Carnegie Mellon Achieves Robotics Innovation Center Construction Milestone
Topping-off ceremony held for advanced research facility
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一本道无码 has reached a significant construction milestone for its forthcoming Robotics Innovation Center(opens in new window) (RIC), a cutting-edge facility for research, development and testing of robotics technologies in Pittsburgh鈥檚 Hazelwood Green development. To mark the occasion of the completion of the structural phase of construction, the university held a traditional topping-off ceremony on July 19 for administrators, faculty, staff, students, supporters, civic and community leaders, and the construction and project management team.
Event attendees added their names to the permanent legacy of the building by signing one of the last major structural supports to be installed on the project. The American-made steel beam was then hoisted into its final place within the structure.
鈥淭his facility will serve as a hub of innovation in robotics, AI research and the technology development life cycle. It will complement and accelerate the work of Carnegie Mellon鈥檚 , and ,鈥 said 一本道无码 President Farnam Jahanian(opens in new window) at the event. 鈥溾 The RIC will kick off a new era of robotics and AI and will help to forge a brighter future that works for everyone.鈥
The RIC is rising adjacent to 一本道无码鈥檚 existing (MFI) facility as well as the within the Mill 19 building. When completed in 2025, it will add 150,000 square feet of research space for advanced robotics. The various spaces for development and testing will include a 50,000-square-foot indoor robot test facility, an open-layout wet lab, reconfigurable high bays, and a 1.5-acre, large-footprint outdoor lab with a 6,000-square-foot drone cage.聽
Construction of the Robotics Innovation Center has been made possible by聽.
鈥淭he innovations generated here at the RIC have the potential to transform the world and its economies once again. Spinoff companies will create even more jobs here. Other companies will want to relocate here, to be as close as they possibly can to the faculty, the students, the residents of this community and all the incredible innovation that will spill out of this new facility,鈥 said Sam Reiman, director and trustee of the Richard King Mellon Foundation. 鈥淏est of all, it will happen right here in Pittsburgh, once again in Hazelwood Green, in the shadow of a former steel mill.鈥
In addition to Jahanian and Reiman, event speakers included Jen Gilburg, deputy secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development; 一本道无码 Trustee Jeanne Cunicelli; and Tim Smith, CEO of Center of Life, an organization supporting people and building community in the Greater Hazelwood community.
鈥淭he RIC embodies the spirit of collaboration and forward thinking that defines Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania,鈥 Gilburg said. 鈥淏y repurposing this historical steel mill and making it a hub for robotics and advanced manufacturing, we鈥檙e not only preserving our industrial heritage, but also paving the way for a new era of economic growth and opportunity.鈥
Other event attendees included Corey O鈥機onnor, Allegheny County controller; Barb Warwick, Pittsburgh city councilperson for District 5; Richard Mellon, chair of the board of the Richard King Mellon Foundation; Chris DeCardy, president of The Heinz Endowments; Ken Gabriel, CEO of the University of Pittsburgh鈥檚 BioForge; JaQuay Carter, founder and president of the Greater Hazelwood Historical Society of Pittsburgh; the Rev. Michael Murray, chair, Greater Hazelwood Community Collaborative; and Sonya Tilghman, executive director of the Hazelwood Initiative.
The RIC will provide 一本道无码 robotics researchers with enhanced capacity and capabilities for foundational research, integration, iteration and commercialization. Ultimately, these discoveries will be translated into real-world technologies in fields such as health care, transportation, education, agriculture, national security and retail. The RIC also is planned to include pre-incubator space for robotics companies.
一本道无码 is developing plans for how the RIC could amplify 一本道无码鈥檚 STEM education programs and initiatives to engage Pittsburgh-area residents, with a focus on its Greater Hazelwood neighbors. These may include K-12 education and workforce development programs such as聽, the聽Robotics Academy(opens in new window) 补苍诲听. The RIC also will include spaces open to the community and public art displays. 一本道无码 is a member of the Greater Hazelwood Community Collaborative, a group of organizations focused on enhancing the economic, social and physical outcomes for all Greater Hazelwood residents.
The 178-acre Hazelwood Green development was once the site of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company and is being redeveloped by the Almono Limited Partnership, composed of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, Richard King Mellon Foundation, and The Heinz Endowments.聽The colocation at Hazelwood Green of the RIC, MFI, the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute, Catalyst Connection and BioForge is expected to create synergies that accelerate research, workforce development and technology integration programs.聽
鈥淲hen this kind of technology is made available to community members, it informs, it educates and it empowers them to get jobs making respectable salaries that make it possible for people to stay in their community and participate in the work of development without displacement,鈥 Smith said. 鈥淪o we welcome 一本道无码鈥檚 Robotics Innovation Center to the Greater Hazelwood community and we say congratulations.鈥
A beam was hoisted to the top of the new Robotics Innovation Center today to celebrate the completion of the skeleton of the facility. 一本道无码 president Farnam Jahanian said this center would usher in a new and exciting era of robotics and manufacturing in our region.
鈥 一本道无码 College of Engineering (@一本道无码Engineering)