KSU Bulk Solids Innovation Center
After breaking ground on the project less than a year ago, Kansas State University opens the Bulk Solids Innovation Center. The two-story, 13,000-square-foot facility studies the science and understanding of bulk solids materials handling. The innovation center houses six laboratories for university and industry-sponsored research; training and education, conference and lecture rooms; a material properties test lab; and a full-scale bulk solids test bay.Kansas State University is the key tenant in the center, while two local companies, Coperion K-Tron Salina and Vortex Valves, supplement the facility by serving as anchor occupants. University-level courses associated with bulk solids and professional development courses for industry professionals are taught onsite, and students assist with research projects as outside companies partner with the center to conduct product testing. The facility complements the College of Agriculture's Bulk Solids and Particle Technology Lab and program housed on the Manhattan campus.
"Bulk solids research is a somewhat underrepresented field, so having a facility of this magnitude in our backyard specifically for our students' benefit is invaluable," says Kurt Barnhart, associate dean of research and engagement at K-State Salina.
Ground was broken on the facility in July 2014 and since then, manufacturers from across the globe have supplied more than $2.5 million in equipment donations. The innovation center is a project of Kansas State University with partners the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce, Salina Economic Development Corporation, U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, the state of Kansas and the city of Salina.
For more information, visit: www.k-state.edu
