ORONO – The University of Maine College of Engineering held a groundbreaking ceremony last week for a building that will give a boost to Maine’s manufacturing economy.

Since opening last winter in Norman Smith Hall on the UMaine campus, the Advanced Manufacturing Center has performed product design and development work for companies statewide.

If construction goes as planned, AMC technicians and students will have new quarters in late 2004 and be able to expand their support for industry and small businesses.

Work on the 30,000-square-foot AMC building is slated to begin in September. JCN Construction Inc. of Bedford, N.H., is the general contractor.

The groundbreaking took place at the construction site near the Memorial Union.

Participants included Dean Larryl Matthews of the college of engineering, UMaine President Peter S. Hoff and President Joyce Hedlund of Eastern Maine Community College.

“The AMC fills a gap in Maine’s economic development capacity by providing rapid design and prototyping capability. In order for manufacturers to do this, they would have to divert part of their resources away from production. That raises barriers to their ability to enter new markets. The AMC is all about lowering those barriers and enabling manufacturers to solve problems and become more competitive,” said Mathews.

Steve Adam, college advancement officer, and engineering faculty member Tom Christensen are associate directors of the AMC. Scott Dunning, associate professor and coordinator of the electrical engineering technology program, is the AMC executive director.

To the untrained eye, the AMC might look like a typical machine shop. However, with one of only two rapid prototyping machines in Maine, a bank of computer work stations and an array of computer controlled metal cutting equipment, the AMC specializes in bringing abstract ideas to reality.

With guidance from engineering faculty members and technician Brian Barker, students design and build devices that meet demanding specifications for new products.

Prototypes already developed at the AMC range from production line hardware to new equipment for companies and research laboratories.

Jonathan Daniels, economic development director for the city of Bangor, calls the AMC a unique and valuable tool for companies in the region.

“We don’t try to attract companies just to Bangor. We promote the entire region and include the university and the educated labor pool in eastern Maine as significant factors for business relation and expansion. With the knowledge and enthusiasm of the AMC staff, we can offer the center as a resource to help companies grow,” he added.

“We have been busy from the day we opened,” said Adam. “There is a backlog of demand for this kind of service, but we don’t compete with the private sector. If someone comes to us with a request to make a run of a part they happen to need, we give them a list of shops that can perform that work. What existing shops don’t do is the research and design work that goes into a prototype. We can do that at a reasonable cost with skilled technicians and some of the best equipment available.”

Financial support for the building project comes from research and development bond funds approved by Maine voters in 2002.

Staff at the AMC include Barker, who has extensive experience in machining and mechanical design, and faculty members Vince Caccese of the department of mechanical engineering and Bruce Segee of the department of electrical and computer engineering. Engineering students working at the AMC projects gain additional experience that complements their degree programs.