HU Students and Hershey Co. Complete 3D Asset and Product Display Design Project

HARRISBURG, PA – Students enrolled in the Harrisburg University of Science and Technology (HU) Bachelor of Science in Interactive Media (IMED) program have completed a joint development project with The Hershey Company (Hershey), involving the design of new product displays and corresponding three-dimensional (3D) assets for retail planning in simulated spaces.

Hershey has been a strong partner to Harrisburg University for quite some time, including generous support for the Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (CIE) and its launchU startup pitch competition.

This latest collaboration with Hershey began with their providing documentation for display units, for which the team was to create real-world and digital assets, including texture files, schematics, and other components for each display unit. Two IMED students led the charge – Maxwell Minton ‘24 and Kyle Williams ‘24 – while Professor Anthony Ortega, Corporate Faculty at HU, served as student advisor and client liaison.

“I helped the students organize into teams for each display unit based on a deadline provided by the client,” Professor Ortega said. “The students would then assess the schematics, find the appropriate models, and arrange them into a single 3D model. I would then review the students’ work before passing on the submitted deliverables to the client, Hershey, for review.”

Andy Hunt, Manager for Applied Digital Innovation at Hershey, noted: “We’ve been developing a relationship with HU’s Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship [CIE] for a few years, looking to capitalize on local institutions and talent in Central Pennsylvania. We [at Hershey] have a deep connection to the area and are always looking at ways to nurture and grow those connections. Harrisburg University was a valuable resource for 3D design and creative work while we were spinning up a new capability for our Retail Team.”

Throughout the project, Hershey returned with updates and changes, to which the students had to continually adapt. “The most frequent request,” Professor Ortega explained, “was to provide different variants of each model to demonstrate its functionality in different states of organization, like a freshly packed display unit versus one that looks like it’s been picked through by the end of the day.” The purpose was to design and roll out product displays, along with digital twins of those displays, that remain appealing and functional throughout the retail day and in a variety of states.

“I first heard about the opportunity from Professor [Charles] Palmer,” said Kyle Williams. “He told me it was a work opportunity and that he was looking for dedicated Interactive Media students to take it on. Most of us already had the necessary skills thanks to the classes we took in our first year. It was great having an opportunity to work professionally and be part of a famous company.”

According to Professor Ortega, having students work for a major client like Hershey is an excellent experiential opportunity from an academic perspective. “Students were given the interesting challenge of arranging 3D models and textures, using augmented reality (AR), to create 3D mockups of what product displays would look like inside a retailer. This involved skills with software the students already have access to and underscores core concepts like time management, teamwork and collaboration, and information literacy.”

“The ability of these students to compose 3D scenes that accurately reflect their real-world counterparts really stood out,” said Andy Hunt. “As STEM students, so did their ability to work within sometimes ambiguous circumstances with creativity and innovation. STEM graduates tend to adapt to rapidly changing environments and keep track of how trends and technology advances can be applied.”

Kyle added: “Working with Andy and Anthony gave me a great sense of what it feels like to work in a professional setting. The routine showed me the depth and demands of this job, and the consistency helped me home in on different aspects of 3D asset usability. On top of that, I got hands-on experience with powerful industry tools and capabilities that I’d never used in a practical setting before.”

The first image below shows an example of one of the display units in Adobe Dimension; the second shows one of the displays on-location with swapped graphics.

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