Red River College students led the way for a Manitoba delegation that earned the highest number of gold medals at the recently held 17^th Canadian Skills Competition in Quebec City. The annual Skills Canada National event took place from June 1 to 4.

Team Manitoba received a total of 24 medals, including 13 Gold, 5 Silver, and 6 Bronze. The teams from Ontario and Quebec each earned 10 Gold medals, while the Alberta and British Columbia delegations each finished with 7 Gold.

Of the Team Manitoba medals, Red River College students won 4 Gold, 2 Silver, and 3 Bronze:

• Andrew Hallmann, CNC Machining (post-secondary) – Gold
• Markus Messerschmidt, Autobody Repair (post-secondary) – Gold
• Ryan Peters, Carpentry (post-secondary) – Gold
• Vasyl Zhukov-Malyeyev, Cabinet Making (post-secondary) – Gold
• Jacob Bell, Brick Masonry (post-secondary) – Silver
• Chad Verplaestse, Sheet Metal Work (post-secondary) – Silver
• Colin Dewitt, Landscape Gardening (post-secondary) – Bronze
• Mackenzie Harman, Landscape Gardening (post-secondary) – Bronze
• Jesse Reimer, Architectural Tech & Design (post-secondary) – Bronze

Congratulations to the RRC representatives, as well as the rest of Team Manitoba, on an excellent showing!

Red River College (RRC) was one of 35 colleges that will share in more than $8 million in federal grant money, via the federal government’s recently announced Applied Research Tools and Instruments Grants, a brand new initiative under the College and Community Innovation Program.

This grant supports the purchase of research equipment and installations to foster and enhance the ability of colleges to conduct applied research.

“This funding helps us with our ongoing mandate of applying knowledge to solve real-world challenges,” says Ray Hoemsen, Director of Applied Research and Commercialization at RRC.

RRC received a grant of $127,001, which will be used to upgrade the environmental test chambers in the College’s Centre for Applied Research in Sustainable Infrastructure and acquire air leakage testing equipment to be used for commercial and industrial buildings.

“Upgrades are under way and we are already using the air leakage testing equipment on a handful of projects,” says Hoemsen. “Applied research is a key element in improving Canada’s productivity and innovation capacity. We are thankful for the federal government’s continued support.”

Click to learn more about RRC’s office of Applied Research and Commercialization.

As part of their efforts to make composite manufacturing more economical, an instructor and a grad from RRC's Mechanical Engineering Technology program have developed a new means of making dissolvable mandrels and patterns, otherwise known as "rapid prototype composite tooling (RPCT)."

Composite manufacturing currently has substantial overhead costs, partly due to the expense of tooling.

"To produce these tools, one typically requires expensive machines that are also very slow and costly to operate," says Leon Fainstein, the instructor who led the development of the new RPCT. "By contrast, RPCT involves only one affordable machine — a 3D printer."

The 3D printer will print virtually any shape of dissolvable mandrels and patterns in about four to eight hours, and even print multiple mandrels or patterns at once.

"Manufacturers require permanent composite molds for short production runs. RPCT can make them with dissolvable patterns," says Serge Broeska (shown, above), the program grad who's now working as a Research Technologist at RRC's Centre for Applied Research in Sustainable Infrastructure  (CARSI). "These composite molds can be very complex, have smooth surfaces, and are comparable to metal molds, with the exception that they are much less expensive."

While there are other methods of making dissolvable mandrels and patterns, RPCT is the only method whereby dissolvable mandrels and patterns can be made directly from CAD files.

"With the progressive development of RPCT, the possibilities for composite design and manufacturing are becoming endless," says Broeska.

To learn more about this breakthrough, read Broeska's article here.

Click here for more information about RRC's Mechanical Engineering Technology program.

Red River College celebrated the achievements of its Aboriginal graduates at the College's 11th Annual Graduation Pow Wow.

Hosted by RRC's School of Indigenous Education, the event (held May 6, 2011), drew more than 800 graduates, family members and friends.

On June 3, 2011, the SIE will host the College's first ever Aboriginal Art Auction, in support of Aboriginal-focused programming for students. Tickets will be sold until June 2, 2011, at both the Notre Dame Campus and Exchange District Campus bookstores.

For more information or to view images of the available artwork, see www.rrc.ca/aboriginalart.

After months of careful consideration, Red River College’s Alumni Board is proud to announce the recipient of the 2011 Distinguished Alumni Award: Regina resident Wayne Morsky, president and CEO of Morsky Group of Companies.

Inspired in equal measure by his passion for his family and for family-run businesses, Morsky has been working for his own family business since the age of 13, and now oversees a thriving infrastructure development operation that for 55 years has been involved in diverse sectors of the industry, including general contracting, highway construction, railway maintenance, industrial services, HySpeed soil nailing, and oil and gas development.

Born and raised in Virden, Man., Morsky graduated from RRC’s Business Administration program in 1981, having attained skills he now describes as vital to his success as an entrepreneur.

“I could take the things I learned at Red River College and put them into daily effect quite quickly after getting out of school,” says Morsky, “especially because I was involved with a family-owned business.”

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University of Manitoba President David Barnard and Red River College President Stephanie Forsyth.

Red River College (RRC) and the University of Manitoba (U of M) are joining forces to improve educational options for students, enhance research and development activities, and improve their ability to provide the highly skilled workforce Manitoba needs to innovate and grow.

The two institutions signed a Partnership Protocol Agreement yesterday that builds on a long history of working together to plan programs and services, facilitate joint academic programming, pursue bridge programming initiatives, enhance student mobility and foster collaborative research efforts.

This new agreement will include looking for additional opportunities for the articulation of courses and programs so that students can transfer smoothly between the two institutions. It also outlines a commitment on behalf of both institutions to furthering aboriginal student access and achievement in post-secondary education.

Stephanie Forsyth, President of RRC, views the partnership as a step toward even more collaboration to the benefit of students and the community.

"Our institutions already have a great working relationship, but this agreement positions us to develop even more comprehensive learning opportunities for students, and enhanced research and training initiatives for our industry partners," she said.

David Barnard, President and Vice-Chancellor of the U of M, believes the new agreement will help Red River College and the University of Manitoba continue to lead the way in advancing economic, social and cultural development in the province.  

“Between our two institutions, we address the full spectrum of post-secondary education, research and training needs in Manitoba and we see opportunities to build on our existing leadership in advancing Manitoba’s innovation agenda,’’ he explains. “This agreement reinforces what we are already doing and outlines specific ways in which we might enhance those efforts and build on them.”

This is the latest in a series of cooperative agreements that Red River College has established with other educational institutions in Manitoba and around the world. These partnerships include opportunities for students to advance their studies, for staff to share their expertise in developing nations, and for researchers to pursue innovations with global companies.

 
Chris Stoddart, VP Engineering Services for New Flyer Industries, provides details of RRC's new electric vehicle partnership. 

Premier Greg Selinger today announced the province will invest $1 million for the development of an all-electric transit bus and charging system, and $100,000 for the creation of an electric-vehicle learning and demonstration centre at Red River College, two of several initiatives under Manitoba’s Electric Vehicle Road Map.

“This is exciting.  We are working together to develop an entirely electric bus to get families around in cities all over North America,” said Selinger.  “We’re also creating opportunities for young people right here in the province to become leaders in developing and building clean, electric vehicles and helping cut greenhouse-gas emissions.”

The $3-million, three-year project brings Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, New Flyer Industries, Manitoba Hydro, Red River College and the province together.  The bus development will be completed within one year and tested in Manitoba for two more years, the premier said.  Project development will be focused at Red River College and New Flyer Industries’ Winnipeg facilities.

The electric-bus development will benefit from New Flyer’s experience in building hybrid and hydrogen fuel-cell buses, Mitsubishi’s leading-edge lithium-ion battery technologies, Manitoba Hydro’s grid-management knowledge and Red River College’s instructors and students who can assist in solving the technological challenges coming from the project.

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Sara MacArthur, RRC's Manager of Sustainability, inside one of the College's new greenhouses.

Red River College has been named one of Canada’s 50 Greenest Employers for 2011 by Mediacorp Canada Inc.

RRC received this prestigious honour thanks to its initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of College operations, incorporate sustainability into its research and academic programming, and engage staff and students in more eco-conscious behaviour.

"We’re proud that staff and students have embraced our commitment to adopt sustainable business practices and become a more socially responsible organization," said Stephanie Forsyth, President of Red River College. "This award recognizes the efforts of the many green leaders we have throughout the College."

Some of RRC’s recent environmental accomplishments include:

• Increasing waste diversion rates by over 30% by implementing a new recycling system.
• Conducting testing on new technologies for green construction and alternative energy vehicles through our applied research department.
• Operating an on-site program at the Notre Dame Campus that turns organic kitchen waste into compost that’s used on College grounds.
• Converting used cooking oil into biodiesel that can be used to power College vehicles.
• Building new facilities, such as the Heavy Equipment transportation Centre and the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute, to meet LEED standards of energy efficiency.

RRC is one of only two Manitoba organizations to be named to this year’s Greenest Employer list (along with New Flyer Industries), and one of only five post-secondary institutions across Canada.

The award is the latest in a series of green honours for the College, including a 2009 Manitoba Excellence in Sustainability Award, a 2010 Spirit of Winnipeg Award, and top finishes in the last two Winnipeg Commuter Challenges.

"Red River College is dedicated to being a sustainability role model in our community," explained Sara MacArthur, Manager of Sustainability at RRC.  "Sustainability isn’t limited to one office or one area in the College. It’s in our daily operations, our building projects, our research endeavours, our student projects and more."

Launched in 2007, the Canada’s Greenest Employers competition recognizes organizations that lead the nation in creating a culture of environmental awareness in their workplaces.

To introduce young people to career options in technology and trades-related fields, Red River College runs a series of technology workshops throughout the year. One of our most popular options is the Saturday morning "Introduction to Electronics" sessions run at our Exchange District Campus.

RRC student Luke Marvin shot a fun video about his experience helping teach the basic concepts of electronics — including voltage, current and resistance –  to junior high students as part of this year's workshop.

An eco-friendly car being designed by a team of Winnipeg engineers could soon power demand for a new era in energy efficiency, says a Red River College instructor.

For the last several years, designers and engineers from local firm Kor EcoLogic Inc. have been hard at work on the "Urbee" — a low-energy passenger vehicle that's powered by electricity and ethanol, instead of fossil fuels.

"It has the potential to drastically reduce the amount of non-renewable energy we use," says RRC instructor Andrew Warren, who's been involved with the project off and on for the last 15 years.

"We've calculated that we can go 30 miles a day on energy gathered from the sun. So theoretically, you could buy this car and not have to put gas or hydro power into it — you'd just charge it from the solar panels on your roof at home."

Warren and his colleagues, under the direction of company president (and RRC alum) Jim Kor, were inspired to create the Urbee — short for Urban Electrical with Ethanol as Backup — after building a model of a human-powered transit system for the Seattle Bicycle Show.

Guided by the same principle — that of travelling the furthest distance possible while consuming the least amount of energy — they turned their attention to a passenger car, which they originally entered in the 2010 Progressive Automotive X-PRIZE competition.

The Urbee — a sleek-looking three-wheeled model — finished in the Top 30 of 111 entries, and also resulted in a treasure trove of media attention for the Kor team.

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