ASU's School of Manufacturing Systems and Networks is collaborating with Los Alamos National Laboratory to integrate student engineering into national laboratory systems and engage students in national projects.
The partnership, now in its third year, gives students the opportunity to create digital training tools, virtual simulations and capstone projects designed to support the evolving manufacturing and materials-processing needs of the lab, according to Binil Starly, director of the School of Manufacturing Systems and Networks.
Los Alamos National Laboratory, historically known for its role in the Manhattan Project, has expanded its mission beyond nuclear safety into limited-scale manufacturing, Starly said.
"They are not just handling nuclear material," Starly said. "They're also involved in the production of nuclear materials for either medical applications or just for our nuclear reactor energy applications."
As part of that shift, Los Alamos sought students with experience in manufacturing systems, quality control and materials processing, Starly said. He added that students meet regularly with Los Alamos staff through online calls to review progress and verify technical accuracy.
According to Starly, one major component of the collaboration is the development of digital training simulations designed to address workforce training challenges at the national lab. The simulations use game engines to recreate glove box training scenarios, allowing staff to practice procedures virtually before handling nuclear materials.
The virtual glove boxes will help provide initial training for scientists and technicians in the lab, which will decrease the backlog of employees who need to be trained or recertified, Starly said.
In addition to simulation development, Los Alamos has supported engineering capstone projects and sponsored hackathons. According to Starly, the hackathons have drawn dozens of students and included mentorship from scientists from the lab who traveled to the University to work directly with teams.
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For students, the partnership provides hands-on experience tied to a national laboratory. Brennan Sammis, a graduate student studying computer science, said working on the project exposed him to applied research beyond traditional coursework.
"I was able to speak with the people at Los Alamos and develop that connection with the people who actually work there," Sammis said. "That really ... showed me how cool of an opportunity it was and how much impact this work is having."
Sammis added that the collaborative structure of the work stood out, allowing students from different areas of game development to contribute to a shared goal rather than work independently.
Dominick Trusko, a senior studying electrical systems engineering, saidhisinvolvement grew out of earlier virtual reality and lab-based projects at the University.
"It just seemed like a really good fit for me," Trusko said. "It's fairly prestigious work, so it's cool to be doing something interesting."
Before starting his work on the project at the University, Trusko visited the training center in Los Alamos and experienced the training process for which the students are designing the virtual simulation. He said it was "super neat" to see the 3D model of the equipment he had seen in person in the lab.
Starly said a broader goal of partnering with the organization is to increase students' awareness of national laboratory career paths. Looking ahead, he said he hopes the partnership continues to grow into a deeper institutional relationship, potentially expanding beyond individual projects to broader collaboration across ASU.
Edited by Kate Gore, Jack McCarthy and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at ngmohta@asu.edu.
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Nikhil Mohta is a sophomore studying B.S. in Finance and is currently a Business Community Leader for the W.P. Carey School of business. He is also an active member in various clubs on campus like PIERA.
