DURHAM, N.H. – The University of New Hampshire will host a virtual, 2-day Aerospace Science and Manufacturing Sandpit that will take place on June 9th 2021 from 9:30 AM-11:30 AM and June 10th from 9:30 AM-12:00 PM. The event is one of UNH’s bi-annual industry-engagement events that promote innovation and collaboration between the university and industry by providing companies with direct access to UNH researchers working in the same field. This event is free to attend but registration is required.
About the Event
Attendees will have an opportunity to network with UNH researchers who cover a wide range of expertise including, space science, autonomous vehicles and drones, materials modeling and development, sensors and actuators, advanced manufacturing, and fluid flow and aerodynamics, and more.
The goal for these industry-focused events is to create opportunities for new partnerships between the university and the business community, ultimately to encourage economic development. The more industry gets involved in the university and leverages UNH’s research capabilities, the more UNH can do research to help businesses and train the future workforce.
Speed Networking - June 9, 2021, 9:30 AM-11:30 AM
On Day 1, attendees will learn about Aerospace Science and Manufacturing research and resources at UNH. After some short introductory presentations, participants will be able to move around the virtual room to network with other attendees, learn more from the presenters, discuss pressing challenges with experts and colleagues, and talk about potential collaborations and partnerships.
Collaborative Sandpit - June 9, 2021, 9:30 AM-12:00 PM
On Day 2, attendees will participate in a collaborative sandpit. Sandpits are focused industry convening events that connect industry to researchers, peers, and resources based on particular areas of research. During this 2.5-hour event, attendees will hear from experts in the field about some of the most pressing challenges in Aerospace Science and Manufacturing and then work in interdisciplinary teams to develop potential solutions to those challenges. Throughout the Sandpit, trained facilitators will help teams to focus the discussion and guide groups through the ideation process to explore solutions. The goal is to help attendees meet researchers and other professionals in this field, forge new partnerships, explore collaborations, and generate ideas for potential future projects.
Why UNH?
The University of New Hampshire is one of approximately 16 land, sea, and space-grant institutions in the United States. UNH is designated as an R1 research institution and has significant expertise and resources related to the aerospace and manufacturing fields. For over 60 years, the university has worked with NASA on numerous missions and was recently awarded a $108 million NASA contract to develop instrumentation for a new satellite that will study coastal areas (the second largest contract NASA has awarded to a university in the last decade). UNH is also home to the John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center which is focused on advanced manufacturing education, research, and innovation.
The UNH Aerospace Science and Manufacturing Sandpit is administered by UNHInnovation in partnership with the New Hampshire Aerospace & Defense Export Consortium (NHADEC).