Industry News

Construction is approximately 50% complete on Purdue University's Martel Forest Research Center. Sited on a 425-acre property of native forests and tree plantations, the research laboratory, two-bay greenhouse and attached head house will provide space for tree research. Housing a teaching laboratory, a conference facility, space for ten scientists and professional staff, and storage, the facility will also provide meeting space for educational programs and researcher offices. Occupancy is expected in June 2003.

Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla., will renovate a classroom in the Crummer Graduate School of Business with $100,000 in funding from the Wachovia Foundation. Renamed the Wachovia Lecture Hall, the hall will be refurbished and upgraded with new technology, including advanced Internet capabilities and projection systems.

The Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) is constructing the 93,000-sf Automotive Research Building at SwRI's San Antonio campus. Housing SwRI's 600-employee Automotive Products and Emissions Research Division, the facility will feature state-of-the-art facilities for the division's fleet and field evaluations using full-scale vehicles.

Sigma Xi, an international scientific and engineering honor society, is planning to build its $7-million headquarters in Research Triangle Park. The 50,200-sf facility will house a 200-seat auditorium, conference rooms, office space for the society's 44 employees, and a catering kitchen.

Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. of Bologna, Italy, a manufacturer of racing motorcyles, has relocated its North American headquarters to Cupertino, Calif., from New Jersey. The 12,000-sf facility, desirable in its proximity to the highest-selling Ducati dealerships in the U.S., was previously occupied by Apple Computer.