I extend to all of you my best wishes for a safe, healthy, happy, and profitable year. I look forward, as President, to advancing AIChE’s mission to serve our members, the profession, and society. Professional societies like AIChE have a responsibility to create a value proposition that is a “pull” for membership. I am passionately committed to growing member value for current members and identifying new niche “homes” within AIChE for chemical engineers from the ever-broadening spectrum of enterprises in industry, academia, government and consulting that we serve.
Our website is a major focus for providing this value. You’ll find information about conferences, journals and books, job opportunities, networking opportunities, and new technological developments, among many other things of interest to chemical engineers. As you browse the site, I’m confident you’ll discover topics and information that match your professional interests and meet your career needs.
AIChE has been changing to keep pace with the fast-evolving technological, educational and financial realities of the 21st Century. We’re expanding services to our members and to society in any number of ways. AIChE now offers innovative web-based activities, such as the AIChE E-library, ChemE on Demand and E-learning, which deliver practical, real-worl
d technical and career development information. Like our online library, our series of webinars and courses can be accessed at any time that fits your schedule—or you can participate in real-time. We also offer webcasts of sessions from AIChE’s world-renowned meetings.
With more than 40,000 members in 92 countries, ours is a global organization that serves chemical engineers wherever they are. We’re expanding international sections and student chapters, collaborating with other national and international chemical engineering societies, and sponsoring conferences and providing safety education around the world.
We’ve put a special focus on young professionals and on adapting our offerings to their unique needs with alternative ways for them to connect and interact. We’ve launched a “virtual section,” which is a web-based avenue that fosters communication among chemical engineers everywhere, but especially among those who don’t live or work where there is an active local section. Some local sections sponsor young professional groups that arrange social events, including house parties, which are hosted by young professional groups in a volunteer’s home. AIChE helps promote these events via Chenected.com, our lively and engaging blog, and will also cover up to $500 in expenses for each house party. Topics have included: what chemical engineers can do to support a “greener” environment, the role of chemical engineers in society, and support for early career development and future transitions. Arrangements for hosting a house party are made through the membership department at membership@aiche.org.
For more than 50 years, process safety has been an integral part of AIChE’s activities. Our Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) www.aiche.org/ccps continues to lead the development and dissemination of process safety knowledge, and engages more than 135 companies worldwide. This year’s spring meeting in Houston will feature the 8th Global Congress on Process Safety featuring the 27th CCPS International Conference, the 46th Loss Prevention Symposium and the 14th Process Plant Safety Symposium.
Chemical engineers today are changing jobs more frequently than their predecessors. The need for networking is more important than ever. We continue to focus on career services, covering career issues in CEP magazine, and providing a host of online resources for honing skills. CareerEngineer is the place to look for job opportunities. We also offer online career fairs and a new Mentor Center.
And this year, more than ever, AIChE will be adding new and exciting content to a re-designed website that will provide support better viewing, enhanced social networking, and easier browsing.
If you’re not already an AIChE member, take some time to find out what we offer. If you are a member, be sure to take full advantage of opportunities to learn from--and network with--the world’s most accomplished chemical engineers.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or comments at president@aiche.org or any AIChE staff member.
Sincerely,
David A. Rosenthal, PE
2012 President, AIChE