Media Advisory: Come See the Future of Buffalo's Waterfront at UB's Partners Day

A rare opportunity to see how Buffalo's emerging waterfront design looks -- thanks to a state-of-the-art virtual reality tour with a 3-D interactive high-resolution simulation -- is one highlight of the University at Buffalo's 2010 Partners Day exhibition and workshops beginning at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, June 9, at the Adam's Mark Hotel.

Forty-five exhibits and 17 workshop sessions will showcase cooperation among UB and local organizations and businesses that improve the quality of life for all Western New Yorkers.

At the "Enhancing the Economic Development of Buffalo's Inner Harbor through the Use of Virtual Reality" workshop, participants will tour the Buffalo Harbor virtually and discover how the latest virtual reality-based technologies are being used in planning for the harbor. They will view a computer-generated picture of the future waterfront in a way that even Google Earth can't yet deliver.

The workshop will highlight the partnership between Bergmann Associates -- an architecture/engineering firm -- and UB's Center for Computational Research (CCR), which possesses the expertise and resources to develop high-resolution simulation for a variety of business and civic activities.

Among the exhibits at UB Partners Day will be the GM Fuel Cell Vehicle Marketing Project -- where 20 teams of first-year UB MBA students competed for best strategic marketing plan to launch GM's new hydrogen fuel-cell car in 2015 -- as well as robotic surgical arms that will be available to test drive and the UB Academic Health Center's simulation center that recreates the challenges facing future health-care workers.

Luncheon keynote speaker, James J. Walter, senior vice president responsible for worldwide product quality, safety and regulatory compliance at Mattel Inc., will speak on "Crises and Priorities: Mattel's Story When Faced with Industry Challenges."

UB Partners Day celebrates key partnerships among the university, businesses, civic organizations and government. This year Hodgson Russ LLP and professors George M. Hezel and Jerome J. Schentag will each be honored for their service to the university and the community.

Press arrangements: Ellen Goldbaum, in the Office of University Communications at 645-4605 or goldbaum@buffalo.edu and onsite at 771-9255.