aerospace engineering

Calvin engineering professor inducted into world's largest aerospace professional society

msk23@calvin.edu — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 16:13:34 +0000

Calvin engineering professor inducted into world's largest aerospace professional society msk23@calvin.edu Wed, 01/08/2025 - 11:13

�鶹�� is proud to announce that Kenneth D. Visser, professor of engineering, has been selected as a member of the Class of 2025 Associate Fellows of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the world’s largest aerospace professional society. Visser will be formally honored and inducted at the AIAA Associate Fellows Induction Ceremony and Dinner on Wednesday, January 8, 2025.

AIAA Associate Fellows are recognized as leaders in the aerospace community, having made outstanding contributions to the arts, sciences, or technology of aeronautics and astronautics. According to the AIAA Constitution, this distinction is reserved for individuals who have accomplished or led significant engineering or scientific work or whose work has been of outstanding merit. Each year, only one member for every 150 AIAA members is selected as an associate fellow.

Visser earned this prestigious recognition for his groundbreaking contributions to the field of aerodynamics and his dedication to improving fuel efficiency and sustainable power generation. The citation accompanying his award reads:

“For improving the environment through the application of aerodynamics to aircraft wing tips, tractor trailers, and wind turbines thereby enhancing fuel efficiency and sustainable power generation.”

Notable achievements:

Aircraft Wings: Visser’s work on aerodynamics contributed to the design of the Boeing 767-400ER raked wing tips, which provide significant fuel efficiency benefits. The innovation has been applied to many other Boeing aircraft, including the 777 and the 737, and continues to impact global aviation. His research activities included collaborations with Fairchild Dornier and the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) in Germany to advance computational techniques for aircraft drag reduction.
Tractor-Trailers: Visser developed aerodynamic enhancements for tractor-trailers, including skirts and trailer extensions that improve fuel efficiency by reducing drag. These designs have led to patents and widespread adoption in the trucking industry, with fuel savings estimated at over 1.4 billion gallons per year across the U.S. truck fleet.
Wind Turbines: The design and development of a ducted wind turbine to increase power production by optimizing the airflow has been Visser’s third major focus. The resulting commercialization of this technology culminated in the founding of the company Ducted Wind Turbines, Inc. His efforts to advance renewable energy solutions has been supported by over $2 million in funding from industry, government, and private agencies.

Visser’s career exemplifies the integration of technical excellence, environmental stewardship, and practical application. His innovations enhance the efficiency of existing systems and contribute to a more sustainable future.

“We are thrilled to celebrate Dr. Visser’s induction into the AIAA Associate Fellows Class of 2025,” said Noah Toly, �鶹��’s provost. “His achievements reflect the caliber of expertise and innovation that �鶹�� faculty bring to their fields, and we are proud to see his work recognized on this global stage.”

About the AIAA Associate Fellows Program

The AIAA Associate Fellows Program recognizes individuals who have made significant and lasting contributions to the aerospace profession. Members are nominated and selected by their peers, underscoring their impact and leadership within the field.

About �鶹��

Founded in 1876, �鶹�� is a top-ranked, liberal arts institution that equips its 3,600 students from 48 U.S. states, 66 countries, and five Canadian provinces to think deeply, to act justly, and to live wholeheartedly as Christ’s agents of renewal in the world. Calvin offers 100+ majors and programs, including a growing portfolio of graduate-level offerings. Calvin students engage in intensive internships, community-based service learning, and significant research that results in publishing and presenting alongside world-class faculty. The university’s 400-acre campus is in the vibrant city of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Discover more at www.calvin.edu. 

Wed, 01/08/2025 - 12:00

Share this on Facebook Share this on Twitter Share this on LinkedIn Share this on Email Print this

Getting Ready to Fly at �鶹��

msk23@calvin.edu — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 22:56:25 +0000

Getting Ready to Fly at �鶹�� msk23@calvin.edu Mon, 11/11/2024 - 17:56

For one weekend each month, Reuben Arends heads about 45 miles east to Grand Ledge Army Aviation Support Facility and Armory where he works on helicopters.

“Something I always wanted to do since I was a kid was to fly something,” said Arends. “And the military was always something that appealed to me too. I thought it was cool. It’s very different than any other job that I’ve seen.”

During his senior year at Unity Christian High School (Hudsonville, Mich.) Arends joined the Army National Guard. After high school he completed basic training in Oklahoma before moving on to advanced individual training (AIT) in Virginia.

“As my AIT graduation date was approaching, I was wondering what’s my next step after this,” said Arends.

Knowing he didn’t want to be far from his family, that he wanted a Christian education, and he was looking for a strong engineering program, �鶹�� became the clear choice for Arends.

Right Place, Right Time

“My goal is to go to Army Flight school and fly Blackhawks,” said Arends. “And I know a degree from here will help.”

So this fall, Arends started at Calvin pursuing an engineering degree with a mechanical concentration. Within weeks of starting, he realized he was in the right place at the right time as �鶹�� announced it was starting an aerospace engineering program.

“It was a pretty pleasant surprise,” said Arends, who plans to switch his concentration to align even better with his future goals.

A Depth of Preparation

As Arends prepares for the next step in his journey, he’s grateful for the community he’s part of at Calvin.

“The community is proving to be better than I expected,” said Arends. “In the military environment you have to look out for yourself, here it’s very different, people really care for other people.”

He also appreciates the depth of his education.

“An education is one thing, but here there’s much more of a focus on development that goes beyond just an education,” said Arends. “This place uses a Christian lens to grow you in more ways than just your degree and that’s definitely appealing.”

Mon, 11/11/2024 - 12:00

Share this on Facebook Share this on Twitter Share this on LinkedIn Share this on Email Print this

Ready for Takeoff: A Christ-Centered Aerospace Engineering Program

msk23@calvin.edu — Tue, 24 Sep 2024 11:36:17 +0000

Ready for Takeoff: A Christ-Centered Aerospace Engineering Program msk23@calvin.edu Tue, 09/24/2024 - 07:36

Ken Visser’s fascination with aero is palpable.

“My enthusiasm for aero is just over the hill. I love it!,” said Visser.

It all started in 1969.

“When I was five years old my dad made me watch something significant,” said Visser, referencing the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. “From that point forward, I collected everything on space. I wrote letters to NASA, and I received lots of material back from them, including pictures.”

Building A Career

Then, in seventh grade, Visser was allowed to participate in a science fair where he built a model of Launch Complex 39, where they launched Apollo missions, on an 8’ x 4’ sheet of plywood. He realized if he was going to enter the science fair to win, he’d need to know everything he could possibly be asked. So, he learned as much as he could, and the more he learned, the more fascinated he became.

Fast forward 40 years and Visser has had quite the career in aerospace, including working at NASA and Boeing, and for the past couple of decades as a professor of aerospace engineering at Clarkson University, a small private university in upstate New York.

However, over the past couple of years, God was stirring up something in Visser’s heart.

Called to a New Mission

“I believe God was calling me to do specific kingdom work based on all the experience He’d given me up to this point,” said Visser. “Forty years ago, when I was graduating high school and wanted to study aerospace engineering at a Reformed university, I couldn’t find one.”

So, four decades later, Visser scanned the higher education landscape yet again and what he discovered was all too familiar. “It was pretty much the same as it was back then.”

So, he contacted six Christ-centered universities in the United States and asked them if they were interested in starting an aerospace program.

“All six were interested,” said Visser. “But only two could commit the resources to do it.”

One of those two was �鶹��.

The ultimate deciding factor? “Calvin was the closest to my wife’s family in upstate New York. We can make it there in a day’s drive.”

Launching a New Venture

So Visser is preparing to launch something new at �鶹��: an aerospace engineering program. And his “why” is deep.

“I only have so many years on this earth, and I wanted to help provide an opportunity for young Christian men and women to study aerospace engineering in a Christian environment,” said Visser. “These four years are very formative for students and, as God is sovereign over everything we do, including aerospace engineering, providing the opportunity to learn in a Christian environment is a great opportunity”

Visser says he thinks it’s absolutely invaluable for someone who is a Christian to study their vocation in a Christian environment where they can discover how to integrate their Christian faith with their field, how to design something and do it in a Christian way, and to ask what does designing something in a Christian way even mean?

“Engineering students aren’t coming to Calvin to go out into the world to be traditional missionaries, per se. They want to be engineers,” said Visser. “Yet, they are discovering how to serve God and be a missionary as a Christian engineer and that concept takes time to develop. So, offering the environment to do that formative work is absolutely crucial.”

Growing Interest

While the aerospace concentration won’t be added officially to Calvin’s nationally respected engineering program until Fall 2025, Visser is already fielding quite a bit of interest.

“A family came to visit recently and their son, who is in his senior year of high school, walked into my office and I could tell right away his enthusiasm for aero was just like mine at that age,” said Visser.

He said the young man’s eyes lit up when he saw all the artifacts in Visser’s office, including a photo of lunar module commander for Apollo 13, Fred Haise, who Visser had spent several hours with on one occasion.

“It’s a surprise in a way, but it’s like you are unleashing this unbridled enthusiasm, similar to what I had when I was that age when I was wanting to do something with rockets and spaceships. Students are saying, ‘Wow, I can do this at Calvin?’ And I can say, ‘yes, you can do that at Calvin.”

An Ideal Launching Pad

While Visser will have a leading role in launching the new aerospace engineering program, he isn’t the only professor with a background in aero. In fact, he joins a program that has a number of faculty with aerospace experience, including Matt Heun, who worked with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory before teaching at Calvin, and Fred Haan, whose specialty is experimental aerodynamics, to name a couple.

“This is a terrifically strong engineering program,” said Visser. “The academically excellent, Christ-centered focus of this ABET-accredited program provides an ideal launching pad for students who want to pursue the many paths an aerospace engineering degree opens up.”

Opening a World of Opportunities

And Visser says there are a lot of paths one can take inside aerospace.

“For instance, aerodynamics, propulsion, stability and control—how to coordinate and move things around, structures of an aircraft of a satellite—that kind of stuff,” said Visser. “And it doesn’t have to be airplanes or rockets. At Boeing, I worked with an America’s Cup team in the area of hydrodynamics. It encompasses vehicle design in auto racing to the development of wind turbines for renewable energy. I’ve recommended students go work for Ferrari in the wind tunnel in Italy. You can be anything from a flight test engineer to a liaison engineer—the person who talks with those on the factory floor and with the engineers to improve processes. There are so many opportunities.”

For more details about the program, contact Gayle Ermer, engineering department chair.

Tue, 09/24/2024 - 12:00

Share this on Facebook Share this on Twitter Share this on LinkedIn Share this on Email Print this