NEWS RELEASE

Michigan Tech UTC Cited for Work in House Committee Testimony

Paul Brubaker, Administrator of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration within the U.S. Department of Transportation, testified before the U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology, subcommittee on Technology and Innovation, on June 24, 2008. In his testimony, Brubaker cited the work being done by four University Transportation Centers (UTC) including Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly Missouri-Rolla), University of California-Davis, Georgia Institute of Technology and Michigan Tech. Brubaker’s testimony provided an overview of the important research being conducted through the national UTC program in support of national transportation needs.

Michigan Tech’s UTC for Materials in Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure (MiSTI) was cited for their research in the area of beneficial use of recovered industrial materials in transportation infrastructure. Specifically, Brubaker referenced Tech’s research advancing technologies to reduce the amount of portland cement being used for surface transportation infrastructure. By including recovered industrial products like coal fly ash as a partial replacement for portland cement, green house gas emissions and the embodied energy of concrete are reduced. Dr. Lawrence Sutter, Director UTC-MiSTI leads the research efforts in this area. “We are very pleased to be recognized for our research in this important area. Sustainability is being embraced in all aspects of transportation and Michigan Tech and MiSTI are uniquely positioned to lead those efforts, particularly in the area of infrastructure.” said Sutter

UTC-MiSTI is one of 60 UTC’s funded through SAFETEA-LU legislation. The center is currently conducting research for a wide variety of sponsors that include the National Cooperative Highway Research Program, the Wisconsin and Michigan Departments of Transportation, Federal Highways Administration, and the National Science Foundation.

July 3, 2008