Kalsi Engineering hosted a luncheon at Fernando’s restaurant on December 17, 2018 to honor Engineer Bahir Eldiwany, PhD, P.E. and Laboratory Technician Daniel Bubela on the occasion of their retirement. Although the years have gone by far too fast, it is indeed an honor to celebrate the impact and legacy of such wonderful colleagues and friends. The lunch was attended by the officers and employees of Kalsi Engineering and the families of the retirees. Prepared remarks were given by Kalsi Engineering President M. S. Kalsi and Vice President Daniel Alvarez.
Dr. Eldiwany emigrated to the United States in 1978, after earning a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and serving a four-year tour of duty with the Egyptian Air Force as a First Lieutenant. His master’s and doctorate degrees are from the University of Houston.
When Dr. Kalsi needed to add an employee with a solid mechanics background in 1984, he called a University of Houston professor he had taken various courses from. The professor recommended Dr. Eldiwany without hesitation, saying he was “very solid in solid mechanics”. The professor’s assessment was certainly correct. Now, 34 years later, we are grateful for the many ways we have benefited from the contributions Dr. Eldiwany has made to the success of Kalsi Engineering — contributions rooted in exemplary personal traits that include technical rigor, meticulousness, passion, and tenacity.
One example from Dr. Eldiwany’s career was commemorated by a mounted ruby-colored model of a butterfly valve disc that is inscribed “In recognition of Dr. Bahir Eldiwany’s significant industry contribution in developing the state-of-the art quarter-turn valve model.” This notable achievement provided a next-level understanding of valve performance that the nuclear industry and Kalsi Engineering continue to benefit from. In addition to developing the butterfly valve performance model for the EPRI Performance Prediction Program, Dr. Eldiwany also developed the EPRI/NMAC application guide for butterfly valves. These work products contribute to the safety of the public by resolving concerns regarding the ability of motor and air-operated valves to function satisfactorily under design-basis accident conditions established by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and by their use in satisfying design-basis verification requirements established by ASME.
Dr. Kalsi and Mr. Alvarez have an even longer relationship with Daniel Bubela, who joined Kalsi Engineering in 1992. They first met and worked with him at another firm in 1973 and were immediately impressed by his meticulousness and inquisitiveness as a lab technician. When Kalsi Engineering had grown to the point of requiring a senior lab technician, Mr. Bubela was first on the list but was thought unobtainable. There was much joy and excitement when he accepted a position with us.
Sensed already in 1973 and confirmed over the years is Mr. Bubela’s dedication to life-long learning. Never setting any limits on what he could accomplish, throughout his long and productive career he took it upon himself to study whatever resources were necessary to further his knowledge and do his job better. What an impact that mindset has had on the quality of our testing programs.
His sense of ownership and dedication to the company can be better understood by referencing the things he did that were outside of his job description. We’ve always been a small company, and Mr. Bubela took it upon himself to perform various other roles outside of his testing role, like taking care of the building and various company assets as carefully as if they were his own. Beyond his technical skill and willingness to fill various roles within the company, we also recognize the impact his thoughtful and friendly demeanor made on the culture of Kalsi Engineering. We celebrate his 26-year career at Kalsi Engineering not only to thank an exemplary employee, but to also recognize a man of great integrity, and a lifelong friend.
