COFES 2012: The Measure of a Scholarship

Around 2007, when working at a printed circuit materials supplier, Adrian Salvador used micrometers to measure the thickness of the circuit boards. Little did he know that, five years later, he'll inherit a collection of micrometers, estimated to sell for $20,000 or more, as a scholarship gift.

The scholarship stemmed from Congress on the Future of Engineering Software (COFES), which established an education award this year to "to partially fund college tuition for a top student in the field of architecture, engineering, or manufacturing."

The scholarship was made possible by Peter Marks, a long-time participant of COFES and a respected name in the engineering software community. Peter donated his collection of more than 700 micrometers, with the intent to fund the scholarship by their sales. He has also individually packaged them, tagged them with descriptions, and cataloged them in "An Incomplete Compendium of Micrometers and Their Makers," downloadable in PDF.

COFES organizers will be holding a silent auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, the site of the conference, to offer the micrometers on display to potential bidders.

Scholarship recipient Adrian currently works as an electronic technician at Boeing Company and aspires to join his employer's Space Exploration program. Boeing's program caters to government institutions, but, Adrian said, "My dream would be commercial space flights."

With the anticipated proceeds from the sales of Peter's micrometers, Adrian said he'd be able to focus more on school. Adrian is currently studying electronics engineering. "There were times when I wasn't sure I'd be able to finish school," he said. "Now, I'm much more confident."

The annual conference is organized by Cyon Research, a think-tank that specializes in engineering technology. The by-invitation-only event usually draws top minds and executives from CAD/CAM/CAE segments.