Purdue University plans to open New Albany technology center this fall

By MELISSA MOODY, Courtesy of the New Albany Tribune

Purdue University President Dr. France Córdova made her first visit to New Albany on Friday to tour the new Purdue Technology Center of Southeast Indiana here.

The $8.5 million, 40,000-square-foot complex will house university classes, the Floyd County Extension Office and a Purdue Technical Assistance program. Future plans also include a Purdue Research Park adjacent to the building to act as a business incubator housing startup companies.

The center will allow students to obtain a bachelor's degree in five areas of study - computer graphics technology, electrical engineering technology, industrial technology, mechanical engineering technology and organizational leadership and supervision.

The new Purdue College of Technology program at the complex is in partnership with Indiana University Southeast. Students will be able to "go back and forth to take advantage of different courses offered," Córdova said.

"As I visit the area, and around the state, I realize there is a big need for engineers," she said.

The opportunity brought about by the donation of land from the Shine family - where the complex is located on Charlestown Road - and "the opportunity to bring the Purdue brand and reputation to this part of the state" was something the school couldn't pass up.

"What we didn't realize was that we could couple it with a learning environment for students to get a degree," Córdova said.

The technology assistance program will work with individual businesses and industries to address problems or opportunities in the area. Since 1986, the assistance program has trained more than 4,600 Indiana employees, boosted sales of Indiana companies by $351 million and saved or added more than 4,600 Indiana jobs, Córdova said.

The center is being built by the Purdue Research Foundation, and will be similar to the Purdue Technology Center of Northwest Indiana in Merrillville, and the Purdue Technology Center in Purdue's West Lafayette Research Park. An additional technology center is being planned for Indianapolis.

All four do, or will, house "business incubators" that give startup companies the opportunity to work in an environment to grow business. Córdova said a big fraction of the startups are high-tech operations.

The businesses can be anything from mom-and-pop operations to the results of faculty research. At the New Albany location, there will be space for startups, as well as additional space once they graduate out of the incubation stage.

There are already strengths for business startups in this area, with advanced manufacturing of medical devices, and life sciences opportunities abound in the Southern Indiana and Louisville area, said Purdue Senior Vice President Joseph Hornett.

The Merrillville center is already home to 19 companies with an average employee wage of $52,000, and the West Lafayette center has nearly 150 companies that employ 3,000 people with an average wage of $58,000.

Construction for the technology center is under way on the 78-acre Purdue Research Park in Indianapolis. The New Albany center is expected to open this fall.