a common admission process for undergraduate admissions, using the Joint Entrance Examination (popularly known as IIT-JEE) to select around 4,000 undergraduate candidates a year. Postgraduate Admissions are done on the basis of the GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) and CEED (Common Entrance Examination for Design). About 15,500 undergraduate and 12,000 graduate students study in the seven IITs, in addition to research scholars.
IITians have achieved success in a variety of professions, resulting in the establishment of the widely recognised Brand IIT. The autonomy of the IITs has helped them to create specialised degrees in technology at the undergraduate level and consequently to award the Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) degree, as opposed to the Bachelor of Engineering (BE) degree awarded by most other Indian universities.
The success of the IITs has led to the creation of similar institutes in other fields, such as the National Institutes of Technology, the Indian Institutes of Management and the Institutes of Information Technology (IIIT).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Institutes_of_Technology

WFEO Members' News

Engineers Against Poverty (EAP) works with industry, government and civil society to fight poverty and promote sustainable development. EAP influence corporate and public policy and help develop practical solutions aimed at creating jobs, promoting enterprise development and improving education and training. Engineers Against Poverty (EAP) is a specialist international development NGO working in the field of engineering and international development. It has developed a reputation for producing cutting edge action research and is rapidly establishing itself as a leading agency in its field. EAP demonstrates a high level of innovation both in terms of its programme content and in the range of partners it has mobilised in support of its programmes.
EAP's programme is based on two key propositions. First, that unlocking the skills and resources of the private sector represents one of the single greatest opportunities to step-up the fight against poverty. Secondly, that in some circumstances, it is possible to secure social improvements through mechanisms that also deliver commercial advantages to the companies involved. Our work is testing these propositions and the results are being used to influence a range of organisations across the institutional spectrum.
In an article preamble entitled Engineering the World out of Poverty we can read: Just over hundred years ago, engineering transformed the public health of European cities by providing water and sanitation services that added around twenty years to average life expectancy and provided a huge boost to the economy. The same task is now required on a global scale for the millions of people in developing countries who lack these essential services. Multi-sector partnerships driven by the engineering industry make good business sense and can help combat poverty in developing countries.
The need for essential services, including water and sanitation, was underlined at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, with a focus on sustainable human development. Central to this was the recognition of the role of engineering in providing the infrastructure and services that underpin human and economic health, and the urgent need for such services to be delivered globally. A report compiled by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), ( Meeting the Millennium Development Goals- drinking water and sanitation target- A mid-term assessment of progress 2004) has shown that 40 per cent of the earth population does not have access to the most basic sanitation services. The report also states, if nothing is done to tackle the problem, around 2.4 billion people will be left drinking unsafe water in 2015. www.engineersagainstpoverty.org

Technology Diffusion in the Developing World

Rapid technological progress in developing countries has helped to raise incomes and reduce the share of people living in absolute poverty from 29 percent in 1990 to 18 percent in 2004. Despite these gains, the technology gap between rich and poor countries remains enormous, and the capacity of developing economies to adopt new technology remains weak, says Global Economic Prospects 2008. Technological progress increased 40 to 60 percent faster in developing countries than in rich countries between the early 1990s and early 2000s,” said Andrew Burns, main author of the report. Nevertheless, developing countries have a long way to go, given that the level of technology that they use is only one quarter of that employed in high-income countries.  
Subtitled, Technology Diffusion in the Developing World, the World Bank report (http://www.worldbank.org/gep2008) notes that recent progress reflects increased exposure to foreign technologies. The report stresses that the weak diffusion of technology within countries holds back overall technological achievement in many countries. Thus, while major centers and leading firms in Brazil , India and China may operate close to the global technological frontier, most firms in these countries operate at less than a fifth of the top productivity level.

According to the report, improving capacity to absorb foreign technology is critical in low-income countries, as well as in those middle-income countries that have exploited low-wage comparative advantages rather than strengthened domestic competencies. Furthermore:
•  Most developing countries participate minimally at the global technological frontier. Their rapid economic progress has been achieved by adapting and adopting already-existing technologies. This will likely persist, given the large technology divide.
•  Technology now spreads much more quickly between countries. In the early 1900s, new technology took over 50 years to reach most countries; today it takes about 16 years.
•  Technology tends to spread slowly within countries. Main cities and leading sectors use more sophisticated technologies than the rest of the economy. For example, the IT-enabled services sector in urban India employs world-class technologies, but less than 10 percent of the country's rural households had telephone access in 2007.
•  Use of some new technologies, such as mobile phones, has risen quickly. Nevertheless, some technologies have spread only slowly. Three-quarters of low-income countries have 15 or fewer personal computers per 1,000 people, and a quarter have fewer than five.
•  Governments should strengthen domestic technology dissemination channels as a high priority. These include transport infrastructure and the capacity of applied R&D agencies to orient themselves to markets through improved outreach, testing, and marketing.
•  Weak basic infrastructure systems limit the range of technologies that can be employed in many countries. Policies should ensure that critical enabling services such as roads and electricity are widely available, whether delivered by the private or public sector. In Sub-Saharan Africa, just 8 percent of the rural population has access to electricity.
•  Ineffective or uneven access to quality education also restricts countries' ability to exploit technologies. Even simple technologies can have big impacts. For example, relatively simple skills are needed to build rainwater collection systems, which improve access to clean drinking water and reduce infant mortality by lowering the incidence of diarrhea.

Selected winners projects Mondialogo Awards 2007

1.   In the engineering areas, a team of Institute of Chemical Technology (MUICT), Mumbai University , India and National University of Singapore won the award with a project entitled “ Economic improvement of Indian farmers by Solar Processing of Agro-products”: The team describes the project as follows: Currently in the state of Maharashtra in India , farmers in the rural areas sell all their fruits as fresh produce. This activity has a damping effect on the price they can demand for their goods. As a result the farmers only sell 60% of their produce and the remaining 40% is wasted. The problem is further compounded as the fruits are seasonal in nature. This has resulted in farmers living close to poverty. The team aims to design and implement a fruit processing system that allows farmers to preserve a portion of their fruits such that it could be sold out-of-season or exported in order to ensure higher incomes for the farmers. We believe that this would alleviate poverty in the rural areas where a large majority of the villagers are involved in fruit farming. We envision the inter-cultural collaboration to be a two-way learning process where we build upon the strength of our partners. More specifically, we aim to work with our partners and take advantage of the numerous research findings that our respective universities have come up with and refine them through intellectual debate and discussion; all the time being guided by our overarching aim to substantially and positively impact the lives of the people we intend to help. We have decided to focus on the process of fruit-drying in particular as it is an area that we feel would have a major impact in raising the incomes of the fruit farmers in rural Maharashtra. We are working on a solar tunnel fruit dryer system.
2. A team of the University of Skovde , Sweden and the University of Nairobi, Kenya won the award with a project entitled Integrated Water, Energy, and Sanitation Solution (IWESS) described as follows : The principle of the IWESS system is to divide the waste products into three parts grey water, chemical water and toilet waste which are treated separately. In the IWESS system the grey water is purified through a root zone or reed bed module and can then be recirculated into the system in a high degree and reused. The toilet waste is collected in a latrine which is connected to a biogas digester. The reason for the biogas digester is that it produces a highly efficient plant nutrition that can be used for agriculture. The other product which is biogas can be used as an alternative to traditional fuels for cooking and lighting. This system could also be combined with rainwater harvesting. To enable an effective evaluation with data collection and possible improvements on this system a pilot scale system will be built. To achieve this close cooperation between the project members are essential. The study will include a visit to Kenya where the members can meet and work together with the project. Aspects that will be taken under consideration is not only technical but also social, environmental and financial in an effort to find a solution in accordance with the MDG. www.mondialogo.org

European Journal of Engineering Education (EJEE): The publication is the Official Journal of SEFI, the European Society for Engineering Education. SEFI is a non-governmental organization whose aims are to develop information about engineering education, to improve communication and exchange between professors, researchers and students and to promote cooperation between the various institutions concerned with engineering education. EJEE is published six times a year in print and electronic editions and provides an essential forum for dialogue between researchers and specialists in the field of engineering education, at European and worldwide levels. it examines the economic, cultural, and social factors which influence the education of engineers in different societies and provides a forum in which teachers in engineering schools, institutions and industry can share accounts of good practice and discuss methodology. Technological change constantly creates new demands on both engineers and the educational system that produces them. www.sefi.be

Energy Transformed
Sustainable Energy Solutions for Climate Change Mitigation
Freely Available 620 page Online Textbook

This online textbook provides free access to a comprehensive education and training package that brings together the knowledge of how countries, specifically Australia , can achieve at least 60 percent cuts to greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This resource has been developed in line with the activities of the CSIRO Energy Transformed Flagship research program, which is focused on research that will assist Australia to achieve this target. This training package provides industry, governments, business and households with the knowledge they need to realise at least 30 percent energy efficiency savings in the short term while providing a strong basis for further improvement. It also provides an updated overview of advances in low carbon technologies, renewable energy and sustainable transport to help achieve a sustainable energy future. http://www.naturaledgeproject.net/Sustainable_Energy_Solutions_Portfolio.aspx
The Work was produced by The Natural Edge Project using funds provided by CSIRO and the National Framework for Energy Efficiency. The development of this publication has been supported by the contribution of non-staff related on-costs and administrative support by the Centre for Environment and Systems Research (CESR) at Griffith University, under the supervision of Professor Bofu Yu, and both the Fenner School of Environment and Society and Engineering Department at the Australian National University, under the supervision of Professor Stephen Dovers. The lead expert reviewers for the overall Work were: Adjunct Professor Alan Pears, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology; Geoff Andrews, Director, GenesisAuto; and Dr Mike Dennis, Australian National University.
CSIRO, ( www.csiro.au ) the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, is Australia 's national science agency and one of the largest and most diverse research agencies in the world.
The International Energy Agency forecasts that if policies remain unchanged, world energy demand is set to increase by over 50 percent between now and 2030. In Australia, CSIRO has projected that demand for electricity will double by 2020. At the same time, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned since 1988 that nations need to stabilise their concentrations of CO2 equivalent emissions, requiring significant reductions in the order of 60 percent or more by 2050. There is now unprecedented global interest in energy efficiency and low carbon technology approaches to achieve rapid reductions to greenhouse gas emissions while providing better energy services to meet industry and society's needs.

Forthcoming Events 

Regional Seminar and Workshop on Performance-Based Management and Maintenance Contracts, February 25-27, 2008, Arusha, Tanzania : The Performance-Based Management and Maintenance of Roads (PMMR) Contracts define minimum conditions of road, bridge, and traffic assets that have to be met by the Contractor as well as other services such as the collection and management of asset inventory data, call-out and attendance to emergencies, and response to public requests, complaints and feedback. The choice and application of technology and the pursuit of innovative materials, processes and management are all up to the Contractor to achieve the product defined in the performance contract.
The Tanzania National Roads Agency (TANROADS) is organizing the event in collaboration with The World Bank, The German Development Cooperation (GTZ), The International Road Federation (IRF), The Association of Southern Africa National Roads Agencies (ASANRA), and The African Road Maintenance Funds Association (ARMFA). For more information contact : roselyne@habari.co.tz .

International City-to-City Seminar on Connecting Urban Core to the Global Agenda, March 3-4, 2008 , Yokohama , Japan : The seminar will propose mechanisms and tools of technical assistance for local governments and their communities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the financial opportunities of such environmental initiatives. http://www.citynet-ap.org

The Conference will be held in Dar es Salam, Tanzania on 22 April 2008 and aims to promote economic advancement by sharing ideas on the theme Capacity Building in Engineering Education for Sustainable Development. Educators, professional organizations, regulators and industry leaders from all over the world are invited to participate, to raise productive discussions on the challenges facing engineering education in Africa.
http://www.coet.udsm.ac.tz/ARCEE2008/index.php

Science With Africa Conference, 3-7 March 2008, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and Intelligence in Science (ISC) are inviting to the conference "Science with Africa" that aims to create among others new synergies between European, US and other global science based organisations and those in Africa, where there is an ongoing need to strengthen and improve existing R&D activities, centres of excellence and partnerships. The conference will launch a major science, technology and innovation initiative for Africa .   The conference aims also to explore how African science based entities can increase their collaboration with and participation in international science, technology, innovation and R&D projects. The conference will bring together African and international scientists conducting research in Africa, experts in the areas of science project management, dissemination, partnering, intellectual property, patents, research management and the commercialisation of R&D.   www.sciencewithafrica.com/ , www.ansti.org

Diverse News

Nepal Engineers' Association - Japan Chapter (NEA-JC) is an organization of Nepalese engineers established to facilitate mutual cooperation and support for the professional welfare and development among Nepalese engineers residing in Japan and to effectively contribute and play the role of Nepalese engineer's community for the development of the country. NEA-JC was established on March 24, 2003 to facilitate the establishment of relation of NEA with other related international organizations and to act for the development of professional knowledge and skill through various programs (e.g., get-togethers, intellectual seminars, workshops, interaction and publications). http://www.neajc.org. The National Nepal Engineers' Association (NEA) , a professional organization, founded in 1968 for the interaction, goodwill and cooperation among engineers in Nepal represents more than 7500 engineers nationwide. www.neanepal.org.np

Water Is Focus of Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa : In the Region climate change is an especially urgent issue, particularly in a region that experiences increasingly frequent droughts and a looming water supply shortage. Based on estimates from the UN's latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment, most of the MENA region is expected to become hotter and drier. Higher temperatures and reduced precipitation will increase the occurrence of droughts, an effect that is already materializing in the Maghreb , the western part of North Africa . While effective action to tackle climate change will depend on countries' commitment, the World Bank is supporting efforts to decrease climate vulnerability and to promote low-carbon growth. http://go.worldbank.org/43PNLDGJS0

World crude steel output increases by 7.5% in 2007: The International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI- www.worldsteel.org ) has announced that world crude steel output reached 1,343.5 million metric tons for the year 2007. This is an increase of 7.5% on 2006. The total represents the highest level of crude steel output in history and it is the fifth consecutive year that world crude steel production grew by more than 7%.
Top 10 steel producing countries