Engineering News - 2023

EngineeringNews P E N N S TAT E B E H R E N D S C H O O L O F E N G I N E E R I N G

6 BREAKING POINT

New drop tower advances materials science research 3 Bell Rings in New Tradition 5 Robotics and Automation Lab Opens 8 Team Designs Prosthesis for Tennis Player 10 Celebrating 75 Years: Decades of Change 12 School Leaders Visit Alumni in Houston

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DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE Houston, we don’t have a problem.

IN BRIEF

ALUMNI HONORED WITH AWARDS

On a visit to Houston earlier this year, I was fortunate to meet with graduates of our School of Engineering. I was more than inspired. The visit was a reminder that we educate at the highest level and prepare our graduates like no other institution!

We visited NASA. We visited large companies like TechnipFMC, ExxonMobil, and Shell. We visited entrepreneurial ventures like American Medical Molding. And everywhere we went, we saw our alumni excelling—making an impact in the work they do.

We don’t rest on our laurels in the School of Engineering, though.

We’re always looking to innovate to provide our students with career-building experiences. The latest example of that is our new Prischak Robotics and Automation Lab, where students are learning to program industrial-grade robots to create automated manufacturing cells that meet diverse applications.

Industry told us there was a need for graduates educated in robotics, and we responded—with the help of our friends, the Prischak family, who have supported Behrend Engineering through the years.

If you have not been to Penn State Behrend recently, I encourage you to visit. From world-class facilities to faculty who care deeply about the education of our students, you will see what inspires me every day. Our current engineering students will soon be the alumni I visit, and I am confident that I will be as amazed at their accomplishments as I am by the successes of the Behrend engineering graduates who have come before them.

JOSEPH SNYDER was named a Penn

NICOLE (FRISBEE) GAILEY, pictured here with Chancellor Ralph Ford, was recently honored as one of seven Penn State Alumni Achievement Award recipients. The award recognizes alumni 35 years of age and younger for outstanding professional accomplishments.

Gailey, a 2010 Mechanical Engineering graduate, is the director of R&D and Innovation PMO Americas for Trivium Packaging, focusing on the next generation of metal packaging solutions.

She and her team are charged with discovering, evaluating, and designing new technologies, materials, and graphics that may lead to new products, improvements to existing products, and product differentiation.

Gailey was the keynote speaker at the School of Engineering’s Richard J. Fasenmyer Engineering Design Conference in 2022. She also is actively involved in Behrend’s K-12 Youth Education Outreach efforts. A standout soccer player at Behrend, she was inducted into the college’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019.

State Alumni Fellow in the fall of 2022.

The lifelong title of Alumni Fellow is the highest award given by the Penn State Alumni Association.

Snyder graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering Technology from Penn State Behrend in 1997. In 2002, he founded Process and Data Automation, growing it from a three-person operation to a premier control systems integration and data services company with nearly fifty employees—80 percent of whom are Behrend alumni. The company is now a member of the Krones Group, a $4 billion global beverage and liquid food packaging company headquartered in Germany.

In 2015, Snyder relocated Process and Data Automation to Knowledge Park at Penn State Behrend, enabling the company to offer internship opportunities to Behrend students who want global experience. He is a member of the School of Engineering’s advisory board and the Electrical Engineering Technology Industry Advancement Committee.

ON THE COVER: Dr. Xiaoshi Zhang and Josh Lutz ’21 work with the college’s new drop tower Dr. Tim Kurzweg tpk103@psu.edu

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impact-testing system, which was acquired with funds from a $385,000 National Science Foundation grant that will expand materials science research at Behrend. Zhang is a Plastics Engineering Technology researcher, and Lutz is a PLET lab assistant. Story on page 6.

MARY (GOOD) LAWRENCE, pictured

here giving the college’s 2019 spring commencement speech, was recently chosen to receive the Behrend Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award.

Established in 2021, the award recognizes an alumnus/alumna of Behrend who has made significant contributions to their chosen profession, their community, and Behrend, in turn enhancing the prestige of the college.

Lawrence, who started her career at NASA in 2002, is deputy manager of the International Space Station Vehicle Office at Johnson Space Center, overseeing engineering, logistics, and program management to ensure the safety of the space station’s seven astronauts as they live and work 200 miles above the Earth.

She previously served as one of thirty NASA flight directors responsible for managing operations for all human spaceflight programs. In 2018, she received the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal for her role as lead flight director for the 54th expedition to the space station.

Lawrence earned a degree in mechanical engineering from Behrend in 2001.

She and her husband, Andrew, live in League City, Texas, with their two children.

AMIC HOME TO NEW (TO BEHREND) TRADITION In 1996, the West Philadelphia Bronze Company cast a 2,097-pound replica of the Liberty Bell to mark the 100th anniversary of the American Foundry Society. The replica now hangs in the lobby of Penn State Behrend’s Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Center, which houses labs and classrooms for the School of Engineering’s Industrial Engineering program.

“We’re proud of our ties to the region’s foundries and metal-casting industries,” said Dr. Paul Lynch, an associate professor of industrial engineering. “We appreciate everything the bell represents, both as a symbol of America and as a reminder of the importance of industry throughout our nation’s history.”

For years, the replica bell was on display at the Leonhard Building at University Park. It moved to Behrend when its original home was renovated.

At University Park, graduates of the Industrial Engineering program—including Lynch—rang the bell when they completed their degrees. That tradition will continue at Behrend, he said.

PAVERS ON SALE If you’ve ever wanted to leave a legacy at Penn State Behrend, now is the time! Paver stones at the Mary Behrend Monument are anniversary-priced at $75. Find a link to purchase at behrend.psu. edu/monument.

75TH ANNIVERSARY INFO Keep up with all the activities and events planned to celebrate our big anniversary year at behrend.psu.edu/75.

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IN BRIEF Faculty & Staff News The School of Engineering welcomed four faculty members: Dr. Ahmed Elnakib, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering; Dr. Zhengran He, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering technology; Dr. Issah Ibrahim, assistant teaching professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Dr. Jie Zhao, assistant professor of computer science and software engineering.

Honors

Brad Johnson, lecturer in plastics engineering technology, was recognized as a 2023 Honored Service Member by the Society of Plastics Engineers. Dr. Chetan Nikhare, professor of mechanical engineering, was conferred as an American Society of Mechanical Engineering Fellow. Dr. Ihab Ragai, associate professor of mechanical engineering technology, was elected a member of the Scientific Committee of the European Scientific Association for Material Forming and also the 2023-2024 president-elect of the North American Manufacturing Research Institution.

In Memoriam The School of Engineering lost a legend when Jon Meckley, associate professor emeritus of engineering in plastics engineering technology, died at his home on April 1. He was 63.

Meckley had a long history with Behrend, first as a student and then as a faculty member, before retiring in 2022. He earned both an associate degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology and bachelor’s degrees in MET and Plastics Engineering Technology from Behrend, before earning a master’s degree from the University of Massachusetts.

For more than two decades, Meckley organized and led international trips for PLET majors to many countries. He was hardworking but also fun-loving.

As much as he enjoyed a good practical joke, he was serious about student success, leaving an indelible mark on scores of PLET students he helped guide to success.

Research Awards

Dr. Omar Ashour, associate professor of industrial engineering, and his collaborators at Penn State and Carnegie Mellon, were awarded $850,000 by the National Science Foundation for their proposal, Adaptable Game-based, Interactive Learning Environments for STEM Education. Dr. Chen Cao, assistant professor of computer science and software engineering, was awarded $151,000 by the National Science Foundation for his proposal, Understanding and Enhancing Unsafe Rust Code in Resource-constrained Systems.

Faculty & Staff Awards For 2022-23

The following were recognized with School of Engineering Awards: Dr. Abdallah Abdallah, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, Excellence in Teaching; Dr. Chetan Nikhare, professor of mechanical engineering, Excellence in Research; Dr. Charlotte Marr de Vries, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, Excellence in Service; Dr. David Beevers, assistant teaching professor of mechanical engineering, Excellence in Advising; Melanie Ford, associate teaching professor of computer science and software engineering, Excellence in Outreach; and Kelly Kemmet, administrative support assistant, Staff Excellence.

Rhoades Named Vice Chancellor

Dr. Alicyn Rhoades, professor of plastics engineering technology and polymer engineering and science, was appointed vice chancellor and associate dean for research and graduate studies on July 1.

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ERIE HALL NOW OPEN Penn State Behrend’s new Erie Hall, the culmination of more than a decade of planning and preparation and eighteen months of construction, opened this spring. The $28.2 million project was funded in part by Behrend students, who contributed nearly 40 percent of the project cost, with funds from the Student Initiated Fee. The 52,700-square-foot building features a three-court gymnasium, fitness and aerobics rooms, locker rooms, training facilities, and coaches’ offices for the college’s NCAA Division III baseball, softball, tennis, cross country, track and field, and wrestling teams. Erie Hall also is the new home of the college’s Personal Counseling offices, bringing mental and physical health and wellness programs together under one roof.

WITH AN EYE TO THE FUTURE

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Prischak Robotics and Automation Lab opens in Burke Center lthough it’s been open only since late last year, the new Prischak Robotics and Automation Lab in the School of Engineering is drawing the attention of area manufacturers and businesses that want to collaborate with Behrend on research and development projects.

It’s no surprise to Dr. Yohannes Haile, assistant teaching professor of management and industrial engineering, who points out that every manufacturer has a goal of improving their processes and/or production.

“Robotics and automation make manufacturers more competitive by increasing efficiency, lowering labor costs, and reducing the ergonomic stress on workers,” Haile said.

Robotics and automation can also help with labor shortages.

“Current estimates indicate there are 500,000 open manufacturing jobs in the country right now,” he said. “That is estimated to grow to 2.4 million by 2028.”

Haile has already had discussions and visits with regional manufacturers such as Parker LORD, Cummins Jamestown Engine Plant, Lake Erie Rubber, Port Erie Plastics, PC Systems of Ridgway, and the Plastek Group to explore potential projects. This summer, Penn State’s Board of Trustees toured the facility as well.

The lab is equipped with a range of cutting-edge equipment, including four industry-grade collaborative robots, vision systems, sensors, and controls used in manufacturing. A FARO® laser scanning arm will be installed soon.

The facility was made possible by a $1.2 million gift from Erie-based plastics packaging manufacturer Plastek Group and the family of its founder, the late Joe Prischak.

“The lab is configured to be both internal and external facing,” Haile said.

“The internal facing aspect advances experiential learning by students and supports the college’s research activities, and the external facing aspect supports collaboration with industry, providing a safe sandbox for innovation and experimentation of new ideas and concepts away from the manufacturing floor and also serving as a resource for upskilling of a company’s workforce.”

Beyond providing industry support, the foremost goal of the lab is to give students opportunities to gain hands-on experience in robotics and automation through research projects, internships, and co-op programs. Several students work in the lab as research assistants, and a visit to the lab is incorporated in many engineering classes in the various disciplines, as nearly all engineering students can be expected to work with robotics in some form in their future careers.

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National Science Foundation Grant Expands Materials Science Research $385,000 grant will support the work of at least ten faculty members

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ith a $385,000 grant from the National Science Foundation, the School of Engineering has installed an Instron drop tower impact-testing system to advance the work of faculty members developing new approaches to polymer recycling and the formulation of new composites.

At least ten faculty members will use the system to further their research, which includes automotive and aerospace projects. Another will use it to test new polymers for ski boots and bindings.

“This takes us into a whole new kind of materials science,” said Dr. Greg Dillon, chair of the Polymer Engineering and Science program and the principal investigator for the NSF grant.

“It allows us to delve very deeply into fracture mechanics: how materials and structures fail under high energy.”

Drop towers are used to determine how materials break.

The drop mechanism, or tup, is fired like an arrow into a plastic, metal, ceramic, or gel. The Instron tup drops at a rate of 78 feet per second.

“It’s a lot like a crossbow,” said Dr. Alicyn Rhoades, vice chancellor and associate dean for research and graduate studies and a professor of engineering. She and Dillon wrote the original application for the NSF grant.

For a previous study, Rhoades used a drop tower owned by a corporate partner. The tup on that machine had been customized for the company’s product, however, so it was not practical to collaborate on the machine for university projects.

The Instron system Rhoades and Dillon selected includes a variety of tups—round, flat, and conical—that can be changed based on an individual researcher’s needs. The conditioning chamber can be heated or cooled to test how a material responds at different temperatures, from a high of 302 degrees to a low of -94 degrees Fahrenheit.

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“Any time you test, you want to do so in conditions that are as close to the actual product environment as possible,” said Beth Last, research core facilities coordinator at Behrend and the co-principal investigator for the grant.

Automotive plastics, for example, have to retain their properties over a range of temperatures. In an engine compartment, the temperature can exceed 200 degrees. In the bumper, in winter conditions, it can dip below zero. At low temperatures, plastics become brittle and are more likely to break.

“This takes us into a whole new kind of materials science.

It allows us to delve very deeply into fracture mechanics: how materials and structures fail under high energy.”

Dr. Xiaoshi Zhang, Plastics Engineering Technology researcher, and Josh Lutz ’21, PLET lab assistant.

“With polymers, the mystery of fracture mechanics is that it’s so difficult to understand all the phases of the event,” Rhoades said.

“We generally know when a material is going to fail. But too often, after that happens, we’re left looking for clues on the surface of the sample, trying to trace back to the origin of the fracture.”

A high-speed camera on the Instron system allows Behrend researchers to analyze the entire process. The camera, which can be set to different magnifications, can record 900,000 frames per second.

DR. GREG DILLON, CHAIR, POLYMER ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE PROGRAM

Like a Harold Edgerton photo—the bullet piercing the apple or the splash of milk forming a perfect white crown—those images essentially stop time: Researchers can see the exact moment a crack or fracture forms. Then, a few frames ahead, they can watch it spread.

“You can see what’s happening within the material,” Dillon said. “Is it bending? Does it deform? Does it in any way resist the impact? Once you know that, you can engineer materials that better absorb that energy.”

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A PROJECT WITH IMPACT Design team creates prosthesis for tennis player

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From left, Zachary Vandervort, Deven Phillips, Christian Neubert, Morgan Tarbrake, and Maxwell Myers.

hristian Neubert, a junior at Erie’s McDowell High School, was born without a left hand.

It’s a challenge he learned to live with long ago, and it hasn’t held him back. Overcoming and adapting to it is something he said he almost relishes at this point. Enter tennis.

In middle school, he decided to try the sport. He enjoyed it, so he took lessons, and when he entered high school, he joined the boy’s team. He learned to play well one-handed, but serving was difficult. He had to tuck the racket under his arm, toss the ball unusually high, and then grab his racket with the same hand to hit it. His coach suggested a prosthesis.

Christian and his parents worked with Shriner’s Hospital for Children in Erie, where he chose a prosthesis that had been designed for pitching a baseball.

Within a few months, he had improved enough to earn a starting spot in doubles play. But he was still struggling with his serve; the prosthesis was heavy and unreliable in releasing the ball.

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When Dean Lewis, assistant teaching professor of mechanical engineering, read a newspaper story about Christian, he knew that Behrend engineering students could help.

Like Christian, they relish challenges.

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED Lewis reached out to the Neubert family through a mutual friend, and a new senior design capstone project was added to the list that teams of seniors could pick from last fall.

One group of Mechanical Engineering students (now graduates)—Maxwell Myers, Deven Phillips, Morgan Tarbrake, and Zachary Vandervort—made it their No. 1 choice.

“When we got the list of capstone projects, I said, ‘This is the one we have to do,’” said Tarbrake, who was minoring in Biomedical Engineering. “This project gave us a chance to help someone.”

Christian’s mother, Amy, said the Neuberts were equally happy about the opportunity. “We were so excited,” she said. “Christian was making do with what he had, but this was a chance to have a tennis-specific prosthesis made especially for him.”

“When we got the list of capstone projects, I said, ‘This is the one we have to do.’ This project gave us a chance to help someone.”

M O R G A N TA R B R A K E ’ 2 3 , M E C H A N I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G G R A D U AT E

Step one for the Behrend team was to get the lay of the land—meet Christian, see the current prosthesis, find out what needed to be improved, and research what tennis prostheses might already be available.

“We found prostheses for skiing, bicycling, swimming, and almost every sport but tennis,” Myers said.

They weren’t quite starting from scratch, however, as a portion of Christian’s current prosthesis—the part that attaches to his arm—could be used. “We determined pretty quickly that we could use a threaded adapter to attach a new device to the existing human interface,” Myers said.

MANY METRICS TO MEET With one problem solved, there were still many metrics to meet.

The device they built had to be lighter, affordable (less than $2,500), compliant with PIAA tennis guidelines, comfortable, safe, easily cleaned, secure-fitting, consistent, reliable, durable, easily maintained, and easily worn and adjusted with one arm.

That list might seem overwhelming, but the team did what engineers do: broke it into a series of steps and began working toward the goal of creating a comfortable, lightweight prosthesis that could precisely hold and serve a tennis ball.

The student team came up with several concepts before settling on a cup design with a finger release latch. Once they had a product, they went through many rounds of prototyping and testing with Christian.

“We met with him almost weekly to test and get feedback,” Phillips said. “It was a very iterative process. Along the way, Christian was able to build up some practice using it and develop a certain skill level with it.”

“It will definitely take some getting used to, as I will have to train myself to release the ball at a much different place.”

Tennis season ended before he got the prosthesis this past spring, but he plans to use it in competition in the upcoming season.

FOUR SERVING ONE “It was a fulfilling project,” Tarbrake said. “It was really rewarding to be able to help someone and see the results.”

The project inspired Tarbrake to continue working toward a Biomedical Engineering minor. “I was just going to let it go because it’s more work, but after I got involved in this, I knew I had to finish it,” she said.

Christian, whose father, Dan, is a chef at Penn State Behrend in Dobbins Dining Hall, plans to attend Penn State to pursue degrees in Computer Science and Business.

The four student team members graduated from Behrend in May. At the time of their graduation, each of them had accepted positions in various sectors, including transportation, quality control, and nuclear energy.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED Christian was excited to begin working with the final product.

“This prosthesis is much lighter,” he said. “Also, since there is a way to secure the ball (with the finger latch), it will help me control my release better and throw higher, which will help make my serve more powerful.”

There will be a learning curve, but Christian is up for the challenge, of course.

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CHANGE CELEBRATING 75 YEARS OF

The first two-year associate degree programs are introduced: Electrical Engineering Technology and Drafting and Design Technology.

The undergraduate program in Plastics Engineering Technology launches.

The 55,000square-foot Engineering Complex opens; it includes the Fasenmyer, Prischak, Witkowski, and Benson Buildings, and Roche Hall.

The first public presentation of senior design projects takes place with 71 students presenting 31 projects.

The senior project showcase is named to honor Richard J. Fasenmyer, a longtime supporter of the School of Engineering.

The Research and Economic Development Center (REDC) opens to bring the Black School of Business and the School of Engineering together under one roof. In 2010, it is renamed the Jack Burke Research and Economic Development Center.

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A new major, Interdisciplinary Business with Engineering Studies, launches, exemplifying growing collaboration between the School of Engineering and the Black School of Business.

Lighter than Air Paper Factory, a kinetic sculpture commissioned in the 1970s for the Behrend family’s Hammermill Paper Co., is refurbished and hung in the Burke Center’s Clark Café.

Penn State Behrend breaks ground for the $16.5 million Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Center (AMIC), an academic-industry facility in Knowledge Park.

The college opens Innovation Commons, a collaborative lab in Burke Center, to offer prototyping, 3D printing, and other support to entrepreneurs, innovators, and new business start-ups.

The undergraduate program in Polymer Engineering and Science is launched.

The School of Engineering is ranked among the top 40 Undergraduate Engineering Programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.

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BEHREND GOES ON THE ROAD

Penn State Erie, The Behrend College School of Engineering 242 Burke Center 5101 Jordan Road Erie, PA 16563-1701

Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Erie, PA Permit No. 282

This spring, Chancellor Ralph Ford and Dr. Tim Kurzweg, director of the School of Engineering, traveled to Houston to visit industry partners and Behrend engineering alumni in the area. They visited TechnipFMC, Shell Oil, American Medical Molding, NASA Johnson Space Center, and ExxonMobil, among others. The visits help foster collaboration and partnerships between the college and industry partners that benefit students.

From left, Adam Rose, a 2010 Mechanical Engineering graduate; Dave Johnson, associate director of development; Dr. Tim Kurzweg, director of the School of Engineering; and Chancellor Ralph Ford. Rose is a business development manager in Measurement Solutions at TechnipFMC.

From left, Ford, Kurzweg, Johnson, and John Raybuck, a 2000 Plastics Engineering Technology graduate. Raybuck is a chief technology officer/partner for American Medical Molding in Houston.

From left, Mary (Good) Lawrence, a 2001 Mechanical Engineering graduate, Kurzweg, Johnson, and Ford.

Lawrence is deputy manager of the International Space Station Vehicle Office at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Engineering News is published annually and provided free to alumni and friends of the Penn State Behrend School of Engineering by the Office of Strategic Communications, William V. Gonda, wvg2@psu.edu, Senior Director. Publications Manager: Heather Cass, hjc13@psu.edu. Designer: Martha Ansley Campbell, mac30@psu.edu. This publication is available in alternative media on request.

Penn State is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, and is committed to providing employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. U.Ed. EBO 24-123.

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