I usually thank engineers who participate in engineer week activities during the month of February in my message. This year the number of our members who participate in the events and activities during late January and February were amazing. We conducted more than 23 events in February. I would like to say THANK YOU to everyone who participated in these events. As most of you know, engineers throughout the United States recently celebrated their profession during National Engineers Week. With these celebrations, there were various activities designed to bring a public awareness of the accomplishments of engineers and also to educate young students about careers in engineering. It was my privilege to represent our association at many events in the Chicagoland area. Among those events was judging the science fair projects at several schools, judging our own contest, the AAAEA Essay/Poster Contest, (see my article), school out reach, and participate in career day. I was also present at the High School Bridge Building Contest at IIT and the Chicagoland Engineering Award Benefit at the University Club of Chicago at which AAAEA members and members of more than 30 engineering societies gathered to honor the profession and network with other professionals and civic leaders. AAAEA also participated for the second time at the Du Page Area E-Week Expo with a display, exhibits, presentations and testing a balsa wood structure to destruction.

During the Chicago-land Engineering Award Benefit, student awards were presented to the First Robotics Program, Chicago Regional Bridge Building Contest, Illinois State Science Fair, Future City Design Competition, and AAAEA Essay/Poster Contest. The AAAEA Essay winners were presented with checks, certificates, a set of encyclopedias donated to students by World Book, and a goody bag donated Parsons Brinckerhoff. I would like to extend many thanks to volunteers, sponsors, and contributors who made our E-week events a big success. Please continue to raise awareness of just how rewarding an engineering career can be and I hope to see all of you next year.

During E-week Expo, Dr. Moussa Issa explained to students during the AAAEA session of “ASK AN ENGINEER” that engineers make lives better, safer and healthier and that engineers touch everything people use at work, schools or at home. Many students asked whether engineering is a well paid and a rewarding career and he assured them that it is the best career for the future. Dr Mohsen Issa shared his lab testing videos and slide show and the students interacted with him and Mr. Bilal Almasri, who took the time to explain to students about the fundamental of engineering and how things work. He was a big help manning our booth area and getting all the kids excited about guessing how much load can the balsa wood tower carry.

Many of you know that our activities have not been limited to seminars, EIT classes, ACT classes, Computer classes and E-week activities (check our calendar for list of upcoming events). We also have been very active contacting other cities and colleges to help them establish sister associations and student chapters. Please see article about our student chapter activities. We met on February 16th for our First Network Luncheon and was a big success, that we decided to make it a monthly event around the mid of the month. We invite you to join us for our second Network Luncheon on March 15th at Pita Paradise Restaurant (Click at link for more info http://www.aaaea.org/pdfs/2008NetworkLuncheon031508.pdf). We also would like you to mark your calendar and save the date for our monthly seminar on March 26th, were Cathy Kibble of IDOT will give a presentation on I-55 Project from I-80 to Weber Rd.

Our 2008 Annual Social Dinner on March 29 has been sold out since mid February. Membership renewal notices will be sent to you soon, please take a moment to renew your membership and encourage others to do so too. .

I encourage you also to invest time in professional growth and volunteerism. We all often find ourselves so busy with work that we do not have sufficient time to attend seminars or volunteer to help others. Work and family will always take priority. However, recognize that this association has become what it is now because the hard work of people like you. In order for our association to continue helping our members, future engineers, our community and the profession at large, we need you (our members) to volunteer a few hours of your time and take a leadership role in this association. On May 17th, as the current executive board term comes to an end, the association’s members will elect a new board. Nominations are being solicited, as per a letter e-mailed to you and posted on our website, for all positions of the Executive Board. These positions include President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, IT Officer, and Chairpersons of the following committees: Education, Membership, Activity, Financial and Publications. All qualified members are encouraged to run and be active in the continuity and success of this great association. The nomination process will be as per the association Bylaws and conducted by the Nomination Committee chaired by Ahmad Basrawi. The dead line for nomination is March 31st. Please nominate yourself or someone you think can help this association succeed.

As always, we hope you will share with us your news, thoughts, requests and suggestions to help us serve you better. Your involvement in this association and its activities will help not only you, but also all of us. One small way in which you can help is to please renew your membership as soon as possible.

Sincerely,
Jamal Grainawi, P.E., S.E.
AAAEA President

Illinois News

UIUC Visit
A team of four from AAAEA-Chicago visited our chapter in Champaign-Il. The team consisted of Bilal Almasri, Basman Dahleh, Abed Ghouleh, and Raed Milhem in addition to our chapter president Ibrahim Odeh. For the first time AAAEA presented a power point regading internship, work enviroment, and interviews. This event is the first activity for our student chapter in Champaign since it was created. The presentation was well attended and received. The panel discussion and the presentation took over two hours. Prior to leaving, the team had the pleasure to visit with Dr. Munir Nayfeh, and tour his labs. The team was impressed and pleased with the great scientific advances Dr. Nayfer has accomplished. Event photos

AAAEA Set New Records and Reaches New Heights
AAAEA was very active in the month of February. The activities in the last month covered a wide range of areas. Among other committee meetings (By-Laws, Annual Social Dinner, Membership, Education, Essay/Poster Contest and E-Week..), assistance landing jobs for our members and our efforts and leadership at the national level, AAAEA conducted the following services to our members and our community:

2-2-08 Conducted an ACT test for our students.
2-5-08 Participated in judging the IIT Bridge Building Contest for HS students.
2-6-08 Participated in career-day at several schools.
2-7-08 Conducted an EIT Thermodynamics review class at UIC
2-7-08 Completed judging the Essay/Poster Contest
2-9-08 Conducted Math review for our teachers at Universal school
2-9-08 Conducted an ACT Math review for our students.
2-14-08 Conducted an EIT Math review class at UIC.
2-15-08 Talal Almasri conducted a computer class to AAFS community group.
2-15-08 Published our second edition of the local E-newsletter.
2-16-08 Conducted our first Networking Luncheon in Orland Park
2-16-08 Conducted an ACT Reading review for our students
2-16-08 Conducted a Math review class for the teachers at Universal school.
2-21-08 Conducted an EIT Math review course at UIC
2-22-08 Attended the E-week Banquet and awarded the winners of the Essay/Poster contest
2-23-08 Conducted Math review for our teachers at Universal school
2-23-08 Conducted an ACT English review for our students
2-23-08 Joined the engineering community in E-Week Expo at IIT-Rice Campus.
2-23-08 Dr. Maher Abu Mallouh and Mohammad Dasoqi conducted building inspection for AAFS community group.
2/20-08 Provided 3-21" monitors to AAAN community group
2-22-08 Talal Almasri conducted a second computer class to AAFS community group.
2-26-08 Motorola group held Hi Tech seminar.
2-28-08 Conducted our monthly seminar at UIC with over 50 attendees.

These add up to a total of 23 activities in the shortest month of the year. Great job AAAEA, and Thanks to everyone who volunteered their time to participate in these activities. Keep up the good work. Seminar Pictures

AAAEA would like to thank Ms. Kerry Ballotti Nutter for taking the time from her busy schedule and away from her family to be our guest speaker for the Feb, 28 Seminar. Ms. Nutter speech was about Program Management and Quality Assurance for Large Capital Projects. Her presentation provided a quality focus to program management disciplines such as engineering management, construction management, quality assurance, policy and procedure development on public-sector mega-programs, and public-private partnerships. More than 50 engineers and engineering students attended this presentation.

UIC School Visits
AAAEA arranged a visit to University of Illinois at Chicago/Engineering school for our students from Universal school. On March 13 2008,about 40 students will visit with our Dr. Mohsen Issa for a tour in the college of engineering. I would like to thank Dr. Issa for giving AAAEA and Universal school for this opportunity to promote Engineering among our students, and give our students to visit UIC.

E-Week - AAAEA ESSAY/ POSTER CONTEST
As part of the E-week, AAAEA sponsored Essay/ Poster Contest for the second year. The contest was open to all students in the 3rd through 8th grades in the Chicago land area schools. Students submit an essay and a poster about an engineer that they admire or have made an impact on their life. The essay should explain who the engineer is and why the student admires this engineer. The poster should depict some aspect of the engineer and the engineer’s accomplishment. The purpose of the contest is to stimulate students to consider careers in engineering by fostering interest in engineering through research, essay writing, creating a poster and interacting with engineers. The first place winner from each contestants group received a $100. The second place winner from each contestants group received a $25. The three groups are: 3rd & 4th Grades Group; 5th & 6th Grades Group; and 7th & 8th Grades Group. The winners were invited to attend the Washington Award Banquet on Friday, February 22nd 2008 and the winning essay /poster were displayed during this event. The Essay and Poster were judged on pre determined criteria including: originality of thought, creativity, does the poster depict some aspect of the engineer and the engineer’s accomplishment, has the student expressed him/her thoughts clearly, and neatness. Contest coordinator: Jamal Grainawi, Chief Judge: Dr. Soliman Khudeira, Others judges: are Dr. Emilie Giraudon, PE, of CDOT and Dr. Ghaffar Kazkaz. Click for Pictures

Winners:
3rd & 4th Grades
1st Place: Julia Asfour - Universal School – Topic: Her Dad – Shaker Asfour
2nd Place: Arefa Suleiman - Richard Edwards School – Topic: Her Uncle –Mr. Musa

5th & 6th Grades
1st Place: Lauren Brooks / LeiAnn Watanuki – Gray Sanborn School – Topic: George DeMestral
2nd Place: Jenna Hammad - Bridgeview School – Topic: Dr. Martin Cooper

7th & 8th Grades
1st Place: Youssef Hammad - Wilkins School – Topic: Alexander G. Bell
2nd Place: Kesheena Heard - Sandburg School –Topic: Her Step Dad-Steven Hill

Tech Article: Sellers, Buyers, and Realtors Benefit from Pre-Sale Home Inspection-Part 3 by Dr. Maher Abu-Mallouh, P. E., H. I., A&H Engineering, P. C.

The growing trend in today’s tightening real estate market is for Homebuyers to have their real estate sales offer contingent on an acceptable home inspection. A buyer’s home inspection can be a nail-biter for all parties involved. It is important to have the home inspected prior to put the house on the market. Many of deal breakers happen due to the seller insistence on things are in working condition even though it is merely functional. I had seen a deal break due to a stain on the carpet when the seller stated in the contract that he will change the carpet and the carpet was not changed. The seller rented a carpet cleaning machine from Home Depot and did the work himself and made it worse. This small mistake was a reason for a 500K sale deal breaker. A new home is a major investment and homebuyers want to make sure the home they are considering is structurally sound and that all the major and minor components are not only functioning at the time of the inspection, but are also going to have a reasonable life expectancy that is comparable to the price the sellers are asking. But what happens when their home inspector finds key deficiencies such as a failing roof or a foundation that shows signs of moisture penetration? Chances are the homebuyers, especially first time homebuyers, are going to be very concerned, demand additional evaluations or may even want to back out of the deal.
On the surface, this scenario seems unavoidable since most homebuyers hire a home inspector, and more than likely that home inspector will find fault with something, whether it be something major like the foundation or a minor issue such as loose tile. However, situations like this can be avoided or their impact greatly reduced with a pre-sale home inspection. Just as a homebuyer’s inspection is for the buyer’s peace of mind, the pre-sale home inspection is for the seller’s peace of mind. A pre-sale home inspection can provide the seller with a list of key items likely to be revealed by the buyer’s home inspection and give them time to find acceptable and affordable remedies to them prior to showing, in short, it gives the seller a glimpse into the future of the sale.
At first thought it almost seems redundant and costly to have two home inspections on the same property. A seller more than likely is in the same process of purchasing another home and will not want to incur the cost of two home inspections, one for the home they are buying and the one they are trying to sell. This is acceptable logic, but not reasonable. Once a seller decides to hire an inspector for the home they are selling, they should also ask the inspection company to negotiate a reduced inspection price if they plan on using the same company for their future home.
The cost of two home inspections aside, the seller must anticipate that some issues are going to arise during the homebuyer’s inspection. Some buyers will try to use these issues as negotiating leverage to lower the sales price or get major work done and more than likely slowing the process or even possibly killing the deal entirely. The benefit of a pre-sale inspection is that the inspection will mention the deficiencies, if any, and provide a cost analysis. More importantly, however, the pre-sale inspection will highlight the homes assets / perks and provide the seller with firm reasoning for the asking price and leave little room for the buyers to negotiate a reduced price after receiving their home inspector’s report. Another benefit to obtaining a pre-sale inspection is avoiding a disclosure lawsuit. If a home inspector identifies an issue that the seller had no previous knowledge of, they would then be required to disclose this information on the seller’s disclosure form. Why is this to the seller’s benefit? If a problem arises after the closing and the buyer finds a major defect, they may say the seller was aware of the defect and then file suit to obtain damages. This situation can result into thousands of dollars, mortgage defaults or years of headaches and court battles. Having a pre-sale home inspection demonstrates to the buyer that the seller is serious and wants to have a smooth, non-chaotic transaction; but most importantly that the sellers are honest.
A pre-sale home inspection should also alert home sellers to a variety of other maintenance improvements that can enhance a home’s appearance and marketability, such as: trimming trees and shrubs which touch or overhang the house; new caulking and weather-stripping around windows and doors; cleaning gutters of debris and leaves; repairing or replacing cracked or broken gutters, downspouts, and extensions to ensure proper drainage; and replacing bathroom caulk or grouting where necessary to prevent more seepage and improve appearance.
Fixing even minor items can go a long way toward improving that important first impression of a home, so home sellers should remember to repair leaky faucets, tighten loose doorknobs, replace damaged screens, and replace broken panes of glass. Safety issues will also be addressed by the home inspector including; installing smoke detectors on each level; installing Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI’s) in “wet” areas, such as kitchen counter tops, bathrooms and exterior outlets; keeping flammable products away from heaters, water heaters, and fireplaces.

Things to Look for Before Selling Your Home
When I inspect a home there are certain things I always look for and I’m sure most home inspectors know these things. These conditions get written up no matter what. And sad to say, many times they go unknown or unnoticed by the owner, and are often deal breakers – it has happened before. Here are a few things that may exist in your home. Identifying these items before putting your house on the market may save you a lot of trouble.

Federal Pacific Electric Panel (FPE) FPE electric panels were manufactured from the 1950’s to the early 1980’s. The main issue with the FPE panel is the circuit breaker. These have a serious problem – they may not trip when overloaded, which is the job of the breaker in the first place. Moreover, if the breaker handle is successfully tripped it may not de-energize the circuit! Secondly, the "Stablock" breaker design is faulty and often leads to arcing and overheating which can cause fire. Although these electrical panels were never officially recalled by the Consumer Products Safety Commission, every good home inspector knows to write these guys up when spotted.

Consolidated Furnace

Consolidated manufactured roughly 190,000 of these furnaces from around 1980 to the mid 1990’s under many different brand names (mainly Premier/Consolidated brands). These are a known fire hazard and have been responsible for numerous residential fires in homes throughout California. All Consolidated furnaces can be recognized by the steel control rods installed above the burners and are usually installed horizontally in attics or crawl spaces.

Aluminum Electrical Wire Mainly used in housing from the mid 1960's to the early 1970's, aluminum wiring can be a potential fire hazard. The problem is due to expansion and contraction that can cause arcing and overheating at the connections, which may eventually lead to fire. Even after the alloy was altered in the aluminum wiring around the 1970’s it was still problematic. However, aluminum wiring is permitted and used for certain applications, such as residential service entrance wiring and 240V amperage circuits. If a good home inspector finds that the branch circuits in your home are aluminum, he or she will always write it up.

Polybutylene Plumbing Lines (PB)

These are water supply lines that range from grayish to blue in color which were manufactured around the 1970’s and have been used in homes through the 1980’s and 90’s. The issue with this pipe is that it’s known to fail due to the chemicals in tap water which deteriorate and harden the fittings causing leakage. Replacement costs can be in the thousands of dollars. Any good home inspector will call this out and recommend a licensed plumber to investigate further. So if you are planning to put you home up for sale you may want to find out if it has any of the previous concerns. Taking care of these issues before the home is in escrow can save you a lot of trouble. And if you are unsure if these concerns exist in your home, hire a good, thorough home inspector. He or she should be able to identify these issues and will likely recommend what you should do about them.

Interview with Abder Rahman Ghouleh AAAEA Chariman

Q1-How was your experience as the President of AAAEA?
  It was very challenging and took a huge amount of hard work and late nights. I found out it was like having another full time job. We have so many programs to work on and committees to coordinate. Also, we receive around 20 emails a day that we need to act on, plus phone messages. I had even more respect for my predecessors: Soliman Khudeira, Ahmad Hammad and Bilal Almasri.
But after it was all said and done, it was such a rewarding experience being a part of moving an Arab-American professional organization to the forefront of our community. And it was an absolute pleasure working with such nice and professional people and gaining so many new wonderful friendships.

Q2-What was the most challenging work you have experienced as a President of AAAEA?
The most challenging was getting everyone (who are all volunteers) to help and actually do the hard work of keeping the momentum of the AAAEA moving forward

Q3-What is the best achievement you consider AAAEA achieved at the time of your presidency?
  After maintaining all our programs and expanding by adding a few more new programs, I consider the Membership our best achievement by the end of my term. Membership on so many levels: increasing to 340 paid members, more IT professionals, more female engineers, more student members than ever before, and members living in over 20 other states. Speaking of out-of-state members, the establishment of an National Outreach Committee and starting the networking with groups of Arab-American engineers across the country was also a personally satisfying achievement.

Q4-As the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, what does your committee do?
  The Board of Trustees is primarily an advisory board for the Executive Officers and the AAAEA. The Board of Trustees has no immediate control over the Executive Board activities.
Its primary duty is to assist in insuring that all activities of the Executive Board are in conformance with the approved By-Laws of the Association. Our duties also include the execution of any assignment given by the Executive Board, and to provide clarifications and consultations when requested.

Q5- How does the Board of Trustees members communicate?
  We communicate via email and we meet a few times during the year. Sometimes alone and sometimes jointly with the Executive Board.

Q6-Where do you like to see AAAEA 5 years from now?
I would like to see the AAAEA continuing and expanding its programs and services to its members, with a growing membership, established student chapters, and a guiding leader in the establishing of a national professional engineering organization. Also, I see the AAAEA continuing being a leader in the Arab American community, a professional example to all, and a regularly recognized group in the engineering world.

Q7-How could we encourage our members to be to be more involved?
The Board of Trustees is primarily an advisory board for the Executive Officers and the AAAEA. The Board of Trustees has no immediate control over the Executive Board activities.
Its primary duty is to assist in insuring that all activities of the Executive Board are in conformance with the approved By-Laws of the Association. Our duties also include the execution of any assignment given by the Executive Board, and to provide clarifications and consultations when requested.

Q8-What's your opinion about the AAAEA E-newsletter?
think the monthly E-news is a good and efficient way to get our news out to the membership. I know it is something new for the AAAEA and is a work of progress. Like anything else, it will improve through time.Also, I would still like to see a hardcopy Newsletter mailed out to all members periodically.

Members Corner

Welcome New Memebers :

Ahmed Ateyat

Adel Shomali

Bashar Hafez

Fadi Kabro

Khaled Mansour

Nabil Rifai

Shayma Mouhammed

Waheed Burshan

Congratulations :

To Azzam Hamdan of IDOT for being the Technician of the year in District 1. Keep up the good work. We are proud of you hard work.

To Jamil Elian for landing new job with Tang Engineering.

To Nasser Grainawi for his engagement on Valentine's day.

To Yousef Alhamid for landing new job via AAAEA network.

Thanks From Bilal Almasri:
"I would like to thank each and every one of you for your strong support of the HAFLEH event on 3/29/08 at ALHAMBRA. We are pleased to inform you that the event is SOLD OUT.Again thank you so much for your support."

Jokes of the Month

To the optimist, the glass is half full.
To the pessimist, the glass is half empty.
To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

Q: How do you drive an engineer completely insane?
A: Tie him to a chair, stand in front of him, and fold up a road map the wrong way

Q: When does a person decide to become an engineer?
A: When he realizes he doesn't have the charisma to be an undertaker.

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