Academia Shines at COE Fall 2002

By Jeffery E. Maestas, Academic Process Interest Committee Co-Chair, Laser Ultrasonic Technology Center, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics (Jeffery.E.Maestas@lmco.com)

Well, the COE Fall 2002 Conference is behind us, and it was a great conference. There were many excellent presentations brought to this conference, and the academic track presented some of the best.

There were three academic track sessions, with excellent attendance in each presentation. The sessions were:

AC-1: Curriculum Development for Beginners was brought by Jeff Maestas from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics and Tarrant County College. This session was aimed at two different types of audiences. The first was the educators present with ideas presented for curriculum development for CATIA V5 coursework. Examples of curriculum sources were presented as well as materials currently available for use by instructors and their students. The second type of audience was the small to medium-sized business that was preparing for the deployment of V5 in their environment. The materials presented for the educators were extremely useful for the new V5 user, and the experience of deploying V5 in a classroom/laboratory is very similar to the experience of the small to medium business.

AC-2: Integrating In-House CAx Tools with CATIA V5 via CAA Software Development was brought by Dr. C. Greg Jensen from Brigham Young University. He showed how BYU is using VB and CAA tools in developing scripts and other useful tools in the lab. He also demonstrated the difference between VB and CAA tools in relation to their complexity and where each tool may be better suited. Dr. Jensen also demonstrated how BYU integrates different CAx tools for different student projects and academic endeavors. This session pointed out the need for the industry to partner with local colleges and universities to take advantage

AC-3: Collaborative Engineering Change Management with ENOVIA LCA was brought by Travis Fuerst, Isaac Chang, and Klaus Peschen of Purdue University. As they have demonstrated before, these students spend a lot of time with ENOVIA and always have excellent lessons to share. This session centered around the Purdue Digital Enterprise Center and the students' desire to share lessons learned with their fellow students. The topic, in this instance, was the SAE Mini-Baja Race and how ENOVIA could be used to help students meet SAE requirements for their designs. They showed how ENOVIA could be used to manage several different models of the Mini-Baja car as required by SAE. Needless to say, their presentation was well received.

NASA Selects Corporation to Lead Innovative Research Institute

NASA's oldest research laboratory is working to ensure America's future dominance in aerospace innovation and education.

The Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., will team with the National Institute of Aerospace Associates (NIAA), Reston, Va., a newly formed non-profit corporation, to create a world-class institute called the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) to do cutting-edge aerospace and atmospheric research, develop new technologies for the nation, and help inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Locating the NIA at the Langley Research Center will facilitate the institute's involvement in agency-sponsored research programs and foster collaboration with NASA, including access to its world-class research facilities.

This innovative government-academic partnership is comprised of a cost reimbursable, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract and a cooperative agreement. The maximum value of the contract for a five-year base period is $49 million. The value of the basic five-year cooperative agreement is $69 million. If the three five-year options are exercised under the cooperative agreement, the combined potential total value would be $379 million.

The NIAA is made up of seven non-profit organizations or universities, including:

• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Foundation, Reston, Virginia
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg
• University of Virginia, Charlottesville
• University of Maryland, College Park
• North Carolina State University, Raleigh
• North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro
• Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

The Institute is a long-term commitment on the part of NASA to expand collaboration with universities, industry, other government agencies, and the broader scientific community to fully leverage expertise inside and outside of government.

Once fully operational, the institute will become a strategic partner working with NASA to enhance its world-class aerospace and atmospheric research capability. The institute will complement Langley's research creativity and expand research and technology development opportunities. In addition, the NIA will be a significant new research and education asset for the nation.

The institute, through its partner universities, will offer masters' and doctoral degrees in science and engineering using both a local campus and the latest innovations in distance learning. The institute will also be a catalyst for economic development by stimulating the commercialization of new intellectual property and facilitating the growth of new business opportunities. Finally, the Institute will be a prominent new voice promoting the benefits of aerospace research.

DELMIA Forges Educational Partnership with Lake Superior State University

On October 7, 2002, digital manufacturing solutions provider DELMIA entered into an educational partnership agreement with Lake Superior State University (LSSU) in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Under the terms of the agreement, the university will receive a sizable price discount for 15 seats of DELMIA's V5 Robotics simulation for use in its Robotics and Automation Laboratory.

Through its association with DELMIA, the university hopes to integrate robotics simulation into its curriculum, to create new robotics simulation course modules, and to establish links with companies that utilize DELMIA products.

"Partnering with educational institutes like LSSU benefits everyone involved," says Roy Smolky, DELMIA academic program coordinator. "Students get access to highly sophisticated software, enhancing their qualifications and value on the job market; and private enterprise gains already-trained engineers."

"We are very excited about having access to DELMIA's V5 Robotics solution," says LSSU Professor Jim Deveprasad. "After reviewing various software packages and talking to LSSU alumni, it was apparent that DELMIA has the premiere robotics package and that DELMIA V5 Robotics is on the cutting edge of robotic programming and simulation tools."

LSSU is one of three U.S. universities that offers students the option of specializing in robotics and automation with a bachelor of science degree in computer, electrical or manufacturing, or mechanical engineering. In addition, the university offers a week-long robotics camp to high school students. LSSU's Robotics and Automation Laboratory is recognized as one of the best facilities of its kind in North America, with over $1 million in state-of-the-art industrial equipment, including 15 industrial robots, several programmable controller, machine vision systems, conveyor systems, and intelligent sensors.

DELMIA provides additional support to each of its educational partners through its Education and Training Forum. Through this program, academic institutions gain access to curriculum modules from participating schools, best practice methodologies - developed and shared among partners, and business support. Educational partners also receive technical support and annual software upgrades as part of their agreement.

For further information about the "HEAT Program", contact:

Q. W. (Buz) Nowicki
CATIA Higher Education an Training (HEAT) Program Manager
Product Lifecycle Management Solutions
18000 West Nine Mile Road
Southfield, MI 48075
(248) 552-5981 IBM Tie Line 896-5981 Fax (248) 552-6886
e-mail qnowicki@us.ibm.com