ENGINEERING MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF TEACHING AND RESEARCH EXCELLENCE
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ADAPTATION AND RESILIENCE ENGINEERING A WAY FORWARD
ENGINEERING PROFILES
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RESEARCHER KEVIN PLUCKNETT
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THIS IS WHAT AN ENGINEER LOOKS LIKE
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A PHYSICAL CAMPUS IN A DIGITAL LANDSCAPE
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ENTREPRENEURSHIP & INNOVATION OUT OF THIS WORLD TECHNOLOGY
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FACULTY NEWS EVENTS AND UPDATES
16 TRANSFORMING A KEY STUDENT CONFERENCE
Dean’s Message GREETINGS TO OUR ENGINEERING COMMUNITY. It is hard to believe that it has been over a year since we published our last Engineering Magazine. I hope you and your families continue to be healthy and safe during these challenging times We are looking forward to moving past the pandemic restrictions and re-engaging in full campus activities this fall. As I reflect on the past 15 months, I am inspired and impressed with how our faculty has evolved and adapted. There is no denying the absolute challenge that students have faced. I look at some of our student societies and groups and the student leaders who have stepped up. Watching the students who are able to deal with all of the challenges and still be student leaders and contributors who make a difference for their fellow students — they are a true inspiration. Despite the pandemic, our students continue to receive awards: we had a Rhodes Scholar this year — and continue to have top performances at National competitions: Dalhousie students had more top 3 finishes in the recent Canadian Engineering Competition than any other school in Canada. Our faculty and staff have been incredible this past year. As educators and the supporters of student learning, we now have the knowledge and experience that we can adapt our pedagogies. We’ve gained the confidence to try new things and it has resulted in increased collegial exchanges about teaching and supporting students. As Dean, it is very encouraging to see the dialogue, and peer-to-peer support in terms of faculty members and instructors talking about teaching and pedagogies and technology.
CONTRIBUTORS EDITORIAL Merilyn Layne, Rowan Morrissy, Mark Campbell, Michele Charlton PHOTOGRAPHY Nick Pearce DESIGN Erin Lee CONTACT Merilyn Layne, Editor, merilyn@dal.ca
@DalhousieEngineering @DalEngineering DalhousieEngineering instagram Dalfacultyofeng
As we continue to grow and innovate, it is evident that the Faculty of Engineering has an increasingly larger role to play in the community, in traditional areas such as community water, sustainability and renewable energy, and clean-tech technology and manufacturing and in new areas such as health services and responses to disruptive and critical events such as the pandemic. Our role as engineers is more relevant that ever. With our student population now over 2,600 students, we are continuing to enhance and strengthen our teaching and research on Sexton Campus. Your commitment to supporting student excellence plays an integral role in building future engineers. We look forward to welcoming you back on campus at future alumni events and until then, please stay safe and keep in touch. Sincerely, Dr. John Newhook, P. Eng. Dean of Engineering
2054
558
2612
UNDERGRAD STUDENTS
GRADUATE STUDENTS
23%
FEMALE UNDERGRADS
76%
MALE UNDERGRADS
37%
69%
67%
FEMALE GRAD STUDENTS
MALE GRAD STUDENTS
117
18,513
FACULTY
83%
CO-OP PLACEMENTS
398
UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIPS
ALUMNI
668 38 474
SEXTON SCHOLARS SEXTON LEADERS
UNDERGRADUATE BURSARIES
TOTAL ENROLLMENT
CANADIAN
32%
INTERNATIONAL
45%
FROM NOVA SCOTIA
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RESEARCH CHAIRS ENGINEERING | 1
RESEARCHER PROFILE
The next generation of materials IN TODAY’S WORLD, MATERIALS PLAY a big role in technological advancement. Progress in the electronic world, mechanical engineering and structural engineering depend on new materials to be produced and presented to the market. That’s why researchers like Kevin Plucknett are focused on developing materials that can last significantly longer before needing to be replaced. As a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dr. Plucknett’s research group investigates what could be termed ‘processingmicrostructure-property relationships’ in a broad range of materials, including engineering ceramics, lightweight metals, composites and various coatings systems. “This entails gaining a detailed understanding of how to manufacture the material, its physical structure at multiple length-scales (basically from atoms up to components), and how it subsequently performs,” says Dr. Plucknett, Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and a Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Chair. With this knowledge, the aim is to continually make better and better materials. And it’s this focus on materials ‘sustainability’ that is key to the work happening in his group. “We can think about material ‘durability’ as presenting itself in several ways,” says Dr. Plucknett. “One facet is sustainability, so a focus on developing materials that can last significantly longer before needing to be replaced. Degradation in these instances may be from wear or corrosion, so you need to understand the underlying failure mechanisms as well as how to improve the present materials.” “Techniques based around 3D printing can also reduce wastage during manufacturing, as the component is nominally printed to shape and requires minimal machining to get to
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the final part. In contrast, machining something from a solid block of material can result in more than 70% wastage. Alternatively, we may develop a material where the prior use of a scarce resource (e.g., cobalt) can be avoided, or the new solution significantly reduces the component mass. This second aspect is important in transportation, for example, where weight saving can lower fuel consumption.” This important work has recently been recognized by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, and Dr. Plucknett was the recipient of funding through the Innovation Fund program. “The award of the CFI-Innovation Fund grant is going to be a very significant advance for the ceramics research that we do, both within my group and collaboratively. The state-of-the-art infrastructure that the CFI will support will place Dalhousie as arguably the leading environment for advanced ceramics manufacturing research within Canada, and one of the top facilities internationally. There are very few universities globally that will be able to directly access the variety of additive manufacturing technologies for ceramics that we will have, in terms of both 2D and 3D printing. Obviously, this is a very exciting position to be in.” Dr. Plucknett believes that this funding will generate significant opportunities for collaboration nationally and internationally. “We certainly envision building strategic links with several universities outside of Canada through this opportunity, which will increase the possibilities for student exchanges and knowledge translation,” says Dr. Plucknett.
And looking forward, Dr. Plucknett noted that there are several new research opportunities arising. “With the CFI focus on both ceramic additive manufacturing and thermal spray coatings, the current plan is to build these two areas significantly over the next few years,” says Dr. Plucknett. “We are just starting to work with an industry partner to look at printing approaches for piezoelectric materials. And our work with the Faculty of Architecture also looks very likely to expand, in terms of large-scale 3D printing, potentially incorporating robotics aspects. It is set to be an exciting (and busy) time!” There have been many highlights throughout Dr. Plucknett’s career. However, the most important one is having the ability to help his graduate students. “I think that the most significant impact can actually be in respect to those that succeed in their graduate studies and subsequent careers,” says Dr. Plucknett. “I can think of two immediate examples where students working with me have started their own successful companies. Dr. Marciel Gaier, a former PhD student, founded Graphite Innovation and Technologies Inc. (with Mo AlGermozi, another former Dalhousie materials student) during his PhD, and the company has gone from strength-tostrength, landing several major contracts and expanding significantly. “Similarly, a current MASc student, Arad Gharagozli, started Galaxia Mission Systems recently, building on his work with the Dalhousie LORIS CubeSat team. It is hugely satisfying to see these young entrepreneurs take such brave steps and find genuine success.”
ALUMNI PROFILE
Closing the Gap
TESSA BULMER’S MASTER’S THESIS could address urban/rural treatment for ischemic stroke patients. When patients experience an ischemic stroke—a phenomenon that occurs when blood supply is cut off to the brain due to a clot—every second counts. But patients who live in rural Nova Scotia typically experience higher median doorto-treatment times than their urban counterparts, and that concerns Tessa Bulmer (BEng’19). “It has been shown that populations in rural settings have a higher risk of stroke for several reasons, including comorbidities and age,” says Bulmer. “For that reason, it is important to understand the differences between the urban and rural treatment pathway so we can address disparities and ensure that everyone receives the same quality of care.”
Bulmer is exploring those disparities and their underlying causes through her Master of Engineering thesis at Dalhousie. It is a line of research that has the potential to improve outcomes among patients in Nova Scotia and beyond, and one that has been met with some puzzled reactions in casual conversations. “People typically want to know how engineering and health care are connected,” she says. “My background is Industrial Engineering and there is a significant emphasis placed on systems thinking, so looking at the big picture of how something operates and the minute details involved. That ability combined with quantitative expertise enables industrial engineers to look at health care systems and identify opportunities to increase efficiency in ways that benefit patients.” The study was inspired in part by a health systems elective that Bulmer took in her final year of engineering. “The professor was Dr. Noreen Kamal,” Bulmer says. “Designing and improving health care systems is her area of expertise. I had always been interested in health care and had done two co-op terms with Nova Scotia Health. Once I met her and learned about her focus, I realized I could also apply my engineering background to health care and have a positive impact.” Bulmer’s research involves the differences between rural and urban ischemic stroke treatment pathways in Nova Scotia, specifically those related to professional expertise (i.e., emergency department physicians versus specialists such as stroke neurologists), frequency of providing treatment, available resources (i.e., computed tomography scans), and distance of patients from the treatment site. She conducted qualitative research by interviewing health care professionals at three sites—two rural, one urban—which enabled her to map out treatment
processes, contrast them, and identify elements that are working well or require improvement. For the quantitative component of her study, she created a simulation model to examine the potential impacts of changes in the treatment process. “For example, are there benefits to treating patients outside the imaging area instead of after returning them back to the emergency department, or in notifying the hospital that a patient is en route by ambulance,” Bulmer says. “The purpose is to identify measures that enable patients to receive treatment faster.” Once her research is complete, Bulmer will write her thesis, which she expects to defend in August. She has already published qualitative results in Frontiers of Neurology and believes the outcomes of her work could benefit patients far beyond Nova Scotia. As for her career pathway, Bulmer is still working that out, but she envisions applying her engineering expertise to resolve health care challenges. “My career goal is to find ways to have positive impacts,” she says. “I don’t know what that looks like, but I will know I am in the right place when I am able to do that.”
“IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE URBAN AND RURAL TREATMENT PATHWAY" — TESSA BULMER
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FEATURE 1
THIS IS WHAT AN ENGINEER LOOKS LIKE IN THE PAST 24 MONTHS, The Women in Engineering (WiE) Society has quickly become one of the most influential societies on campus. This society welcomes students who share common goals and interests relating to the advancement of equality for women within the engineering industry in both academia and professional practice. With an aim to overcome the gender gap, the society gives all female-identifying students at Dalhousie University a platform to be heard and a position of power in various engineering communities. Through outreach, professional development, and support system initiatives, WiE members are encouraged to harness their own potential and to engage in leadership opportunities in the society. One such initiative is the annual event “Go Eng Girl”. Go Eng Girl is an annual event hosted by universities across Canada for female-identifying students. This program encourages students in grades 7-12 to explore engineering through hands-on activities and provides opportunities for high school students to connect with current female engineers and students. The goal is to help younger women visualize
themselves as engineers through this program. In 2020, the Go Eng Girl annual event went virtual for the first time in its history. The organizing team made up of members of the Women in Engineering Society (WiE), jumped at the challenges and opportunities of the now virtual event and were rewarded with a remarkable turnout. Eptehal Nashnoush, as co-chair of the event, shared her insights about the event itself and its impact on her, young girls, and the profession of engineering. Eptehal has been involved with WiE society since 2018 as the VP of Communications; she also had experience planning conferences with the Canadian Undergraduate Technology Conference. With these two experiences in mind, she realized she would be well equipped to take on the co-chair role for the 2020 Go Eng Girl event, especially considering it was going to be a particularly challenging year. Eptehal and the planning team got to work on how to keep the high-school-aged students engaged in this new online setting. The first step was choosing an interactive platform. The team went with HopIn, an online conference service that was newly being explored by folks within the
Maritime region at that time. Eptehal shared just how important that decision on the platform was by saying, “I believe that the platform made all the difference to the way we interacted with the attendees given how easy it was to use. We also managed to make the design competition completely online with zero materials needed, all while ensuring engineering concepts were being applied.” Keeping some fan-favourite activities from the annual event in the virtual format was also vital in choosing a platform and the programming the WiE Team delivered. Being able to keep the design competition was very meaningful to Eptehal. High school students chose case studies based on COVID-related scenarios designed by the WiE Team that could solve problems such as assisting the elderly and the vulnerable in our society get their groceries and PCR tests using robots and drones with the tools provided on the platform. The students had the opportunity to problem-solve real issues currently happening here in Nova Scotia. “We were really happy that we still incorporated the competition, and because it was online, we saved money. We could use the funding for more prizes, which was a highlight because
we didn't have to choose one winner for the entrance award to the Dalhousie Engineering program. But we were able to spread the scholarships and empower as many girls as we possibly can.” Shared Eptehal. Another benefit to the event moving online was its ability to be offered to a broader area. Eptehal shared the team’s thoughts around this new possibility “We realized that now we could communicate with schools that were, not just in Halifax, but we could open it up to the entire of the maritime region and more rural areas.” She also added, “We had schools participating in Nova Scotia that normally would not be able to attend, especially in the rural areas. They were
thrilled to hear from us and take part in this experiential learning opportunity for their students.” The event drew 93 high-school-aged students to participate in a full-day of learning and activities. The planning team had a few critical areas of focus this year —the first being diversity. The event featured representation from as many women as possible so girls could directly relate to who they were interacting with. Eptehal sees great value in this from her own experiences adding, “I know personally often there's a position in a field like engineering and I don't see many people that look like me. Even though they may be women, they don’t particularly look like me. When I see myself in the field, it sends a different message, that if she did it, then I can as well.” On how that influenced the event, Eptehal said, “We wanted to represent many ethnic backgrounds and even different religious backgrounds, having a larger audience this year we focused on that aspect. We were very pleased to find volunteers that were open to, coming on and immediately understanding the importance of the girls seeing themselves thriving in this field.” Other areas of focus of the event were the co-op and graduate school sessions. They were showcasing to the high school students the possibilities of how engineering can be applied. “We had speakers that worked with Disney, speakers working in the Bahamas, and graduate students working with Tesla. It shows them that their career is within their hands, and they can make it more fitting to their personality. I think that's the beauty of engineering,” said Eptehal. Co-chairing the event with graduate
student Shannon Clemens was seen as an opportunity in Eptehal’s eyes to give back in her undergraduate years and make changes for the next generation. Eptehal added of the team involved, “The entire team of the Go Eng Girl event were just phenomenal. They were able to make this virtual event happen. Leaving a lasting impact was the main driver for everyone involved. It wasn't that they wanted to put on their resume or be featured online. They were genuinely concerned about the next generation and wanted to do as much as possible while they have the opportunity.” Eptehal joined the Women in Engineering Society in 2018 and is now in her fourth year at Dalhousie. She has enjoyed watching the society thrive and takes pride in participating in its growth. With a focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion, the Women in Engineering Society has taken a strong spot as a top society that undergraduate and graduate engineering students want to join and interact with. This student group has worked and will continue to work together to reframe the visual representation of women in engineering and answer the question, “What does an engineer look like?”
“IT MAY BE TOUGH AT THE BEGINNING, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WHAT MATTERS IS THE IMPACT THAT YOU MAKE, AND IF YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT WHAT YOU DO AND YOU'RE GOOD AT WHAT YOU DO, THEN YOU WILL FIND YOUR WAY AND PEOPLE WILL MAKE PLACE FOR YOU.” — EPTEHAL NASHNOUSH
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FEATURE 2
A PHYSICAL CAMPUS IN A DIGITAL LANDSCAPE WHEN THE GLOBAL COVID-19 pandemic brought about a state of emergency in March of 2020, many businesses and institutions across every industry had to readjust and find ways to go digital. While a lot of focus was placed on what was done to make work and services more digital, what happens to a Faculty that still has physical oncampus needs? The Faculty of Engineering quickly adapted to online, virtual learning when the pandemic hit. Staff, students, and professors modified how they worked, learned, and taught and rose to the challenge of doing things differently. Any work that could be done virtually was being done virtually to minimize risk to faculty, staff, and students. However, there is a physical aspect to Engineering that meant the Faculty had to rapidly create a safe space on campus for the students and researchers that needed to be there. From courses that require physical modelling, and physical testing, final year capstone projects necessary to graduate, to the vital research that needs to continue for the sake of our communities, the ability to return to campus safely for a select few was immediately apparent. After the initial lockdown in Nova Scotia in March of 2020, faculty, staff and the university as a whole were hard at work moving education and work to the digital world. Concurrently, the Faculty of Engineering explored what we could do to safely bring back required groups to campus.
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Managing Capacity and Resources One of the first pieces of the return to campus puzzle was deciding which groups need to return and how spaces would need to be changed to accommodate. Craig Arthur, Manager, Safety & Operations for the Faculty of Engineering when the pandemic started, faced the challenge with a problemsolving lens “We had to get creative in what we were using spaces for at the time. Rooms and labs used for larger classes, which had moved to virtual learning, could be fitted to smaller class sizes with in-person needs. Reducing the number of students in a space allowed for increased distancing.” For the light prototyping lab, only every second workbench was used; the toolbox that used to be shared between two groups was assigned to one group. For a graduate design course, students were only brought in for the few teaching aspects that couldn’t be done virtually, capacity in the room was cut from 20 to 5, and one student was matched to a table. Computer labs have adapted to one-direction walkways, every other computer was inaccessible, and protective coverings on high touch surfaces that can easily be cleaned. For individuals on campus, surgical masks are required in all class and teaching lab
spaces, and social distancing was to be maintained. The John W. Wilson Heavy Structures Lab, as one of the most used spaces on campus, plays a vital role in physical testing for researchers and students. Within a few months, the lab was operating at its pre-pandemic capacity. The changes in this space highlighted some efficiencies that the lab plans to continue as we move into living in the post-pandemic world. The lab now operates on a booking system at a lower room capacity. Every student has their area, and they work within those separate areas. This booking system resulted in the space and the staff time being used more efficiently. Limited numbers of students lead to increase undivided attention, and students move through testing quicker. The booking allowed faculty and staff to know who is where and when, making contract tracing possible in the worstcase scenario of a potential positive case on campus. The hope is to never need these records, with the measures in place, but they are available if needed. The Chemical Engineering lab implemented a unique hybrid system. Digital Lab partners were introduced; remote students were paired with an in-person lab partner. Faculty managed
a dynamic schedule so that each on-campus student could be paired with a remote student. The digital lab partner system allowed for reduced room capacities to be upheld but also have the benefit of allowing students who could not be in person to be able to take part in the lab. This allowed students in Turkey, China, and Kuwait, to name a few attend the class. Every student was equipped with their own kit, which in previous years would be shared equipment. This kit was also mailed to all remote students wherever they might be. For students who were on campus, each student was assigned a table and equipment. Each student had a station for the entire term. The stations were equipped with a multi-tote system, one for outdoor clothing, one for lab clothing. These totes never left the lab and were only handled by the student. During the early stages of the pandemic, most research activities were suspended. When research activities were restarting, the university took a cautious “slow and steady” approach that involved submitting a detailed Return to Research (R2R) plan for each activity. To help ensure an efficient and timely approval process, the Faculty of Engineering recommended their researchers work with Marius Normore,
the Faculty’s Environmental Health and Safety Technician, to help finalize their protocols. Normore, who has been with the faculty almost two years, said, “I probably reviewed more than 50 R2R applications, with the majority of those being the Faculty of Engineering. If a PI didn’t get an email from me, it was most likely that their R2R Covid-19 protocols were acceptable and in line with Dalhousie’s Return to Campus Guidance Document. Staying up to date with
Liane Sandula, Craig Arthur and Marius Nomore
Nova Scotia Public Health’s Covid-19 restriction became a daily obsession with making sure Dalhousie’s guidance was in line with the ever-changing restrictions.”
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FEATURE 1
In-house safety solutions A few unique solutions were implemented at the Faculty of Engineering around Sexton Campus that made it possible to bring people back to campus as early as possible. These solutions put safety first while thinking about the workload of the custodial staff and other building users. In addition to the signage standard in most places, reminders to wear a mask and stay 6- feet apart, a unique piece of signage marked the doors of every classroom, office and lab space. There were yellow and green magnets; rooms with green magnets were meant to be used regularly and were being disinfected frequently, rooms with yellow stickers were not to be used on a frequent basis. The benefit of this system was that custodial staff used their resources wisely by cutting down the number of rooms that could potentially be used, which reduced the volume of rooms that needed the increased cleaning and sanitizing. Custodial staff knew that
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Electrostatic Fogger found on Sexton Campus ENGINEERING
rooms with green stickers would be cleaned in their schedule, and rooms with yellow stickers did not need their attention as they were not being used. Dividers were essential for the few spaces where multiple researchers or students needed to be in a lab. These structures were built in-house with metal frames and plexiglass. Finding in-house solutions was essential in the Faculty’s speed in returning some critical individuals to campus. Another unique feature found on campus were pieces of equipment referred to as Electrostatic Foggers, in combination with stabilized aqueous ozone generators. This tool utilized ozonated water as a disinfectant to spray the entire room between classes. Faculty members stepped up and took on the role of flipping a room between classes using these Electrostatic Foggers. Essentially, this decreased the cleaning time required to turn around a class between groups and increased the number of classes they could have, all while reducing custodial workload. Liane Sandula, who took on the role of Facility and Safety Manager in 2021, stepped into a faculty that was well equipped to handle the gradual return to campus. “In Phase 4 of Nova Scotia’s reopening plan, each Faculty has managed their own return process. The high level of knowledge already embedded in the Faculty has greatly facilitated this process. We are now able to allow more people, meetings, and events on campus. You can slowly start to see it come back to life,” said Liane.
Looking Forward “s we begin the Fall term, we have return to on-campus learning. As people return, they will see evidence of the lessons learned over the pandemic, such as increased availability of hand sanitizer, the promotion of hand hygiene, the promotion of vaccinations and to stay home when sick, as well as the encouragement of mask usage. Dalhousie will also continue to run its asymptomatic test center on campus to specifically serve Dalhousie’s faculty, staff, and student,” said Liane, who played a key role in the establishment of the on-campus asymptomatic testing for the entire university. Through this challenging situation, the faculty grabbed opportunities to problem solve through in-house solutions, new teaching methods, new technology, and stepping up to help in any way they could. The ability of faculty, staff, and students to adapt and be resilient is a source of pride for the Faculty of Engineering will take us all into the new academic year stronger.
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HUB YEAR IN REVIEW
AN ENGINE FOR IMPACT
THE EMERA IDEAHUB WAS DESIGNED to fill a critical gap in the innovation ecosystem. Strategically located on Dalhousie’s Sexton campus, the Emera ideaHUB (ideaHUB) combines stateof-the-art facilities and programs to empower innovators and the next generation of world-class technology companies; building physical products rooted in deep science. “As we embark on Year 3, we have established ourselves as the leading place to build products for early-stage companies,” says Dr. John Newhook (BEng’89, MASc’93 PhD’97), Dean of Engineering, “We’re proud to say that innovators come to us from across Atlantic Canada and outside of the Atlantic region to build their ideas better, faster.” While the goal to fill a gap in the ecosystem and “build better products faster” is still the same, the value offered by the ideaHUB now stretches far beyond the four walls of the physical facility. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ideaHUB transitioned all operations to virtual in March 2020 to ensure the safety of staff and participants. Since then, they have pivoted and expanded their offerings online and have seen
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exponential growth in the participation and success of the program. The ideaHUB currently boasts 17 resident companies, and a further 32 startups in other program streams, including participants located around the region. “Our reach for helping physical product-based companies prototype, and prototype fast, has expanded,” says Margaret Palmeter, Founding Director of the Emera ideaHUB. “A transition to online in Year 2 validates that we can deliver the program virtually and we have big plans to grow and expand it further this year.”
BUILDING BETTER INNOVATORS
The Young Innovators program, which was created to engage a group of highly motivated students, also saw huge expansion throughout the COVID closure, increasing from 10 members to over 50. The program is the next step up from resources including the co-located IDEA Sandbox and Makerspace which are led by Mechanical Engineering Professor Dr. Clifton Johnston, who is also the ideaHUB Academic Director and the NSERC Chair in Design Engineering. “The Young Innovators program is a place to answer questions and decide if starting a company is the right fit,” says Dr. Johnston instead of Palmeter.
“Even if it’s not the right fit, our participants have now learned important translational skills that they can take with them onto whatever career they pursue next.” The program was originally geared towards engineering students at Dalhousie and now offers support for students and recent graduates from all disciplines and post-secondary institutions from across Atlantic Canada. It is yet another step in the innovation pipeline to help guide and mentor innovators who are just starting along the path to entrepreneurship. To date, the Young Innovators have started over 20 new companies, with 5 teams graduating into full ideaHUB residents. “As Young Innovators, we iterated through multiple functional mock-ups and ultimately secured our provisional patent,” says Tracey McGillivray, CEO and Co-Founder of Axtion Independence Mobility Inc. “Since becoming a full resident company, we have fabricated two fully functional versions of our prototype with a full round of clinical feedback sessions in between. We are very grateful for all the support and leadership from the ideaHUB team.” “We are in the business of bringing ideas to life,” says Dr. Alice Aiken, Vice President Research and Innovation
at Dalhousie University. “The Emera ideaHUB provides all the support, guidance, access to space and equipment needed to successfully launch and grow a startup.”
BUILDING A COMMUNITY
In the first two years of operation, more than 50 startup companies have been supported by the ideaHUB. These innovative, technology-based businesses are already disrupting the global market, with each company acting as its own engine for growth. “These innovators and founders were lost between the cracks and we’ve created a space where they can all come together and get what they need and help each other out,” says Palmeter. “It’s resulted in an incredible sense of community where everybody is appreciative, grateful, and willing to give back.” The ideaHUB team has worked tirelessly this year to ensure the success of each and every company as
they navigate the pandemic. In spite of the challenging year, the ideaHUB companies and Young Innovators were able to exceed expectations in every way. "Although almost everything was online without access to the buildings and facilities, the support and programs offered by ideaHUB and the brilliant team were super helpful in facilitating and optimizing our overall plan to build our first prototype,” says Dr. Ghada Koleilat, Assistant Professor and Founder AvisensX Inc. “In a nutshell, ideaHUB is a unique ecosystem that builds dreams limitlessly."
DRIVING MEANINGFUL CHANGE
The companies that participate in the Emera ideaHUB are cogs in an amazing cycle of economic impact in Nova Scotia. They are developing world-class technology while building roots and engaging in the innovation community in Nova Scotia; a community fostered by Dalhousie Engineering and engineering leaders in the region. “We have found there to be a real competitive advantage in locating our business in Nova Scotia,” says Dane George (MSc‘16) Co-Founder of Rayleigh Solar Tech. “We have ambitious plans to continue to grow our company right here and anticipate being able to see our solar coating on vehicles driving down the streets of Halifax within the next five years.” By nurturing and contributing to the Atlantic Canadian ecosystem, the ideaHUB and Dalhousie have created a culture of excellence that fosters the
growth of startups through meaningful mentorship and investment. When they join the ideaHUB, most companies have two to three employees on average. By the time they’ve graduated from the program, they are employing eight to ten people and are positioned to disrupt international markets. "There is nothing that can compete with the Emera ideaHUB at Dalhousie,” says Dr. Hamed Hanafi (PhD’15), Founder & CEO, NovaResp Technologies. “As the most recent alumni of the ideaHUB, we are excited to be on track to launch our product globally in 2023, an incredible timeline for a medical device company.” Interim Director, Erin O’Keefe Graham, is eager to lead the HUB into the next phase of growth. The Emera ideaHUB will offer hybrid programming, making best use of the physical space for product development and collaboration, while allowing for virtual, on-demand learning that fits into the busy schedules of start-up companies. Says O’Keefe Graham, “being an accelerator in a changing world means constantly adapting to the needs of our founders. It means offering the best technology, equipment and expertise, so more products make it to market”. With a new cohort of companies entering the ideaHUB, Dean Newhook and O’Keefe Graham are determined to ensure the Emera ideaHUB continues to be an engine for growth in the region.
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ENTREPRENEURSHIP & INNOVATION
OUT OF THIS WORLD TECHNOLOGY
Arad Gharagozli (Beng'20)
ARAD GHARAGOZLI (BENG‘20) has always been fascinated by space. “Since I was a child I’ve been inspired by the vastness of our universe, and I’ve always wanted to have a hand in making it more accessible.” This life-long interest led him to launch his space technology company, GALAXIA Mission Systems in 2020. GALAXIA develops efficient artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms and designs and manufactures On-Board Computers (OBC) for small and nano-satellites. “Thanks to advancements in launch technology, the cost of launching and operating spacecraft is decreasing, leading us into the second wave of the space race,” says Gharagozli. “Our mission is to represent Canada in that race on the international stage.” Their current project, ionVortex, is an OBC for satellites that runs AI algorithms efficiently onboard spacecrafts. They also have a project called the Mobius ISR system, which is a space-borne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance solution that is able to perform real-time object recognition and tracking. The Mobius system is an AI Edge Computing Platform that has the potential to disrupt the $5.8B SmallSat satellite market. “What I envision is a generation of highly intelligent satellites that are capable of orbiting the earth, performing autonomous tasks in orbit such as earth observation, telecommunication and internet of things. These satellites will exponentially increase the connectivity of our planet in a way that will enable
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“OUR MISSION IS TO REPRESENT CANADA IN THAT RACE ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE.” — ARAD GHARAGOZLI
millions of people to have access to technologies we could only dream of a decade ago.” In order to pursue GALAXIA, Gharagozli started working on his Masters in Mechanical Engineering (MASc‘22) in 2020 and joined the Young Innovators program at the Emera ideaHUB. The Young Innovators program was designed to support innovative students who are pursuing commercialization opportunities and has proven to be the perfect ground control to help him launch GALAXIA. According to Margaret Palmeter, the Founding Director of the Emera ideaHUB, Gharagozli has very quickly exceeded the expectations of the program. “Arad has developed an innovative technology with tremendous market potential,” says Palmeter. “He’s already demonstrated the value of his innovation by securing a first sale that will have the Mobius system being deployed by the Canadian Space Agency in the coming months. I have no doubt that through his leadership, vision, and focus, that Arad will become an Atlantic Canadian business leader in the years to come.” During his undergrad at Dalhousie, Gharagozli started the Dalhousie Space Systems Lab which gives students
the chance to engage with challenges in the space sector. The society primarily focuses on the research and development of satellites called CubeSats which are square, miniature satellites that perform tasks in the Earth’s orbit. “I have made it my mandate to work with local organizations to grow the aerospace sector in our region, advocating for projects, and supporting the students with their passion for space,” he says. “In my ideal world, if you love aerospace, you wouldn’t have to choose between living here or doing what you love.” Instead of waiting for opportunities to fall in one’s lap, Gharagozli is adamant about creating them for yourself. “It is going to be a bumpy road ahead. But when you see the first signs that your work is starting to have some impact, on the cause you care so much about, all of that is going to be worth it.” In addition to working on his Masters and GALAXIA, Gharagozli also runs an IT company and recently co-founded a medical technology company with a prominent operating room doctor in Halifax.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP & INNOVATION
BUILDING A COMPANY AND COMMUNITY “MY GOAL HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO WORK IN AN INNOVATION-FOCUSED OR TECHNOLOGYFOCUSED COMPANY HERE IN NOVA SCOTIA" — COLIN ROSS NAVIGATING THE WORLD OF entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. Not only does it take skill, passion and dedication, it also requires the support and guidance of those who have walked the path before you. Like many entrepreneurs, Colin Ross (PhD’21) felt quite alone and isolated in the early stages of starting his company, Acoubit. However, he quickly found his stride when he started engaging with the specialized programs and resources that Dalhousie has to offer, starting with joining the Emera ideaHUB headquartered in the Faculty of Engineering. “The ideaHUB is filling an incredible gap,” says Ross. “They’re very supportive of unique companies that are focused on commercializing research out of the lab and are very in tune with the challenges that founders face.” Ross also believes that having the support of trusted mentors was crucial for his success. In his experience, the most important part of cultivating a
successful mentorship is creating a comfortable environment that allows both parties to have open and honest discussions. He explains that his relationship with ideaHUB Founding Advisory Council member Chris Huskilson (PEng’83), the former CEO of Emera Inc., works because it’s founded on mutual respect. “Chris has done some extremely incredible things over his career and he’s very approachable,” says Ross. “Having access to a mentor who has gone through it, who can guide you and allow you to remain focused on what’s important is absolutely critical.” With the support of his mentors, Ross made the decision to pivot away from his startup Acoubit. Instead, the skills he acquired in pursuing innovation and entrepreneurship set him up for success and opened many doors. Ross was approached by his mentor, Chris Huskilson, Advisor at ABCO, and was offered a role leading ABCO’s Research & Development (R&D) team. “ABCO is working to bring start-up techniques to a traditional business to transform it into an innovation-driven enterprise,” says Chris Huskilson. “Colin’s experience in the start-up ecosystem is instrumental in bringing new thinking to the business and the ability to innovate in a much greater way than in the past.” At ABCO, Ross is focused on improving existing products, supporting new product development and building the foundations of their R&D team. With many projects coming down the pipeline, and massive growth on the horizon,
Colin Ross (PhD'21) at an Emera ideaHUB event
having a strong foundational team is paramount. The role with ABCO also gave Ross the opportunity to continue commercializing technology in Nova Scotia. “My goal has always been to work in an innovation-focused or technologyfocused company here in Nova Scotia and not have to move out of the province or the country.” Creating more opportunities in Nova Scotia is a driving force behind Ross’s plan for the coming years. Due to his previous roles as a university researcher and entrepreneur, he knows first-hand how important it is to support students and create jobs in Atlantic Canada “I think there is an incredible amount of talent coming out of Nova Scotia and Dalhousie and helping [students] commercialize their research and make an impact on a global scale has ripple effects for the students, new startups, and for established businesses who want to grow and think differently.” Looking to the future, Ross is passionate about giving back and providing mentorship to support the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators. “If there is any way that I can help give back in that way then I very much want to do so, says Ross. “I’m very keen to work with local entrepreneurs and local graduates to really give them the same opportunity that I’ve been fortunate to have.”
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FACULTY NEWS EVENTS AND UPDATES
IMMERSIVE ONLINE- LEARNING APPROACH
The Fall brought a new semester of adapting to distanced learning that Assistant Professor, Civil & Resource Engineering, Dr. Kyle Tousignant faced head-on. The goal was to make classes like the in-person experience with a combination of engaging videography for labs and PowerPoints with chalkboard-like notes from Dr. Tousignant.
CELEBRATING BLACK ENGINEERS A new site focusing on the community of Dalhousie's Black Engineers has been launched. The page showcases profiles of Black Engineers, as inspiration for prospective students, and a means of building a network among current students and alumni. The site also provides resources, scholarships, and opportunities available to black students and prospective students. We hope to grow the list of profiles so if you're interested in participating, email merilyn@dal.ca.
The 30th annual robot design competition was held virtually this year to maintain social distancing. Read about how Professor Dr. Vincent Sieben converted the class and the competition to a great example of online learning. You can also watch some clips of the student's robot's navigating through a mars simulation.
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FELLOWSHIP AND GRANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
VISUALIZING STEEL CONNECTIONS
In November of 2019, Dal’s Faculty of Engineering teamed up with the Faculties of Computer Science and Science to host the Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Networking and Panel in Halifax. The annual event aims to celebrate women working in STEM related fields, build networks and generate support for women in the workforce.
CANADA RESEARCH CHAIR APPOINTMENTS Ghada Koleilat received the Canada Research Chair in Advanced Materials for Energy Application. Ali Nasiri as Chair in the area of Ocean Engineering. Pedram Sadeghian received a CRC renewal for his work in Sustainable Infrastructure.
Dr. Ya-Jun Pan from the Department of Mechanical Engineering has been named, 2021 EIC Fellow (FEIC) for her “excellence in engineering and services to the profession and to society”. Dr. Kevin Plucknett and Vincent Sieben are among seven remarkable researchers at Dalhousie who are receiving funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). Their work on advanced ceramics will be utilized across a range of industries and contributes multiple socio-economic benefits for Canadians.
NEW FACULTY MEMBERS • • • • • • • •
Colleen Dewis, Instructor Alison Scott, Assistant Professor Mahshid Hadavand, Instructor Hamed Aly, Instructor Ali Nasiri, Assistant Professor Lauren Somers, Assistant Professor Hamid Afshari, Assistant Professor Dr. Janie Wilson, Director, School of Biomedical Engineering
STAFF • • • • • • • • • •
Victoria Sullivan, Administrative Secretary Merilyn Layne, Faculty Alumni Officer Aaron MacNeil, Technician Christine Baker, Assistant Dean Advancement Kathryn Cameron, Coordinator ideaHUB Any Nath, Secretary Ola Hamada, Secretary Liane Sandula, Manager Facilities and Safety Michael Ruffalo, Technician Erin Graham, Interim Director ideaHUB ENGINEERING
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STUDENT NEWS
TRANSFORMING A KEY STUDENT CONFERENCE THE CAPSTONE PROJECT IS JUST what the name suggests, a project our engineering students complete that is the culmination of their academic and learned experiences. This pinnacle project is presented and celebrated at The Dalhousie Engineering Capstone Conference. The Capstone Conference is a year-end celebration of the hard work graduating engineering students have put into their capstone projects during their final undergraduate year. The global pandemic resulted in students being off-campus, and in-person celebrations and gatherings being put on pause. The restrictions challenged the way the projects would be completed and how the conference would be held. The students, the professors, and the Engineers in Residence all came together to ensure the pivotal Capstone Project and Conference could move forward successfully.
THE CAPSTONE PROGRAM
The Capstone program is an 8-month academic program, taking place over 2-semesters, in which students work in teams on real-world problems from local industry. The Capstone program is a rich opportunity for experiential learning, where students face openended problems that do not have a clear solution. Working in their teams, students apply all their previously gained engineering skills, along with the design process, to identify problems, and outline project scope and requirements. Students then create solutions, and eventually design and build a working prototype or solution for their clients. The Capstone program plays an important role in giving students the opportunity to demonstrate their engineering skills, learn about working with engineers, technicians, operators, etc. in real companies/organizations.
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The benefits of the capstone program extend beyond students and into the community. These projects allow companies to explore the application of new technologies in low-risk environments, work with creative students who have the potential to become employees and draw on Faculty expertise and Dalhousie resources. Many of the industry partners get involved because they were once capstone students themselves, and they want to give back to younger engineers by offering them a real-world experience, and by mentoring the students as they work through their projects. Many of the companies and industry partners that participate in the Capstone Program as “clients” for the students are themselves Dalhousie alumni.
THE CONFERENCE GOES DIGITAL
The tradition of celebrating the end of the Capstone Project started out as a
“Design Expo” in the Sexton Gym in 2014. Students could voluntarily participate in a poster expo that lasted a few hours of an afternoon in March. In this format, the Design Expo was held for 3 consecutive years before it evolved into the Capstone Conference as we now know it. The first Capstone Conference was held in 2017. It continued the tradition of the poster exposition and competition and added the feature of breakout rooms for formal presentations for all capstone students. This evolution turned the conference into an all-day event hosted at the Westin Nova Scotia, where rooms were filled with over 450 participating students, approximately 100 faculty members, and hundreds of other guests including industry clients, event sponsors, engineers in the community and alumni, high school students, and the presenting students’ friends and family. Also in attendance are the poster competition judges: around 50
professional engineers from the Nova Scotia engineering community. After three successful annual conferences, the fourth annual event had to be cancelled – it fell less than a month after the global COVID-19 pandemic brought about stay-at-home orders. A year later, in 2021, an event of this size was still not feasible with public health guidelines and the team of organizers proposed the fifth annual Capstone Conference be held completely online.
“HOP IN” TO THE VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
The Capstone Conference was held virtually on April 8, 2021, on a virtual conference platform called Hopin. The conversion of the traditional conference to a completely digital one was no small feat. The team of Engineers in Residence who host this conference every year had to pivot, get creative, and brainstorm and collaborate with the capstone instructors to come up with a solution. The team also hired an Industrial engineering co-op student, Owen Anderson to help with the planning, logistics and digital set up of the Hopin platform. When asked about one of the successes of this year’s
conference, Engineer in Residence, Sandra MacAulay Thompson laughed and said, “the fact that we pulled it off!” Sandra credits Owen’s hard work, resourcefulness and attention to detail as he learned how to fully organize and manage a large event in Hopin. Additionally, the capstone instructors and students demonstrated a great deal of flexibility and willingness to learn how team presentations and poster demonstrations could be done in this new platform. The virtual conference was able to host the same components as the inperson event, with the poster exposition, and breakout rooms for presentations. The turn-out and feedback was overwhelmingly positive over 740 people attended the virtual conference. In the digital room were over 400 students, 80 industry partners and over 90 faculty and staff members to name a few. Viewers and participants attended from across 31 countries. While the virtual event of 2021 is a story of success and adaptability for the planning team of Engineers in Residence, they look forward to returning to the Westin on April 5, 2022, to host The Dalhousie Engineering Capstone Conference in person next
year. Regardless of if the conference is in-person, or virtual, it’s important that students have the chance to present their projects and celebrate the bookend of their degree.
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RECENT GRADUATE PROFILE
Valuing Education Beyond the Classroom THAT’S THE WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE, WE DON’T WANT TO BE HOMOGENOUS IN REGARDS TO YOUR SKILLSET OR MINDSET, WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO BRING DIFFERENT FACETS FORWARD.” — IKE HARRIS-EZE
FOR RECENT GRADUATE IKE HARRIS-EZE (BEng’20) both engineering and learning are all about continuous improvement, he believes, “If you’re standing still the world is moving past you”. Ike jumped right into the deep end when it came to getting involved at Dalhousie, before the end of his first year he made the decision to run for VP Finance for Dalhousie Engineering Society (DES), which was just the beginning of his extracurricular involvement. Within the next few years, he went on to join the planning committee of the Canadian Federation of Engineering Students (CFES) conference, the Dalhousie Engineering Society (DES) as VP Finance, the Industrial Engineering Society, the Atlantic Engineering Competition (AEC) as VP Finance, the Canadian Federation of Engineering Students (CFES) Executive Council as VP Finance and even to become the Manager of the T-Room, the Sexton Campus bar. Getting to know people was a large interest for Ike when getting started in societies. “In Engineering when you first start there are 500 people, you meet fractions of them, but you can’t meet everyone,” says Harris-Eze. Through the societies and activities like meet-andgreets— planned by Ike— he was able to meet a variety of people from all the different fields of Engineering, which
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he said he wouldn’t usually get to meet, otherwise. In addition to meeting people, finding ways to help people is a value Ike holds in high regard; a trait he says was instilled in him by his parents. Helping people, giving back, and providing your skills to society were common topics within the family unit. His accounting background from a previous degree from St. Francis Xavier University allowed him to apply those skills to VP Finance roles across the societies and planning committees he joined. Getting involved made the 5-year degree go by quickly for Ike, who also shared “If all you do is school, then you’re only focusing on one aspect of yourself. You want to be a wholistic version of yourself. You shouldn’t just take care of your mind, you should take care of your body and your soul.” Participating in extra-curricular activities helped Ike realign himself and he found that it allowed him to get the full experience of being an Engineering Student and build connections within the engineering community. The benefits of Ike’s community involvement post-graduation have only continued to expand. “If you can plan a conference, you can plan anything,” Ike added jovially— planning the 50th anniversary conference for CFES for over 400 engineering students from across Canada was one of the highlights of Ike’s time at Dalhousie. His experiences taught him project management skills and effective communication with stakeholders, which he now uses daily in the working world.
It was “a little wild” for Ike to graduate and enter the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic. He started applying for jobs in January and secured a job before the virus was declared a global pandemic. Ike felt the concern many others were feeling, “Two weeks later [after getting the job] the world shuts down, and I was like, do I still have a job?” added Ike. It was a nerve-wracking time for him especially with a pending move to Montreal. Thankfully, the job remained a reality for Ike and he is now a Developer in the area of digital supply chain transformations at Deloitte. In the three months between school ending and work beginning, Ike used that time to rest and recharge before diving into the workforce. As continuous improvement is a large part of Ike’s values, he also used that time to do online courses, and skillbuilding, from tech courses to re-learning French. Since starting at Deloitte almost a year ago, he still dedicates 30 minutes a day to studying French. Ike hopes to be bi-lingual within 5 years. Over the last six months, Ike has played a role in the COVID roll-out for his employer, Deloitte, exploring his interest of the role of engineering in healthcare. “As humans, we need to continue to evolve, continue to learn, continue to develop.” Ike states. The value of Ike’s learned experiences at Dalhousie, both in and out of the classroom, is carried with him, he adds, “I bring those perspectives to whatever I’m working on and that brings a diversity of thought that is so important. That’s the workforce of the future, we don’t want to be homogenous in regards to your skillset or mindset, we need to continue to bring different facets forward.”
STUDENT AND ALUMNI NEWS AND EVENTS
George Armoyan (BEng'83) took the virtual stage as a keynote speaker at the third IDEA Speaker Series in the fall of 2020. Armoyan shared the most pivotal moments in his career, his attitude towards risky decisions, his passion for investment in innovation and technology, and his dedication to giving back and supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Engineering Impact: Contributions of Engineers in Healthcare. On May 27 the Faculty of Engineering hosted the first event in it’s new series Engineering Impact. The live event brought three professional engineers working in the healthcare space together to share their stories on their careers and the industry.
Denise Pothier (BEng'93) has been recognized as a 2020 Aurum Award Winner. Denise’s background is in chemical engineering, but she has distinguished herself through her advocacy for inclusion and diversity. For 20 years, she has been advancing inclusivity in the engineering field, motivated as much by her own experiences in a male-dominated profession as it is by her Acadian and Mi’kmaq heritage.
The Dalhousie University American Concrete Institute Student Chapter received international recognition in the 2020 Outstanding University category. This is the second consecutive year that this student group has been recognized 2019 they were highlighted in the Excellent University category.
During Alumni Days in late May, Dalhousie hosted a special class reunion to mark a significant milestone. Classmates from the class of 1961 who graduated from Engineering, Arts and Social Sciences, Dentistry, Management and Science gathered over Zoom to share their memories of Dalhousie and Halifax in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
The Dean’s Coffee Club and event series usually hosted oncampus hosted three successful virtual events over 2020 and 2021. With speakers such as Amina Stoddart on wastewater research, Paul Amyotte on Process Safety, and Margaret Palmeter to speak on the growth of Dal’s innovation centre the Emera ideaHUB.
Electrical & Computer Engineering student, Sierra Sparks, is Oxford-bound as Dalhousie's 92nd Rhodes Scholar. Sierra is set to further her studies in biomedical engineering while continuing to be a role model, community builder and inspiration to her peers.
Industrial Engineering Students place 1st in International Case competition. Rootinkumar Satani, Sagar Kumar Patel and Revanth Vinay Kodli have won first place in the Logistics and Supply Chain Division student case competition of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers. ENGINEERING
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SOMETIMES YOU JUST NEED A LITTLE HELP TO GET OVER THAT BUMP IN THE ROAD Starting university is exciting but it can be challenging too. For many students it’s their first time living away from home and managing finances. Unforeseen financial challenges can impact on students’ ability to stay in university and it is a Dalhousie priority to reverse this trend. The On Track Microbursary is available to students to ensure they have help when they need it most. Your gift to this initiative will ensure support is there for students in a crisis and ultimately impact on their ability to stay at university. To make your gift today please visit: giving.dal.ca/OTMB
MICROBURSARY
Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Alumni & Donor Relations Office Faculty of Engineering Suite 108, Morroy Building, 5269 Morris Street PO Box 15000 Halifax NS B3H 4R2
40065040
