Feb 16 2011
Demonstrating an unparalleled commitment to the development and implementation of innovative protocols and procedures to conserve resources and safeguard occupational and environmental health and safety (EHS) in the nanoelectronics industry, SEMATECH, a global consortium of chipmakers, its subsidiary, the International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative, Inc. (ISMI), and the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany today announced the creation of the world’s first NanoHealth and Safety Center (NSC), headquartered at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex.
As the first and only comprehensive partnership of its kind in the world, the NSC will align both ongoing and new programs and initiatives of SEMATECH, ISMI and CNSE, along with a host of global corporate partners, to form the world’s leading nanotechnology health and safety research and development enterprise. With funding of at least $10 million over the next five years, this international center is expected to catalyze the creation of more than 100 high-tech EHS jobs at the UAlbany NanoCollege, while offering access to hundreds of experts and leading-edge technologies in a first-of-its-kind effort to address emerging occupational and environmental health and safety issues in order to solve manufacturing problems, leverage resources, and reduce cost and risk.
The NSC has defined and designated four critical challenges as its initial areas of focus: occupational health and safety, to include exposure to nanoparticles in the workplace; environmental health and safety, to assess the impact and life cycles of nanomaterials; resource utilization, to study decreasing water, energy and chemical usage while increasing efficiency; and proactive collaborative research and development, from new device materials and processing fluids to manufacturing processes and tools.
Dan Armbrust, President and CEO of SEMATECH, said, “SEMATECH and ISMI are excited to partner with the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering on this important initiative that will enable new processes and advanced technologies to serve the industry’s need for cost-effective, efficient and safe research and manufacturing. Through this unprecedented collaboration that combines the best of both industry and academia, we look forward to providing worldwide leadership to support nanoelectronics innovations while conserving resources, reducing industry’s environmental footprint and safeguarding industry professionals and the communities in which they live and work.”
Dr. Alain Kaloyeros, Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of CNSE, said, “Understanding and addressing issues related to occupational and environmental health and safety are paramount to supporting and advancing nanoscale know-how that will revolutionize nearly every industry in the 21st century. With the creation of the NanoHealth and Safety Center, the UAlbany NanoCollege, SEMATECH and ISMI are providing proactive leadership, world-class programs, and state-of-the-art resources through a global collaboration to ensure that human health and environmental safety are protected at the same time nanotechnology innovations continue to accelerate at an unprecedented pace.”
CNSE Associate Vice President and Director of the Systems Toxicology Laboratory Professor Thomas Begley will serve as Director of the NSC. Oversight will be provided by a steering committee consisting of CNSE and ISMI representatives, chaired by Professor Sara Brenner, CNSE Assistant Vice President for NanoHealth Initiatives, and an ISMI Project Advisory Board consisting of ISMI, CNSE and member companies, which will review and approve programs.
Membership in the NSC is open to chipmakers, equipment and materials manufacturers, as well as other participants in the nanotechnology, biomedical, and defense industries. In addition, the NSC and its members will collaborate with a broad network of companies, consortia, universities, national laboratories and associations from around the world.
Source: http://www.sematech.org/