iNDustry Labs at the University of Notre Dame today announced its first cohort of faculty affiliates, a key milestone in the development of the University’s new platform for collaboration with regional industry partners. As leading members of the University’s faculty, the iNDustry Labs faculty affiliates represent a multidisciplinary collection of faculty and research staff whose research, coursework and subject-matter expertise are particularly aligned with the interests of the local economy.
Together, these faculty affiliates represent a fundamental component of the University’s collaboration with businesses in the South Bend-Elkhart region, providing insights, technical expertise and research and development activities that, along with the engagement of talented undergraduate and graduate students, can help unlock a competitive advantage for regional businesses.
As mentors and advisers to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in applied learning courses and research activities, they also strengthen the University’s commitment to education. The expansion of applied coursework provides students with meaningful experience to apply and test classroom concepts in practice to advance a more complete understanding of a subject.
“Collaborating with regional industry provides a tremendous benefit to everyone — it’s a win for the companies, a win for Notre Dame and a win for the region,” said Thomas Fuja, faculty director of iNDustry Labs and professor of electrical engineering. “I am thrilled that a group as accomplished and dedicated as these 14 will help us strengthen those regional connections. They bring world-class expertise in their respective fields, along with a history of and commitment to industry engagement.”
iNDustry Labs faculty affiliates:
- Paul Brenner, senior associate director of the Center for Research Computing and concurrent associate professor of the practice in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering
- Jay Brockman, director of the Center for Civic Innovation in the College of Engineering and professor of the practice in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering
- Ann-Marie Conrado, associate professor of industrial design
- Melanie DeFord, assistant vice president for research
- David Go, the Rooney Family Collegiate Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, the chair of the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering and a concurrent professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering
- Ken Kelley, senior associate dean for faculty and research, and the Edward F. Sorin Society Professor of IT, Analytics and Operations
- Edward Kinzel, associate professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering
- J. Nicholas Laneman, co-director of the Wireless Institute and professor and associate chair for graduate studies in the Department of Electrical Engineering
- Scott Nestler, academic director of the Master of Science in Business Analytics program and associate teaching professor in the Department of IT, Analytics and Operations
- Christian Poellabauer, professor of computer science and engineering and founding director of the Applied Analytics and Emerging Technologies Lab, a newly established initiative funded by iNDustry Labs as part of the Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society
- James Schmiedeler, professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering
- Subhash L. Shinde, associate director, Center for Sustainable Energy (ND Energy)
- James Thompson, associate vice president for innovation at the IDEA Center
- Dong Wang, associate professor of computer science and engineering
Regional businesses that partner with iNDustry Labs benefit from engagement with the faculty affiliates as well as a team of experienced faculty and staff who serve as technical liaisons to partners, aiming to match company needs to a holistic array of specific resources for talent, productivity and growth strategy. In addition, partners benefit from access to more than 40 Notre Dame core research facilities, as well as new innovation facilities in iNDustry Labs’ facility network, like the University’s Engineering Innovation Hub, set to open in the spring of 2021.
About iNDustry Labs at Notre Dame:
iNDustry Labs is the University’s dedicated platform for collaboration with local industry partners, providing strategic insight, expertise and technical resources to regional businesses seeking to thrive in the digital age of manufacturing.
An anchor of the South Bend-Elkhart Labs for Industry Futures and Transformation (LIFT) Network, iNDustry Labs was launched with the support from the Lilly Endowment Inc. in 2019 to help unite the region’s chief economic drivers — its powerful manufacturing base and a global tier one research university, to unlock the region’s potential for a more productive, resilient and skilled future.
For more information, visit industrylabs.nd.edu.
Contact: Scott Ford, managing director, iNDustry Labs, sford1@nd.edu
Originally published by at industrylabs.nd.edu on November 12, 2020.