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Solar cars, green ideas on offer at Sandia Labs’ S3: Safe, Secure, Sustainable Fair

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A former electrical lineman who lost his arm in a workplace accident and a national expert on food safety and sustainability will give keynote presentations at Sandia National Laboratories’ S3: Safe, Secure, Sustainable Fair on Wednesday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

In addition to the speakers, more than a dozen solar, electrical and alternative-fuel cars, the latest technology for rescue vehicles, green building techniques and much more will be on display at more than 80 information booths at the annual fair.

Organizers hope the fair will inform Sandia Labs employees, contractors and Kirtland Air Force Base personnel about ways to maintain sustainable and safe lifestyles.

“Sandia’s national security mission includes energy security, so learning about ways to make food and energy sources more sustainable also will help make our communities more secure,” said Katrina Wagner, a co-coordinator of the fair. “We expect that a lot of displays, particularly the alternative-fuel cars, will be things many of us have never seen before. Our community has so many great resources for people who want to live more sustainable and safer lifestyles.”

Members of the news media who want to attend all or part of the fair Wednesday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. may call Heather Clark at (505) 844-3511 by 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 24, to request an escort. The event will be held at Sandia Labs on Kirtland Air Force Base. Randy Fellhoelter, an occupational safety engineer, will present “Shortcuts” from 9:30-10:30 a.m. Author and professor Marion Nestle will talk about “Food for Health and Environmental Sustainability” from 11 a.m. to noon.

Here are details about the keynote speakers:

Randy Fellhoelter, 9:30-10:30 a.m. Fellhoelter, a Sandia Labs occupational safety engineer, knows the consequences of violating a serious safety rule after he took a “shortcut” that contributed to an electrical accident in a job with a previous employer. The former electric lineman lost his arm after coming into contact with 7,200 volts of electricity — a voltage so high that his damaged arm had to be amputated. The accident caused severe burns throughout his body, and he suffered many months of painful surgery and burn treatment.

Marion Nestle, 11 a.m.-noon. Nestle, author of “Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health” and “Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism,” will speak about “Food for Health and Environmental Sustainability.” Nestle is a professor in New York University’s Department of Nutrition, Food Studies and Public Health. From 1986-88, she was a senior nutrition policy adviser in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and managing editor of the 1988 Surgeon General’s Report on Nutrition and Health.


Sandia National Laboratories is a multiprogram laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major R&D responsibilities in national security, energy and environmental technologies, and economic competitiveness.

Sandia news media contact: Heather Clark, hclark@sandia.gov (505) 844-3511