April 9, 2015
College of Engineering UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN–MADISON
Supported by a grant from The Grainger Foundation
GraingerPower Engineering
Awards March 31, 2016
Steve Bye Matthew Doran
2016 AWARD RECIPIENTS
Alexander Klintworth
Seth McElhinney
Eric NipkoJoel Neher
Joseph Snodgrass Timothy Stone
Adam Shea
Hayden Peterson
Eden Werner
Vishram Deshpande
PHD
3
5:00 P.M.
5:30 P.M.
6:15 P.M.
The Grainger Foundation of Lake Forest, Illinois, established in 1949 by Mr. and Mrs. William Wallace Grainger, has provided substantive support over the years
to a broad range of organizations, including museums and educational, medical, and human services institutions.
David W. Grainger, President of The Grainger Foundation, received his BS in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1950.
GrainGer Power enGineerinG awards
RECEPTION
OPENING REMARKS
• Jake Blanchard, professor and executive associate dean
DINNER
AWARDS PRESENTATION(Undergraduate and graduate awards)
• Jake Blanchard
• Power engineering faculty: Thomas Jahns Robert Lorenz Dan Ludois Bulent Sarlioglu
24
Steve Bye
Steve Bye grew up next to a dam in
Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, which
quickly became the source of his
earliest interests in power and electricity.
“I was fascinated by how the power plant used
water to create electricity and I always liked
looking at the substations and power lines form from the plant,”
Bye says. “From this interest in electric machines and energy
delivery sprang my desire to become an engineer.”
He started his undergraduate career as a nuclear engineer,
but soon switched over to electrical, and more specifically,
power engineering. “Power engineering interests me because
it is so vital to our common way of life,” he says.
He draws on this applicability to motivate his future career.
During his time at UW-Madison, he held two summer internships,
the first at Siemens in Norwood, Ohio, a manufacturing facility
where he helped design large induction motors for industrial
applications. During summer 2015, he was an intern at Alliant
Energy in Madison, Wisconsin, working in the distribution
planning department. This allowed him to model electric
distribution systems and draft radial and contingency analysis
of certain substation circuits.
In addition to his degree in electrical engineering, Bye will
be graduating in May 2016 with a degree in mathematics and
two certificates, one in engineering for energy sustainability
and another in physics. After taking a self-guided trip to Europe
over the summer, he will be starting a full-time engineering
position with Alliant Energy.
In addition to his work as an engineer, Bye holds leadership
positions with a number of Catholic entities on campus, and
also enjoys singing as a hobby.
5
Matthew Doran
Matthew Doran, a student of
various talents and interests,
pursued engineering with the
motivation of figuring out how things work.
His experience with power engineering started
with ECE 356: Electric Power Processing for Alternative
Energy Systems, where he learned about DC-DC converters for use
in solar cells, and AC motors/generators for use in wind turbines.
From there, he continued to focus on power engineering.
In addition to his coursework, Doran has made important
contributions to campus life. He conducted research with the
Computer Sciences Professor Karu Sankaralingam for almost
two years. He helped to develop the curriculum for ECE 252:
Introduction to Computer Engineering, by implementing robotics
projects into the class and changing some of the homework sets
to incorporate the Arduino microcontroller. Aside from his work
in engineering, he has been a member of the UW-Madison Band
trumpet section throughout his undergraduate career.
Doran has also taken part in internships. While working with
GE Healthcare in Aurora, Ohio, after his junior year, he developed
an automated testing environment to test MRI coils with minimal
input from the technician, as a participant in the MRI coil develop-
ment group. The summer after his senior year, he interned with
the GE Power and Water in Waukesha, Wisconsin, where he worked
with its remote monitoring and diagnostics group. He helped to
develop a remote monitoring system that gathers data from large
internal combustion engines used to drive auxiliary equipment.
He graduated in Dec. 2015 with a degree in electrical engineering
and began working in General Motors’ electrified powertrain division
in March 2016 in Pontiac, Michigan, focusing on inverters, DC-DC
converters and electric motors in their hybrid and electric vehicles.
Doran refers to himself as an avid outdoorsman. He enjoys fishing,
camping, four wheeling, snowmobiling, boating, scuba diving and
photography.
26
Alexander Klintworth
Alexander Klintworth has always
been passionate about the
environment. From a young age,
he volunteered at his local nature center
in Neenah, Wisconsin, and fostered a love for
nature. “I realized the combination of my passion for
alternative and clean energy and my interest in math and
problem-solving was ideal for a career in engineering,” he says.
For Klintworth, wanting a career in renewable energy naturally
led to electrical engineering, with a focus on power engineering. He
is also obtaining a certificate in engineering for energy sustainability,
to help him develop a more interdisciplinary background.
Klintworth has participated in a co-op with Wisconsin Public
Service Corporation as a plant engineer. This involved designing
plant system updates and improvements on both the electrical
and mechanical level. The ultimate goal was to optimize safety,
effectiveness and economic payback.
He plans to graduate in December 2016, and then pursue a
master’s degree, with his research aimed at electrical engineering
and renewable energy.
Klintworth is heavily involved with the UW Triathlon Team,
competing at the collegiate nationals and serving as an officer
throughout his undergraduate career. He is a member of the
student organization Energy Hub, and was involved with the El
Salvador project of the UW-Madison Engineers Without Borders
student chapter for two years. In his free time, he enjoys camping,
backpacking, biking, ultimate Frisbee, tutoring, and playing the
cello and guitar.
7
Joel Neher
Joel Neher has always had a strong
interest in building, creating and
innovating, and his passion for
engineering was cultivated at an early age.
However, it was his desire to take part in the
energy revolution that prompted his interest in power
engineering. “Electricity is the foundation on which nearly all
modern technology stands, and being able to efficiently
generate, transmit, store and manipulate this energy is crucial
to technological advancement,” he says.
Neher, originally from Janesville, Wisconsin, spent much of his
undergraduate career working as a research assistant under Electrical
and Computer Engineering Professor John Booske and Associate
Professor Nader Behdad. He worked on a project that involved
rebuilding and troubleshooting the pulsing circuitry for a 50
kilowatt pulsed magnetron, as well as electromagnetic simulations
for a metamaterial reflector. He continued to work as a research
assistant in the summer, creating an inductor with an inductance
that varied based on the voltage difference placed across its core.
After his junior year, Neher worked as an intern at the MIT Lincoln
Laboratory. He designed a printed circuit board to filter and distribute
power to components of a receiver system, developed a program to
control digital attenuators within the front-end of this system, and
diagnosed arcing at the output of a high-power radar magnetron.
Neher graduated with a bachelor of science degree in electrical
engineering in May 2015, after which he moved to Boulder, Colorado,
to work at Plexus, an electronics manufacturing services company,
as an analog engineer. His role includes a variety of responsibilities,
including EMC troubleshooting, functional test fixture design, PCB
layout and power supply design.
On top of his responsibilities as an engineer, Neher enjoys
spending time in the mountains, whether it be hiking, mountain
biking, rock climbing or skiing.
28
Eric Nipko
Eric Nipko started attending UW-
Oshkosh in 2011, where he decided
to study physics. However, he was also
drawn by the electromagnetics courses he
took while completing his physics degree, so he
decided to pursue a dual degree program there and
at UW-Madison. This would provide him with the continued rigor
of math and physics courses, combined with the opportunity to
apply his knowledge via engineering.
After taking ECE 356: Electric Power Processing for Alternative
Energy Systems, and ECE 427: Electric Power Systems, he developed
an interest in power engineering, due to its similarities with
physics. He was drawn especially to the topic of alternative energy
sources. “I think there will be great opportunities in the future
to continue improving renewable energy technologies, as it
becomes more necessary to move toward cleaner energy sources,”
Nipko says.
When not focusing on his studies, Nipko participates in various
basketball and football leagues, both in Madison and Oshkosh,
his hometown. Through his dual degree program, he is due to
graduate in May 2016 with a bachelor of science degree in physics
from UW-Oshkosh, and a bachelor of science degree in electrical
engineering from UW-Madison. Upon graduating, he hopes to find
an in-state job in electrical engineering.
In addition to watching and playing sports, Nipko enjoys
boating, waterskiing and fishing. He makes sure to keep up on
advancements in his field by reading technical articles, but also
enjoys reading James Patterson novels.
9
Hayden Peterson
For Hayden Peterson, it was a
fascination with building things
that opened him up to a major in
engineering. From Luxemburg, Wisconsin,
Peterson has always had a fervent interest in
the sciences, but it wasn’t till he took a class in astronomy
during his freshman year, and watched Iron Man for the first time,
that he realized physics and engineering could be a good match
for him.
Peterson focused on power engineering mostly due to its
connections with renewable energy. “I love the creativity and
innovation of the ideas for storing and using electrical power,”
he says. “It truly takes advantage of the physics of nature and
makes the most out of it.”
He currently is on a co-op at Extreme Engineering Solutions
of Middleton, Wisconsin, where he tests computer boards for
rugged environments by running functional tests of the boards
in various settings such as high or low temperatures, shocks,
vibrations and humidity. Peterson has also been a tutor and
supplemental instructor in the college Undergraduate Learning
Center for physics and electrical engineering courses for the
past two semesters.
Peterson plans to graduate in December 2016 with degrees
in physics and electrical engineering. He would like to find a job in
renewable energy, particularly in solar or electrical energy storage.
In his spare time, Peterson enjoys reading mystery and sci-fi
novels, working out, playing the guitar, cooking and playing
video games.
210
Joseph Snodgrass
Although Joseph Snodgrass’ interest
in power engineering didn’t fully
develop until he took a class on
electric machines and drives while abroad
in Finland, he has always been an engineer at
heart. As a child, he would keep a notebook of ideas
and designs to record his inventions. “I always wanted to be taking
on new challenges and coming up with solutions to unique
problems, and engineering seemed to fit these skills, interests
and aspirations,” Snodgrass says.
Upon returning to UW-Madison from Finland, he started taking
classes relevant to power engineering, pursuing coursework in
electromechanical energy conversion, power systems analysis
and power processing for renewable energy. For the first time,
he found himself immersed in his classes, and motivated to excel.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the challenges presented in these
classes and the helpfulness of the professors teaching them,”
Snodgrass says.
He has been able to apply his skills as a member of the electrical
design team for WiscWind, an interdisciplinary team of engineers
and business students aimed at designing a small wind turbine to
compete in the Department of Energy’s Collegiate Wind Competition.
He also held an internship in 2014 as a project manager for Gephart
Electric and Parson’s Technologies in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
working on site at the construction of the U.S. Bank Stadium.
He joined the IEEE student chapter in his fourth year at
UW-Madison and was appointed industrial relations chair. He
was also philanthropy chair of his fraternity.
Snodgrass, who grew up in Madison, will graduate in May 2016
with a degree in electrical engineering and a certificate in
international engineering. He hopes to work in the renewable
energy industry. And in his free time, he enjoys playing a variety
of instruments and running.
11
Timothy Stone
Timothy Stone has been an
engineer in the making ever since
career and technical student
organization SkillsUSA gave a presentation
in his 8th grade class, imbuing him with the
desire to invent, innovate and create. He grew up in
Pulaski, Wisconsin, and came to UW-Madison to cultivate his
interest in engineering.
Stone engaged in a variety of internship and co-op experiences,
the first taking place at Marinette Marine, a shipbuilding company
in Marinette, Wisconsin, where he was part of a team that oversaw
construction of new LCS Naval ships. He also interned at C3
technology, a 3D mapping company, where he contributed his
logic programming skills to automate small, specialized machines.
At Georgia-Pacific, an American pulp and paper company based
in Atlanta, Georgia, Stone took part in a co-op that allowed him to
estimate and design safety systems for large paper machine winders.
“After completing my co-op, I wanted to continue specializing
in safety systems, and one huge part of that is electrical power
isolation,” he says.
This experience inspired him to take a power class during
his last semester as an undergraduate. “Working at a paper mill,
where we generate almost all of our own power, it is important
to have a grasp on power engineering,” he says.
Stone graduated in May 2015, and currently works at a Georgia
Pacific location in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as an electrical project
engineer. He works in a corporate engineering group responsible
for large capital projects, which requires traveling around the
country to support other facilities. He specializes in designing and
implementing safety systems, but also works on energy isolation
to remove hazardous energy from an operator’s workplace.
Stone enjoys hunting, fishing, camping and canoeing as well
as building willow furniture in his spare time.
212
Eden Werner
Growing up in Muskego, Wisconsin,
as the daughter of a power engineer,
Eden Werner was exposed to the
utility industry at a young age. Through
the years, power engineering piqued her
interest. With a mind for problem solving, science and
mathematics, Werner decided to study electrical engineering at
UW-Madison.
In addition to her schoolwork and a membership with the IEEE
UW-Madison student chapter, Werner interned for three summers
at the American Transmission Company, which operates the
electricity transmission systems in various parts of the Midwest. For
two of those summers, she was a system planning engineer intern,
which involved running power flow analysis to see how varying
loads were affecting the transmission system. In her third year, she
interned with the company’s Energy Management System group,
updating one-line diagrams of the transmission system. These
experiences solidified her interest in power engineering as a
future career.
Werner graduated from UW-Madison in December 2015, and now
works at We Energies, a Milwaukee-based company that provides
electricity to areas in Wisconsin as well as Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
As a transmission planning engineer, Werner runs analysis to see
how varying factors, such as location and transmission, affect
energy prices.
While not dedicating herself to the ins and outs of electrical
transmission, Werner enjoys traveling, photography, and spending
time with family and friends
Vishram Deshpande
Vishram Deshpande developed a
keen interest in power electronics
during his undergraduate education,
due to the influence of physics in power
engineering. This interest was further
developed during his time at UW-Madison, where he
was impressed by the research projects in electrical and computer
engineering, and the strong connections between industry and
research on campus.
After receiving a bachelor of science degree in electrical
engineering from Sardar Patel College of Engineering, an affiliate of
the University of Mumbai, Deshpande started his career as a junior
engineer, later taking the role of technical manager. He migrated
to the United States in 2001, leading a research and development
group of seven associates at TDK-Lambda in Plainsboro, New Jersey.
Shortly after, he began his studies at UW-Madison, where he received
his master’s degree in electrical engineering in 2006.
Deshpande is currently conducting research on extending the
auxiliary commutated resonant pole converter to a generalized
design space; the converter can be applied to faster switching
devices based on DC-to-DC converters and inverters to achieve
lower overall losses.
Deshpande plans to graduate with a PhD in electrical engineering
in May 2016. He hopes to bring his research to a career in creating
more efficient products.
Aside from his research, Deshpande enjoys playing cricket. He
played cricket during his undergraduate education and recently
was captain of a cricket team in a New Jersey softball cricket league.
Deshpande also likes chess, listening to music and audio books,
and writing poetry.
PhD recipient
13
PhD recipient
214
Seth McElhinney
Seth McElhinney asserts that power
engineering is highly relevant to
today’s most pressing environmental
and social problems. A PhD student in
electrical engineering, with a minor focus in
mechanical engineering, McElhinney has an inherent
fascination for energy conversion and electric power. “I think power
engineering offers me a good career where there is a lot of room for
very useful and groundbreaking new work,” he says.
McElhinney grew up in Los Osos, California, and received a
bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering and a master
of science degree in electrical engineering from the Rose-Hulman
Institute of Technology in 1998 and 2001, respectively.
For several years, he worked for Busek Company Inc., a
Massachusetts spacecraft propulsion company, where he focused
on instrumentation systems, as well as electrical and mechanical
design. For two years, he was with Diversified Technologies Inc.,
working on power electronics, magnetics and associated embedded
systems. In summer 2011, he worked for the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, where he modeled electro-
magnetic losses in electric motors for hybrid vehicles with the power
electronic and electric machines group.
McElhinney’s range of experience in the field brought him to
UW-Madison, where he does research on improved cooling
methods, specifically centrifugally pumped heat pipes for cooling
rotors. He hopes to graduate in 2017, and later work on research
and development related to improved electric machines, and
energy conversion systems for hybrid and electric vehicles.
Outside of engineering, McElhinney enjoys making metal
sculptures. He is a co-chair for rock climbing in Hoofers, and
enjoys bike riding, hiking, rock climbing, and a variety of other
outdoor activities.
15
PhD recipient
Adam Shea
For Adam Shea, a native of Rochester,
Minnesota, there’s nothing quite like
the thrill of driving a power system
that he designed and built from scratch.
“Power engineering is the part of electrical
engineering where you can really feel when something
works, or doesn’t,” he says.
Shea, a PhD student in electrical engineering, conducts research
on how to control a machine with multiple independent motor
drives without any tight inter-module communication requirements.
Finding solutions in this area allows for a greater degree of fault
tolerance and greater system flexibility.
He grew up with an interest in engineering, introduced to
the field at an early age by his father, also an electrical engineer.
“Engineering is how people can make imaginary things actually
happen,” Shea says.
He received his bachelor of science degree in electrical and
computer engineering from the University of Minnesota in 2009.
He developed a specific interest in power engineering during his
undergraduate experience with the University of Minnesota Solar
Vehicle Project, focusing on motor control and Maximum Power
Point Tracking systems.
He plans to graduate from UW-Madison in May 2017, and then
go into industry research and development to help increase
electrification and develop more efficient solutions to current
problems in power.
Shea’s interests range from studying metrology, astronomy,
computer security and life support technology for small closed
systems to going on bike rides or sailing with the Hoofers sailing
club at UW-Madison.