Anand Puppala

Exhibit During Night at the Zach, 3/24/2023

April 20, 2023 by Pamela Mize

It was held by the Texas A&M College of Engineering on March 24th. Many students and chaperones were attending this from across the State. The exhibit of the Smart Grid Center included interactive dynamic simulation (DS) cases (or rides) using PowerWorld DS representing synthetic power grid. Disastrous cases were presented, such as those applicable to tornadoes and geomagnetic disturbances, where users acted like power grid operators and tried to save the grid and prevent system blackouts.

Night@Zach video put together by TAMU Engineering Communications about the event is posted on Instagram. Feel free to share!

Relevant posting on LinkedIn can be viewed here.

Texas A&M partners with Prairie View A&M to lead national transportation center

April 20, 2023 by Pamela Mize

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (KBTX) -Prairie View A&M University has been selected as the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to lead a competitively awarded national-tier University Transportation Center by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The National Center for Infrastructure Transformation at Prairie View will focus on improving the durability and extending the life of transportation infrastructure through its research, education, and technology transfer programs.

Prairie View A&M University will lead the National Center for Infrastructure Transformation as part of a consortium that includes several members of The Texas A&M University System, including Texas A&M University, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, and Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station. Other partnering institutions include Arizona State University, Michigan State University, Rutgers University, and Blinn College.

During a special ceremony Monday at the Willie A Tempton, Sr. Memorial Student Center on the campus of Prairie View A&M Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp announced the $2.5 million commitment from A&M System.

Chancellor Sharp says the investment made by the Texas A&M University System is a sign of the trust that the system has in the leadership of Prairie View A&M University and its partnership with the A&M System.

“This historic first for Prairie View A&M University shows the power of its partnership with the A&M System, which made this success possible,” said Sharp. “Prairie View A&M University’s alliance with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute and Texas A&M University is an example of how this kind of collaboration makes it possible for us to compete against the best research institutions in the country and win.”

The National Center for Infrastructure Transformation at Prairie View will receive $4 million per year for the next five years and is one of only five awarded national-tier centers. Its focus will be on practical research to improve the durability and resilience of the nation’s transportation infrastructure for the next century. The Texas A&M System’s contribution will support the administration of NCIT, as well as its programs in education and technology transfer, freeing up more assets to pursue research in better ways to design, construct, and maintain transportation infrastructure.

“Today I stand before you as one of five center directors responsible for leading a national university transportation center for the next five years. The newly awarded National Transportation Center to Prairie View A&M University is unequivocally a historic achievement. Per my discussion with the Office of Sponsor program, this is the largest competitive award that Prairie View has received. So how did this occur? It was through the invisible but divine hands that brought all the right people together to develop a proposal document built on three key elements, and they were innovation, intentional, and unique. Innovation. Given the infrastructure, investment, and job acts, historic investment in American infrastructure, we would have to be about the business of describing how we would change and lead change regarding the statutory research priority to improve the durability at extending the life of the trans transportation infrastructure intentional, the message had to be clear to anyone reading the document that our commitment to leading change was deliberate regarding the projects and programs listed under the categories of research, education and workforce development and technology transfer and collaboration.”

Patrick Ryan, of ABS visits Center for Infrastructure Renewal at RELLIS campus

February 17, 2023 by Pamela Mize

Texas A&M University hosted Patrick Ryan, Chief Technology Officer with American Bureau of Shipping this month to collaborate and discuss engineering research . The Center for Infrastructure Renewal (CIR) led by Director, Dr. Anand Puppala and his team which includes Dr. Nripo Biswas provided a tour of their research labs as well as part of the collaboration.

ABS has recently appointed Patrick Ryan as Chief Technology Officer to support continued development of ABS as a maritime technology leader.

Ryan has always been focused on cutting edge technologies around ships and ship building. Ryan’s background prior to joining ABS was in ship design, program management, and engineering leadership roles, at Newport News Shipbuilding.

Dr. Anand Puppala Recently Named Director of the Center for Infrastructure Renewal at Texas A&M University RELLIS Campus

February 8, 2023 by Pamela Mize

Dr. Anand Puppala Recently Named Director of the Center for Infrastructure Renewal(CIR) at Texas A&M University RELLIS Campus

Dr. Anand Puppala, is currently A.P. and Florence Wiley Chair at Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University & Director of Center for Infrastructure Renewal (CIR).

As the Director of the Center for Infrastructure Renewal (CIR), a joint center between the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station and the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, he leads the center as a global source for the development of transformative infrastructure solutions. Through cross-industry and government agency collaboration, the CIR facilitates the creation of state-of-the-art methods, technologies and solutions that society needs for infrastructure renewal. The CIR is a unique 138,000-square-foot research, testing and training facility, which was the first new facility on the Texas A&M RELLIS campus. The CIR currently houses researchers who are developing advanced and sustainable materials and structural systems that will reduce cost and extend infrastructure life, safety, resiliency and durability.

He has been conducting research on Stabilization of expansive soils, Sustainable utilization of recycled materials, Dams and embankments, In situ intrusive methods for site characterization, and Pavement material characterization studies. Dr. Puppala’s research is also highly regarded by the professional community.

Despite all of his positions, Dr. Puppala keeps busy discussing his students’ projects, working with faculties, and addressing different research issues. Dr. Puppala sits in various meetings throughout his day, he is a faculty member at the Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and also participates in regular meetings with the Faculty on research on innovative ideas. Dr. Puppala tries to create opportunities and new networking lines at Texas A&M University College of Engineering as well as in other universities and industries.

Please congratulate him on his recent appointment as Director of the CIR.

NASA JSC Team Visits HVIL at the CIR

February 6, 2023 by Pamela Mize

NASA JSC Team and the HVIL led by Thomas Lacy at the Center for Infrastructure Renewal

In January 2023, NASA JSC team led by Drs. Eric Christiansen, the Hypervelocity Impact Technology (HVIT) lead, and Heather Cowardin of the Orbital Debris Program office toured the Hypervelocity Impact Technology lab at the Center for Infrastructure Renewal Center at the RELLIS campus recently.

The focus was road mapping research collaborations between NASA and the TAMU HVIL related to hypervelocity impact testing and analysis for shielding concepts related to micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) and other hypersonic vehicle applications.

CRH Americas Tours RELLIS Campus & Center for Infrastructure Renewal

February 6, 2023 by Pamela Mize

CRH Americas Associates, Dr. Anand Puppla, and Dr. Nripo Biswas

Dr. Anand Puppala, Director of the CIR provided a tour of the CIR on the RELLIS campus recently for CRH Americas. CRH Americas toured our research facility and collaborated with Texas A&M University regarding research. CRH Americas is the leading vertically integrated supplier of materials, paving and construction services across North America.