ASME - Activities

University of Nebraska - Lincoln student chapter of ASME does a variety of different activities to give students an idea of the future.

• Club meetings: We meet once a month during the school year. During the meeting, we talk about upcoming events such as speakers, tours, regional get-togethers, and student design competitions. Most meetings are on first Wednesdays, beginning at 5 p.m. unless otherwise noted, and last about 30-60 minutes. They are a good way to get to know other students.
• Speakers: Normally we invite mechanical engineers from companies in our region to talk about what they do, what to expect, and to answer questions.
• Tour Local Companies: The tours are similar to our speakers, but we have the opportunity to see engineering at work. Most of our tours are in manufacturing facilities. Some of our past tours were UNL Power Plant and Kawasaki. If you have any facilities you would like to see, you can suggest them to the officers by email or during club meetings.

Some regional get-togethers are tours, conferences, and design competitions. These are great opportunities to experience more engineering. The design competition is an opportunity to actually do some hands-on engineering. Each year ASME holds design competitions. ASME National Student Design Competition Website.

ASME was also historically involved in E-Week on the Lincoln City Campus, which is in April each year. There are activities for middle and high school students who attend, sponsored by student organizations and the college. Mechanical engineering majors also present their senior design projects. E-Week Website.

The Human Powered Vehicle competition (HPVC) is an annual event organized through ASME. The purpose of this competition is to build a human-powered vehicle (basically a glorified bike). This event consists of three different classes of vehicles. Each team may choose to make a vehicle for either a single rider or a pair of riders. Teams may also enter a third division that consists of a utility vehicle. The utility vehicle can either be a single or dual rider. Points are given to each team in three different categories. Two of these categories are based on vehicle performance. Teams compete in a Sprint event, which is a 100-meter time trial. The second race is a 65-kilometer endurance race. Teams are required to make several pit stops in order to change drivers. Teams are required to submit a design report in order to demonstrate the ingenuity of design and thoroughness in planning. This is the third area that points are awarded.