Oak Ridge National Laboratory signs partnership with UMaine
The University of Maine has signed a letter of intent with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory to partner in the development of forest-based biomaterials for use with advanced additive manufacturing, composite materials development and manufacturing, as well as bio-refineries, bioenergy and biofuels.
Officials from Oak Ridge, the U.S. Department of Energy's largest science and energy laboratory, were joined by UMaine officials in Orono for the signing on Friday.
The signing of the letter of intent marks one of the first steps in implementing the recommendations offered by the federal Economic Development Assessment Team, which was created at the request of U.S. Sens. Angus King and Susan Collins in March 2016 to support the state’s forest products industry. The EDAT team delivered its 134-page report earlier this month outlining eight strategies for boosting Maine’s $8.5 billion forest products industry, which has seen a $1.3 billion decline in total economic impact since 2014 due to the closure of six pulp and paper mills.
Collaborative effort
In the letter of intent signed Friday, Oak Ridge and UMaine commit to establishing a collaborative model that brings together the Tennessee-based lab’s expertise in additive manufacturing and composites with UMaine’s focus on forest bio-based composites and other composite structures to advanced and support the state’s forest products sector.
“A nationally recognized center at UMaine is intended to function as an ORNL collaborative partner, advancing additive manufacturing of forest bio-based low cost composite materials and large structures, supporting ongoing relationships with marine, military, civil infrastructure, and renewable energy clients and providing a regional center for workforce training,” the letter of intent reads.
“The University of Maine and Oak Ridge National Laboratory are world-class research institutions, and the collaborative, innovative partnership established today will leverage their collective knowledge and expertise to advance opportunities that will attract biobased industries and grow Maine’s forest economy,” Sen. King said in a joint statement with Sen. Susan Collins accompanying Friday’s announcement. “This is both a welcome and encouraging step forward for all those who call our beautiful state home and particularly for those who work in our forest economy. I am hopeful that it will be the first of many to come that will lead to job creation and economic growth across rural Maine”
Collins said the agreement “represents another important milestone in our efforts to strengthen the forest products industry.”
Under the agreement, UMaine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center will serve as Oak Ridge’s collaborative partner, “advancing additive manufacturing of forest bio-based low cost composite materials and large structures, supporting ongoing relationships with marine, military, civil infrastructure, and renewable energy clients and providing a regional center for workforce training,” according to the letter of intent.
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