Technical Assistance, Technology Transfer and Outreach
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ATRP engineers continued to provide engneering technical assistance at
no charge to members of the Georgia poultry industry in a variety of
specialized areas, such as automation, waste management, ergonomics,
economic impact, and plant safety and health.
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ATRP’s outreach program included exhibits at industry functions,
the educational Poultry World exhibit, and visits to our research facilities
by
school groups.
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Technical Assistance
ATRP engineers continued to provide engineering technical assistance at no
charge to members of the Georgia poultry industry.
Designed to help companies and individuals who do not otherwise have access
to engineering expertise, this program draws upon engineers and consultants
from the Georgia Tech community in a variety of specialized areas, such as
automation, waste management, ergonomics, economic impact, and plant safety
and health.
Thirty-five technical assists were provided this past year to firms
and individuals across the state. These assists ranged from simple inquiries
regarding information
or help needed to address a problem to extensive on-site consultation, in
which researchers collected data and provided a full report of their findings
and
recommendations. The program uses input from these assists to gauge opportunities
calling for new research initiatives.
Technology Transfer and Outreach
ATRP engineers continued to provide engineering
technical assistance at no charge to members of the Georgia poultry industry
in a variety of specialized
areas, such as automation, waste management, ergonomics, economic impact,
and plant safety and health.ATRP continued an active technology transfer and
outreach
program.
Three issues (Environmental, Safety, and Automation) of the program’s
newsletter PoultryTech were published. Nine PoultryTech articles were reprinted
in the trade press: seven (3 Environmental, 1 Safety, 3 Automation) in Poultry
Times and two (1 Safety, 1 Automation) in Poultry International. Subscriptions
to the newsletter remained steady at more than 1,600 subscribers, including
more than 250 subscribers from foreign countries. Four feature articles focusing
on Emerging Technologies were written for the trade press: two for WATTPoultry
USA and two for Poultry Times. The FY 2003 Annual Report was published, and
the ATRP website was further enhanced by refining its corporate-like design
and updating project videos.
ATRP once again participated in the International
Poultry Exposition, the Georgia Poultry Federation Spring Meeting, and the
Night of Knights, preparing exhibits
for all three. The Poultry World exhibit was held for the third year in
its new home (a permanent structure resembling a miniature poultry house) at
the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry, with Georgia Tech supporting the
Georgia
Poultry Federation in helping coordinate volunteers and in continuing to
update the displays in the exhibit.
In conjunction with the Georgia Poultry Federation, the National Chicken
Council, and the National Turkey Federation, ATRP hosted the 2004 National
Safety Conference
for the Poultry Industry in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, attracting
90 safety professionals and exhibiting vendors from across the United States
and two foreign countries (Ghana, West Africa and Auckland, New Zealand).
ATRP also supported the development of training materials and helped organize
several
ergonomic train-the-trainer courses supported under a Susan Harwood Training
Grant awarded to Georgia Tech by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA).
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