Contact: Maridith Geuder
A Mississippi State University center that provides expertise to state industry is being named by the U.S. Energy Department as one of the top four in the nation.
A part of the mechanical engineering department, the Industrial Assessment Center is one of two DOE-funded centers in the eastern U.S. honored. The University of Massachusetts is the other, while Texas A&M and San Francisco State universities were recognized in the west.
They were judged on the basis of technical accuracy of reports and endorsements from industries visited. Each is receiving an additional $30,000 for a research project of its choosing.
Mississippi State will research energy efficiency in large dust collection systems such as those used in the furniture industry.
DOE funds 30 national assessment centers to provide energy expertise, waste minimization and productivity enhancements for small- to medium-sized industries, said Keith Hodge, the mechanical engineering professor who directs Mississippi State's operation.
The five-year-old Mississippi State center last week made its 100th industrial site visit. In all, the operation has made more than 700 recommendations for projected savings to industry of $5 million annually, Hodge said.
He and mechanical engineering professor Richard Forbes direct the efforts of seven undergraduate and graduate students who work part-time.
"This program is built around students," Hodge said. "They make the site visits with a professor, do the research and write the 50-to-70-page reports. It's an outstanding learning opportunity."