February 08, 2026
The Missouri Method was on display as engineering students shared their research projects with alumni and faculty at the annual event.
Undergraduate students presented their research at the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering’s (ISE) annual Undergraduate Research Competition at the end of the fall semester.
Members of ISE faculty and the ISE Industrial Advisory Board evaluated the projects and voted to select the competition winners.
Luke Richey won $300 plus $1,000 for conference travel to present his research on manufacturing applications of computer vision. Will Mastrantuono’s second-place finish earned him $200. Third-place finisher Benton Vahle received $100.
“We’re in the business of building systems thinkers,” ISE Chair Jim Noble said. “Through the kinds of experiential learning we see in these research projects, our students are preparing to reduce costs, improve quality and increase productivity across industries.”
First place: Luke Richey
Automated 5S Audit with Drone-Integrated Computer Vision System
Advisor: Sharan Srinivas
“The project uses existing technology to help manufacturing sites identify if they have any missing equipment more quickly,” Richey said. “This allows the maintenance teams to know that all the necessary equipment is present throughout the site.”
Second place: Will Mastrantuono
In-Room Primary Care Time Study Using a Near Field Electromagnetic Ranging System.
Advisor: Jung Hyup Kim
“The research used position tracking devices and manual observation to deduce what tasks ICU nurses were completing,” Mastrantuono said. “The relationship between the severity of illness and the amount of in-room care patients received changed significantly with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Third place: Benton Vahle
Integration of Laser Module and 3D Printer for Rapid Prototyping of Laser Induced Graphene Circuits
Advisor: Yi Wang
“My research seeks to combine 3D printing and laser engraving technologies,” Vahle said. “This allows for advanced materials to be printed in any form, then altered by the laser changing curtain properties such as conductivity. Using this we can create 3D printed circuit boards and sensors in one enclosed system.
Fourth place: Luis Reales
A Mixed-Integer Linear Programming Framework for Optimal Data Center Site Selection
Advisor: Suchi Rajendran
“My research focuses on building a decision-making model to help companies choose the best locations for new data centers,” Reales said. “I look at factors like cost, energy availability, distance to users and sustainability and combine them into one framework to compare different options in a clear, practical way.”
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