Purdue News
Purdue News
The figures were announced this week during a campus visit from Al Schleicher, vice president for finance and planning, IBM Corp. and partnership executive for the Shared University Research Program, which alone has brought Purdue $7 million for research in the past five years.
The IBM-Purdue partnership is special in several important ways, said Robert L. Ringel, executive vice president for academic affairs at Purdue.
Purdue receives more IBM Corp. Shared University Research funding than any other university in the country and, with 911 Purdue graduates on the payroll, is consistently the largest provider of employees to the company. Schleicher calls Purdue one of the "Top Gun" schools for IBM recruiters.
Schleicher, a 1966 Purdue graduate, oversees the program at Purdue and is on the steering committee that covers 20 other universities. The partnership calls for Purdue to use the equipment as needed for educational and research activities.
"The purpose of the Shared University Research Program was to strengthen the IBM partnerships with top research universities," Schleicher said. "That has certainly happened here at Purdue. Over the past five years, the IBM contribution of equipment has facilitated 25 research grants in 10 different departments at Purdue. Our partnership has developed strong ties between the world-class research labs at IBM and those at Purdue."
Areas of partnership-funded research over the past five years include the School of Mechanical Engineering, the Krannert Graduate School of Management and the Departments of Computer Science and Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. In many cases, graduate and undergraduate students participate in the research, and several projects have been leveraged for additional financial support from the National Science Foundation. Some of the research includes projects on optimizing worker productivity, computer education and the complexities of machining.
"A consistent strength of Purdue is the diversity of research contributions," Schleicher said. "The technical education that students receive at Purdue is also of great value to IBM Corp. and industry in general."
Ringel agrees: "The integration of technology into programs in every school is extremely important," he said. "Purdue aims to provide one-stop-shopping for IBM and other companies seeking talented and qualified employees, industry expertise and eminent research. Our partnership with IBM, and specifically the high-end computer equipment they have donated over the years, helps make that possible."
In addition to research labs, IBM equipment benefits all Purdue students in computer labs on campus and through a coming upgrade of the Northwestern On-line Total Integration System at the undergraduate library. The on-line resource system uses IBM computers and a mainframe for internal library searches, circulation control, cataloging and electronic acquisition of library materials.
Sources: Robert L. Ringel, (765) 494-9709
Al Schleicher, (914) 766-3775
Writer: Kate Walker, (765) 494-2073; e-mail, kate_walker@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
