SAE Atlanta’s Vision is: “To be Georgia’s premier aerospace, commercial vehicle and automotive society by adding educational value and networking opportunities.” This vision became a reality on March 29th at the SAE Atlanta Spring event when over 135 students, leaders and executives came together to learn more about the rapid innovation of the sports car industry, network with industry leaders and see some really cool cars. The event was held at the GTRI Conference Center at Ga Tech.
Joe Lawrence, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Porsche Cars North America, was the keynote speaker and kept the audience riveted to their seats as he shared the direction Porsche is pursuing with the “Mission E” which is expected to be on the road by 2020 and can go from zero to 62 mph in under 3.5 seconds. After Joe’s presentation, perhaps the most popular part of our spring event ensured – networking. This year attendees got to meet and collaborate with: Ted Arnold, Head of Department, Quality Assurance at KIA Motors Manufacturing Georgia; Andrew Lennon, Product Manager, Sports Cars at Porsche Cars North America; Kirk Fordham, Sr. Director Technical and Quality Excellence Automotive Inspections and DEKRA Racing NA; and the famous Rossella Manfrinato, race car driver, motorsports engineerand manager for Creighton Motorsport.
The event ended with the firing up of a retired Riley race car that had competed at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Students that were in attendance and representing seven colleges flocked to the race car and the chance to discuss with Rossella Manfrinato what it is like to be a race car driver and an engineer for major organizations such as Ferrari.
“I am proud of what SAE Atlanta is doing to bring together a community of students, leaders and professionals to advance the field of transportation and encourage students to pursue a career in STEM.” – Mike Stonecipher, SAE Atlanta Board Chair.
