
A $10 million congressional appropriation will advance Arkansas State University’s plans for a steel research and workforce center to support the steel industry’s growth in the region.
In a news release, the university in Jonesboro said it will use the funding to invest in high-tech equipment for the multimillion-dollar Center for Advanced Materials and Steel Manufacturing. The university anticipates close partnerships with steel manufacturers for research, process improvements, testing of advanced materials and steel manufacturing while training workers for the industry and region.
The region is the nation’s leader in steel in production, with more than 20 steel-related companies employing about 3,600 workers. Another 900 jobs are expected from U.S. Steel’s $3 billion mill under construction in Osceola.
“The Center and these partnerships will fundamentally transform the region and elevate its role as the steel capital of America,” Todd Shields, chancellor of A-State, said in the release. “Arkansas State benefits from our proximity as the closest research university to current and future steel industry, and we are extremely excited about the successful partnerships that have already developed.”
The center will develop mechanical property measurements for steels and other alloys; X-ray diffraction, spectroscopy, and electron microscopy analytical tools; computational materials science investigations of novel materials; and maximize the use of artificial intelligence in the manufacturing process.
The university said it’s reallocating faculty positions to support the center by creating a new department in the college focused specifically on material science, metallurgy and steel manufacturing. Faculty and students will work collaboratively with scientists and employees at steel plants around the region.
“These jobs are more technologically advanced than ever before and require a technology-proficient workforce,” Shields said. “It is critical to provide opportunities for home-grown talent from our region to ensure that Arkansas establishes itself as a national leader in advanced materials and steel manufacturing.”
No construction timeline has been set for the center.