The Pulp and Paper Centre celebrated its 30th Anniversary on May 28th – which also happened to be the wettest day of 2016, and in fact, the wettest day in May in over 15 years. But it wasn’t enough to keep the crowds away! Close to a hundred people gathered on campus for the PPC’s Open House which included keynote speeches, interactive lab tours, a Poster Session, getting their hands dirty in the papermaking lab, and an opportunity to reconnect and network with their peers.
The Centre also organized an Alumni Dinner (on May 27th) that was attended by 16 guests including alumni,spouses and current faculty. The dinner was hosted by Mark Martinez and Richard Kerekes and was held at Dockside Restaurant inside the Granville Island Hotel. Many funny stories and memories were shared during the entertaining
Keynote speakers included Mark Martinez, Richard Kerekes, Heather Trajano and James Olson. These four stellar speakers gave top quality seminars on varying topics. Below are videos of the four presentations.
Following the seminars, the large group gathered in the Pulp and Paper Centre reception area for a catered lunch, an opportunity to chat, take photos with the “PPC30” balloons, view historical photos, get some swag and sign a celebratory poster that will be hung in the Centre for many years to come.
20 research posters were hung around the building and guests got the opportunity to speak with researchers about their interesting work.
Guests toured through the building facilities. Several researchers were on hand to demonstrate their research at individual lab stations, including the LC Refining Pilot Plant, the Biomass research group, and several researchers from the Energy Reduction in Mechanical Pulping group, among many others.
The machine shop was open for tours with David Roberts, Engineering Technician and Machinist,who was on hand for demos and to inform guests of the Technical Courses available to engineering students at the PPC Machine Shop.
The papermaking lab was also up and running. Kids & adults alike had a lot of fun making their own paper.
We would like to thank everyone for taking the time to attend the Open House, as well as to all students, staff and faculty for their participation and dedication to the Centre.
PPC30 Organizing Committee members: Meaghan Miller, George Soong, Mark Martinez, Anna Jamroz, Sudipta Mitra and Pouyan Jahangiri.