The Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility-FCMF hosted an “Open House” event on July 11, 2018. The event was attended by over 130 guests from the Tennessee Ecosystem – UT, ORNL and IACMI researchers and leaders and industry partners.
About 15 Undergraduate and 15 graduate students led the tours had engaged with the guests about their ongoing research and received valuable feedback. Several students also presented posters of their work.
Several live demonstrations of key manufacturing processes such as SMC, Extrusion-Compression if Long fibers, laser cutting of fabrics and related work were also held.
The purpose of the event was to update the guests on the progress made by the FCMF in terms of critical investments through partnership with IACMI, ORNL and industry partners.
FCMF is engaged in large scale hybrid composites manufacturing innovation, extrusion-compression molding, resin transfer molding, sheet molding compounding, advanced manufacturing for recycling composites into useful products, natural fibers leading to green products to name a few. Graduate and undergraduate students interface with industry and benefit from experiential learning and work force opportunities. Several programs such as the NSF IUCRC, Bredesen Center, MEP, IACMI internship program etc. are integrated with FCMF. The work applies to DOE, DOD, NSF and other agency relationships, MDF, CFTF & other units of ORNL, IACMI projects, and other industry sponsored efforts. The facility continually engages in STEM activities, community colleges interactions and have a flexible business model to rapidly respond to industry needs.