1.24.12 IFTI Staff Shares Trucking Expertise

IFTI's own Dan Pallme, Director of Transportation Leadership, was featured on an ABC News story about truck driver work hours. Joel Henry, President of Intermodal Cartage, was also interviewed for the story. Mr. Henry will serve as the industry expert for the Freight Transportation Leadership Academy "ROAD" class.  

1.23.12 IFTI Researchers Maintain Strong Presences at TRB

The faculty and students associated with IFTI attended the Annual Transportation Research Board (TRB) meeting in Washington D.C.

Dr. Martin Lipinski, Dr. Mihalis Golias, Dr. Stephanie Ivey, and Research Associate Najmeh Jami were selected to present multiple research projects via lecture and poster presentations. Dr. Golias also presided over two presentations. IFTI Research Associate, Ethan Skaggs, was honored at the annual Council of Universities Transportation Centers (CUTC) banquetas the IFTI Student of the Year!

1.18.12 IFTI is Making Headlines!

The CFIRE consortium, the University Transportation Center to which UofM and nine other prestigious universities belong,  is recieving recognition in mutiple news sources. Enjoy the read...

• Progressive Railroading
• Commerical Appeal
• Memphis Business Journal
• US DOT's Fast Lane Blog

  1.17.12 IFTI Awarded Federal Grant

The Intermodal Freight Transportation Institute, in a consortia partnership with the University of Wisconsin - Madison, competed and was awarded a coveted Tier 1 University Transportation Center (UTC).

The University of Memphis/University of Wisconsin-Madison consortium is called CFIRE (National Center for Freight and Infrastructure Research and Education) and is composed of 10 universities. The consortium encompasses a geographical area that serves the majority of freight traffic in the United States.

The University of Memphis will coordinate the “southern hub” which includes Vanderbilt University, the University of Alabama-Huntsville, and the University of Southern Mississippi. The University of Wisconsin-Madison will serve as the lead institute of CFIRE and will lead the “northern hub,” which includes the University of Wisconsin-Superior, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the University of Toledo, the University of Illinois-Chicago, and Michigan Technological University.

The consortium’s winning proposal, Making Multimodal Freight Systems Work for Economic Recovery and Quality of Life, detailed research, education, and technology transfer activities that will maximize the effectiveness of multimodal and intermodal development in our region and in the nation to move products efficiently from border to border and abroad, which creates an unprecedented opportunity for job creation and sustained growth.

  12.19.11 Students Named Engineers in Training

Congratulations to Ethan Skaggs and Najmeh Jami, IFTI Research Associates, because they recently earned their EIT letters!  An "Engineer-In-Training" is a professional designation from the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying used in to designate a person certified by the State as having 1)graduated from an ABET-accredited engineering program, or related science curriculum approved by the Board and 2) passed the NCEES 8-hour Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) Examination.

 Receiving an EIT designation is one step along the path toward Professional Engineer (PE) licensure.

  12.16.11 IFTI Featured in Memphis Business Journal

The Memphis Business Journal is starting a transportation blog called Memphis in Motion. Our Freight Transportation Leadership Academy was one of the first topics of conversation. We have established a good working relationship with Andy Ashby, the MBJ blogger and expect to see more IFTI news online!

  12.1.11 Student Wins First Place

Hisham Gnedy, IFTI doctoral student, won the 1st place award in the map gallery completion that took place in the 11th annual Memphis Area Geographic Information Council Conference. The Map Gallery Competition provides an opportunity for students to showcase their creative talents in presenting geographic information. Conference attendees voted for Gnedy’s GIS Map Poster, “Compatibility of Freight Facilities and Land Use in Memphis Aerotropolis: Zoning and Housing Assessment Study”. The purpose of the project was to conduct land zoning analysis to show the relationship between freight facilities and the existing zoning plan for Memphis Aerotropolis Region. It also illustrated housings infrastructure assessment and demographics in the study area.

  11.10.11 Intermodal Freight Conference a Success!

IFTI hosted the 5th Annual Intermodal Conference with the Memphis Area Chamber on November 10, 2011. The conference featured world-class presentations. University of Memphis professors participated in a research round table where each IFTI researcher shared information about his/her project and the impact on the transportation community.  Several students were recognized for excelling in transportation research and contributions to the transportation industry. Stephen Edwards received the Trucking Industry Defense Association scholarship. Ethan Skaggs was named IFTI student of the year and received the Traffic Club of Memphis scholarship. Read more...