First-Year Students Show off Design Chops at Introductory Engineering Design Expo

First-year students in the College of Engineering, Design and Computing got a chance to share what they have learned about the design innovation process at the Spring 2022 Introductory Engineering Design Expo. On May 6, 42 student teams displayed their projects, which ranged from a prototype of an all-in-one broom, duster, and mop to a sustainable aquaponics kit.  

Hosted in person for the first time since the course was launched as a pilot in the fall of 2019, the expo is held at the end of each semester. Projects from the spring event were the culmination of work from the first-year design experience required for all CEDC students. 

Katherine Goodman, PhD, assistant professor and curriculum lead for Inworks in the College of Engineering, Design and Computing, said the event provided an opportunity for students to present their designs outside of the classroom, a valuable experience in and of itself.  

“It’s easy to believe your idea is terrific, until you must explain it to someone outside of the class,” she said.  

Course instructors recognized the top projects from each class with awards including “Most Engaging,” “Extraordinary Effort, and “Most Creative Prototype.”  

Goodman shared that her students appreciated not only learning about design but also valued the experience of working as a team.  

“This is a great outcome, since engineering of all kinds is a team sport, so to speak,” she said.  

Alex Sandersfeld said it was rewarding to see his classmates’ finished projects at the expo, which also served as a preview of what’s to come as they progress through their studies. Sandersfeld is one of five students on the TreeHouse team, which received the Extraordinary Effort award for their sustainable aquaponics project.  

“Before the expo, it was sort of difficult to see where things would end up for both our team and others, and it wasn’t always clear what the results would be,” he said, on behalf of his team. “Afterwards, we all gained a much better understanding of how teams can combine their creativity, technical and speaking skills to deliver the sort of awesome products we’ll be seeing in our senior design courses.”

Learn about the Spring 2022 Capstone Design Expo, which featured design projects from teams completing their senior year.