The Ohio State University College of Engineering

The momentum continues... Ohio State Undergraduate Engineering rises to 20th overall in U.S. News Education rankings, 12th among publics ❕ ❗ https://lnkd.in/g8SxCq8h “We are delighted that external perceptions and opinions of our programs are gradually aligning with our intentional focus on promoting engineering excellence at scale,” said College of Engineering Dean Ayanna Howard. “Our brilliant faculty, our dedicated staff members and our remarkable students, working together inclusively, enable us to elevate student access and success.” The Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering’s undergraduate program ranked 12th in the nation, the highest of Ohio State’s 11 departments or specialties that received enough votes for inclusion. Other Ohio State engineering undergraduate disciplines ranking among the nation’s best include materials (15), electrical (16), industrial/manufacturing (17), mechanical (17), aerospace (18), computer (19), civil (20), chemical (21), environmental (22) and biomedical (30). U.S. News and World Report began evaluating undergraduate computer science programs in a separate category in 2020. In this year’s issue, Ohio State ranked 40th among 584 programs nationally, and 25th in the artificial intelligence specialty category.

Electrical & Computer Engineering Assoc. Prof. Jia (Kevin) Liu leads a team of researchers that received a $1.2M grant from NSF to develop a real-time, crowd-sourced geospatial digital twin to enhance how vital information is delivered to mobile devices. https://lnkd.in/gF9P8gZp Geospatial digital twins allow for real-time updates and interactions, making them invaluable for applications such as monitoring, maintenance and emergency response. Traditionally, data for GDTs has been collected through automated systems like distributed sensor devices, satellites and drones. “These methods have limitations, especially when it comes to updating data quickly and covering hard-to-reach areas,” said Liu. To overcome these challenges, the team will develop a novel approach that involves the community through “human-in-the-loop” strategies. This means using crowd-sourced data, where people provide real-time updates to digital models. This method not only promises to enhance the accuracy and timeliness of the information, but also to allow discovery of new information.

Last week, Dean Ayanna Howard and members of the Dean's Advisory Council toured construction of the Biomedical and Materials Engineering Complex Phase 2, the Gateway to Engineering. Scheduled for completion in late 2025, BMEC Phase 2 is a $94.3 million project that maximizes collaborative learning and research. It will be the home of first-year engineering courses, makerspace, biomedical and advanced materials R&D, and engaging K-12 STEM programs. The project included the demolition of Watts Hall and renovates existing MacQuigg Hall. An addition will be constructed that will house research and teaching labs, collaboration spaces, offices and classroom space. BMEC Phase 1, later renamed Mars G. Fontana Laboratories, opened in August 2020 and was a $59.1 million project that renovated the former Koffolt Lab and Fontana Lab to create additional research, classroom and office space. It houses the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Materials Sciences and Engineering. https://lnkd.in/gYzrgvtU

Texnikoi Outstanding Alumni Awards are given to graduates under the age of 40 to recognize their significant achievements since graduation. Congrats Simon Kalouche and Shreyas Rao!

And our next 3 recipients of the Career Achievement Distinguished Alumni Award... Cheers for Rajeev Rajan, Paul Springer and Steve Turckes!

The festivities continue! The first 4 of our 2024 Career Achievement Distinguished Alumni Awardees. Congratulations Jackie DiMarco, Shar Dubey, Deborah H. Lee, SES, PH, PE, BC.WRE, F.ASCE, ENV SP & Phuthuma Nhleko!

Our next award goes to... Jay Qin, the recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award for Entrepreneurship and Innovation!

One of our favorite times of the year… it's Alumni Awards Night! First up... Our 2024 Academic Excellence Distinguished Alumni Awardees… Melba Crawford & Daniel Linzell (he/him/his)!

🎉 6 Buckeyes are 2024-25 Society of Women Engineers national scholarship recipients! Congrats to Abbey Kashani Motlagh (Amateur Radio Digital Communications Scholarship), Akshaya Mukkala (Deloitte Foundation SWE Scholarship), Rachel Varughese (GE Vernova Women’s Network Scholarship), Emily Williams (Mary Gunther Memorial Scholarship), Holly Wirsing (RS&H Scholarship) & Coral Riegler (SWE Ohio State Section Scholarship)! SWE awarded 328 scholarships, totaling nearly $1.5M, to undergraduate and graduate engineering students. This year marks a special milestone as SWE celebrates 65 years of its scholarship program.

Congrats to alumnus Simon Kalouche and his company Nimble on the successful closure of a $106 million Series C funding round elevating the company to a $1 billion valuation: https://lnkd.in/enTGXKT4 The funding round was led by FedEx and co-led by existing shareholder Cedar Pine LLC. As part of their strategic alliance, FedEx has entered into a commercial agreement to scale its FedEx Fulfillment service using Nimble's technology and fully autonomous 3PL model. The investment underscores FedEx’s confidence in Nimble's groundbreaking technology and its commercial potential. The new capital will be strategically deployed to scale robot manufacturing and system deployments while enabling further investments in R&D towards Nimble’s mission of inventing autonomous logistics.