UTD Virtual Internship
"Japan's First" Virtual Internship
In collaboration with the University of Texas Dallas in Texas, USA, we have conducted a virtual internship during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The University of Texas at Dallas (also referred to as UTD) was founded in 1969 and is a dynamic public research university with a population of 28,000 students. It is one of the most difficult universities in the state, and is rated by US News & World Reports as a Top Rated University nationally..
In addition, there are 29 research institutes, among which computer science research is at the top level in the world. We also offer high-level programs in the fields of science, technology engineering, arts, and management.
From Real to Virtual
We signed an MOA (Memorandum of Understanding on Internships) with the University of Texas at Dallas in 2019 and have been preparing for an internship program on the theme of market research in the United States. Finally, from June 2020, it was planned to invite students from the university to Japan and carry out an international internship, but due to the influence of the new coronavirus, travel within the year was prohibited by the university side and it will be carried out. Can no longer be done.
However, we did not give up on this opportunity and continued discussions with the University of UTD to seek another form of an internship. Then, we decided to switch the international internship to a virtual internship that is conducted online via the Internet. At this point, there were no cases of virtual internships in Japan, and I was completely groping. It was a big challenge for us, but we made careful preparations by repeating trial and error and decided to carry out a virtual internship from July 7th to August 31st, 2020.
The theme of this virtual internship was ” Drone Charging Station US Market Research ” utilizing the drone charging station currently under development by Japan.
We selected two students from the Department of Global Business, Antonio Paylor and Frederick Connelly, from among the 11 UTD University students who wish to have a virtual internship at our company.
About the Students
Antonio Paylor
Antonio prepared the research results in PowerPoint every day in a limited time and explained them in an easy-to-understand manner at an online meeting. Also, I am currently studying Japanese, and I was a very caring student who changed some of the PowerPoint to Japanese and greeted me in Japanese.
His idea is based on an American perspective that is unthinkable in Japan, which is narrow and constrained, and based on that idea, he repeated various case studies and listed partner companies with the potential to collaborate with us. It was uploaded and provided to us.
The business model he proposed was very realistic.
Frderick Connelly
Frederick’s strength is his ability to collect information. He analyzed the information collected from various fields in a short period of time, conducted large-scale research, and provided us with a large amount of information every day.
No information from him was available in Japan, including the latest US regulations and public sector movements. He then considered a business model based on them, approached multiple potential partners directly to achieve it, and successfully interviewed six companies in just two weeks.
The information he provided was very informative and valuable locally, which is very difficult for us to expand into the United States.
Conducting the Virtual Internship
- The virtual internship was carried out by utilizing the online communication tool "ZOOM", where students voluntarily conducted research on the issues presented by our company and received progress reports from students at daily online meetings.
- By making effective use of "ZOOM", we were able to carry out survey contents, updates, monitoring, and management from Japan, based on daily progress reports from students. The time difference of about 14 hours was a concern at first, but we were able to proceed smoothly without any problems.
- We were able to obtain the results required for an international internship through this new method called virtual internship.
Project: Drone Charging Station
The drone industry is currently valued at 13.44 billion as of 2020, and is expected to grow at a compound aggregate growth rate (CAGR) of 57.5% from 2021 to 2028.
This presents incredible opportunity for companies innovative in drone technologies; whether it be drones themselves, drone infrastructure, and even advanced drone software.
Credit: Grandview Research (2020)
Applications for the Drone Charging Station
Delivery/Logistics
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increased deployment of drones for the delivery of a wide range of medical equipment, cargo, and parcels, among others. This is majorly due to increased emphasis on contactless deliveries to remote areas at a faster pace compared to traditional delivery channels. This has led to increased demand for delivery drones in 2020.
With the increased demand for drone delivery services globally, various countries are easing the regulations to support the operation of drones in their airspace. This is expected to accelerate the growth in procurements of drones to offer new delivery routes for remote areas during the forecast period.
As the market is currently in its infancy stage with enormous opportunities in the industry, various companies have been investing in developing and deploying their fleet of delivery drones. Furthermore, over the years, various companies have entered into the market that have performed their first flights and received approvals from bodies regarding the usage of delivery drones. Such developments are anticipated to propel the growth of the market in the coming years.
Construction
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly replacing traditional land-surveillance methods. They are growing in popularity so rapidly that some have even abandoned the classic “bird’s-eye view” expression with “drones eye view.” Drones greatly reduce the labor and time involved in producing accurate surveys. Drones eliminate much of the human error involved in the process and have the ability to capture necessary data in much less time than traditional methods would take.
Drones provide superior endurance and intelligence on job sites. Their ability to collect and report data allows them to complete work faster. The need for manual labor is all but removed from the equation. In the future, drones will take on even more integral tasks involved in large projects. They are poised to cut the time it takes to build a skyscraper by a broad margin, thereby cutting costs. Contractors who rely on drones will be able to make much more ambitious bids and complete work on time.
Agriculture
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly replacing traditional land-surveillance methods. They are growing in popularity so rapidly that some have even abandoned the classic “bird’s-eye view” expression with “drones eye view.” Drones greatly reduce the labor and time involved in producing accurate surveys. Drones eliminate much of the human error involved in the process and have the ability to capture necessary data in much less time than traditional methods would take.
Drones provide superior endurance and intelligence on job sites. Their ability to collect and report data allows them to complete work faster. The need for manual labor is all but removed from the equation. In the future, drones will take on even more integral tasks involved in large projects. They are poised to cut the time it takes to build a skyscraper by a broad margin, thereby cutting costs. Contractors who rely on drones will be able to make much more ambitious bids and complete work on time.
The future for drones is promising. Technology such as 5G and IoD will accelerate the drone industry and create new opportunities for the technology. Want to learn more? Click Here
Summary
Our new challenge, a virtual internship with an overseas university, has exceeded expectations.
In general, internships are mainly interpreted as “a place for student experience,” and the burden on the host company is a concern. However, active student internships, which are studied at universities that provide students with a variety of practical training environments, can also be of great benefit to the host company. Among them, overseas universities such as UTD University with which we have connections have a high level and are actively collaborating with companies.
Students studying at these universities are highly motivated, and accepting internships can be expected to promote their own innovation . However, in order to do so, it is necessary for companies to be particular about creating an environment where students can demonstrate their abilities and how to set up assignments, and both parties must do their best to engage in internships.
In addition, the spread of ICT technology has made it possible for anyone to communicate with distant partners without stress. Virtual internships are perfect for small businesses because they take full advantage of their benefits and allow you to get the benefits of an internship with zero physical distance, time constraints, and travel costs.
Of course, a realistic internship has a certain appeal, but I think that it can be a sufficient option in the future without considering unavoidable circumstances such as the new coronavirus.
We, Japan, would like to systematize the virtual internship that we experienced this time and expand it to other small and medium-sized enterprises as one of the means to promote corporate innovation in the future. Please pay attention to our future efforts.
Return to HATSU Achievements