GREENSBORO, N.C. — President Joe Biden visited N.C. A&T on Thursday to speak about bringing manufacturing jobs back to America, building supply chains here at home and supporting American innovation.
He said N.C. A&T students are moving manufacturing forward, from reinventing legacy industries like furniture and textiles to creating new frontiers.
Joan Isichei and Michael Ogunsanya, both Ph.D. students in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at N.C. A&T, are part of the push to transform the world of manufacturing and fix supply chain issues.
Isichei’s research is in 3D bioprinting, and she hopes that being able print human organs in the future will help meet the huge need for transplants.
“I’ve had family members that suffered from debilitating diseases like cancer and then this actually pushed me into this field [to] see, OK, how can I apply my research in making the lives of people better?" Isichei said.
Ogunsanya enjoys helping data come to life and believes engineering is about making mankind happier by turning concepts into reality. He said 3D printing technology is a powerful tool that can help the supply chain.
“It’s very possible for us to print materials with high quality. We could use it for airline parts, so when I say functional I mean directly for use, little or no processing or finishing,” Ogunsanya said.
Salil Desai, university distinguished professor and director of the Center for Excellence in Product Design and Advanced Manufacturing, appreciates the president’s recognition of the work happening on campus.
“It’s a blessing for the president to come down to North Carolina A&T to really look at the grassroots-level work that’s going in advanced manufacturing and many other areas, which affects the local economy here and the transforming work we do for the digital age,” Desai said.
During his speech, Biden said Greensboro is a place where the future is being written, and that’s obvious on college campuses like N.C. A&T that continue to draw new opportunities to the state.