Affiliated Research Centers
Bamboo Bike Project
The Bamboo Bike Project is a project by Scientists and Engineers at The Earth Institute at Columbia University, and aims to examine the feasibility of implementing cargo bikes made of bamboo as a sustainable form of transportation in Africa. The ultimate goals of the project are:
- To build a better bike for poor Africans in rural areas.
- To stimulate a bicycle building industry in Africa to satisfy local needs.
Further details, click here.
Conservation and Fabrication Laboratory (FABCON)
The shift toward more expansive forms of digital production within the design and construction industry affords opportunities of not only reconfiguring the relationships between the key players, but also incorporating industry sectors not typically associated with building construction. At the core of this shift is the integration of communication through various forms of digital networks, CNC fabrication being just one among many, with the ambition of developing a comprehensive, well organized, easily accessible, and parametrically adaptable body of information that coordinates the process from design through a building’s lifecycle. This is the broader context for the goals of the Avery Digital Fabrication Lab.
Further details, click here.
Institute of Flight Structures
The Institute of Flight Structures was established within the Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics through a grant from the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Foundation. The Institute provides graduate training in aerospace and aeronautical-related applications of structural analysis and design.
MRSEC
The Columbia University Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) is an interdisciplinary team of university, industrial, and national laboratory scientists and engineers working together to develop and examine new types of nanocrystals and ways of assembling them into thin films. The MRSEC, initially established by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1998, was renewed by NSF in 2002 with a $7.2M grant covering 6 years. Faculty from six academic departments are involved with the MRSEC, along with faculty from the City College of New York (CCNY). The center, entitled Center for Nanostructured Materials, now focuses on the synthesis of complex metal oxide nanocrystals and ways of assembling them into useful films.
Further details, click here.
The National Center For Infrastructure Studies
The center resides in the Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics and provides a professional environment for faculty and students from various disciplines to focus on the massive problems of city, state, and regional infrastructure. Together with industry and government affiliates, it aims to put into practice the technological tools and knowledge bases that are needed to address infrastructure issues. The center is active in major infrastructure projects through a consortium of universities and agencies.