2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Informing Engineering Education Through Industry: A Survey of Situation Awareness in Manufacturing Practice

Presented at Manufacturing Division (MFG) Technical Session 6

Modern manufacturing systems require workers to make rapid, informed decisions in dynamic environments. As technologies such as automation, robotics, and digital twins reshape the shop floor, the need for high situation awareness (SA) has become a vital non-technical skill. Despite its importance, SA is rarely addressed explicitly in engineering education or workforce development. This study aims to identify the SA skill needs of today’s manufacturing professionals and translate those insights into actionable recommendations for preparing future engineers. A survey instrument has been developed to explore how SA is applied in manufacturing practice, what factors enable or hinder it, and where skill gaps are perceived. The survey is structured around Endsley’s three-level SA model: perception, comprehension, and projection, and includes items on cognitive factors such as attention, working memory, and mental models. Planned participants include professionals from various manufacturing sectors and job roles and professional networks. Responses will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis to identify recurring SA breakdowns, training needs, and design challenges. The results will inform curriculum development and simulation-based learning strategies aimed at enhancing SA skills in undergraduate and continuing education. By linking practical industry needs to educational design, this study seeks to help bridge the cognitive skills gap between the classroom and the manufacturing floor.

Authors

Mr. EDWARD JAMES ISOGHIE University of Louisville [biography]

Edward Isoghie is a PhD candidate with a research focus on human factors and engineering education leveraging emerging technologies such as AI, digital twin, and virtual reality. He obtained his bachelor's and master's degrees in Industrial and Production Engineering from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and a masters in Operations Management at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa.
Jason J Saleem University of Louisville [biography]

Jason J. Saleem is an Associate Professor with the Department of Industrial Engineering at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering at the University of Louisville. He is also a Co-Director of the Center for Human Systems Engineering (CHSE). Dr. Saleem received his Ph.D. from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech in 2003, specializing in human factors engineering and ergonomics. Dr. Saleem's research interests focus on the integration of human factors engineering with the development of health information technology (HIT). His research also focuses on provider-patient interaction with respect to exam room computing, as well as virtual care tools and applications. Dr. Saleem also maintains an engineering education research portfolio and in 2024 was awarded a grant by the National Science Foundation (NSF) entitled, 'Introducing a Mixed-Methods Approach to Engineering Students through Human-Centered Design'.

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