UMaine Composite Facility Named Champion for Economic Development
Contact: Aimee Dolloff at (207) 581-3777
The University of Maine’s wood composite facility has been hailed a Champion for Economic Development by The Maine Development Foundation.
The Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center was presented the award Thursday at MDF’s 30th annual meeting at the Augusta Civic Center.
“The award belongs to every faculty and staff and student that’s worked in the AEWC,” said Habib Dagher, the center’s director. “We’re pleased and really humbled that the Maine Development Foundation has selected us for this wonderful award.”
The award exemplifies the AEWC’s commitment to research, education and economic development that focuses on material science and structural application of hybrid composites. One of the center’s goals is to actively pursue commercialization, entrepreneurship, and job creation in Maine and beyond.
Over the last seven years, the AEWC has helped more than 80 Maine companies in either their spin-off endeavors from the lab, in helping develop new products, or by improving already existing products.
“That’s what caught people’s attention,” Dagher said, noting that MDF received 48 nominations for the award from across the state. “We’re truly humbled that we were selected among this long list of deserving companies and groups.”
The three other organizations named Champions for Economic Development are The Jackson Laboratory, Poland Spring Bottling Company, and Unum.