Oak Ridge Today

Letter: Make Vogel one of your three choices for City Council

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To the Editor:

We are very fortunate to have several candidates running for City Council on issues that Council actually works on. Continuing good schools seems to be on all platforms and should be. Safety for citizens and the community is also very important. How to pay for these without raising taxes is probably the most important part of the platform. Oak Ridge is a city dependent on the U.S. government more than most Tennessee cities. During the early years, scientists and engineers from the “plants” lived in Oak Ridge and made it a well-run, highly educated city that was famous the world over.

Some of the “plants” are still here and now are making scientific breakthroughs that are changing manufacturing in this country. 3-D printing, carbon fibers, and the Spallation Neutron Source are part of great scientific achievements. However, less than one-half of the employees live in Oak Ridge, and almost no new manufacturing is moving here to take advantage of this great success coming out of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex. That can change. [Read more…]

ORNL researchers use 3-D printer to print table with bamboo fiber

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ORNL bamboo tablecloth

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers used a 3-D printer to print a table that was manufactured using 10 percent bamboo fiber. (Photo by ORNL)

 

Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are using bamboo fiber in 3-D printing experiments, and they’ve printed a table that contains 10 percent bamboo fiber composite.

The goal is to determine whether bio-based feedstock materials from living (or once-living) organisms are feasible in what is known as additive manufacturing.

Officials say 3-D printing is used to manufacture items a layer at a time using such materials as carbon, glass, or bamboo fiber. [Read more…]

ORNL, Strangpresse LLC sign additive manufacturing patent license agreement

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ORNL Manufacturing Demonstration Facility Entrance

New additive manufacturing technologies are being explored at DOE’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL. The MDF is on Hardin Valley Road in west Knox County. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

 

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Strangpresse LLC of Youngstown, Ohio, have signed a non-exclusive licensing agreement on a portfolio of ORNL patents related to large-scale additive manufacturing.

ORNL is leading advances in the production of large-scale 3-D printed materials, refining industrial processes to decrease costs and increase efficiency.

Under the agreement, Strangpresse, a Hapco Inc. affiliate, may make, use, or sell the lab’s patented developments of materials, processes and controls that enable the manufacture of parts much larger than current standards.

“We’re very pleased to be joining with ORNL to carry large-scale additive manufacturing technology to the marketplace,” said Strangpresse President Chuck George. “Our leadership team has over 70 years of experience in the thermoplastics extrusion industry, and we see this partnership as a great opportunity to expand this technology.” [Read more…]

ORNL invites companies to connect with lab at ‘Explore ORNL’ 

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory will open its doors July 14-15 for its “Explore ORNL” conference designed to introduce the region’s business community to the lab’s world-class research and development facilities and expertise, a press release said.

“Explore ORNL is an outreach event that provides companies both large and small with a unique opportunity to learn about collaboration possibilities,” said Tom Rogers, ORNL’s director of Industrial Partnerships and Economic Development.

Representatives from companies such as Boeing, Cummins, Local Motors, Ten-Tec, Dresser-Rand, and Eagle Bend Manufacturing will speak about their experiences in working with ORNL experts to overcome technical challenges and develop new products. [Read more…]

Gooch: Main Street No. 1 priority, gives updates on National Park, reappraisals, airport

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Main Street Oak Ridge Site Plan April 16, 2015

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch on Tuesday said his number one priority for the community is the successful development of Main Street Oak Ridge, which would redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above is a cropped picture of the Main Street Oak Ridge site plan as of April 16. A link to a larger PDF version of the plan is included in the story below.

 

Note: Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch gave an update on positive developments and challenges during a talk to the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge on Tuesday, May 5. Here is a lightly edited version of his remarks, which organized the positive developments and challenges into sections. Gooch was appointed mayor by the seven-member Oak Ridge City Council on November 24. This is his first four-year term on the City Council.

It is a distinct privilege for me to serve as your mayor, but I always preface my remarks by saying that I am not speaking today for Council or for the city manager. I have one vote on Council, but I do consider myself to be the chairman of the board of directors for the city.

In that capacity, as I enter my sixth month of service as mayor, I want to share my thoughts about positive developments in our city, discuss near-term challenges that we face, share the results that I have from the community survey that I have been conducting, and leave time for your questions and comments.

First. My number one priority for our community is the successful development of Main Street Oak Ridge (which would redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall), and it is moving forward. Last week, Crosland Southeast announced that MDC Development Group of Atlanta will be the hotel developer for the project. MDC is also a major developer in the senior housing industry and 15 months ago opened Canterfield Oak Ridge Assisted Living. It has been very successful and well-received in our community.

I was advised yesterday (Monday, May 4) that the retail leasing component of the Main Street project is moving forward, as are the negotiations with a developer for the multi-family housing component of the Main Street project. Groundbreaking and demolition for Main Street is on schedule to begin by June 30. [Read more…]

ORNL, Ohio company work together on new large-scale 3-D printing system

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ORNL and Cincinnati Inc. CRADA

From left are David Danielson, DOE assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy; Johnny Moore; DOE site office manager, Andy Jamison, Cincinnati Inc. CEO; and U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann. (ORNL photo/Jason Richards)

Technology seeks to provide new capabilities for auto, aerospace, other U.S. industries

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is partnering with Cincinnati Inc., a manufacturer of high quality machine tools located in Harrison, Ohio, to develop a large-scale polymer additive manufacturing (3-D printing) system.

The partnership aims to accelerate the commercialization of a new additive manufacturing machine that can print large polymer parts faster and more cheaply than current technologies. The partnership agreement supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative to increase the efficiency of the U.S. manufacturing sector and ensure that innovative clean energy technologies continue to be developed in America.

ORNL is a DOE lab. [Read more…]

ORNL researcher discusses 3-D printing Tuesday

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The Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory will hold its monthly luncheon lecture meeting on Tuesday.

The meeting will feature speaker Lonnie J. Love, who will discuss the development of 3-D printing and other advanced manufacturing applications at ORNL, a press release said. [Read more…]