Purdue to retain Central Machine Shop
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue University's Central Machine Shop will continue operations under a new reporting structure. The shop, affected by roadwork on Harrison Street and campus development, will be relocated to a new agricultural and biological engineering building on the south side of campus in 2011.
Under the new structure, the machine shop will report to personnel in Discovery Park's Birck Nanotechnology Center and will be under the Office of the Vice President for Research. The Central Machine Shop, an interdisciplinary organization that complements and enhances the capabilities of campus departmental shops, currently is under the Office of the Vice President for Physical Facilities.
Six current employees will continue to work in the Central Machine Shop, while the two remaining employees have been offered positions in physical facilities. As part of the operational changes, the shop's fee structure will be streamlined and charges will be reduced.
"The outcome reflects the suggestions of a committee formed last winter to analyze the operation," said Alan Leonard, director of service enterprises. "The group considered the costs and the benefits of a range of options that included merging its operations with those in departments across campus or outsourcing. The members agreed the best outcome would be to maintain the centralized operation with some modifications."
The group's report found that services from the shop contribute to a large fraction of the research projects at Purdue, and "while some of the work could have been performed by outside sources, the ability to work directly with machinists and designers was invaluable. …" Based on student feedback, the group also found that the shop directly impacted student education and gives students "more skills that potential employers seek."
"The Central Machine Shop clearly supports the university's strategic plan goals involving both discovery and student success," said Richard Buckius, vice president for research. "The shop performs work that requires precision machining, machining on large work pieces and specialized one-of-a-kind fabrications."
Reflecting the shop's interdisciplinary nature, an oversight committee will be formed and will include representation from four colleges, the CMS manager and the Office of the Vice President for Research. Alan Rebar, executive director of Discovery Park and senior associate vice president for research, will administer shop management through the new reporting structure, effective July 1.
The School of Agricultural and Biological Engineering's new facility will include the Central Machine Shop and the department's own machine shop, laboratories and classrooms.
Writer: Jeanne Norberg, 765-494-2084, jnorberg@purdue.edu
Sources: Richard Buckius, 765-494-6209
Robert McMains, vice president for physical facilities, 765-494-8000