Engineering doctoral students gain international experience in Norway

Two doctoral students in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering recently studied abroad in Norway for a semester. 

Juan Morande and Daniela Granados-Rivera were part of an academic exchange program with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) under the FutureLog project, which explores logistics 4.0 applications globally.

Morande’s research focuses on truck-loading logistics within distribution networks.

“In Norway, I worked with another doctoral student on the topic of closed-loop sustainable supply chains,” he said. “We modeled supply chains, where the collection of used products and the recycling of them were taken into account when designing the supply chain and the product itself.”

Morande added that working in Norway helped him learn different techniques to take back to his doctoral research. 

Granados’s research involves using mobile factories and drones to supply spare parts to offshore platforms, in partnership with NTNU and Fieldmade, a Norwegian company specializing in mobile factories with additive manufacturing technology.

“Going there was an opportunity to work closely with them and visit Fieldmade to learn more about their operation,” she said.

Granados also worked on SmartLib, a project with an NTNU doctoral candidate, aimed at improving library handling operations in Trondheim through new technologies.

“I worked and am still working on the mathematical side of these analyses,” she said.

The students also explored Norway in their free time, visiting several cities.

“The landscape there is really stunning; it was breathtaking,” Granados said. “It was very nice to have the opportunity to explore another country.”

Granados is still deciding between academia and industry after completing her degree and finds her research valuable for both.

“Having the opportunity to do my research in an applied topic has been valuable because I have had both perspectives,” she said.

Morande aims to work in industrial engineering.

“This was a great opportunity for industrial engineering because I think it will add value to my portfolio,” he said. “I can now say I have worked in supply chain, which will be valuable when I look for work.”