Site-wide links

Rochester Institute of Technology logo

These materials are copyright Rochester Institute of Technology.

www.rit.edu

Copyright, disclaimer, and contact information, available via the links in the footer of our site.

About the Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies

The Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies (CIMS) is an internationally recognized research and development center located on the campus of Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). CIMS’ mission is to increase the competitiveness of manufacturers through applied technology and training. Since its founding in 1992, CIMS has worked with hundreds of companies from diverse sectors of industry across the nation and around the world to implement and improve sustainable design and production practices. Today CIMS serves as the parent organization for several world-class research centers/institutes:

1989–1992: Auspicious Beginnings

In the late 1980s, RIT identified an opportunity to address the challenges facing the manufacturing sector of the economy while simultaneously creating a Center that would enable the university to expand its research and technology portfolio and match the expertise and capabilities of RIT with industry needs. The focus of the center would be applied research, technology transfer and training that would enable US manufacturers to be able to compete more effectively in the global market by improving their manufacturing processes and training their workforce.

The State of New York provided RIT with nearly $1 million in planning funds over several years to develop the concept and a facility plan. The Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies (CIMS) was launched in 1992, under the leadership of Dr. Balwant Karlekar, a professor of mechanical engineering at RIT.

Also in 1992, New York State appropriated $9.5 million in the Higher Education Applied Technology (HEAT) bill toward the RIT Center. The bill was signed into law by then-Governor Mario Cuomo. The initiative was unanimously supported and endorsed by the members of the Rochester area delegation to Albany, led at the time by Senator Paul Kehoe and in the Assembly by Roger Robach, David Gantt, Joe Morelle and Susan John. The Greater Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce had also unanimously endorsed the Center, with a letter signed by all of the members of its board of directors at the time.

The Federal Government, led by the efforts of Congresswoman Louise Slaughter and then-Senator Alfonse D’Amato, also provided significant funding for the Center, totaling $11.25 million. With these significant State and Federal funding commitments, RIT was able to build a 170,000 square foot facility to establish and house the Center on the RIT campus.

1993–2001: Developing Corporate & Government Partnerships

To help launch and develop the programs in CIMS, IBM and Eastman Kodak Company provided expertise and in-kind funding support. Eastman Kodak also provided $1 million to support the Director position for the first ten years of the program. Gleason Works was another early supporter of the project, along with other area manufacturing firms.

Ground was broken for the new facility on June 11, 1993. The facility was completed in 1996 and was formally dedicated on May 9, 1997.

The following year, 1998, marked another important milestone in the history of CIMS with a federal appropriation of $2 million to support a remanufacturing research project with the Office of Naval Research in the U.S. Department of Defense. With this funding, CIMS researchers developed a methodology that enabled ONR to remanufacture and convert a decommissioned Navy ship to a new advanced hull platform, enabling the Navy to use the remanufactured ships for communications, logistics and other combat support activities. The Navy estimated that a remanufactured ship would result in cost savings of $32.6 million per ship, as compared to the cost of building a new redesigned ship from scratch.

As part of the ONR research effort, the CIMS team developed the Life Cycle Engineering and Economic Decision System (LEEDS®), a comprehensive decision tool for planning, managing and monitoring repairs, refurbishing, and modernization of large complex systems. The LEEDS tool has been subsequently used to address performance and life cycle issues on a number of DOD platforms and systems, as well as projects with a wide range of industries and government agencies.

Also in 1998, CIMS began two new programs with the State of New York to support the needs of the manufacturing industry, with a particular focus on Upstate New York. The Manufacturing Outreach and Remanufacturing programs were launched to work directly with companies to assist them in adapting and adopting new processes into their manufacturing operations and to provide training and retraining for their workforce. Through these and subsequent collaborations with CIMS, the New York State Assembly, through the efforts of Assemblyman Joe Morelle, embraced remanufacturing as a central component of its economic development priorities. US Senator Chuck Schumer, elected in 2000, secured $2 million to support CIMS’ defense research program.

In April, 2001, the CIMS building was renamed in honor of Congresswoman Louise M. Slaughter.

2002-2006: Expanding the Research Portfolio Yields Results

In 2002, Dr. Nabil Z. Nasr, the leader and architect of CIMS’ remanufacturing and manufacturing outreach programs was named Director of CIMS.

RIT’s partnership with the Office of Naval Research, now known as the Defense Modernization and Sustainment Initiative, led to a host of projects with the Navy and the Marine Corps, as well as the Army Research Labs, each of which resulted in significant cost savings to the military and/or design improvements and/or life cycle extension of existing platforms and equipment. For example:

In 2006, CIMS, through the efforts of Senators Hillary Clinton and Chuck Schumer, was awarded a $4 million grant over four years in the Transportation Reauthorization bill (TEA-21) for a research program in “Life Cycle Engineering for Public Transportation Systems.” In addition to developing and testing alternative energy technologies and strategies for public transportation systems, this initiative has led to new partnerships with the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority, the County of Monroe and other regional municipalities, to apply this knowledge and expertise to real world applications.

2007-2009: Advancing Our Focus on Sustainability

In 2007, Rochester entrepreneur B. Thomas Golisano committed $10 million to RIT to establish the Golisano Institute for Sustainability (GIS). GIS builds on the extensive research and technology transfer portfolio of CIMS, and will further strengthen RIT’s role as a key resource to industries that need to compete effectively in the global economy by focusing its attention on Sustainable Production. The Institute also sparked development of a host of academic initiatives in sustainability. Dr. Nabil Nasr was named as the Director of the Golisano Institute, and Dr. Ryne Raffaelle was named as its Academic Director.

In 2007, CIMS, based on an asset health management system developed through its research portfolio, was part of a winning bid with Lockheed Martin to install the system on up to 10,000 vehicles in order to enhance their operational readiness. CIMS will continue to be the research arm of GIS. GIS/CIMS is playing a critical role in developing the Rochester region’s growing reputation as a hub for alternative energy and green technologies. Several projects are underway with Delphi’s Fuel Cell facility and with the GM Research Facility in Honeoye Falls, NY, which is focused on developing alternative fuel vehicles. A multi-year research effort with Delphi to accelerate fuel cell manufacturability and their application in the Armed Services has been funded by the Federal Government through the efforts of Congresswoman Slaughter and Senators Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton.

In 2007, CIMS’ R&D funding related to sustainability totaled $12 million, and has been growing at a rate in excess of 28% per year since 2002.

GIS/CIMS was awarded designation as lead for the NYS Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I) in 2008; the State of New York commmitted $3 million in first year funding. A partnership with RPI, Clarkson University and the University of Buffalo, along with the state’s network of regional technology development centers, NYSP2I works with NYS companies and other organizations to improve their efficiency and competitive position by working with them to implement cost effective methods to conserve energy, reduce waste and improve performance. Edwin Piñero, former White House Environmental Executive, was named as the Director of the Pollution Prevention Institute. CIMS had previously won the 2002 New York State Governor’s Award for Pollution Prevention and the 2006 MVP2 Award from the National Pollution prevention roundtable for their work in this area.

In September 2008, RIT received approval from New York State to offer a new doctoral degree in sustainability from the Golisano Institute for Sustainability. The Ph.D. program is the first in the world focused on sustainable production and seeks to advance research and education in alternative energy development, sustainable design, green product development, industrial ecology and pollution prevention. The new Ph.D. program will be a signature program that will enable GIS to become one of the leading institutes of its kind in our nation and throughout the world, building on the technology, research thrusts and industry and government partnerships that have been a hallmark of CIMS since its inception.

Also in 2008, the New York State budget for FY 2008-09 included $12 million toward the construction of a new facility to house the Golisano Institute for Sustainability. The funding was secured through the efforts of the Rochester area delegation, and with the full support and endorsement of the Rochester business community. This funding will be used to support the first phase of a $50 million state-of-the-art LEED Platinum facility that will establish the greater Rochester region as the “Silicon Valley of Sustainable Technologies.” Since 2002, RIT’s Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies has worked with over 780 companies providing technical assistance, training and technology development support. These efforts have resulted in increased revenue for the companies, totaling over $135 million, and the creation and/or retention of nearly 3,000 well-paid manufacturing jobs. At full build-out, the Golisano Institute of Sustainability could stimulate the creation of an additional 6,000 new jobs with earning potential of $650 million per year.

2009 represented the third year of continuous growth in funding resulting from industrial outreach and cooperation. CIMS has invested $2.5 million in new laboratories, test and measurement, and support equipment for R&D programs. A highlight is $1.1M invested to construct and equip CIMS’ state-of-the-art Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) research facility. CIMS tallied $11.1M in overall CIMS revenue, a healthy 9% increase over the prior year. Key program funding came from the Army Research Labs, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, the Office of Naval Research, and the U.S. Department of Transportation. CIMS maintained a backlog of $16.4 million: backlog under contract were 52%; projects awarded and contract pending comprised the remaining 48%.

CIMS continued multi-year research programs for Lockheed Martin, GM, HP, Xerox, Delphi, Staples, Cummins, U.S. Departments of Defense and Transportation, NYSTAR, NYSERDA, NYSDEC, Monroe County, NY, and the City of Rochester, NY.

Also in 2009, CIMS founded its first spinoff company, LIBAN, Inc., to market vehicle health monitoring technology in commercial vehicle fleets. LIBAN has licensed software technologies originally deployed for military use in the Embedded Platform Logistics System (EPLS) program conducted by CIMS for the U.S. Marine Corps. Customization of the technologies for these markets is ongoing with CIMS and LIBAN.

Another highlight of 2009 was inauguration of the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I), a statewide research and technology transfer center based at CIMS and funded by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. NYSP2I has forged strong working relationships and Master Agreements with all 10 Regional Technical Development Centers (RTDCs), which collaborate with NYSP2I to provide direct assistance and technology transfer across the State.

As a measure of the Center's growing recognition, it received the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Excellence in University Led Strategies Award for 2009. This marks the first time a New York State university has received the EDA award.

Today and Tomorrow: Building A Sustainable Future

CIMS is working with 160 sponsors on 300+ separate research, development, and application initiatives. The following are representative current projects at the Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies:

Energy and Transportation Research

Department of Defense Research

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Development

Industry/Community Outreach