Faculty Profile – Ravi Srinivasan, associate professor, construction management.
What is your current role and what does it entail?
I am currently an Associate Professor at the M.E. Rinker, Sr. School of Construction Management at UF’s College of Design, Construction, and Planning (DCP). As a faculty/researcher at the School, I develop and teach undergraduate and graduate level Building Energy and Sustainability courses, advise undergraduate honors, Master’s thesis and Doctoral dissertations, write proposals to secure internal and external research grants and garner research collaborations within and outside the University, perform scholarly activities and, last but not the least, provide services to the University and the City of Gainesville.
How long have you been at DCP?
I joined the Rinker School as a Visiting Assistant Professor in January 2011. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in Spring 2011, I started my tenure-track Assistant Professor position in the Fall of 2011. In all, this is my seventh year with the Rinker School.
What inspires you?
As a teacher-researcher, I am inspired by the numerous students I come across every day – most of them in the lecture halls and the remaining in research meetings. I constantly take this opportunity to instill the necessary mind and mental faculties in these young minds that will face and shape this ever-changing, complex environment we call home.
Who are the most influential people in your life?
The most influential people in my life are my two best friends – my wife and son — to whom I credit my accomplishments and successes. They have changed the way I understand love, life and spirituality and transformed me into the person I am today. Also, my colleagues (faculty and staff) at the School, College and the University with whom I interact on a daily basis wholeheartedly care, support and guide and influence my professional work.
What do you think is the most exciting trend in your field today?
There are two sensational trends that support my research: big data analysis and technology revolution. In today’s world, the influence of big data cannot be understated – be it politics or (alleviating) poverty! Similarly, the exponential evolution of technologies such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Virtual/Augmented Reality (VR/AR) promises superior data acquisition and exploration. Taking advantage of these exciting trends, I have embarked on a few of the following researches: (a) energy resiliency of buildings at university campus- and city- levels through coupling of physics-based modeling and building energy big data analysis (the smart-city informatics research for the City of Gainesville is an example of work in energy resiliency); (b) occupancy behavior for improving energy estimation using indoor environmental big data and agent-based modeling; (c) UAV-based window energy measurement system; and (d) co-designing home modifications with people with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and Veterans with Disabilities (VwD) using VR, haptic devices and gait mats for improving their quality of life. Feel free to follow my research work at https://built-ecologist.com/.