Industrial Engineering Professors Win Innovations in Education Award

photo of Chase Rainwater and Manuel RossettiManuel Rossetti, University Professor of Industrial Engineering and Chase Rainwater, Associate Professor and Associate Department Head of Industrial Engineering, were recognized at the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE) Annual Conference & Expo with the Innovations in Education Award, based on their work in designing, developing, and implementing a required, two-semester course sequence in computing for students pursuing the Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (BSIE) at the University of Arkansas.

According to IISE, this award “highlights outstanding innovation in the design or presentation of an accredited IE, ISE, IEOR, or similar engineering curriculum, or in a course that is part of an accredited curriculum. It recognizes faculty members who demonstrate outstanding creativity in instructional approaches or curriculum organization, design or content, and who provide evidence of the effectiveness of their innovation.”

Thirty years ago, the vast majority of industrial engineering undergraduates had limited experience with computing. Fifteen years ago, industrial engineering undergraduates with expertise in Microsoft Excel and Access had a tremendous advantage in the career marketplace. Today, a diverse set of computing skills is an expectation amongst companies hiring undergraduates from any engineering discipline. For practicing industrial engineers, the ability to implement computational tools and analyze/visualize the output from these tools is vital.

Several years ago, Rainwater and Rossetti conceptualized ways to improve students’ computing skills. After being encouraged by the Industrial Engineering Undergraduate Studies Committee to “start with a blank piece of paper,” they proposed the creation of a two-semester, course sequence that BSIE students would be required to complete in their sophomore year. The new courses were piloted by Rainwater in Spring 2019, and in April, 2019, the INEG faculty approved the two-course as requirements for the BSIE. At the same time, Programming Foundations was removed as a requirement for the BSIE, and the VBA content was removed from Introduction to Industrial Engineering. Both courses have now been offered four consecutive long semesters. Rainwater has been the primary instructor of all offerings of the new Computing Methods for Industrial Engineers I and II to date.

The required, two-semester, computing sequence designed specifically for sophomore-level industrial engineering students is unique. In an effort to illustrate the use of individual programming concepts in the context of industrial engineering and to expose new industrial engineering students to fundamental industrial engineering problems, topics are offered in a coordinated manner. For example, students learn the basic principles of breakeven analysis and then apply these principles as they learn to define variables and expressions in Java. This pairing of industrial engineering topics with computing topics continues throughout the two-semester course. 

This sequence also prepares students to be more competitive for internship and co-op opportunities that often call for computational problem-solving capabilities. Students who have completed this sequence not only know how to program, but they are also familiar with a variety of problem contexts. Therefore, they can immediately make contributions in a wide variety of industrial settings. The end result is a more meaningful experience resulting in greater benefit to employers and students with stronger resumes and more to share during interviews for permanent jobs.

Finally, like many industrial engineering programs, industrial engineering at the University of Arkansas has observed a dramatic increase in the number companies that support senior capstone projects who are calling for decision tools that enable prescriptive, predictive, or descriptive analysis. To succeed on these projects, students must have the preparation and the experience necessary to apply programming and computing skills within the context of their industry partner’s need. This sequence of computing courses enables students to focus on delivering solutions during their capstone experience instead of spending too much time simply learning the tools needed to deliver those solutions.  
Rainwater remarked “It is an honor for Dr. Rossetti and I to be recognized by IISE for our approach to improving industrial engineering students’ computing and programming skills.  There is still work to be done to make computing more prevalent throughout the modern industrial engineering curriculum, but these efforts mark our department’s commitment to ensuring that students are best prepared for successful careers in a computing-driven workplace.”  

 

June 2021