The James E. Gleason Memorial Building, constructed in 1867, is home to the College of Engineering on the campus of the Rochester Institute of Technology. Facilities within the building are inadequate to support research and training activities in engineering. As a part of an overall project to renovate the building, ARI funds will specifically provide support for the modernization of 33 research laboratories for the Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Electrical Engineering Departments. The renovation addresses three major constraints to effective research and research training: poor organization of space, resulting in a significant underutilization of available space; inadequate environmental control and mechanical systems, which adversely affect instrumentation; and outdated service facilities that impact equipment upgrades, ADA requirements, and safety and security concerns. Renovations will enhance existing research projects and enable the initiation of new research activity in diverse topics including: advanced manufacturing technologies, neural networks, optical communications and human machine interfaces. The modernization will permit the college to meet the changing needs of its industrial and government partners, better prepare students for continued study, and enable students and faculty to pursue research that cannot be done in the existing research infrastructure.
