Akron Magazine - Winter 2010 - (Page 21)

More than 100 college students and faculty members representing 17 teams and 11 higher education institutions came to The University of Akron in October to tour the site of the titanium pedestrian bridge competition, sponsored by the Defense Metals Technology Center (DMTC) of North Canton and UA. The bridge is slated for construction between Quaker Square Inn at The University of Akron and the main campus. The students, majoring in engineering, architecture and industrial design, are from institutions largely in what DMTC calls ‘America’s metals heartland’ — Ohio, Pennsylvania, eastern Indiana, southeast Michigan, northern Kentucky and northern West Virginia. In addition to a team from UA, participating teams are from Ball State University, Case Western Reserve University, Kent State University, Miami University, Purdue University, Stevens Institute of Technology, University of Detroit Mercy, University of Notre Dame, University of Pittsburgh and Youngstown State University. Designing the bridge will help solve a logistical problem at the Quaker Square Inn, which serves as a University residence facility and as a hotel and conference center. The complex is separated from the main campus by railroad tracks. This forces pedestrians to use remote bridges to access the main campus. Titanium has advantages over less-expensive metals. It weighs much less than steel, yet is just as strong. It does not rust and is corrosion-resistant to sea water and chlorine. Many experts believe that bridges secured with titanium would be better protected against a possible collapse than conventional steelsupported bridges. As an incentive for the competition, the DMTC will provide scholarship money to students on the first- and second-place and honorable mention teams. Likewise, it will provide grants to the winning institutions for the study of specialty metals in commercial applications. Winners will be announced in May 2010. Federal, state, and local funding will be sought for bridge construction after the completion of the design competition. Judges are Leila L. Vespoli, senior vice president and general counsel, FirstEnergy Corp.; Lillian A. Kuri, program director of architecture, urban design and sustainable development, Cleveland Foundation; Job H. Lippincott, publisher, Rubberworld Magazine; former U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula, Ohio’s 16th District; Victor J. Scaravilli, chairman and CEO, Mole Constructors, Inc.; Paul Thomarios, president, Thomarios Cos.; and Jeffrey Spangler, principal, R.E. Warner & Associates. Pictured from left to right: The Hon. Donald Plusquellic, mayor, City of Akron; Ted Curtis, UA vice president of capital planning and facility management; Dr. Stephen Cheng, dean, UA College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering; Dr. Luis Proenza, UA president; Ohio Sen. Tom Sawyer, UA alumnus; and Dr. Frank Douglas, president and CEO of the Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron. | 21 | A MAgAzine for AluMni & friends of The universiT y of Akron The University of Akron’s newest addition, the National Polymer Innovation Center, was unveiled at a Sept. 14 groundbreaking ceremony during which dignitaries and guests signed the facility’s first construction beam. The 42,750-square-foot center, scheduled for a June 2010 completion, will house 10 laboratories equipped with stateof-the-art research instruments and a multipurpose processing high-bay area designed for the installation of prototype manufacturing apparatus. This design and instrumentation will enable UA researchers, in collaboration with industry, to fabricate materials and devices of the future. The center will be used to develop new knowledge and materials for solving problems of national interest in health, energy and the environment. In addition, it will provide a platform for training a skilled work force and for creating new jobs in Ohio. “We work very, very hard to make UA’s College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering program No. 1 not only in this country, but also in the world,” says Dr. Stephen Cheng. “The University of Akron is a rising star. In the near future you will see its huge impact toward higher education of the United States. You will see.” Faculty, students and research partners from polymer and health industries will work within the new center, in the emerging areas of biomaterials synthesis, biosensors and bio-devices design, and fabrication of photovoltaic and membrane members. The $13.2 million building is fully funded with state dollars through the Ohio Third Frontier initiative. www.uakron.edu UA Hosts Competition to Design First Titanium Pedestrian Bridge in America Ground Broken for New Polymer Center

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Akron Magazine - Winter 2010

Akron Magazine - Winter 2010

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