Senior Spotlight – Mara DuVernois ’20
Hometown: Menomonie, WI
Thesis Title: The Design and Construction of a Multipurpose Buoyancy-Driven Underwater Glider
Post Graduate Plans: Salvage Naval Architect at Resolve Marine Group
What was your favorite Winter Work internship?
Sophomore year Seaterm was my favorite. Incredible opportunity to go to Australia and Antarctica as well as do good work with amazing people. I got to do a bunch of different things in the engine room and learned a lot!
What activities were you involved with at Webb?
I was on Women’s Basketball/Tennis, SO (President), Student and Faculty Honor Council, COGAS, MEOW, WOW, Leadership Committee (Chair), Student Advisory Committee, Title IX Committee, Sophomore Chairs (Library and Student Store), Middle States Accreditation Team, and the list goes on. Also I had the pleasure of participating in a wide breadth of other volunteering work such as Engineering Day, Welwyn Cleanup, Ronald McDonald House, Strategic Plan Retreat, etc.
What will you miss the most about Webb?
I will miss the community and the people the most. Also Barney.
Do you have any advice for incoming students?
Work hard, but enjoy your time at Webb. It is such a positive experience with the opportunities (from socially to professionally to leadership and even athletically), so don’t let those opportunities pass you by and forget to enjoy what Webb has to offer outside of the classroom.
SD1 Projects: M/V Cthulhu
About Junior Class Small Vessel Design Project (SD1):
As a part of Professor Bradley D.M. Golden’s ’99 Ship Design 1 (SD1) class, the juniors spent the first two-and-a-half months of the spring semester preparing their first complete concept designs.
Using the knowledge they’ve gained in their nearly three years studying at Webb and the experiences from their winter work periods to date, this was the students’ first opportunity to apply the naval architecture and marine engineering principles they’ve studied including stability, ship’s structures, main machinery systems, auxiliary systems, resistance and propulsion, and electrical engineering.
Working in small groups of three and four, the students selected one of the vessel types and took their first couple of spins around the design spiral to prepare vessel concept designs. To help make the project as realistic as possible, members of industry familiar with each of the vessel types helped prepare the statements of design requirements that each of the designs had to meet. To challenge the students even further, one or two “curveballs” were thrown into each design statement to make the students think long and hard about how they would achieve their objectives.
At the end of the spring semester, the students presented their final designs to their fellow students, faculty, and members of industry who served as part of an evaluation team. After three years at Webb, the Junior class can now say with confidence that they’re familiar with the design process and are well on their way to joining the fields of naval architecture and marine engineering.
Visit our Junior Class Small Vessel Design Project page to view all of this year’s projects.
Project Name: C.T.H.U.L.H.U SSV
Designers: Ian Cosic, Dillon Esposito-Kelly, Bret Sharman, and Cross Weeks
Vessel Type: Salvage Support Vessel
Standard Mission:
The standard anticipated mission of the vessel is the oil extraction of RULET wrecks. For this purpose, the vessel is outfitted with subsea oil extraction system, and dive capability to 150ft. The vessel is also capable of installation of a deck mounted 3 chamber saturation diving system for deeper wrecks. Also, the vessel is capable of towing a barge by the hip or over the stern. The vessel is outfitted with a 30 Lt crane to transfer iso tanks between vessels and aid in any salvage operations.
View the Student’s Presentation
Senior Spotlight – Christopher Bal ’20
Hometown: Massapequa, NY
Thesis Title: A Technical Description and Comparison of Renaissance Period Venetian Ship Construction to Liberty Ship Construction
Post Graduate Plans: Work as a Naval Architect.
Do you have any advice for incoming students?
My biggest advice for incoming students would be to remember to have some fun while at Webb. Webb’s workload can seem overwhelming and stressful at times but it is important to take the time to enjoy time with your class. Your class is your family and you’ll regret not spending time with them.
What activities were you involved with at Webb?
While at Webb I was part of the keel boat sailing team and played on the Webb volleyball team. In addition, I took the time to participate in Webb’s Student Organization (SO) when I was treasurer and Marine Technology Society (MTS) chair.
Favorite Quote.
You can’t get so hung up on where you’d rather be, that you forget to make the most of where you are
What’s your favorite spot on campus and why?
My favorite spot on campus would be the yacht club. Some of my best memories were spent at the yacht club during yacht club socials or just relaxing with friends.
What will you miss the most about Webb?
More than anything else I will miss my class. We have grown so close as a family and it will be hard to not see them every day. COVID-19 made this extremely evident as we were rapidly separated without getting the chance to spend our last semester together.
The Class of 2020 Thesis Titles & Posters
In no specific order.
Concept Design and Economic Feasibility Study of a Modular
Underwater Apartment: A Case Study at Webb Institute
Ian Cavanaugh and Duane Lee
Underwater structures have already been proven to be an innovative solution in the luxury hotel/restaurant industries. This thesis explores if an underwater apartment is a feasible alternative housing option to address housing shortages around the world, especially for areas with rising sea levels. The concept design of the apartment is created with economic feasibility in mind to attempt to make this alternative housing option as affordable as possible while providing all necessities that a normal land house provides. To make this project as practical as possible, Webb Institute is used as a sample case study.
Read more…
Two Weeks of Sleepless Nights Turns Two Alumni’s 3D Card Maker into PPE Provider
With the cases of COVID-19 on the rise, two members from the Class of 2009, John Wise and Webb trustee, Wombi Rose, rose to the challenge and quickly switched their resources at Lovepop to produce much-needed PPE gear. Normally, Lovepop produces laser-cut 3-D greeting cards based on the ancient art form of kirigami.
“One of the things we learned at Webb was how to solve problems. When we heard about the shortage of PPE, we tried to turn it into a problem we could start to solve with the resources and capabilities available to us.” noted Wombi Rose ’09, president of Lovepop, “In the past few weeks, we’ve figured out how to pivot our supply chain to provide desperately-needed gowns and face shields to the front line.”
If you are an alumnus/alumna and would like to share your story on how you or your company are helping others through the COVID-19 pandemic, please contact Kerri Allegretta at ude.bbew@attergellak.
About Lovepop (from lovepopcards.com)
Founded by best friends and naval architects, John Wise and Wombi Rose, Lovepop creates beautiful laser-cut pop-up cards designed on ship-building software and handcrafted in the ancient art form of kirigami.
Lovepop is on a mission to create one billion magical moments by making it easy to do something creative and meaningful for the people you love.
Since earning an investment from Kevin “Mr. Wonderful” O’Leary on ABC’s “Shark Tank” in 2015, Lovepop has created hundreds of unique designs to help make every occasion magical – whether it’s a birthday, holiday, anniversary, or any milestone for someone you love.