The Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering (CSChE) Nominating Committee, appointed under the terms of CSChE bylaws Article 8, Section K, has proposed the candidates listed below to serve as CSChE officers and directors for 2013-2014. Emily Moore, CSChE past president and chair of the Nominating Committee, is pleased to announce the candidates for the 2013-2014 election. Additional nominations for candidates may be submitted by members no later than Friday, July 26, 2013. Ten or more voting members, in good standing, must support additional submissions in writing. Those elected, whether by ballot or acclamation, will take office immediately following the Society’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Fredericton, N.B., on Tuesday, October 22, 2013.
Le comité des candidatures de la Société canadienne de génie chimique (SCGCh), nommé aux termes de l’article k de la division 8 des règlements de la SCGCh, propose les candidats suivants aux posts d’administrateurs de la SCGCh pour l’exercise 2013-2014. Emily Moore, présidente sortant de la SCGCh et présidente du comité des candidatures, est heureux de présenter les candidats aux élections pour l’exercice 2013-2014. Les membres peuvent présenter d’autres candidats au plus tard le vendredi 26 juillet 2013. Les mises en candidatures supplémentaires doivent être appuyées par écrit par au moins dix membres votants. Les personnes élues, au scrutin ou sans concurrent, entreront en fonction immédiatement après l’Assemblée générale annuelle de la Société qui se tiendra le mardi 22 octobre 2013 à Fredericton, Nouveau Brunswick.
David Guss
President, 2013-2014
Nexen Inc.
David Guss has 30 years experience working in the oil and gas and chemicals industries, with the last 24 years at Nexen Inc. Through his career, Guss has worked in a number of roles related to project management, plant engineering, health safety environment (HSE), Responsible Care, and process safety management (PSM). He currently works in the Nexen Corporate Health, Safety, Environment & Social Responsibility (HSE&SR) Department as the manager, Process Safety Group with the responsibility for overseeing the developing of Nexen’s Global PSM program.
Guss has worked in a number of chemical engineering related roles throughout his career in industry with particular focus on PSM in the last 15 years. He is the founding chair of the Chlorate Process Safety Association, a past chair of the Canadian Chemical Producers Association (CCPA) Process Safety Committee, and past chair of the CSChE PSM Division. Guss currently represents Nexen on the CCPS Technical Steering Committee and has been involved in several CCPS subcommittees including development of PSM guideline books.
Guss achieved a BASc in chemical engineering from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He is a registered professional engineer (P.Eng.) in the Province of Alberta (APEGA), a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP), a certified health & safety management system auditor, a certified process safety auditor and a certified environmental management system (EMS) auditor. He is a member of the CSChE PSM Division, a member of the Canadian Society of Safety Engineers, and a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).
Amarjeet Bassi
Vice President, 2013-2014
Western University
Amarjeet Bassi is a professor in the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at Western University. He joined Western in 1994 after completing graduate and post-doctoral studies at Saskatchewan, Western and the University of California, Riverside, respectively. Bassi served as the associated dean (academic) at Western’s Faculty of Engineering from 2008 to 2012. Bassi’s research interests are in the areas of bioenvironmental engineering and clean water. He has over 100 refereed publications and conference presentations and holds four patents. His patented technology on continuous fluidized ion exchange has been licensed to a Canadian company, Renix Inc. of London, Ont., and is undergoing commercialization. Bassi also served as the associate editor of The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering for the past three years as well as the associate editor for Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology. In addition, he has served in various capacities in program organizations for CSChE conferences and most recently as the technical program chair of the very successful 61st Canadian Chemical Engineering Conference in London in 2011. Bassi also contributes to activities related to Professional Engineers Ontario and has been a visitor on program reviews for Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board. He has been honoured with the Engineering Prize for Outstanding Teaching at Western and his contributions have also been recognized internationally through the 2007 Alkyl Amines Professor B.D. Tilak Chemcon Distinguished Speaker Award by the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers.
Statement of Policy
The Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering (CSChE) continues to play an active and significant role as a robust advocate for our profession in Canada and at the international level. Some of the ongoing initiatives include more active involvement in public policy, bringing issues of broad interest to our members, recruiting new membership and developing relationships with industrial and other organizations. My goals will be to work hard and collaboratively with colleagues to strengthen these ongoing initiatives in order to increase both the relevance and the visibility of the CSChE at the national and global level and also to develop stronger partnerships with industry. I will also strongly support ongoing initiatives such as strengthening the impact of The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, making the CSChE conference a focal point for industry and academia to come together and fostering more ties with other engineering bodies. Also, there is a strong need to further develop opportunities which allow our young undergraduate and graduate students to become active and engaged in the society’s activities and promotion
Madjid Mohseni
Publications Director 2013-2016
University of British Columbia
Madjid Mohseni is a professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of British Columbia. He received his MASc and PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Toronto. Mohseni’s research focuses on the study and development of advanced water treatment processes including UV-based advanced oxidation, ion exchange and electro-coagulation for the removal of organic contaminants. He is the (co)author of over 80 refereed publications and a number of industrial reports and book chapters. Mohseni is currently the scientific director of RES’EAU-WaterNET, a multi-disciplinary strategic network funded by NSERC and partners from industry, communties, government and NGOs, focusing on the development of affordable solutions to drinking water challenges of small and rural and aboriginal communities. Under his leadership, the Network achieved significant milestones and initiated an engagement program with many small and aboriginal communities, while developing strategies for community-based participatory solution-finding. In 2012, he received the Award of Excellence in the Water and Waste Community from the B.C. Water and Waste Association (BCWWA) for his outstanding leadership and advancing excellence in the water and waste community. Mohseni was also the technical program chair of the 62nd CSChE conference in Vancouver.
Nicolas Abatzoglou
Awards Director, 2013-2016
Université de Sherbrooke
Nicolas Abatzoglou is a full professor and has served as head of the Department of Chemical & Biotechnological Engineering at Université de Sherbrooke. He is also adjunct professor at the University of Saskatchewan, Department of Chemical Engineering. He is a specialist in process engineering involving thermochemical and catalytic conversion as well as particulate systems. He is the director of the PIFIR/UdeS Research Centre GREEN-TPV (Groupe de Recherche en Énergie/Environnement-Technologies et Procédés Verts).
Since May 2008, he is the holder of the Pfizer Industrial Research Chair in process analytical technologies (PAT) in pharmaceutical engineering. He is the leader of Thermo-Chemical Conversion Theme in Canada’s NCE Network BioFuelNet on Biorefining and the leader of the Fuel Preparation Theme in SOFC Canada Network. He is co-founder of the company Enerkem Inc., a spin-off commercializing technologies in the field of energy from renewable resources. He represented Canada at the International Energy Agency (Gasification Task) from 1997–2001 and was the secretary of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Association québécoise pour la maîtrise de l’énergie (AQME) from 1996–2000.
His production as researcher includes more than 100 publications in scientific journals, international conferences, plenary and invited lectures, patents and three book chapters.
Julie McLachlan
Industrial Liaison East, 2013-2016
GreenCentre Canada
Julie McLachlan is a professional engineer with a wide variety of industrial experience in manufacturing, chemical and food plants. She is currently Director, Laboratory Services for GreenCentre Canada, a national Centre of Excellence that takes a “hands on” approach in commercializing emerging green chemistry innovations originating from academia and industry.
McLachlan worked as a process engineer at Domino Sugar, Owens Corning and Invista. She also worked in water treatment sales for Nalco Canada, where she provided technical expertise for boilers, cooling towers and wastewater treatment facilities for many Eastern Ontario industries. She was also an environmental engineer at DuPont.
McLachlan has a master’s degree in chemical engineering from McMaster University and a bachelor’s degree in engineering chemistry from Queen’s University.