Images of Wichita - National Institute for Aviation Research

Wichita: Engineered for Excellence
... ...
Engineers at NJAR discuss a flow visualization water tunnel test in the institute's aerodynamics laboratory.
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One, Two,
NIAR BOLSTERS AREA'S STATUS AS GLOBAL LEADER IN AVIATION
ith five (enters of research
excellence, the National
Institute for Aviation
Research at Wichita State Universitv is
I
a globally r'ecognized powerhouse that
holsters the area's Ion y status as the
aviation industrr's leader.
"NIAR is quite unique because it's a
university-based ceMer, but it doesn't
act like any other university-based
center that I'm aware of. We're
collaborating with industry for a product
that industry can lise" explains ~lAR
Executive Director John S. Tomblin.
"Most of the research that universities
do is considered basic research, which
sometimes takes years to integrate into
industry Lise. NIAR does just the
opposite of that. We're conducting
research that's appJ icable to products out
today or out in the very nea r futu re."
NIAR draws upon its advisory board
ofaviation busine s experts to ensure that
its activities meet the industry's needs.
One example of answeri ng that call
i NIAR's recently added DO-160
certification capabilities. Wllile adhering
to DO-160 guidelines, developed by the
Radio Technical Commission on
Aeronautics, isn't an FAA requirement,
it is recommended. NlAR's ombinalion
of 22 environmentallaboratorie~ allows
manufacturers to perform DO-I60 lestiJ1g
in one location for "air readiness
assurance," Tomblin says. Alrcraft and
part~ are subjected to a variety of
extremes, including temperatures,
altitude, shocks and vibration, explosions,
fluids, sand and dust, fungus, salt. voltage
spikes, electrostatic discharge, fire,
lightning and more. That's probablr why
Tomblin dubs these testing facilities the
"shake and bake laboratories."
NIAR labs are also at the nation's
forefront in the study and application
of compo~ites and advanced materials
used in aircrafl manufacturing.
"This change of primary materials is
directly related to an extreme push to get
more and more efficiency Ollt of ai rcraft.
That's particularly related with what we
see now regarding fuel costs," Tomblin
sars, adding that \I\'ichita is one of only
seven places in the world identified as
a "composite cluster." That means the
business environment includes original
equipment manufacturers and suppliers
at a11 levels.
NIAR is also taking its composilematerials
research in an unexpected ­
and potentially life-altering - direction.
Because composites are strong, flexible
and lightweight, Lhey just may be well
suited for internal and extefIlaJ
orthopaedic devices.
"We're proposing to create a center
here, which we call the Center of
Innovation for Biomateria[s and
Orthopaedic Research," Tomblin, ays.
"The beauty about this is that the
composite manufa turing base already
exists in Wichita, so all we have to
do is turn their attention to another
industry other than focusing solely on
the aerospace industry."
Now that' an economically l1C.'ulthy
turn of events. For more information,
visit www.niar.wichita.edu.
Special
Advertising Section

Wichita: Engineered for Excellence
WICHITA FULFILLS REPUTATION AS IIAIR CAPITAL OF THE WORLD II
hen Clyde Cessna buill
Wichita's first plane in 1917,
maybe he 1new it was tht:
stn 1'1 of somelhin J big. Yet even Cessna
might not have envisioned taday's
Wichita, known as the "Air Capital
of the World" and home to burgeoning
aircraft rompanie:. employing
tholL~anJs of the most talented
engi neer~ on the pia net.
Al:cording In a Milken lnstitutc
tudy, Wi hila has the highest
conccntrati n of aerospace employment
and skills in the nalion. Aboul 6\
percent (r the Wichita area's
manufacturing jobs - or more than
40,000 people - are in the a rospace
industry. Wichita giants "essna Aircraft
0., Hawker Beech raft Corp. ilnd
Bombardier Aero pace Learjet deliver
marl' tha n hal f the na tion's genera 1­
aviation planes. Also at home in Wichita
arc Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems, an
Airbu engineering center, a network of
tier one suppliers and core of preci ion
machine shops.
"The specialization in the workforce
.iu t dol' n't exist anywhere clse. It' only
in Wichita," says Tom Aldag, director
of research and development al the
National Instil ute for Aviation Re ear h
at Wichita State UltiversiL;r.
NIAR's cutting-edge I'esearch and
Wi hita State's renowned engineering
progra m' wi II soon join ~v ith th~
Wichita Area Technical College at the
new, 54 million National Center for
A\'iation Training, a facility thal will
open for classes in 2010 at Jabara
Airport in norlhea t V-lichita. In the
meantime, the Wichita Metro Chamber
of Commerce has several initiatives in
place to nurture the aviation industry
and lure top-notch professionals here.
Once peopl visit Wichita, it's an
easy sell. thanks to an enviable quality
oflife that includes a vii ram downtown
and an ea. y commute.
"Gelling around WichIta is so easy.
It's 15 to 20 minutes to get anywhere.
no maller where you live. Becau~e of
thaI, you can rcall>' get out and t:njoy
all of tl e entertainment that's offered
in what we call 'hot sp.t ' allover
the city," says Olivia Simmons, vi'e
president of th Greater vVichita
Convention & Visitors I~ureau.
The city boasts 11 wealth of cultural,
natural and enterta inlllent options,
from the burgeoning Tallgras Flim
Festival to the Kansas Flint lIills
located nearby.
"Literally, you can immerse yourself
in the sights and the sounds of the
outdoors," Simmons says. "Not too
many cities can brag about what's su
close to them and what they have wit hi n
their city at the same Lime."
Th result? Wi hila is lIyin tl high.
The Walter H. Beech Memorral Wind Tunnel at NIAR was originally built in 1948 and underwent a $6 million renovation in 2005.
Special Advertising Section

THE SKY'S THE L IT
FO AVIAT 0
P OFESSIO ALS
RICH CULTURE,
REWARDI G
CAREERS

Ihr hand-in-glove work of
bt'11l:,vt~
his restJRh instilule and tht aviation
training cemer in the ~me sp(lOncl Illr
our 1c"lOI aircraft industry. h\ sirnl~Y
il smart mn'stllll'ni In our elOnOnlll
fUTUre,""
'If any plac n the world
should r v n CAT-~ype
fdcil ty It s Wlc'llta
VlCKI PRATT GERBINO
PRESIDENT. GREATER WICHITA
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COALITION
John S. Tomblin, executive director of the Natlonallnst,tute for Aviation
Research. says that NIAR officials look for.....ard to a research and training
role .....ith the newly created Nation;J1 Center for Aviation Training.
Connecting to
Cutting-Edge Jobs
Andy Solter witnessed the wonder of It In Wichita;
When students from loW-Income families saw
their coursework converge WIth concrete Jobs.
hghtbulbs blazed on and performance soared
Now, SoIter and hIS Kansas Career Pipeline
staff WitnesS hghtbulb moments statewide - 30.000
career assessments the first school year - as the
Internet-based learning community creates tfamltlg
profiles to take Kansans from their first what-I-wantto·be·when-I-grow-up
moment to retirement
The pipeline and ILS resources are accesSIble by
logging onto www kaMa~r"rpi~hneorg.
Busmesses are boarding the pipeline. too, In June
2008, they began pre-qualllYing Job applICants.
posting Videos and creating scholarship and
l('lternstup opportun+ues on the Web SIte
"No I. It gives them an Immediate recrUIting tool
to start posting therr Jobs:' says Karen Cox, marketing
director for tho private, not-far-profit pipeline
"Secondly, and this Is the part that's extremely exciting.
we're connecting them With their future workforce,"
Interaction begins as early as fifth grade, when
students begin probing careers online_ They take
assessments of their career leanings In seventh grade,
Solter lormed the pipeline after a federally funded
career program for students In lower-Income families
ended at WIChita PubliC SChools He huddled wrth the
Kansas Department of Education, the Kansas Board
of Regents and the Kansas Department of Commerce
to see If an online model could connect the business
community With future empk)yees_
After Inlhal state funding. the PIpe{lf1e'S $1.5 milliOn
2008-09 budget w,lIlncreaslngly r~y on annual
buSI~.ssponsorsh,ps from 5SO to 530,000
~There may be other states who are begmnlng to
do thlS,- SoIter says "If so. I salute them. because It
really IS a cfltlcal part of helPing kids fInd things
they're Interested In.-
- Gary Perilloux
GREATER ""'lel..T... AREA
IHAGESWICHlfA co", 33

Busin S5
$54 MILL ON TRAI ING CE
PIPELINE OF HIGHLY SKIL
TER ENSURES
ED WORKERS
rOR
ElY GARY PERILLOUX
PH 101, /I, IIY BY TODD BENNETT
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Compos! rch IS JUS one area of study at the allonal Insll u e for AVIation R~searc
30 ,...A(;I''lo·'' I A CO GREA Q de I '" '"' '"

Health & Wellness
Alex Chong works with an artificial
hip Joint constructed with a
lightweight composite material.
Promising
Joint Venture
VIA CHRISTI AND WSU TEAM UP TO TRANSFORM
ORTHOPAEDICS WITH COMPOSITE TECHNOLOGY
Wichita's Via Christi Health
ystcm is proving to be the
hippest joi nl in town. The
stale's largest provider of health-care
services is revolutionizing the orthopaedic
induslry through the cre"lion
of bioengi neered implants. Unlike their
solid, metal pred cessors known to
weaken bone mass. the new implant
encourage bone-cell growth and are made
of the strong, lightweight omposites
used j 11 the aviation indu try.
"Our goal is to create devices thaI
will last longer and, when implanted,
function much like patient' original
hips and knees," say Or. Paul Wooley,
director of research at Via Chri ti's
Orthopaedic Research Institute and
research professor al Wichita State
Cniver it)'. "While it take som time
to gel started, in the long term we expect
our work to result in vastly improved
implantable hips and knees made from
composite materia Is."
A the former director uf re earch
for orthopaedic surgery and professor
of orthopaedic 'urgery, immunology
and microbiology. anJ biomedical
engineering at Detroit's Wayne State
Univer ity !edical chool, \'\'ooley was
recruited by Via Christi in _007 after
academics at WSU and Via Christi
teamed up to dis uss thc possibilities. In
l\'larch 2008, Via Christi's Orihopaedic
Research Institute opened a biocompatibility
lab at WSU, which also is
hOn1l' to the National [nslitule of
Aviation Research.
('This is a great location, bccaus we
have everything here that we ned:
WSU's National In titute of Aviation
Research and ORI, along with composite
manufacturer, WSU's biologi ts, engineers
and chemists, and close con l1ections
with implant manufacturers," Wooley
says. "We're trying to iIlV live verything
and everyone i11 the project, 0 we can
address questions and fix any problems
rapidly, as we go along."
Their work is projected to attract at
lea t $5 million in new external research
iO Kansas over th next five year. Th
project comes with a lofty price tag, with
much of its funJing from the Kan as
Bioscience Authority, an independent
tate entity. In April 2008, the KBA
awarded $912,000 to Via Christi's OR)
and \V Uto upport th crcation orth ir
orthopedic imlllu nogelletic laboratory.
Via Chri ·ti al'o was granted part of
a KBA pIa nning grallt of $200,000 to
prepare a $50 million, IO-year design
and development plan.
"Given the level of excitement about
the project within U1e industry and communi1y,
I feel confident that. one way or
another, this project will move forward,"
Wooley ays. "Thi plan wa~ well under
way long before mi' arrival in Wichita,
so the whole project has been of great
importance 10 the Sli rgcons, scient isIs
and Via Chri Ii administrators for a
number ofyear'."
- Melanie Ifill
GREATER WiCHITA AREA
IMAGESWICHITA,COM 41