The college’s inaugural Senior Design Showcase took place April 25 at Thompson-Boling Arena. Hosting more than 125 teams from all disciplines, the event revealed the impactful work our seniors are doing for local non-profit organizations, small businesses, and others. Check out some of those projects below or visit to check out additional projects.
TRACE
Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science
Josh Benavidez, Lindsay Brown, Macy King, and Bailey Langford designed a semi-automated method of removing floating garbage and debris from waterways through the use of specially designed skimmers and conveyors to lift the trash into bins. Once there, a sensor will alert city workers that there is trash to be collected.
Baker Creek Preserve Springhouse Restoration
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Charlie Cianciolo, Laura Ferrer, and Matthew Howard worked with Legacy Parks Foundation on the restoration and improvement of a historic springhouse on Baker Creek Preserve, an urban wilderness area in South Knoxville. The design uses a stormwater catchment system to reduce sediment downstream.
Bonecrusher
Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering
UT’s Department of Anthropology, including the world-famous Body Farm, asked Carter Breeding, Daelyn Greene, Nicholas Poker, Ryan Smith, and Zachary Ziegler to develop a way to better research blunt force trauma. The resulting “bonecrusher” simulates such damage to bones, helping them study patterns associated with breaking bones.
Craft Beer Production
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Balter Beerworks, a Knoxville brewpub started by biosystems engineering graduate Will Rutemeyer, challenged a team of Jake Jolley, Jess Ossyra, Seth Anderson, Adam Soper, and Justin Holliday to optimize dissolved oxygen in the company’s beer, helping improve shelf life.
ICS Machine Safety Switch
Min H. Kao Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Michael Foust, Matthew Hoffman, Michaela Shoffner, Jonathan Redington, Jonathan Bueckman, and Feng Li tackled a safety-related issue for the college’s Innovation and Collaboration Studio. The team designed a card-scanning system to ensure only permitted, trained users can activate and therefore use the heavy equipment and machinery available to students working on projects and prototypes.
T&T Scientific Inventory Tower (ISE)
Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering
T&T Scientific, a local biomedical company founded by a pair of MABE graduates, challenged Wesley Smith, Megan Reding, and Emily Lynch to come up with an inventory management system. The resulting design integrates inventory with replenishment and storage systems, as well as standardizing practices.