Aircraft engine manufacturing giant Pratt & Whitney has established a Center of Excellence in the School of Engineering for research in the field of aviation propulsion systems.
Pratt & Whitney, a global leader in the design, manufacturing, and service of aircraft engines, space propulsion systems, and industrial gas turbines, will work with the University on fundamental and applied research initiatives that support the design and development of more efficient gas turbine engines. The University’s primary focus will be research in the field of advanced sensors, diagnostics, and controls for use in commercial and military aircraft propulsion systems.
The new partnership between Pratt & Whitney, a United Technologies Corp. company, and the University was announced Feb. 17 during 2010 National Engineers Week. Pratt & Whitney officials said they selected UConn as a Center of Excellence because it is renowned for its world-class engineering education and research capabilities.
“This is a great opportunity to expand our longstanding working relationship with the UConn School of Engineering,” said Paul Adams, senior vice president, Pratt & Whitney Engineering. “Pratt & Whitney is committed to differentiating our products through investment in fundamental research and development of new technologies. UConn has solid technical capabilities that complement our growing research needs.
“We have thousands of engineers in Connecticut, including many UConn graduates,” Adams continued. “This partnership allows us to bring their expertise to the next generation of engineers in a way that complements traditional studies.”
Baki Cetegen, head of the mechanical engineering department in the School of Engineering, said, “Establishing the Center of Excellence is the opening of a new chapter in the long-term partnership between UTC and UConn Engineering in research, education, and outreach.”
UConn Provost Peter Nicholls said, “The collaboration between Pratt & Whitney and UConn helps us attract world-class experts to our faculty and students to our school, and provides companies like Pratt & Whitney with talented engineers. These partnerships also benefit the people of the state of Connecticut.”
Mun Choi, dean of the UConn School of Engineering, said, “We think this is going to be the beginning of an important relationship with Pratt & Whitney. With renewed emphasis on collaboration, we can make the relationship even more successful. In the end, we want to be a technical resource for key industries in this state.”
The Center of Excellence agreement is indicative of the improvements that have been made in the long-term relationship between Pratt & Whitney and the UConn School of Engineering. For example, a Pratt & Whitney-endowed chair at the UConn School of Engineering leads research projects to help the company’s manufacturing operations improve products and processes. The BRIDGE Program, which awards annual scholarships to promising engineering students, has been revamped to include more mechanical engineering students, and some engineering students in their final year at UConn spend time working at Pratt & Whitney.
“Pratt & Whitney’s commitment here represents a tremendous amount of effort over many years. Our relationship with the UConn School of Engineering is critical to helping Pratt & Whitney continue to find the engineering talent to develop more game-changing products like our award-winning PurePower® PW1000G Geared Turbofan™ engine,” added Al Brockett, vice president, Pratt & Whitney Engineering-Module Centers.
UConn’s School of Engineering was founded in 1901 and is home to five departments, 110 full-time faculty members, and more than 2,300 graduate and undergraduate students.
Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture, and service of aircraft engines, space propulsion systems, and industrial gas turbines. The company reported an operating profit of $1.84 billion in 2009 on revenues of $12.58 billion. Its 36,000 employees support more than 11,000 customers in 195 countries around the world.
Pratt & Whitney builds engines for front-line fighters, like the F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-22 Raptor, and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, as well as the C-17 Globemaster III military transport. The company’s large commercial engines power more than 30 percent of the world’s passenger aircraft fleet.
United Technologies, based in Hartford, is a diversified company providing high technology products and services to the global aerospace and commercial building industries.
