VSU Hosts Engineering Night

Pat Collins, City of Valdosta engineer, and Larry Odgen, City of Valdosta traffic manager, discussed the latest updates regarding the city's Georgia Smart project, “Traffic Monitoring and Communication System to Improve Safety, Connectivity, and Efficiency” with Engineering Night attendees. They said the project was recently named a winner of the 2022 Top 50 Award from Smart Cities Connect.

VALDOSTA — Valdosta State University’s Department of Physics, Astronomy, Geosciences, and Engineering Technology recently hosted its annual Engineering Night in recognition of National Engineers Week 2022.

“Engineering nights are meant to inspire students to become future engineers,” said Dr. Barry Hojjatie, professor of engineering studies and coordinator of VSU’s Engineering Studies Program. He said this is especially true for women, a group often underrepresented in this field.

During the event, students had an opportunity to engage with Patrick Cason, an automation operations manager at Walmart in Douglas, Georgia, about entry-level opportunities in robotics in Walmart distribution centers. They also had an opportunity to speak with Dr. Pierre-Richard Cornely, dean of the College of Science and Mathematics, about his background in electrical engineering and his vision for the ongoing development and growth of VSU’s engineering programs.

David Yoo, a former VSU engineering student currently attending the Georgia Institute of Technology, lead a question-and-answer session on industrial engineering and industrial engineering technology. He also shared his experience as a project intern with the City of Valdosta’s Georgia Smart project, “Traffic Monitoring and Communication System to Improve Safety, Connectivity, and Efficiency.”

Valdosta’s Georgia Smart project was funded by the Partnership for Inclusive Innovation's Georgia Smart Communities Challenge in 2020. It included research from VSU and Georgia Tech. The project’s mission is to pilot a smart traffic management system designed to connect all 128 city traffic signals with enhancements to the system including hardware and software upgrades at signals and the traffic control operations center and installation of communication responders in certain fire trucks.

The project was selected as a finalist for the World Smart Cities Award in the Mobility Category in 2021. Valdosta was the only United States representative in this category and one of only five American entries in the entire competition, which included 46 countries.

Pat Collins, City of Valdosta engineer, and Larry Odgen, City of Valdosta traffic manager, told Engineering Night attendees that the project was also recently named a winner of the 2022 Top 50 Award from Smart Cities Connect.

Through this project, more than 100 VSU engineering students gained knowledge and training about smart cities and traffic engineering and management through various workshops, engineering nights, and community presentations.