The College of Engineering, the Department of Mechanical Engineering and friends gathered Jan. 25 to dedicate the Kay and Larry DeVries Strength of Materials Laboratory.
The Kay and Larry DeVries Strength of Materials Laboratory in Room #1186 of the Merrill Engineering Building is the lab where testing can be done on the strength of certain materials. In it, mechanical tests are done for tension, buckling, twisting and more, all in an effort to characterize the strength of materials, said University of Utah mechanical engineering associate professor Brittany Coats.
“It freely gives students a sense of how to characterize materials and utilize the information for design,” she said.
The lab was recently refurbished with new floors, ceilings, tables, chairs and a television monitor for lectures. It also has been steadily receiving new material testing systems. In addition to DeVries, speakers at the dedication included U mechanical engineering Chair Bruce Gale, mechanical engineering professor Dan Adams and department mechanical engineering Jeff Kessler.
The new laboratory was named after mechanical engineering Distinguished Professor K.L. “Larry” DeVries, the stalwart faculty member of 55 years who retired from the University of Utah earlier last year.
DeVries earned his bachelor’s in mechanical engineering in 1959 and a doctorate in physics and mechanical engineering in 1962, both from the University of Utah. He joined the mechanical engineering faculty at the U that same year. Since then, he has served in several different positions including assistant professor, distinguished professor, president of the academic senate, as well as senior associate and acting dean of the college before retiring.
Click below for a photo gallery of the dedication.
