UT: Expertise in materials science, additive manufacturing helps draw CVMR to Tenn.

 

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd announced last week that CVMR Corporation is relocating its global headquarters to Oak Ridge from Toronto, Canada. CVMR provides materials for additive manufacturing and announced it will create 620 jobs.

During recruitment of CVMR, University of Tennessee officials assisted the state and hosted the company at UT Knoxville to visit with engineering and chemistry faculty and learn about graduate programs, such as the Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, as well as internships and co-ops for students, a press release said. UT System officials provided information about technology transfer, the UT Research Foundation, and Cherokee Farm Innovation Campus. CVMR also learned more about the University’s role in leading the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation, or IACMI, a $259 million partnership announced by President Barack Obama in January.

UT President Joe DiPietro; Taylor Eighmy, UT Knoxville vice chancellor for research and engagement; Wayne Davis, dean of the College of Engineering; Masood Parang, associate dean for academic and student affairs in the College of Engineering; and Kurt Sickafus, head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, attended last week’s announcement in Oak Ridge.

Haslam mentioned the University, along with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, provided Tennessee with a “significant advantage” in bringing CVMR to the state.

“This provides another example of how the UT-Oak Ridge partnership fosters economic development, jobs, and a better life for Tennesseans,” DiPietro said. “It’s proof of what a land-grant institution should be about in helping create opportunities for companies to come to Tennessee and advance their new technology.”

“We are delighted to have played a role in the recruitment,” Eighmy said. “We have a developing advanced manufacturing ecosystem here in Tennessee, and the arrival of CVMR Corporation is what will likely be the first of many such recruitments like this. We are especially appreciative of the great work of the governor’s office, TECD, and the city of Oak Ridge. We really look forward to collaborating with CVMR and ORNL in the 3D printing and specialized additive manufacturing space.”

UT Knoxville Chancellor Jimmy G. Cheek met with company officials during their visit to the campus.

“With help from the state, we have been growing the number of graduates in engineering, and we hope collaboration with CVMR along with continuing our relationship with ORNL will lead to even more opportunities for our students and new graduates,” Cheek said.

For more information about the announcement from the Department of Economic and Community Development, visit https://news.tn.gov/node/13635.

For more information about CVMR, visit http://www.cvmr.ca/.