CMU, ANSYS Break Ground for New Maker Hub
By Julianne Mattera / 412-268-2902 / jmattera@cmu.edu
and Kelly Saavedra / 412-268-5395 / ksolman@andrew.cmu.edu
Carnegie Mellon University and ANSYS broke ground Tuesday for a building that will become the hub of the College of Engineering's undergraduate program.
ANSYS, an engineering simulation software company, is partnering with CMU to build the 30,000 square foot facility on CMU's campus near Hamerschlag Hall.
"We're officially breaking ground for a new building and for creating resources for our students to do important work at the cutting edge of advanced manufacturing, simulations and material design," said President Subra Suresh at Tuesday's groundbreaking event. "This new facility, as part of the maker ecosystem that is being created at CMU, will take their educational and research activities to a higher level."
ANSYS CEO James Cashman described the building as a space where students don't simply learn about how to design a product, but can actually assemble them using emerging advanced manufacturing techniques.
The partnership between CMU and ANSYS came about as the company considered ways to make an unprecedented impact on future generations of engineers. Cashman said it seemed natural to partner with a leader of engineering and computer science education like CMU.
"This partnership will not only better prepare and educate the next generation of engineers, we will help them revolutionize how products are developed,” said Cashman at the groundbreaking. "It's amazing how good people with great ideas and a lot of energy can turn into something really, really strong. And that is what brings us here today."
"This new facility and the multi-disciplinary collaboration between students, faculty and Ansys professionals is at the core of the maker ecosystem,” said James Garrett, dean of the College of Engineering. "This space will serve as a magnet to attract students and faculty who want to improve their innovative designs through physics-based simulation tools, and then build them in this facility. The space will have significant and immediate impact on their work."
Cashman said the partnership is a foundation for CMU, ANSYS and other industrial partners to find new ways to collaborate on research and teaching so the next generation of engineers are better prepared for the increasingly stark and compelling challenges of the future.
