April 5, 2013
Jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney and the University of Connecticut announce today that they have set up one of the nation's most advanced additive manufacturing centers in the university's Technology Park.
Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of Hartford-based United Technologies Corp., said it has invested at least $4.5 million in the lab and plans to spend another $3.5 million over the next five years.
The Pratt & Whitney Additive Manufacturing Innovation Center will give students and faculty access to cutting-edge technology and extends the company's reach into a research university for research and development.
So far, three machines are installed in the center, one is an electron beam melting machine and another two use high-powered lasers to fuse small particles of materials into a three-dimentional shape. The electron beam melting machine is the first of its kind in the Northeast, said Kazem Kazerounian, interim dean at the UConn School of Engineering.
The venture will also make it possible for the university to seek grant money, said Kazerounian.
In January, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and UConn President Susan Herbst announced at Pratt & Whitney a $1.5 billion 10-year plan to boost science, technology and engineering at the university.
The Next Generation Connecticut initiative announced in January. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
The center will be located at the Longley Building at UConn's Depot Campus at 270 Middle Turnpike in Storrs, CT.
Posted in 3D Printing Technology
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