News

Dr. Duane Cronin has recently been awarded $1.4 million in funding for his Tier 1 NSERC Canada Research Chair in Trauma Biomechanics and Injury Prevention. The research focuses on computational human body models that can predict injury and provide critical data on the biomechanics of injuries that happen during crashes.  

Jordan Lin (BASc ‘22, mechanical engineering) had a goal in mind and was determined to pursue it. During his undergrad, Lin was a research associate for Access to Energy Institute (A2EI), a non-profit institution, during his co-op term. This experience sparked his interest in sustainability – a journey he had yet to realize he would continue.  

MME Professor Dr. Sushanta Mitra led a research team with two postdoctoral fellows, Shirshendu Misra and Sudip Shyam, and a professor in systems design engineering, to discover a simpler method to test the fertility of male sperm. Through their research they have found a positive correlation between sperm cell activity and droplet adhesion. This discovery could lead to the development of at-home strip test kits that can assess the viability of sperm cells.  

Team VitalRest, consisting of Sonja Bakowsky, Olivia Paauw and Anika Mankotia, placed first in the Health Tech Innovation Challenge hosted by the Pearl Sullivan Engineering IDEAs Clinic. The challenge’s purpose was to test their design skills within a realistic scenario, and the team of first-year MME students displayed their exceptional ability in problem-solving and creative thinking, resulting in their success. 

Congratulations to Shanaya Barretto for being selected to participate in the prestigious program – the Brooke Owens Fellowship! This achievement highlights Barretto’s accomplishments throughout her undergrad career, being named one of the recipients out of 400 promising candidates who applied globally. 

Two students in MME are celebrating their hard work with an award from the Association for Iron and Steel Technology (AIST) for the 2025 Jerry Silver Award. This award was based on their research, "Effect of Dewpoint on the Evolving Radiative Properties of Advanced High-Strength Steel During Intercritical Annealing," by Fatima Suleiman, PhD candidate and Nishant Narayanan, a PhD student, along with their Supervisor Kyle Daun, in the WATLit Lab.  

Our Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing Lab has continued to lead innovation in sustainable 3D printing technologies for industries worldwide. To recognize its continued success, the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) announced an investment of $5 million in the lab.   

Every year, the Faculty of Engineering recognizes the exceptional performance of its staff and faculty and their commitment to teaching and making sure our departments and the learning environment for our students is at the forefront of everything they do. This year, it was a night for celebration for colleagues marking significant years of service, recognizing the incredible research going on, and awarding our team members for the prestigious Engineering Awards Dinner.  

The International Network of Sustainable Nanotechnology (N4SNano) is a global force for industry, government agencies, and not-for-profit organizations to champion nanotechnology solutions for sustainable futures, and Dr. Sushanta Mitra is a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering and the Executive Director of the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology (WIN), which also happens to be a founding partner of this network. Together, Mitra and the team in N2SNano are working together to bring the brightest minds in environmental preservation for a conference on sustainability that benefits communities all over the world.  

Dr. Mihaela Vlasea’s exemplary work in the manufacturing landscape highlights success earned from determination and an open mind. This mentality also proved to be fruitful during her transition from her academic to professional career.