UOIT engineering students prove they're among the best in Ontario
March 2, 2007
Teams finish first and third at provincial engineering competition
OSHAWA, Ont. - With first- and third-place finishes at a recent provincial student engineering competition, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) continues to show that in less than four years it has become home to one of the foremost engineering and applied science faculties in Ontario.
The first-place showing by the university's Junior Design team was the first-ever win by UOIT at the Ontario Student Engineering Competition, held in Ottawa last month. The win comes at a time when the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science is still months away from the convocation of its first-ever class of engineering graduates. UOIT's Senior Design team finished third in a field of 15 schools.
"We are proud of every member of our Junior and Senior design teams for these tremendous results achieved against the best engineering students in Ontario," said Dr. Marc Rosen, dean of UOIT's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. "The results are a further indication that our students are proving to be leaders in the province amongst their peers now and will be in-demand professionals as a new generation of engineers following graduation."
UOIT's Junior Design team of Joel Courtney, Graham Kent, Nick Shopian, and Graeme Ackersviller finished ahead of 14 other schools when all teams were presented with the task of moving a payload of peppercorns up a ramp and into a bucket sunk into the floor. The problem was applied to a real-life scenario where water would need to be transported up to an African village at the top a large hill.
Mark Bernacki, Mike MacLeod, Matt Van Wieringen, and Ben Fagan made up the Senior Design team, which was asked to design and build a prototype of an autonomous vehicle that would patrol a makeshift city and detect and extinguish fires. UOIT's prototype detected and extinguished all five fires on both of its demonstration attempts.
The top-three results come a year after a UOIT team placed third at the 2006 competition.
"The results achieved by our students in the last two competitions are remarkable when you consider this is only UOIT's fourth year of operation, meaning 2007 was the first time we were able to enter graduating students in the competition," added Dr. Rosen. "From the beginning of first-year studies, students are introduced to high-quality and leading-edge programs that focus on the innovative design concept skills demanded by today's employers."
UOIT Engineering students develop award-winning skills through access to state-of-the-art laboratories housed in the university's Ontario Power Generation (OPG) Engineering building, and by utilizing the industry-specific software that comes loaded onto the laptops issued to every student at Ontario's only laptop-based university. They also learn from UOIT's world-class professors, who are leading experts in their fields and constantly challenge and inspire students to push their boundaries of thinking and learning.
Dr. Remon Pop-Iliev, an associate professor of Mechanical Engineering with the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, recently earned a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)-General Motors of Canada Research Chair in Innovative Design Engineering. His teaching has a significant impact on the design education being taught to UOIT students, and in turn, on their tremendous success at design competitions.
The paramount goal of the chair's action plan is to establish a novel concurrent approach to innovative design engineering training and education, the essence of which includes considering all of the challenges that are likely to affect a graduate's professional career at the outset of their education.
"We regard design engineering as the central focus of the engineering profession because it provides practical solutions to real-world problems," said Dr. Pop-Iliev. "Our strategy is founded on creating a strong design engineering focus and providing the basis for systematically training undergraduate and graduate students in critical thinking and attaining engineering competence through finding and capturing design knowledge for intelligent and innovative reuse later. We are strategically aiming towards igniting the engineering curiosity of our students."
UOIT's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science strives to offer excellence in education, high-calibre and value-added research, and high-quality and innovative market-driven undergraduate and graduate programs in areas such as Mechanical, Manufacturing, Automotive, Software and Electrical Engineering, as well as Engineering and Management. Many programs are unique to Ontario and even Canada, ensuring the faculty's exceptional students are prepared to be the outstanding professionals and leaders of tomorrow.
About UOIT
As an innovative university, UOIT delivers a leading-edge learning environment that uniquely combines academic knowledge, research opportunities, hands-on skills and a vibrant student life. UOIT's 4,300 students are taught by professors who are experts in their fields from around the world. As Ontario's first laptop-based university, UOIT offers more than 30 challenging undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the fields of Business and Information Technology, Criminology, Justice and Policy Studies, Education, Engineering, Health Sciences, and Sciences. UOIT's commitment to research excellence has resulted in millions of dollars in grants and awards, including several Canada Research Chairs. To find out more, visit www.uoit.ca or call 905.721.8668.
OSHAWA, Ont. - With first- and third-place finishes at a recent provincial student engineering competition, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) continues to show that in less than four years it has become home to one of the foremost engineering and applied science faculties in Ontario.
The first-place showing by the university's Junior Design team was the first-ever win by UOIT at the Ontario Student Engineering Competition, held in Ottawa last month. The win comes at a time when the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science is still months away from the convocation of its first-ever class of engineering graduates. UOIT's Senior Design team finished third in a field of 15 schools.
"We are proud of every member of our Junior and Senior design teams for these tremendous results achieved against the best engineering students in Ontario," said Dr. Marc Rosen, dean of UOIT's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. "The results are a further indication that our students are proving to be leaders in the province amongst their peers now and will be in-demand professionals as a new generation of engineers following graduation."
UOIT's Junior Design team of Joel Courtney, Graham Kent, Nick Shopian, and Graeme Ackersviller finished ahead of 14 other schools when all teams were presented with the task of moving a payload of peppercorns up a ramp and into a bucket sunk into the floor. The problem was applied to a real-life scenario where water would need to be transported up to an African village at the top a large hill.
Mark Bernacki, Mike MacLeod, Matt Van Wieringen, and Ben Fagan made up the Senior Design team, which was asked to design and build a prototype of an autonomous vehicle that would patrol a makeshift city and detect and extinguish fires. UOIT's prototype detected and extinguished all five fires on both of its demonstration attempts.
The top-three results come a year after a UOIT team placed third at the 2006 competition.
"The results achieved by our students in the last two competitions are remarkable when you consider this is only UOIT's fourth year of operation, meaning 2007 was the first time we were able to enter graduating students in the competition," added Dr. Rosen. "From the beginning of first-year studies, students are introduced to high-quality and leading-edge programs that focus on the innovative design concept skills demanded by today's employers."
UOIT Engineering students develop award-winning skills through access to state-of-the-art laboratories housed in the university's Ontario Power Generation (OPG) Engineering building, and by utilizing the industry-specific software that comes loaded onto the laptops issued to every student at Ontario's only laptop-based university. They also learn from UOIT's world-class professors, who are leading experts in their fields and constantly challenge and inspire students to push their boundaries of thinking and learning.
Dr. Remon Pop-Iliev, an associate professor of Mechanical Engineering with the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, recently earned a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)-General Motors of Canada Research Chair in Innovative Design Engineering. His teaching has a significant impact on the design education being taught to UOIT students, and in turn, on their tremendous success at design competitions.
The paramount goal of the chair's action plan is to establish a novel concurrent approach to innovative design engineering training and education, the essence of which includes considering all of the challenges that are likely to affect a graduate's professional career at the outset of their education.
"We regard design engineering as the central focus of the engineering profession because it provides practical solutions to real-world problems," said Dr. Pop-Iliev. "Our strategy is founded on creating a strong design engineering focus and providing the basis for systematically training undergraduate and graduate students in critical thinking and attaining engineering competence through finding and capturing design knowledge for intelligent and innovative reuse later. We are strategically aiming towards igniting the engineering curiosity of our students."
UOIT's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science strives to offer excellence in education, high-calibre and value-added research, and high-quality and innovative market-driven undergraduate and graduate programs in areas such as Mechanical, Manufacturing, Automotive, Software and Electrical Engineering, as well as Engineering and Management. Many programs are unique to Ontario and even Canada, ensuring the faculty's exceptional students are prepared to be the outstanding professionals and leaders of tomorrow.
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About UOIT
As an innovative university, UOIT delivers a leading-edge learning environment that uniquely combines academic knowledge, research opportunities, hands-on skills and a vibrant student life. UOIT's 4,300 students are taught by professors who are experts in their fields from around the world. As Ontario's first laptop-based university, UOIT offers more than 30 challenging undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the fields of Business and Information Technology, Criminology, Justice and Policy Studies, Education, Engineering, Health Sciences, and Sciences. UOIT's commitment to research excellence has resulted in millions of dollars in grants and awards, including several Canada Research Chairs. To find out more, visit www.uoit.ca or call 905.721.8668.
About Ontario Tech University
A modern, forwarding-thinking university, Ontario Tech advances the discovery and application of knowledge to accelerate economic growth, regional development and social innovation. We inspire and equip our students and our graduates to make a positive impact in a tech-focused world. For us, it’s not only about developing the next tech breakthrough. Understanding and integrating the social and ethical implications of technology differentiates us as university. Learn more at ontariotechu.ca.
Media contact
Tony Doyle
Communications and Marketing
Ontario Tech University
905.721.3111 ext. 2209
tony.doyle@uoit.ca
