Center for Ergonomics - (back to top)
- Housed in the IOE Building, the Center for Ergonomics at the University of Michigan is a multi-disciplinary organization devoted to education and research in ergonomics, the study of work and the efficiency and safety of human-machine systems.

The research programs of the Center augment the undergraduate and graduate degree programs of Industrial and Operations Engineering, Bioengineering, Industrial Hygiene and Occupational Medicine. Center faculty are drawn from each of these disciplines. Through research and training grants, the Center provides support for 30 to 35 graduate and undergraduate students in various disciplines related to the field of ergonomics and safety.

The Center conducts one of the largest and best known research programs in ergonomics and safety in the country. The Center's laboratories, provide advanced computer-aided facilities for the study of:

• Biomechanics/Work Physiology
• Cumulative Trauma Disorders
• Medical Surveillance/Statistical Analysis
• Information Processing/Human Machine Interaction
• Psychomotor Skills Assessment
• Computer Assisted Ergonomic Design and Analysis
• Machine Guarding and Hand Tool Safety
• Safety of Walking and Climbing
• Expert Systems and Safety Analysis
• Health Effects of Work Posture
• Human Motion Simulation (HUMOSIM) - Dedicated to the study and prediction of normal human movements to enhance ergonomic analysis and design of vehicles and workplaces.
• Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center  - The core project concentrates on developing tools for evaluating workers and jobs and developing ergonomic solutions with an overall goal of preventing disability associated with musculoskeletal disorders and aging.
• 3D Static Strength Prediction Program (3D SSPP) - A software package developed by the Center for Ergonomics which predicts static strength requirements for tasks such as lifts, presses, pushes, and pulls.
• The Energy Expenditure Prediction Program™ (EEPP)  - A software tool to estimate energy expenditure rates for materials handling tasks to help assure worker safety and health.

The Center's research has been developed in response to the real-world needs of industry, government and professional groups. Most of the Center's research projects are sponsored by those groups. In addition to using the Center's research laboratories, projects are also conducted within the manufacturing or product design facilities of government or corporate sponsors, of which there are 15 at present. The Center is equipped to measure all facets of human perceptual, information-processing and motor performance.

The Tauber Manufacturing Institute (TMI) - (back to top)

- The Tauber Manufacturing Institute (TMI) is a multidisciplinary program between the College of Engineering and the Ross School of Business that provides students with an exceptional educational experience and substantive internships focused on manufacturing and related operations. TMI works closely with major industry partners, which enables the program to remain dynamic and responsive to real-world needs.

TMI's Leadership Advantage program develops successful team members with the ability to lead "from the plant floor to the boardroom" using the following tools:

• "Personal Leadership Assessment" addresses individual and team leadership characteristics critical to succeeding in industry.
• "Team Dynamics Training" includes interactive discussions and hands-on exercises on recognizing and adapting to different communication styles, managing conflict, decision-making and the role of power, influence, and leadership in business.
• Targeted Skills Workshops on "Driving System Change" and various "Change Management" approaches prepare students for their summer team project challenges.

At the heart of the TMI educational experience is an opportunity to achieve results in a real-world setting. All TMI students complete a 14-week, paid Team Project with a leading manufacturing/operations firm. Unlike internships in other programs, TMI Team Projects are specifically designed for TMI students and target substantive manufacturing/operations issues with business and engineering components.

Students from four different degree programs participate in TMI, ranging from undergraduate to the doctoral level. These programs, in conjunction with TMI, meet the diverse needs of our students and those of an increasingly complex, interdependent global environment. Though TMI itself does not confer degrees, TMI offers career-building components and opportunities, including recruitment, which complements selected degrees from both the College of Engineering and the Ross School of Business.

While TMI is primarily education-driven and aimed at the undergraduate and Master's students, a number of Ph.D. students have participated in TMI either through the summer team projects or through TMI's Faculty Fellows Program, which is a program designed to support joint research between engineering and business faculty.

TMI recruits a select group of talented students. Most, but not all, have engineering degrees, and more than four years of full-time work experience in a variety of industries. (Minimum required work experience is two years, full-time in an industrial setting.) TMI graduates go on to work in promising careers in operations and/or manufacturing management or consulting, as well as diverse positions in other areas of the economy, including communications and banking. TMI alumni are located all over the world and continue to provide advice, support and opportunities to each other and current TMI students. For more information, please visit our web site at http://www.tmi.umich.edu, or contact TMI by phone at (734) 647-1333 or by email at tmi.info@umich.edu.

Dynamic Systems Optimization Laboratory (DSOL) - (back to top)
- The DSOL is a multidisciplinary research laboratory involving faculty members from the College of Engineering. It conducts research on dynamic systems, optimization theory and other applications involving sequential decision making over time. Examples of current research topics include: IVHS, equipment replacement, aggregation, optimal mechanical design and infinite horizon optimization. DSOL currently has NSF, as well as Industrial support. Facilities include a microcomputer laboratory.

The Japan Technology Management Program (JTMP) - (back to top)
- The Japan Technology Management Program at the University of Michigan was established to assist American industry to learn from Japanese approaches to the management of technology. This mission is accomplished through research projects on strategic and organizational aspects of technology management, dissemination of that research to practicing engineers and managers, and the education of engineering and management students.

Since its inception the program has funded faculty and graduate student research projects on Japan, supported students with fellowships or internships at Japanese companies, and reached industry or government personnel in its continuing education programs. An important theme of research and continuing education is Japan's manufacturing methods as applied in U.S. industry, particularly focused on lean manufacturing methods. JTMP sponsors an annual conference on lean manufacturing and short courses in cooperation with the Center for Professional Development at U.M.