47th C.J. Mackenzie Gala of Engineering Excellence

Schedule

Tue Jan 30 2024 at 05:00 pm to 10:00 pm

Location

Prairieland Park | Saskatoon, SK

Join USask Engineering for a celebration of our 47th Distinguished Lecturer and alumnus, Dr. Hugh Wood (BE’66, MSc'69, PhD'72).
About this Event

On January 30, 2024, the College of Engineering at the University of Saskatchewan, in partnership with the host department, Engineering Physics, will celebrate the achievements of alumnus Dr. Hugh Wood (BE’66, MSc'69, PhD'72) at the 47th C.J. Mackenzie Gala of Engineering Excellence. Each year, the gala recognizes an alum who has achieved a position of eminence within their profession and honours their achievements.

The C.J. Mackenzie Gala has become known within the engineering community as the premier event where engineers gather, connect with students, network, celebrate a distinguished engineering alum and learn from their keynote address.

AGENDA:

Cocktails: 5 pm
Welcome and Greetings: 6:30 pm
Dinner & keynote with Distinguished Lecturer, Dr. Hugh Wood

The Menu:

Brie & Apple Stuffed Chicken Breast, drizzled with a Champagne Tarragon Sauce
Oven Roasted Potatoes & Seasonal Vegetables
Chocolate Edge Torte
Dinner rolls & coffee/tea

For those with food allergies or dietary restrictions, you will be able to select a declare your allergy/dietary restriction during the ticket purchasing process and the chef at Prairieland Park will make a custom meal to accommodate your needs.

ABOUT THE DISTINGUISHED LECTURER:

Hugh Wood (BE’66, MSc’69, PhD’72)

Engineer. Entrepreneur. Philanthropist. Community builder. Educator. Researcher.

Dr. Hugh Wood’s impact and influence in the profession of engineering – and beyond - continues to this day.

Dr. Wood earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD in Engineering Physics at the University of Saskatchewan. He worked for several years in remote sensing and instrumentation at SED Systems, now Calian Advanced Technologies, then returned to the University and taught in the Electrical Engineering Department for 26 years.

A solid leader, team-builder and problem solver, Dr. Wood served as the Department Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering for six years. During his time on faculty, he was integral to the development of the Digital Signal Processing stream. In recognition of his contributions and support, the 2C74 Electrical Engineering Undergraduate lab was named the Doc Wood Lab in 2019.

In 2000, Dr. Wood joined WaveCom Electronics with founder Surinder Kumar, becoming the company’s chief operating officer. Today the company, now known as Vecima Networks, is valued over $350 million. The Canadian Academy of Engineering inducted Dr. Wood as a Fellow in 2010, recognizing his role in helping to grow the company from a three-person start-up to a significant player in the international telecommunications marketplace.

With his understanding of entrepreneurship and dedication to grow local businesses, Dr. Wood has been a mentor for various startup companies. He is also an active philanthropist, deeply committed to his community. He is a Life Member of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and has served as a reviewer for the Canada Research Chairs program of the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).