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Current Student Highlight: Srijeet Halder

December 5, 2022

Srijeet Halder
Srijeet Halder

Srijeet Halder is a PhD student in the Myers-Lawson School of Construction at Virginia Tech, where he is advised by Kereshmeh Afsari. He is also pursuing a simultaneous M.Eng. degree in Computer Science from Virginia Tech. Being a construction manager by education and training and having worked in construction for a few years, Halder observed various inefficiencies in monitoring of construction projects as well as low technology adoption in construction in general. To address these inefficiencies and increase technology adoption, he investigates robotic Cyber-Physical Systems for construction from the Human-Computer Interaction perspective. 

Halder’s research interests lie at the intersection of technology, human interaction, and construction, with a focus on how modes of interaction between humans and robotic Cyber-Physical Systems influence acceptance, usability, and performance of these systems in construction applications. His work has been published in reputed international conferences and journals, including the International Conference on Computing in Civil Engineering (I3CE), the International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (ISARC), the Annual Conference of the Associated Schools of Construction, the Asian Journal of Civil Engineering, and the Buildings journal. His work was also selected as one of the keynote presentations at the ISARC 2021 conference.

Harlder’s training in HCI started with taking the Models, Frameworks, and Theories of HCI course. He also worked on multiple industry- and NSF-sponsored research projects as a Graduate Research Assistant at Virginia Tech. Through these projects, he received training and experience in evaluating technology through human subjects research. His interest in HCI resulted from the fact that the construction industry has been slow to adopt many technologies such as extended reality, robotics, and computer vision that have been successful in other industries. 

Halder believes that the construction workforce has unique needs and abilities that necessitate human-centered design of technology from the start. As a result, his work focuses on identifying the needs and abilities of the construction workforce and driving human-centered robotic CPS design. With his experience and training in both HCI and construction, he finds himself in a unique position to apply himself in both of these disciplines.