This action funds Texas Tech University to join the existing multi-university Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Engineering Logistics and Distribution. The addition of Texas Tech as a member will complement the existing core competencies of the current members and contribute to the overall center mission and strategy. The primary objective of this site will be to provide meaningful and useful research to industry partners that can be integrated into existing logistics and distribution networks with the highest net gain in logistics systems performance.
At Texas Tech University, we have collaborated with numerous companies through our affiliation with CELDi through the IUCRC program. These include local, regional, and international companies from the defense, medical, agricultural, and industrial sectors. The most notable of these has been Babcock and Wilcox Pantex, Ector County Medical Center Hopital, City of San Pedro Mexico, and the Plains County Cotton Cooperative. We have also had the opportunity to have supplements from NSF in the form of REU awards in which we were able to research logistics in cotton warehousing (a major industry in the local area), and the use of mobile ad-hoc communication networks in sparse environments (such as in oilfields). A summary of the notable findings from our projects have been 1) methods to improve the supply chain in a high reliability organization without loss of safety, 2) algorithms and business practices to improve the discharge process of patients in hospitals, 3) the impact of an improved highway system from ports in Mexico to the US border on the economy of both nations, and 4) methods through which cotton may be warehoused and exported with greater efficiency. These findings have led to the development of software, construction of roads, and improved business practices of many companies, and our results have been highlighted as CELDi sucess stories on two occasions. In addition, the CELDi center at Texas Tech University has provided valuable opportunities for our department faculty to gain applied research experience. Most of the faculty involved on the industry projects are at the Assistant and Associate level, and gaining this experience has been instrumental in their tenure & promotion process. The center has also provided several opportunities to our students to work on industry projects, including post-doctoral students, graduate students, and undergraduate students. The CELDi center gave these students a real-time relationship with industry partners, financial support towards their studies, and the ability to conduct applied and theoretical research.
