Mechanical Engineering

Arthur and Marianne Hamlin

Arthur Hamlin, Class of ’57, earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maine before earning an MBA from Rutgers University. His career included working for several mid to large corporations in positions covering engineering, development, and manufacturing. He later moved into entrepreneurship with his own small companies in areas of pollution control and medical device development and manufacturing. Marianne Schmidt Hamlin, Class of ’59, earned a B.A. in Zoology with a bent towards the pre-med curriculum. She worked for a pharmaceutical company in microbiological research upon graduation and later in their privately owned business ventures in assorted roles.

The Arthur and Marianne Hamlin Experiential Engineering Education Fund was established in the University of Maine Foundation in 2016 with a gift from Marianne and Arthur Hamlin.

Throughout their working years, the Hamlins saw the real need for graduates to be able to combine their academic learning with a hands-on approach to problem solving and that the development of this skill is not always addressed in a college curriculum. This Fund is created to focus on developing those skills through projects with a focus on market driven product development activities, including those that could provide future revenue streams for the University, such as through intellectual property rights, or enhance the reputation of the University as a teaching institution.

Dick Hill – A legend leaves a legacy

Richard C. “Dick” Hill was professor emeritus of mechanical engineering and director emeritus of the Department of Industrial Cooperation at the University of Maine, where he taught for 46 years. He passed away in July 2016. Hill epitomized the life of a professor who wove himself into the fabric of a university community, so much so that he chose to leave a legacy to benefit UMaine.

“Dick was the quintessential public research university professor — an exceptional educator, extraordinary innovator and visionary and ultimate citizen of the world, determined to make society better for all,” UMaine President Susan Hunter said. “He was one of the pillars of the UMaine College of Engineering, helping make it the outstanding program it is today.

“Dick was a larger-than-life legend who influenced generations of UMaine students and made a difference in the lives of Maine citizens. His legacy will live on in the countless lives he touched and the good work he did. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and colleagues.”

Hill was interviewed by the BDN in May for a feature article about his accomplishments and legacy. WABI (Channel 5) also reported on Hill’s passing and The Ellsworth American published an editorial in his memory.

Thomas Hosmer

At the University of Maine’s Crosby Laboratory every year, seniors pursuing degrees in Mechanical Engineering are required to participate in a Capstone Design project. The Capstone Design project exemplifies UMaine Engineering’s commitment to ensure that undergraduate education includes extensive “hands-on” experience. Seniors are required to participate and use the engineering principles learned in the first three years of the curriculum. The Capstone Design project not only focuses on designing and building projects, but also on testing, critiquing and comparing the results of the efforts with other students from the top engineering programs in North America.

Tom Hosmer, a mechanical engineer from the Class of 1958, has been intimately aware of the needs of the Capstone Design project for many years. Every fall he drove to the campus from his home in Concord, Massachusetts to speak with first-year students as well as the members of the senior design class. He imparted the perspective of someone who was, until very recently, an active mechanical engineer, and the students, in turn, share with Tom their plans, goals and questions, as they relate to careers in mechanical engineering. In addition to his trip to campus to visit with students, Tom also regularly came to campus to attend meetings as a member of the University of Maine Mechanical Engineering Department’s External Advisory Committee.

Having worked as a consulting engineer for Arthur D. Little, Inc. in Cambridge, Massachusetts from 1965 to 2000, and as a senior Mechanical Engineer for Nuvera Fuel Cells, Inc., in Cambridge, Massachusetts until 2004, Tom knew how important it was for engineering students to gain hands-on experience using modern equipment to construct real projects. According to Tom, “It’s essential that a mechanical design engineer have a working knowledge of manufacturing processes and equipment. If it cannot reasonably be made, the most ingenious design in the world is useless.”

Tom’s extensive work experience, combined with his strong awareness of the needs of the fourth year Mechanical Engineering students at the University of Maine, led him to establish the Thomas P. Hosmer ’58 Design Engineering Center Fund in the fall of 2004. This endowed fund will provide annual financial support to the Department of Mechanical Engineering so that it can:

The connection that Tom made and continues to, now through the fund, are invaluable to those students. We thank you Tom for all that you have done to help and support our students.