technizzel

This year seems to be filled with incessant action, especially for America. Since 8.08.08, the media has finally turned its cameras from the relentless presidential candidates Obama and McCain and onto other formidable heroes. Among the flyers of the parallel bars and the balance beams and the speedsters on the track, is the inherent race to be the dominant country of sports. For example, China and the USA are now head to head for who can come out on top with the most number of medals. And while, China has claimed the gym as their court at hand, Phelps and the rest of the USA swim team have commandeered the pool.

            Some may suggest theories of steroids, but Speedo has its own theory. For once the technology to sponsor faster and better is not from a gadget, but from the twisting of polymers and amalgamation of materials. From the recent past to the live Olympics, Speedo has created a suit not only partially responsible for winning races but for breaking world records. From Phelps’ quest to seize 8 gold medals, Eamon Simmons’ victory in the 100m freestyle, to Kitajima’s crushing win in the breaststroke, the suit seems to be the common factor towards swim success.

            The LZR Racer suit is used by the best in the world, and perhaps by the end of the article, we will see why. There is a team of aspects that works together to promote the sleek and triumphing design of the suit. First is called the LZR pulse, which is pretty much the swimsuit itself. The ‘pulse’ is ultra light and water repelling that was created to “reduce muscle oscillation and skin vibration through powerful compression” according to Speedo.com, which further adds that its suit decreases drag speed as well. That of course, is step one in the handbook for breaking world records.

            The LZR panels are located all over the suit, which are ultra thin and low drag panels that promote a streamlined shape for the swimmer. The internal Core Stabiliser is located at the hips and is designed to act like a corset that enforces the swimmer to maintain the best body shape throughout the water in a race. Further contributing to the infamous streamline position, are the bonded seams throughout the suit; the LZR Racer suit is the first suit with ultrasonically welded seams that provides a smooth and flexible surface. And last of all the facets is the three dimensional three-piece pattern that optimizes the shape of the swimmer.

            For avid swimmers, the suit has 5% less drag and is 4% faster than the FastSkin FS Pro along with being 5% better in oxygen efficiency in comparison to most normal suits. Such stats and material technology have attracted swimmers across the globe, including those previously mentioned, newcomers to the Olympics, Katie Hoff and Alaine Bernard, and many others. Michael Phelps further corroborates the success of the suit by saying, “Whether it’s the extra 100^th to win the gold medal or to break a world record, I’m confident knowing that I’m wearing the fastest suit known.” His teammate Ryan Lochte commented on the feel of the suit as well: “It feels amazing. It feels like you’re sliding through the water. It feels really tight on you and it feels real slick!”

            The development of the suit took place in Speedo’s AquaLab, a heaven for engineers in some sense. According to Speedo.com, “Aqualab works with world class experts from diverse industries including aerospace, engineering and medicine.” With all the talk of how the suit reduces drag significantly, Speedo justifies such findings with its coalition with NASA. It tested over 60 different materials in NASA’s famous wind tunnels to see which resulted in the least amount of negative drag. Water flume testing was also conducted- a test that provides an indication in regards to wind flow and patterns. At the University of Otago in New Zealand, tests were conducted through a range of competitive swimming velocities which produced results about the net drag on a swimmer. The experts responsible for handling these records involved biomechanics- a field mixing both human and the machine elements of the world. In regards to Lochte’s comment, the AquaLab had conducted 3D scan of a typical swimmer’s body to target the compression and streamline aspect of the suit.

            With all the research done, Speedo was left with one more hurdle before it could release its aquatic epiphany to the elite of the sport: Performance testing. Among a myriad of tests performed, the important ones that assessed start times, flexibility, turning, free swimming, and drag, were the ones the mattered most to swimmers. The results, of course, can be seen by the quotes of the most renowned swimmers of our time.

            Speedo has definitely out-engineered itself this time, contributing to the dazzling races unfolding in the 29^th Olympics. With records being smashed left and right, we do not need to credit illegal drugs but perhaps to a swimsuit beyond its time. Not only is the LZR Racer just any swimsuit, it is the fastest! Computational fluid dynamics along with the typical engineering mind can be held primarily responsible for jumpstarting a league of new race times.  This field is used to “predict how existing and new product designs will behave in real-world environments, [and] has been used to evaluate the friction, pressure and fluid flow characteristics around swimmers.” By recognizing where drag occurs most along the human body, Speedo can build its suits to minimize the drag in these areas. Since 1992, Speedo has been trying to show the swimming world that your best is an evolving term, and as long as we apply our engineering expertise, we can always find room to be better.

For more information and see athlete feedback as well as videos on development of the suit, check out Speedo80.com .

Civil and environmental engineering students Jonathan Blanchard , Kevin Orner and David Tengler receive a plaque from five communities in Ecuador that will benefit from a new water pipeline the students implemented in June. (large image)

“I’ve got a project for you,” University of Wisconsin-Madison Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Peter Bosscher told Jonathan Blanchard and Kevin Orner in August 2007, during one of the trio’s weekly gatherings at Bosscher’s home.

Blanchard and Orner, civil and environmental engineering students who graduated in May 2008, listened as their mentor described a design to fix a water pipeline serving five small communities in central Ecuador.

“The day he told us, we said, ‘Yes, we’ll do it.’ We went home and started putting together a proposal that week,” says Orner.

Along with fellow civil and environmental engineering student David Tengler, Blanchard and Orner tackled the project for their senior design capstone project, a requirement for all civil and environmental engineering seniors.

The result is a 10 km-long system of PVC pipes that provides equal amounts of water to the villages of Larca Cunga, Agualongo, Panecillo, Yambiro and San Juan Loma.

Water equity is a major improvement: Before the project, the communities furthest from the mountain spring could only draw water for one hour late at night while the communities closest to the source drew an estimated 100 gallons per person per day.

“We all felt privileged to do a project that influences people’s lives in such a positive way,” says Tengler.

Implemented in Ecuador in June 2008, the project is also a meaningful tribute to a mentor who lived to serve others. Bosscher died in November 2007 after a battle with kidney cancer.

“We’ve been so tremendously influenced by Peter and we want to keep remembering what he’s taught us,” says Blanchard. “The pipeline, which has been dubbed the Peter Bosscher Memorial Waterway, is a living memorial because it will keep providing abundant water for years to come.”

The idea for the pipeline redesign originally came from researchers at the UW-Madison Center for Global Health, who noticed local struggles with water access while conducting a field study in Ecuador. Sensing that an engineering solution was necessary, Curtis Johnson, a professor emeritus of pharmacy and medicine, invited Bosscher to survey the system. Lori DiPrete Brown, the Center for Global Health assistant director, worked with Bosscher in the field and stayed connected with the community. She also oriented the students.

Bosscher was the advisor for the UW-Madison chapter of Engineers Without Borders, a nonprofit organization that designs and implements sustainable engineering projects in foreign countries. Blanchard, Orner and Tengler were active members of EWB—Blanchard and Orner even led a project to construct a sewer pipeline in El Salvador in January 2008.

Their EWB connections also led them to Tom Siebers, a civil and environmental alumnus and retired engineer who acted as a resource and mentor for the students.

“I enjoyed it tremendously,” says Siebers. “You can purchase a vacation to another country, but you only see it from a distance. This enabled us to live and work with people who could touch you and be touched by you.”

Other alumni and industry contacts were involved with the project by way of funding. The Civil and Environmental Visiting Committee financed the project, which cost $12,500.

“The board saw a legitimate need and saw the passion of the students,” says Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor and Chair Jeffrey Russell. “When our alumni and industry partners are asked to help, they respond, especially when you articulate how your plan is going to make a difference.”

In March 2008, Orner and Tengler traveled to Ecuador during their spring break to meet community members and gather field data. After tweaking the design for the rest of the semester, the three students and Siebers returned to Ecuador to implement the project from May 27 to June 10.

Prior to the group’s arrival, the communities gathered to excavate the pipeline trenches. The Ecuadorian tradition of gathering together to work for the good of the community is known as a minga.

“There were women with year-old babies on their back willing to climb a kilometer uphill in bare feet to lay pipe,” recalls Orner. “That was just business as usual.”

The project had three components. First, new pipe with a wider diameter than that of the existing pipe was laid to increase the flow to the system. Next, the team added a pressure release box to prevent pipes from bursting at the low end of the system. Additionally, they installed water meters and valves to regulate the system.

Though the students originally thought two minga sessions would be enough to complete the project, they ended up working every day for the two-week trip. On the final day, the communities threw a celebration to thank the students for their work. The festivities included speeches, dancing and a basket of potatoes served with five roasted guinea pigs on top.

The communities also gave the students a plaque, which will hang in the civil and environmental engineering department office—a small reminder of the project its legacy.

“Peter’s view of the role of an engineering education is it can and should be relevant and significant in a global world. He thought about big challenges and how he could make a difference,” says Russell.

Tengler now works for Hunzinger Construction Co. in Brookfield, Wisconsin. Blanchard and Orner will continue a career in humanitarian-based engineering as graduate students in the Peace Corps Master’s International program at the University of South Florida, Tampa.

“It’s one thing to talk about globalization and making a difference. It’s another thing entirely to do it,” says Russell.

For Tengler, the experience illustrated the power of an engineering education to help people.

“If other students have this kind of opportunity, it would create a whole new class of civil engineers,” he says. “You don’t realize the potential of your education until you actually start doing things.”