Digital twin technology is changing how engineers build complex systems, and Kent State’s Digital Engineering Design Center is preparing students to lead in digital design. In the center, students design, test and refine systems in a digital environment that allows full development before production and links them with engineering teams across the country.
Learning Beyond the Classroom
For student interns like Jeremy Cwik of Eastlake, Ohio, and Michael Anderson of Coon Rapids, Minnesota, the center provides something they can’t get in a traditional classroom — real-world experience with industry partners. Currently Kent students are working with two different companies to digitally design drones and to improve the manufacturing process for producing them.
“The work at the DEDC has been helping my career by providing me with the knowledge in a field I would not have learned in the typical classroom environment,” said Cwik, a junior aerospace engineering major. “These skills not only build up my portfolio but also prepare me for applications where these skills would take place.”
Anderson agrees: “I believe the DEDC is a step in the right direction because it gives students an opportunity to apply what they're learning in the classroom to real-world projects,” he said. “With more time and experience in this program, as well as future programs, I think the quality of our engineers will significantly improve.”
A Nationally Supported Center
Funded by the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM), the DEDC supports workforce development by training students to engage in real world, applied research projects that will ultimately strengthen Department of Defense systems. The center gives undergraduates access to digital engineering lifecycle education through yearlong internships that equip them with digital software tools and systems engineering principles that drive aerospace development.
Students work 20 hours per week learning how to design, test and integrate aerospace systems within a cyber-informed engineering environment. Fifteen students have already been hired into the center, which is fully operational and engaged in advanced projects.
Led by Joycelyn Harrison, Ph.D., associate dean in the College of Aeronautics and Engineering, and faculty lead Benjamin Kwasa, Ph.D., assistant professor of engineering, the center allows students to work 20 hours per week learning how to design, test and integrate aerospace systems within a collaborative cloud environment..
“The ‘Learn and Earn’ model will allow students to focus on timely completion of the academic programs while working on relevant engineering projects without the distraction of outside employment to support their education,” Harrison said.
Hands-On Learning, Real Impact
At the center’s opening last year, students presented their work to representatives from Congressman Dave Joyce’s office, demonstrating the immediate value of hands-on digital engineering education. More recently they shared details of their work with Ohio’s Lt. Governor, Jim Tressel. The collaborations extend beyond campus as some students spend several hours each week at a local manufacturing company and all the students are connected via the cloud with other partners.
“The availability of a digitally skilled engineering workforce will bring new manufacturers and strengthen current manufacturers in Northeast Ohio, particularly those that support or will support the mass manufacturing of defense systems,” Harrison said
Digital Engineering: A New Way to Build
Digital engineering allows students to design aircraft, drones and systems entirely in virtual space using advanced software.
This hands-on workflow teaches students how to build “digital twins” — high-fidelity virtual replicas that transform how aerospace systems are engineered.
“The center's approach to digital engineering creates a comprehensive, accessible digital blueprint for the entire lifecycle of highly complex aerospace and defense systems,” Harrison said.
Innovation Meets Imagination
Not everything at the center is about defense or aerospace. Students are encouraged to take on creative projects to reinforce their learning — projects that allow them to design freely and experiment with materials and technology.
Cwik and one student team designed drones using plastic components, while a senior team — Jaden Lepp of Kent, Ohio, Bryan Wojtowicz of Olmsted Falls, Ohio, and Christopher Morreale of Strongsville, Ohio — built drones using lightweight wood. Students oversee every detail, including camera systems and pathfinding algorithms. They are even creating a virtual reality design of the CAE building so their drones or roving robots can someday navigate the building giving guided tours or delivering food from the CAE diner.
A Pathway to the Aerospace Workforce
The DEDC is not just a lab — it’s a launchpad. Students design, test, analyze and refine systems throughout the entire digital engineering lifecycle, gaining experience that mirrors real aerospace industry workflows.
For Cwik, the value is clear: “These skills not only build up my portfolio but also prepare me for applications where these skills would take place.”
By combining industry partnerships, real-world engineering tools and space to create and explore, Kent State is preparing students to enter the aerospace and defense workforce with confidence, creativity and experience far beyond their years.