Northern Illinois University’s College of Engineering and Engineering Technology (CEET) will host its annual Innovation Showcase on Friday, November 14th at the Engineering Building, 590 Garden Road.

“The Road to 2035: Engineering Breakthroughs Today” will spotlight the transformative technologies and creative research driving the next decade of engineering innovation, with six CEET professors and two industry leaders sharing insights from their work.

Free and open to the public, the showcase opens with registration and poster sessions from 9:30 to 10:45 a.m., highlighting student and faculty research across materials, manufacturing, automation and data analytics.

CEET Dean Dave Grewell will welcome attendees at 10:45 a.m., followed by two expert panels featuring CEET faculty and industry partners.

The morning panel (11 a.m. to noon) covers “Materials & Advanced Manufacturing.” The session brings together Professor Venu Korampally, Associate Professor Mahdi Vaezi and Assistant Professor Vinay Budhraja. Joining them will be a representative from Dukane, a global leader in plastic welding technologies.

The panel will discuss innovations that are reshaping how materials and products are designed and built.

Professor Korampally develops low-cost, high-precision nanomanufacturing methods to make advanced sensors and diagnostic devices. His work bridges nanoscale engineering with affordable production, enabling rapid, reliable testing tools for healthcare, environmental monitoring and next-generation electronics.

Associate Professor Vaezi is director of NIU’s Bioplastics Lab, which turns farm waste—like hemp, soy, and wheat straw—into durable, biodegradable plastics. From lab to finished product, the team designs, tests and produces eco-friendly materials that aim to cut landfill waste, boost farmer income and reduce fossil plastic use.

Assistant Professor Budhraja’s research includes 3D-printing flexible, low-cost sensors that monitor plant and human health in real time. These wearable bioelectronic devices track stress, nutrients or disease biomarkers—advancing smart agriculture and personalized healthcare through sustainable, AI-enhanced technology.

A luncheon and networking session at noon, hosted by NIU Executive Vice President and Provost Laurie Elish-Piper, will celebrate collaboration and cross-disciplinary partnerships.

The afternoon program kicks off at 12:45 p.m. with the induction of the first four members of the CEET Hall of Fame: CEET founding Dean Romualdas Kasuba, retired Dean Promod Vohra, and alumni Joe Sener and Divya Behl. That will be followed by an induction ceremony of the NIU chapter of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), recognizing distinguished faculty and alumni whose work exemplifies innovation and leadership.

Starting at 1:15 p.m., the second one-hour panel will dig into “AI, Controls & Analytics.” The panelists will be Professor Lichuan Liu, Associate Professor Christine Nguyen and Associate Professor Sachit Butail. Joining them will be Art Holzknecht, engineering manager at Hiwin, a leading global manufacturer of precision motion control components and mechatronic systems.

Discussion will focus on how intelligent systems and data-driven design are transforming modern engineering.

Professor Lichuan Liu, who is also the director of CEET’s biomedical engineering program, uses AI to analyze sounds and signals from the body—like breathing, crying and speech—to help detect health issues early in children and monitor heart conditions in adults. Her work aims to make healthcare smarter, more accurate and more personalized.

Associate Professor Nguyen applies AI and data analytics to improve real-world results—from making cleaner laser-cut metal parts to designing better brake pads and boosting Airbnb profits. Her models help companies save time, cut costs, and make smarter decisions.

Associate Professor Butail’s research uses math and algorithms to understand how complex systems—like bird flocks, robot swarms or human crowds—behave. The same methods that predict ecosystem collapse and identify leaders also help detect robot faults, track COVID spread and study emergency evacuations.

The day concludes with closing remarks from Dean Grewell at 2:15 p.m., summarizing insights and charting a forward-looking vision for CEET as it drives toward 2035 and beyond.

Lunch will be provided for those who register by Monday, November 10th. Register here.