Just as many Georgia Tech students dive into internships and co-ops to enrich their experience, three faculty members recently had the chance to embed with Boeing engineers and executives to expand their connections and industry perspectives.

They were part of a group of 20 university researchers from around the world invited to Boeing’s Visiting Professor Program. College of Engineering faculty members Cristina Riso and Suhas Jain and Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute researcher Andrew Dugenske spent two weeks in Washington learning about Boeing operations and priorities, including placement with specific company units for deeper conversations and exchange.

Riso said the program was an opportunity to better understand how academic research can help address the technical challenges of a global aerospace leader.

“The opportunity to brainstorm with industry experts and get their feedback on research directions from an applied, production perspective was invaluable to me,” said Riso, assistant professor in the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering.

The experience is helping the participants shape projects in their labs and give students a clearer view of the challenges facing the aviation industry.

“Academia is an incubator for innovation,” Riso said. “Open, two-way dialogue with industry through programs like this is essential to ensure that academic research and workforce development align with industry needs, and that industry experts stay connected to developments in academia. This exchange is key to moving research into real-world production environments and building a strong engineering pipeline.”

Riso was hosted by the Loads and Dynamics unit of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, exchanging technical presentations and sharing her research and educational efforts in aeroelasticity. 

Jain spent his days with the company’s Aerodynamics team. The assistant professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering collaborated with Boeing engineers on aerodynamics and computational modeling challenges. 

“The discussions on high-fidelity modeling of aircraft icing and its impact on aircraft performance were particularly exciting, as they aligned closely with my research,” Jain said. “Touring Boeing’s additive manufacturing facilities and seeing first-hand how turbulence affects porosity in printed components was another highlight — it connected perfectly with my group’s expertise in multiphase flow and turbulence modeling.”

Both Jain and Riso said the experience will influence their work and benefit their students.

“The Visiting Professor Program transformed my research and teaching,” Jain said. “It exposed me to Boeing’s near-term and long-term needs, which I’m now translating into the courses that I’m teaching and advising. It also caused me to redefine some projects at my lab so they directly align with industry priorities.”

Riso also noted the value of linking her academic work with the real-world industry challenges she learned about.

“I certainly have a better understanding of the current problems and needs in the aircraft manufacturing industry, in terms of product development and certification, research and development, and workforce,” she said. “This will allow me to 

expand my research and help students better prepare themselves for roles like those of the engineers I had the opportunity to meet.”

Jain suggested the program will be more than a two-week visit to Washington. Rather, it was the start of long-term relationships with Boeing engineers and leaders.

“Ultimately, this kind of academia-industry exchange helps advance aerospace innovation while also shaping the next generation of engineers,” he said.