When he heard the Chevrolet Volt was coming to market in New York state, he knew he had to have one. He said, “I went to the dealer and I said ’How do I get myself a Chevy Volt?’ And he said, ‘We’re going to get two and one is already sold. So you have to put money down on it.” He put $1,000 down and had to wait six months, but when it came in, he realized his vision for a state-of-the-art electric vehicle had been achieved.

He ticked off some of the differences between his first electric vehicle and his Volt. “This car is a lot more efficient, first of all. It’s much more aerodynamic than an S10 pickup truck. The battery is lithium ion which is a lot lighter.” Plus, he said there’s no comparison between the maintenance he had to do on his truck and what the Volt requires.

He’ll never make the world forget Elizabeth Barrett Browning, but he did tell us, “I love this car.” And he ran down some of the things he loves in comparison to his truck. “This car is a lot more fuel efficient. This car drives so much faster, too. I like how quiet it is.” He also loves that his car will send him a text message if charging gets interrupted.

The instant torque of the electric motor has also been fun for Jon. He told us about having a Corvette pull next to him at a stoplight, and when the light changed, Jon took off from the line while the Corvette revved up. He admits, “the Corvette blew me away,” but he liked being ahead of the ‘Vette for (at least) a short distance.

Jon's Volt plugged into a public charging station in the Buffalo, NY area

Jon may also have given the electric car community a new catch phrase – “opportunity charging.” He said, “People ask well when do you plug it in? Anytime you’re parked and there’s an outlet nearby, you plug it in. It’s called opportunity charging. So you just charge when it’s available. If there was an outlet right here, I would have a plug in right now.” He said his employer lets him charge when he’s at work, so his 38 mile one-way drive from home to work becomes an all-electric round trip on most days. He also admits that he sometimes hangs around his friends’ houses a few extra minutes to get a little more charge before getting back on the road.

After more than six months of ownership, Jon sums up his feelings about his Volt this way: “I get in it and I still say I can’t believe I own this car.”

When you talk to the people who work at the GM Fuel Cell Lab in Honeoye Falls, N.Y., the conversation inevitably turns to the weather. That’s definitely understandable in the case of Omar Anbari. He grew up five minutes from the beaches in Morocco on northwest corner of the African continent, and he said that the weather there is generally like San Diego, Calif. year round, except a little warmer. He now works in the suburb of Rochester, which get an average 93 inches of snow a year. He said, “In Morocco, I could go to the beach in February. Here, you can’t even go outside in February.” But despite the weather, he is excited to be a part of the team that is developing the next generation of personal transportation.

Omar and his two brothers all grew up to be engineers. He said, “Back home in Morocco, if you have good grades in school, you tend to go toward engineering.” He went to France to study engineering, and took advantage of an exchange program that brought him to the Rochester Institute of Technology. He ended up staying in Rochester, and early in 2011, he joined the GM Fuel Cell Activities group. He is working on improving GM’s hydrogen-powered engine in hopes of making it economically feasible to mass-produce a clean alternative to today’s internal combustion (IC) engine. Powering the engine with hydrogen fuel means that you use no petroleum and water is the only emission.

While GM was able to put more than 2 million miles on its previous-generation fuel cell vehicles, Omar is part of the team that continues to make the next generation even better. He said, “We’re making it cheaper, more durable, more integrated, less weight, less volume.”

In addition to his engineering skills, Omar uses his language skills to help his team develop the next generation fuel cell vehicle. He speaks Arabic, French, Spanish and English. He has sat in on meetings with French suppliers to help facilitate communications between the teams, and he has even called hotels in Spain to assist fellow employees headed there on a business trip. He said that being able to use his language skills makes his job more enjoyable. “That’s something that I’ve always wanted to do, and I’ve worked hard to learn these languages. I’ve always wanted to use them.”

But the thing that he’s really looking forward to is seeing the next generation of the fuel cell on the road. He said, “I’m hoping that in the next generation vehicle, there will be a couple of components I’m working on in there.” The IC engine changed personal transportation. Omar said, “Being able to say in the future ‘I was part of the team that developed the first fuel cell car,’ I think that could be a pretty big one.”

She recently earned her master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology and began working at the GM Fuel Cell Lab this summer. She suspected she’d end up doing something automotive-related with her career because, “I always worked on cars with my dad when I was younger. I’d always been exposed to that hands-on aspect.” While developing more efficient ways to split molecules isn’t exactly the same as getting grease under her fingernails, it does keep her actively involved in the cutting-edge of the transportation industry.

Jackie shows us a very thin fuel cell membrane made from polymer film. It helps create electricity that powers vehicles.

Jackie walked us through a couple of the test labs at the Fuel Cell facility and talked about some of the different types of testing that goes on there. GM has already put more than 2 million miles on its hydrogen-fueled vehicles during Project Driveway, but that doesn’t mean the technology is perfected. Jackie said, “There’s always room for material improvements, system improvements, component improvements. This entire facility is driven towards improving and producing that fuel cell vehicle.” She’s excited to be part of the team creating the next generation of personal transportation.

When we asked her if the products and technologies being tested in her lab were evolutionary or revolutionary she said, “It’s a combination of evolutionary and hopefully revolutionary. Every new idea has the potential to become revolutionary, but until it goes through a gamut of testing there’s no way to really know, which is why the test infrastructure is so important to this facility.”

At graduation Jackie received a number of offers, and accepted the position with GM. She said, “One of the things that really drew me to GM and drew me to this position and research facility is that, even through the tougher economic times that they went through, they really stayed true to their research and continued to contribute to all their research efforts; because as a company, they really do believe in this technology and they really want to see this technology take off and succeed.”

With smart, dedicated people like Jacqueline Sergi working on fuel cell technology, you can bet that it is going to succeed.

Check out the video below to get a look inside the labs that Jackie manages and hear how she feels her job reflects her humanitarian values.

Recently, home and design expert Carter Oosterhouse visited his hometown of Traverse City, Mich. to shoot a number of online videos for GMC Trade Secrets. Joining him were co-hosts Chef Sam Talbot and home improvement authority Eric Stromer.

Home decor expert Carter Oosterhouse (center) with bloggers Chris Gardner (l) and Becks Davis.

Joe LaMuraglia from GMC Communications invited bloggers Becks Davis of Detroit Moxie and Chris Gardner of Man Made DIY to meet and interview the stars of GMC Trade Secrets.

The bloggers learned that Sam, Eric and Carter are all committed to sustainability. “I was very fortunate because my parents raised my brothers and my sister to have that eco consciousness and be aware of green, sustainable living,” Carter said. Sam offered a suggestion for people wanting to improve their cooking. “When you actually take the time and a little bit of effort and really just dive in there and get your fingers dirty in the soil — and if you have a little piece of land where you could throw some corn, throw some cucumbers or grow a tomato vine, and involve the family — that to me is the first step in really taking your home cooking and elevating it.” Eric talked about driving his GMC Sierra Hybrid pickup in Los Angeles. He said he even takes his truck to Hollywood movie premieres. “People are kind of into the fact that it’s a hybrid truck. I get a lot of looks from that because people don’t think trucks can be hybrid. So that’s what I love about it.”

Carter and Eric not only host GMC Trade Secrets, but they are also passionate GMC owners – both own and love the Sierra Hybrid. And Sam is actively looking at a GMC truck for his next vehicle. The Sierra Hybrid, along with the Acadia Denali crossover and Terrain SUV, are prominently featured in the weekly videos.

GMC Trade Secrets also has a mobile app you can install on your smartphone to allow you to get the experts’ advice, even if you’re not sitting at your computer. You can also follow the series on Facebook and Twitter.

If you’re looking for help on a specific project or just looking for ideas, check out the more than 350 available videos on GMC Trade Secrets. You know that the advice will be Professional Grade.

Recently, members of GM’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) employee affinity group – GM PLUS – spent their Saturday at the Live Green Fair in Ferndale, Mich., offering the eco-minded attendees a chance to drive GM cars and trucks. The Chevrolet Volt seemed to be the star of the show, with its Voltec (electric) powertrain and the ability to drive up to 40 miles without a single drop of gasoline.  Pamela Lawrence, a Fair attendee, said she dreams about owning a Volt and called the employee ride-and-drive event as “a wonderful opportunity” to get behind the wheel.

GM PLUS Chair Adam Bernard at Live Green Fair

Adam Bernard’s job title is associate director of competitor intelligence for GM. He also serves as chair of the GM PLUS. He says ride-and-drive events help to introduce GM products to audiences that might not have been paying attention otherwise. “We brought some of our coolest, greenest cars and trucks, both to reach out to the LGBT community which is kind of an untapped market for us, and also to reach out to customers who may not think of GM when they think of environmental-type vehicles.”

Adam says GM employees take their personal time to present their cars and trucks to the public, partially because it’s fun. He says, “I love talking about whatever it is I’m driving.” And Adam adds that meeting customers face-to-face helps employees do their job better. “Sometimes you sit in an office building or a cube or some kind of desk and you kind of lose sight of the fact that yes we’re building cars and trucks for people. So this is a great opportunity to clarify some misconceptions about GM products, to tell people stuff they might not know and to find out what interests our customers.”

GM's Patrick Hernandez briefs driver of CTS Sports Coupe prior to test drive

The event at the Affirmations community center in Ferndale was arranged by GM’s Vehicle Advocate Program, which has put more than 20,000 people behind the wheel of GM cars in the past year.

What do the customers think of meeting the GM employees and driving the cars? Tao Tao was smiling as he was sitting in a Camaro convertible. He said, “It’s easy to get to know the different vehicles here.” He rode in a Chevy Cruze and Volt prior to the Camaro, and he admitted he liked the Camaro best. Adam Bernard understands the smiles on the faces of the people when they finish their test drives. He says, “How can you not smile (when you) get out of a Camaro convertible or a CTS or a Volt?”

A FamilyTradition. Taking care of the environment has always been a way of life for my family. I was the second oldest in a family of nine.  For us, tent camping in Michigan was an economical way to take a vacation.  We made the best from what we had and I believe those experiences became the foundation for the rest of my life.  I remember following my dad through the forest when I was a little boy with my BB gun.  My parents taught us a deep appreciation for the earth and the need to protect it for future generations.  My wife Sharon and I have tried to pass along that same appreciation to our three boys.

Preserving Nature. I own 24 acres in the Grand Blanc area of Michigan, that my family and I have turned into a wildlife haven.  We actively manage it to provide water, food and habitat for wildlife.  It is home to songbirds, owls, hawks, ducks, and just about any other wildlife species native to the area.

Working with My Hands. I enjoy building things.  I built my house from scratch.  When I can, I use recycled materials in my projects. In fact, I built a small cabin on my property with scrap wood and sided it with old shipping pallets, made into shingles.

I guess the ultimate recycling might be my taxidermy work.  When I was a boy, I remember feeling a need to preserve and share the beauty of wildlife.  I was in awe of pheasants, with their beautiful plumage that my dad hunted. I felt a need to do more than pluck them and throw away the feathers after the bird was prepared for our dinner. I saw an ad in my Boy Scout magazine for a taxidermy course. I sent my $10 in and that’s how I learned taxidermy. My mom was very encouraging and complimentary of my early efforts. Now, I enjoy working with birds, although I’ve done all kinds of animals. Once, in college, we brought a shark home from Florida tied to the bottom of a Trans Am so I that could mount it to preserve it for others to enjoy.

Mentoring. I was a Boy Scout then a Scoutmaster for many years. Now, I mentor the scouts with Eagle Projects.  My nephew Jacob is working on a project right now.   He built and placed Wood Duck nest boxes, made from Chevrolet Volt battery pack covers and other materials at several GM sites.  The covers were destined to be scrapped, but rather than be landfilled or sent for incineration, they were repurposed to benefit wildlife.  Wood Ducks have been challenged over the last several years, due to habitat and nest site loss.  Artificial nest boxes, when engineered correctly, serve as excellent alternative nesting cavities.

My job is finding solutions to GM’s waste issues.  I feel like I’m making the world a better place for everybody.  Today, I enjoy mentoring young engineers and students.   I try to get them to think out of the box.   For example, a project I worked on resulted in the Buick LaCrosse having a part of its headliner made out of recycled cardboard from our plants.  Another was to sell vehicle components with slight dents and scratches.  I tell them: the easy part is coming up with the idea, the hard part is implementing it.  You have to work some of these environmentally sound ideas through the system, but it is more than worth it when they are in place.

 Lucy Boulatnikov Wilke , senior project engineer 

Married to: Burkhardt (Burk for short) for almost two years
Listens to: Tons of audio books as she travels 25,000 miles/yr to visit Burk in Canada – mostly historical fiction
TV junkie: House, So You Think You Can Dance, Bones, Family Guy, South Park, Simpsons
Music junkie: Classical when she’s with Burk, pop when she’s alone
Hobbies: Loves spending time with friends and doing outdoor stuff like camping and hiking
Interesting fact: Leads GM Friends & Family Ski Club
Education: Has a BS in Industrial Engineering from the University at Buffalo (UB) and a Masters in Manufacturing Management & Leadership from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)

As a fourteen year old, Lucy came to the U.S. from Ukraine and jumped feet first into all things math related. She tutored math and was one of the team leads of her high school math team that competed against other Rochester, NY high schools.

So it’s not surprising that as an engineer, following in her mother’s footsteps, Lucy runs mathematical equations in her mind (silly stuff as she calls it), as she travels 4.5 hours to see her husband who is completing his Chemistry PhD in Ottawa, Canada. She tries to figure out if she increases her speed by one mile per hour, how much faster she will get there. What takes you by surprise are her funny sayings.

“Burk and I were married on the 4^th of July and on the Save-the-Dates I wrote: “…we are losing our independence to each other on Independence Day!” What can I say; I love to be corny.”

Lucy & Burk

Lucy is a manufacturing engineer who works with Design Engineering, Operations and Quality functions to set up processes to build and test the next generation of fuel cells. “You have to plan not just for the short term – that’s easy – but for the long term when we go into the actual fuel cell vehicle production.”

She came to GM six years ago when a manager of the Honeoye Falls, NY Fuel Cell facility who was trying to woo her away from a job she loved in Buffalo, NY, asked her if she wanted to work at a job that would change the world. “Corny, but Gary totally had me at “change the world.”

When she started at Honeoye Falls, the production floor was pretty empty. She had the opportunity to plan for the building of the first 120 Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell vehicles that would be used in the largest test marketing program for a fuel cell vehicle of any manufacturer. “These vehicles were going to be driven by regular drivers and had to meet all the stringent safety and quality metrics of any other Chevy vehicle. There was a lot of calculating and running of many algorithms to learn what to expect from the innovative designs. The beauty of working with so many smart people is that the problems always get solved with creative new ideas.

At the 2009 Rochester Auto Show

“I am so motivated by what I do and how it will affect our planet in the future. After six years I am still so excited about my job. My parents gave up a lot for my future, and I know they, as well as my brother are extremely proud of my work.  My friends also think it’s ‘wicked cool’ that I get to work on the cutting edge technologies.”

She puts the technology into perspective for us. “Think about if you lived in a crowded city. With fuel cells, there is no pollution or smog, no worry of health issues – just a release of water vapor. There would be no catastrophic events that come from off-shore drilling because hydrogen can be safely produced anywhere. There are opportunities to use a variety of methods to produce hydrogen. For us locally we could use the electricity that is generated from Niagara Falls, others could use solar, wind and even thermal energy to get their car fuel.”

Three years ago Lucy was teased by a colleague about not running at the annual Corporate Challenge 3.5-mile run. Always up for a challenge, Lucy started running and has kept it up doing 3-mile runs 2-3 times a week.  “There are a lot of runners at the Honeoye Falls facility, it’s a great group.  Running helps me stay fit and gets me outside getting fresh clean air – just like the air from the exhaust of a Chevy fuel cell vehicle.” J

Merritt @ the track

Merritt Johnson, Design Release Engineer, X26R Electric Pump AC Cables

Vintage designs: Staying true to the engineer in me, I’m really into design and architecture. I purchased this cool mid-century modern house and I’m always looking for vintage furniture designs.

If I only knew then: When I get the chance, I like to read biographies of historical American figures. My dad worked in the Reagan administration, so I like learning about what was going on when I was too young to know!

Busted!:  Aside from swimming and racing (you think I have too many hobbies?!) I like to unwind by sitting on the couch and watching MythBusters. I love watching Adam and Jamie try to disprove the latest myths – especially when they’re auto-related.

My job is amazing. I work for GM but I get to live in sunny, southern California. You’re probably wondering how I got this cushy deal, so I’ll start from the beginning.

I grew up in northern Virginia, near the DC-area. I’ve always had an interest in anything mechanical and science-related so I developed a love for cars early on in life. I went to Kenyon College, a private, Ohio-based liberal arts school but soon transferred to the University of Southern California to study mechanical engineering.

After graduation, I went to work for various aftermarket part manufacturers including AEM, where I created air intakes and electronic management systems and Turbonetics, where I designed turbo chargers and the parts related to the turbo systems. In between my time spent with Turbonetics and AEM, I was a member of a professional race team at the SCCA World Challenge Series.

The World Challenge Championship is a production-based race series in which manufacturers and aftermarket suppliers compete to prove their products. I was a race engineer, helping with suspension set-up and vehicle dynamics. We actually competed against Cadillac! Cadillac won, but it was still a lot of fun.

I loved working on performance parts but I saw that the market was shifting toward advanced powertrains and hybrid and electric motor development and thought it was a good chance for me to learn about these emerging technologies before I was behind the eight ball. I knew performance parts weren’t going anywhere, so I thought I’d give it a shot. I didn’t realize you could even work for GM without being based in Detroit until I saw the job posting.

I started my career with GM in 2008 at the Powertrain Advanced Technology Center in Torrance, Calif., working on the development of electric motors for future concept vehicles. The company began to further expand its hybrid programs and started asking people to spearhead certain projects. I had the opportunity to work on the high voltage cabling for the hybrid vehicles.

I currently work on the second-generation rear-wheel drive hybrid program, which is the system that’s in the GMC Yukon and Sierra Hybrids and the Chevrolet Tahoe and Silverado Hybrids. The system uses a pump in the transmission to circulate the transmission oil. The pump is driven by an electric motor. I am the design release engineer for the high voltage electric cables that transfer the power from the inverter to the motor in the electric pump. Because they’re high voltage, the cables need a lot of attention in terms of safety for the driver as well as service technicians. Shielding for electrical interference is also another important aspect of the design – we need to monitor the heat, temperature and vibrations in the vehicle. So my job is really important for the safety of the vehicle and its passengers.

When I’m not working, you’ll find me in the water. I’ve been a competitive swimmer for as long as I can remember and I still swim as part of the Long Beach Shore Aquatics. In fact, we’re organizing a big swim in Long Beach this year to benefit brain cancer research in honor of Klaus Barth, a local, well-respected swim prodigy who recently succumbed to the disease.

Vital stats: Married with two daughters, ages 15 and 13
Education: Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Environmental Health and Master of Science degree in Hazardous Waste Management
Passions:  I enjoy fishing and hunting and the great outdoors. I love coaching basketball, soccer and track. And, I enjoy community involvement activities, such as water sampling on the Clinton River Watershed in Michigan with local students, and leading Earth Day activities at local schools.  Our staff at work also hosts annual Household Collection Days for plant employees to bring in chemicals, paints, and oil from home to be properly disposed of and/or recycled.

As an environmental engineer, it’s my job to handle all the environmental aspects of a manufacturing plant – whether it’s waste elimination or using less energy.  For example, we are able to generate enough energy from our plant waste in Warren, Mich., to provide electricity for 11 Michigan homes for one year.  And, I look at the habitat at Warren Transmission as a reflection of me, the plant, and the community and how nature can bring out the best in people.  It can also provide educational opportunities to people who have never been exposed to nature or maybe never thought a small parcel of land could hold so many different things. 

Mark sharing with students on Earth Day

Back in 2005, we started discussing making part of our plant site a wildlife habitat. You don’t see that very often in an urban environment. I worked with my boss, Sue Kelsey, and my counterpart AT, Asefaw Teclegorgis, an environmental engineer.

We partnered with Martha Gruelle of the local Wildlife Habitat Council, and John Pomante of Macomb County Chapter of Pheasants Forever, and the plant staff and plant employees of Local 909.

We prepared the soil, removed rocks and steel, picked up debris, planted warm season grasses and wildflower, planted pines, and installed bat houses, bird houses, and a bird feeder.

In December 2009, Robert Johnson, President of the Wildlife Habitat, toured the site and gave us additional pointers and kudos for the work we’ve done.

I envision the site to be used as an educational resource to local students or groups, like the Girl Scouts or Cub Scouts, etc. because it tell a story about how a little bit of nature is right here, locally.  I get great pleasure in seeing this project grow, and look forward to opportunities for improvement.  It is cool seeing the wildlife habitat change, like change of seasons, in southeast Michigan.

Trent and the Volt in Death Valley

Trent Warnke, Development and Validation Engineer, Milford Proving Grounds

Grab my boat shoes: I love any water-activity, whether it’s cruising on my family’s speedboat, wakeboarding or water-skiing.

And My Oscar Goes To: Guy Ritchie. I like every one of his movies. Snatch, Fight Club and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels are my top three favorites.

Book I would want on a deserted island: Anything written by Dan Brown. Right now I’m really into his newest book, The Lost Symbol.

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had a fascination with cars. Though I wasn’t sure how or in what capacity, I always knew I’d somehow wind up working with them. I grew up in Bowling Green, Ohio, and received my mechanical engineering degree at Kettering University in Flint, Mich. After graduation, I traveled overseas to Stuttgart, Germany where I received my master’s degree in automotive mechatronics — which is really just a fancy word for studying mechanical electronic devices, like hybrids.

During my time in Germany, I wrote my master’s thesis for Bosch, where I was responsible for the development and testing of stability and traction control software. Basically, I worked on the software for braking systems. After about a year with Bosch, I applied for a position within the hybrid group at GM. During my first year, I had the opportunity to work on a two-mode hybrid system. I was responsible for overseeing the powertrain components – testing the various parts and making sure they worked properly. My job was every guy’s dream – I would literally drive around and try to break the car. Donuts? Check! Burnouts? You bet!

Now I’m working on the Chevrolet Volt, the car that’s going to be a major game-changer for the industry. My job is to make sure the vehicle is meeting all performance and safety requirements. Just like in my previous position, I do this by trying to “break” the vehicle. If a component fails, we determine how and why and then repair the problem before the car goes into production.

In addition to performance and safety validation, I also work with GM’s hot and cold-weather testing team to ensure the Volt will perform efficiently in all climates. From the heat of Death Valley to the sub-zero temperatures of Kapuskasing, Canada, we make sure the vehicle can withstand the harshest of weather.

When I’m not working, you can usually find me with my buddies getting an old “beater” car ready for the annual LeMons Race. Each year, we find a car for under $500, fix it up and race it for 24 hours straight. With six drivers per team, we each take 1-2 hour shifts. Some years we finish; others we don’t. Unfortunately, last year our engine blew up after just a few hours. We were able to find a replacement and swap the engine, but after another 3 hours, it blew up again. But what can I say? It’s worth it every year!