Stephan Doorley and RAPAC sponsored Herff students at the 2026 Senior Design Expo

The Herff College of Engineering is extremely grateful to all of the industry partners who sponsored students' 2026 Senior Design projects. The nine-month assignments serve as the capstone projects for Herff's engineering students and allow students to work hand-in-hand with industries. 

Stephan Dorley of RAPAC sponsored Team Frostbite Fabricators. The team developed a Strand Tank Cooling System. RAPAC, the largest polystyrene recycling company in the United States, operates an industrial production line composed of shredders, compactors, densifiers, extruders, and pelletizers that generate substantial thermal energy during continuous operation. Effective cooling is required to maintain safe operating temperatures, protect equipment, and sustain production efficiency. RAPAC currently relies on empirically selected chiller setpoints, which may result in excessive energy consumption and higher operational costs.

Team Frostibite Fabricators' design aims to replace empirical operation with an analytical, data-driven approach to optimize coolant temperatures and overall chiller performance. The engineering objective is to model heat transfer across the production line and determine the true thermal load of each major component. The team developed a comprehensive map of the chilled and cooling water distribution network and documented the heat transfer mechanisms associated with each machine. 

During the nine-month process, the group of Herff students worked hand-in-hand with RAPAC on the design. It's a process that Herff College of Engineering Dean Okenwa Okoli said pays dividends not just for the company but for the Herff seniors. 

"During that nine-month period where the student is with the company engineers, they are learning more about the corporation and the corporation is learning more about our engineering programs. They’re learning more about our students,” Dean Okoli said.

Thank you, Stephan Doorley and RAPAC for supporting Herff students!