| |  | 2022 Summer Newsletter | |  | Ferland Engineering Education and Design Center Grand Opening Event
The new Ferland Engineering Education and Design Centers is weeks away from being complete. Crews are in the final stages of construction on the new building which started in 2020. This new facility will be the heart of the engineering campus at the university.
A ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled to occur on August 24th. The event will be in-person and streamed online. Stay tuned to umaine.edu for more information. | |  | NSF awards $6 million for UMaine-led effort to establish new lab to study AI in advanced manufacturing
A new lab to study how the latest artificial intelligence tools and techniques could bolster advanced manufacturing in northern New England will be launched with a $6 million award from the National Science Foundation to the University of Maine. UMaine will collaborate with the University of New Hampshire, University of Vermont, Southern Maine Community College, Dartmouth College and Vermont Technical College to create the Northeast Integrated Intelligent Manufacturing Lab (NIIM), funded by a Research Infrastructure Improvement Track-2 Focused EPSCoR Collaboration award.
The lab, based at UMaine, will be used to investigate new technologies to increase advanced manufacturing efficiency, scalability, capability and safety by incorporating AI, robotics and 3D metal printing. The research team behind the lab will explore the efficacy of various AI techniques for advanced manufacturing, including interpretable machine learning models, physics-guided and multitask learning, and unsupervised domain adaptation. In collaboration with industry partners, researchers plan to develop new AI models for advanced manufacturing that are more interpretable and adaptable, AI-guided design for additive metal manufacturing that reduces unnecessary trial-and-error, self-aware computer numerical control machines for subtractive manufacturing and industrial robots to support cellular manufacturing.
Full story here… | |  | Maine Business School and College of Engineering launch concentration in Engineering Management The University of Maine Graduate School of Business and the College of Engineering have partnered on a new MaineMBA concentration in Engineering Management. “The University of Maine’s College of Engineering is world-class and is known to be one of the strengths of our great institution,” says Norm O’Reilly, dean of the Graduate School of Business. “The globally ranked MaineMBA was the driver of the first phase of the UMS Transforms initiative and has been in a period of strong growth. Bringing the faculty of these two colleges together in this new concentration is very exciting and something we believe will lead to great outcomes for students and the State of Maine.”
The idea for the MaineMBA concentration was sparked by the Graduate Certificate in Engineering Management, which includes several MBA courses in the curriculum. An official concentration in the MaineMBA program made perfect sense. “The two fields are perfect complements as many engineers reach a point in their career where they need the business acumen to progress,” says Faye Gilbert, executive dean of the Maine Business School. "The partnership between these two colleges will benefit both the students and the Maine economy,” says Dana Humphrey, dean of the College of Engineering. “Engineers are taught to solve incredibly complex problems and make those solutions happen. This skill set is just as important to the business world as it is to engineering. This partnership will allow graduates to not only accelerate their careers in engineering but also give them the business acumen to be successful in a wide range of fields."
Watch Humphrey discuss the new concentration in Engineering Management.
| |  | Horton receives 2022 annual SWE award
Karen Horton, professor and coordinator of mechanical engineering technology at the University of Maine, has been awarded a Fellow Grade award from the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). Horton is a SWE senior life member and has been a part of the organization since 1981.
SWE is a nonprofit educational and service organization that empowers women to succeed and advance in engineering and be recognized for their life-changing contributions as engineers and leaders, according to the SWE website.
Each year, SWE recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the STEM community and the advancement of women in engineering, according to the SWE blog, All Together. This year, there were 21 different awards given to a total of 267 recipients. Out of the 267, seven, including Horton, were awarded the Fellow Grade. A Fellow Grade award honors SWE members who show continuous service to the advancement of women in the engineering profession.
Full Story… | |  | Andrew Schanck: Alumnus continues his UMaine work in cutting-edge bridge technology Andrew Schanck from Pittsfield, Maine received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and his Ph.D in civil engineering from the University of Maine. He says he chose UMaine because of its renowned engineering program and stayed to pursue research as a graduate student in bridge engineering and advanced numerical modeling. He started working at UMaine’s world-class Advanced Structures and Composites Center as an undergraduate in 2013. Today, he is working full time as a research engineer at the center. “A global challenge that we face daily is the need for a qualified workforce to support the industries we’re literally creating. What makes Dr. Schanck invaluable is the fact that he is working to not only shape the future of infrastructure to be more efficient, economical and sustainable; but pioneering the next generation workforce needed to continue this work. It’s been a great pleasure to watch him grow as a student and I am excited for the lab, the State of Maine and the future of sustainable, durable infrastructure that he’s staying on to continue this important work,” Habib Dagher, founding Executive Director of the Advanced Structures and Composites Center.
Full article… | |  | Three of UMaine’s best advocates honored at Stillwater Society Dinner Orono, Maine — The University of Maine celebrated three of its top advocates at the Stillwater Society Dinner May 21. The annual event in Orono honors UMaine’s most generous philanthropists. Currently, there are 1,541 members in the society, including 270 new members inducted and 197 members who advanced in their membership level at the event. “The Stillwater Awards honor those who have consistently demonstrated philanthropic leadership and dedicated service on behalf of the University of Maine,” said UMaine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy. “This year’s honorees — alumni Matthew Rodrigue and Trish Riley, and longtime College of Engineering Dean Dana Humphrey — are among our staunchest champions of student success and the importance of a research university to Maine and beyond. We appreciate their vision and commitment to our R1 university and tomorrow’s leaders.” Those honored, also Stillwater Society members, were alumni Matt Rodrigue and Trish Riley, and Dean Dana Humphrey.
Full Story… | |  | Yang receives NSF Early Career Award for nanomaterials research
Yingchao Yang, assistant professor in the University of Maine Department of Mechanical Engineering, received a National Science Foundation (NSF) Early CAREER Award for his research on asymmetrical fracture of high-entropy two-dimensional nanomaterials. Yang is the fourth member of the Department of Mechanical Engineering to receive the prestigious award in 2021–22. Ultra-thin two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials have been extensively researched for use in devices like electronics, photonics, batteries and more. The stability of components made from the materials is critical to their reliability, but toughening the brittle materials — making them more resistant to fractures, for example — often comes at the cost of their mechanical strength. What’s more, 2D high entropy materials (HEMs), nanomaterials that consist of multiple elements, are asymmetrical, and thus harder to fracture.
Full story… | |  | UMaine College of Engineering presents its top annual awards
The chief engineer of the Maine Department of Transportation is among the recipients of the University of Maine College of Engineering’s top annual awards to alumni, faculty, staff and students. Joyce Taylor, chief engineer for MaineDOT and a 1986 graduate, received the Edward T. Bryand Distinguished Engineering Award. Others honored at the 42nd Annual Edward Bryand Awards Ceremony were William Desisto, professor of chemical engineering, Ashley S. Campbell Award; Lauren Ross, assistant professor of hydraulics and water resources engineering, Early Career Research Award; Meredith Kirkmann, assistant professor of construction engineering technology, Early Career Teaching Award; Kimberly Goff, large center development associate, Vice President for Research Office, Leila C. Lowell Award; Saman Zare, mechanical engineering, Graduate Assistant Research Award; and Brandon Dixon, chemical and biomedical engineering, Graduate Assistant Teaching Award.
This year’s Bryand Awards Ceremony was a hybrid event held on Jan. 20 that included a small group of award recipients, and their friends and family, all gathered in Wells Conference Center on campus, and dozens of people attending virtually. The annual event was established in 1979 by Engineering Dean Jim Clapp. The first College Recognition Banquet was held in 1980. Criteria were established for two awards: the Ashley S. Campbell Award and the Edward T. Bryand Distinguished Engineering Award. Other awards for individuals and students have been added throughout the years, including the Leila C. Lowell Award for staff members that began in 1983. | |  | Chisom Orakwue: Outstanding Graduating international student Chisom Orakwue of Lagos, Nigeria is the Outstanding Graduating International Student in the College of Engineering. Orakwue, a biomedical engineering major, received the International Presidential Scholarship and the Richard E. Durst Scholarship. This academic year, she has been involved in research in professor Karissa Tilbury’s laboratory, focused on the use of spatial frequency domain imaging (SFDI) for detecting biomarkers of diabetic neuropathy and sepsis. For her capstone project, she designed a wheelchair cushion to help reduce pressure sores. Beyond the lab and classroom, Orakwue has been a Black Bear Mentor, a resident assistant and a peer tutor. Last year, she was vice president of the International Student Association. Orakwue plans to pursue graduate school.
Full Story… | |  | Hua Lin: Outstanding Graduating Student Hua Lin of Portland, Maine is the Outstanding Graduating Student in the College of Engineering. He has earned dual degrees in mathematics and in engineering physics, with a concentration in mechanical engineering. In 2019, Lin received a Center for Undergraduate Research (CUGR) Fellowship and a National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Fellowship in sensor science and engineering. In NSF REU Sensors initiative, he collaborated with professor Sheila Edalatpour on the project “Silicon Carbide Nanowires and Thin Films for Sensing Strain and Pressure in Harsh Environments.” Lin’s honors thesis is “Near-Field Thermal Radiation in Graphene-Based Systems.” He has begun his master’s work in mechanical engineering and will have his graduate degree in 2023. Lin plans to have a career in engineering research.
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