IU researcher part of team to receive DOE grant

INDIANAPOLIS (Inside INdiana Business) — An Indiana University Kelley School of Business researcher will work on cybersecurity issues for the U.S. Department of Energy after a multi-institution team received a $70 million grant. Assistant professor of Operations Management Amrou Awaysheh is on the team from CyManll, a new cybersecurity manufacturing institute led by the University of Texas at San Antonio.

CyManll is tasked with addressing the need for workforce development, introducing a cybersecurity energy ROI for energy-efficient manufacturing and securing supply chains. IU is one of 24 universities involved in the research with its Kelley School of Business Center for Excellence in Manufacturing, along with other national laboratories and industry leaders.

“I am proud to be part of this national effort to ensure energy efficiency in a cybersecure world,” Awaysheh said. “Through ongoing sustainability research, I will continue working with manufacturing facilities to help them better understand how they are using energy and how to conserve that energy. When companies reduce their energy costs, they decrease their costs overall, making them more competitive.”

Awaysheh says he’s been installing meters in manufacturing facilities to measure energy usage on each machine to find how to save energy. He says he’s seen more than $100 million of energy savings in U.S. facilities using smart meters so far this year. Awaysheh says the work will continue under CyManll, along with trying to find new ways to support manufacturing energy efficiency.