10 October 2011
The Philippine Society of Mechanical Engineers will hold its 59th Annual National Convention or NatCon on October 25-28, 2011 at the SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia, Pasay City.
About 2,000 delegates from the 73 local and international chapters are expected to attend this year’s event themed “Go Green Energy”, and which will focus on the various facets of mechanical engineering, particularly the care of the environment and the use of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydro-electric, OTEC and bio-fuels. Prominent speakers and highly regarded practitioners have been lined up to interact with the delegates on the latest green technologies, environment protection, and energy conservation during the Plenary Sessions and Technical Paper Presentations. In addition, also up for discussion are subject matters relevant to the practice of the profession, such as the Philippine Mechanical Engineering Law (RA 8495) and updates on the status of its implementation, and the Continuing Professional Education (or CPE) program which will be officially in effect for the ME profession starting this month.
As has been traditionally practiced, the learning sessions shall be spiced with the fun and camaraderie activities such as the Golf Tournament (at the Villamor Golf Club), the Candidates’ and Members’ Fellowship Night, the Awards Night and others. These light activities shall also provide the enrichment that can enhance not only the delegates’ learning effectiveness but also their networking opportunities.
This year’s four day convention shall have a special significance in that it would usher in the launching of two new consequent activities, namely, the First PSME National Student Conference, and the First Philippine Machineries Exhibition or Philmach 2011. It will also signal the start of the implementation of the CPE program for the mechanical engineering profession.
The student conference which shall run during the first two days of the convention is expected to be attended by at least a thousand mechanical engineering student delegates from leading universities and collages nationwide. Here, aside from being able to field teams representing their schools in the mechanical engineering oriented Quiz Bee and the design contest, the students would also have the opportunity to interact with leading experts in their chosen field of specialization.
Meanwhile, the Philmach 2011, which will be open to the public for free, will have about 100 booths in the SMX Convention Center manned by exhibitors that will showcase products relevant to at least eight mechanical engineering concerns, namely: heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC); boilers, pumps, valves and pipes (BPVO); fire protection, safety and security; green energy technology; metal works; maintenance and reliability excellence; processing and packaging; and, food and beverage.
As for the CPE program for the ME profession (which was just recently approved for implementation by the Professional Regulations Commission upon the recommendation of the Board of Mechanical Engineering), it requires that any Registered or Professional Mechanical Engineer would need to earn 60 CPE units over three years (or 20 units per year) to qualify for the renewal of his/her professional license. For Certified Plant Mechanicss, the requirement is 30 CPE units over 3 years (or 10 units per year). Therefore, all practitioners will have to start earning CPE credits already to meet this pre-requisite for license renewal three years from now. The PSME National, which is currently the accredited CPE provider, will credit the convention delegates with 20 CPE units so this would already satisfy the CPE units required for this year.
The PSME, which has just, very recently, been granted by the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC), its renewal as the Accredited Professional Organization (or APO) for the mechanical engineering profession for the next three years, is currently headed by Engr. Liberato S. Virata as its National President. The 59th Natcon meanwhile is chaired by Engr. Rudy J. Sultan (who is also the “Society’s”current Executive Vice President) with Engr. Pablito C. Ocampo as Co-Chair. The Philmach 2011 is chaired by Engr. Roger Reyes, while the First National Student Conference is spearheaded by Ms Loraine Ann Barbacina of PUP Manila as Student Chairperson and Ms Angeline Uy of PLM as Student Co-Chair.
Further information regarding the event may be obtained from the PSME official website (http://psmenow.org), or from the National Office at Room 401, Don Lorenzo Building, P. Paredes Street, Sampaloc, Manila , and which may be reached trough its landlines (7362043, 3930347, 2168133), fax (4934268 ), cell phones (0917-5500002 or 0917-8681700 ) and by email (psmenatcon@yahoo.com or psmenatcon@psmenow.org).
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