The Vaughn College Engineering and Technology Department hosted its seventh annual Manufacturing Day Conference on Friday, October 29. The conference focused on the advancement in the engineering and technology industries and showcased the opportunities for manufacturers to highlight their work while raising awareness about the advantages of pursuing a career in manufacturing.  

Six speakers addressed participants about innovation in the industries of aerospace virtual reality and manufacturing, the manufacturing innovation in the production of surgical masks, cyber security and artificial intelligence and 3D scanning and precision measurement tools. 

The professional speakers included Diogo Roquette Osorio, director of engineering at East Coast Orthotic and Prosthetic Corporation; Michael Nager, co-founder of the Solution Center at Festo Didactic; Vaughn Alumnus Jefferson Maldonado ’16, senior robotics engineer at ArcBest Technologies; George Kyriakou, co-founder and chief operating officer at BotFactory and Christian Gerbick and Dan McConnell, territory managers at EMS3D.  

After an introduction from President Dr. Sharon B. DeVivo, Osorio launched the virtual conference by discussing the manufacturing innovation in the production of surgical masks. Dr. Rahemi delivered closing remarks to conclude the conference and thanked speakers and the Vaughn community for attending. 

In addition to the ongoing conference, the unmanned aerial vehicle and robotics clubs plus student chapters of the Society of Women Engineers and Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers hosted virtual STEM workshops for high school students in attendance. These workshops covered robotics design and autonomous programming for the 2021 VEX U Robotics Competitions, an informal session about basics of drones and its designs and drone autonomous programming using mission planner software.