Research and Development Manager Vahid Fattahpour, VP of Manufacturing Tim Ottenhof, Fatima Alsakka, and Sand Control Manager Mahdi Mahmoudi. Leduc, AB—Fatima Alsakka is this year’s Variperm Energy Services Mousavi-Daneshmand Engineering Innovation Award winner. Her work on automated data acquisition in offsite construction factories ensures the memory of former Variperm research partner Dr. Pedram Mousavi lives on. The Mousavi-Daneshmand Engineering Innovation Award is a $2,500 award gifted annually to a student enrolled in a Masters or Doctoral program in the Faculty of Engineering. Selection is based on academic achievement and relevance of the student's research related to the areas of digitalization, data capture, application of data analytics for the energy industry, mechanical actuation systems, or wireless shifting technologies. This award was created to honour the work and research efforts of Dr. Pedram Mousavi and his wife Dr. Mojgan Daneshmand. Research Overview Alsakka’s current research is aimed at developing a digital management solution for offsite construction factories. The solution is designed to dynamically estimate and schedule production based on a continuous supply of information and data acquisition from the shop floor. Leveraging the power of computer vision technology, Alsakka and her collaborators devised a simple computer vision-based system which automatically acquires process time data without necessitating the significant set-up efforts typically required when deploying the technology. The system has demonstrated promising performance when applied to wall framing operations in an offsite construction facility. Moreover, “as part of the digital management solution, we are developing a 3D virtual model that mimics the real manufacturing operations at the factory and simultaneously collects data," says Alsakka. “As such, the virtual model could be used to simulate future operations in order to estimate and schedule production, evaluate the current state of operations, and test changes to operations before they are implemented.” The solution will enable manufacturers to capture crucial insights into their production processes, thereby improving decision-making and performance.” Alsakka is a PhD Candidate in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at the University of Alberta. Working as a graduate research assistant at the University of Alberta, she also has ongoing collaborations with ACQBuilt, a leading offsite construction facility in Edmonton, Alberta, and the University of British Columbia. Some of Alsakka’s most cited research include: