Shown are UTRGV College of Engineering & Computer Science faculty involved in the project: (from left) Dr. Chu-Lin Cheng, co-PI and assistant professor of civil engineering; Dr. Hiram Moya, co-PI, STIAC associate director and assistant professor of manufacturing and industrial engineering; Dr. Alexander Domijan, dean of the UTRGV COEC and principal investigator for the project; Marianella Franklin, Chief Sustainability Officer; Dr. Jamie Ramos, co-PI and associate professor of electrical engineering; and Dr. Younggil Park, co-PI and assistant professor of mechanical engineering. (UTRGV Photo by Paul Chouy)

The UTRGV College of Engineering and Computer Science has been awarded a $1.25 million grant by the Department of Energy to house the South Texas Industrial Assessment Center, the only IAC in the UT System. 

The STIAC will provide free industrial energy assessments, at no cost, to local small- and medium-size enterprises. Through the provision of these industrial assessments, the STIAC has the potential of helping manufacturers save millions of dollars each year in energy, productivity, and water management costs.  COEC students will conduct site visits, designed to add to their knowledge and skills in the field. The idea is to place the graduate students as point persons and have the undergraduates shadow them. They will observe and provide additional input for an assessment and energy audit of the building and will make recommendations on how to help save energy and control costs.

The team for this project is made up of COEC professors and colleagues in related areas. In addition to Domijan, they are:

• Co-PI and STIAC Associate Director Dr. Hiram Moya, assistant professor of manufacturing and industrial engineering.
• Co-PI Dr. Chu-Lin Cheng, assistant professor of civil engineering.
• Co-PI Dr. Younggil Park, assistant professor of mechanical engineering.
• Co-PI Dr. Jamie Ramos, associate professor of electrical engineering.
• Marianella Franklin, Chief Sustainability Officer.
• Henry Oh, director of the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center.

Dr. Alexander Domijan, dean of the UTRGV College of Engineering and Computer Science (COEC), serves as principal investigator for the project.  Domijan said centers like the STIAC have durability, depending on the value of their work, and the STIAC team will be able to reapply for an extension in 2022. Texas A&M in College Station is one of the longest-standing centers and the only other one in Texas.

Associate Center Director:   Dr. Hiram Moya contact

For more information on the program, Visit the Industrial Assessment Center at UTRGV website..