Michigan Tech celebrates opening of Nucor Metrology Center on Houghton campus

What’s happening: Michigan Technological University celebrated the opening of their new metrology lab with a donor appreciation event. The Nucor Metrology Center opened in the Mechanical Engineering – Engineer Mechanics building on the school’s Houghton Campus on Tuesday, Sept. 20.

What it is: The Nucor Metrology Center features traditional and state-of-the-art measuring equipment, including calipers, micrometers, a flexible arm coordinate-measurement machine (CMM), optical microscope, microhardness testers, tachometers, strobometers, and infrared and thermal scanners. Metrology, for those unfamiliar, is the scientific study of measurement.

What they’re saying: “We thank Nucor for their very generous donation of $100,000 to establish the Nucor Metrology Center in the ME-EM department here at MTU,” says Jason Blough, interim chair for the Department of Mechanical Engineering – Engineer Mechanics. “We would also like to thank Milwaukee Tool, Nexteer and Richard Crosby for their assistance in enhancing the capabilities of the facility. Industry support has always allowed us to offer outstanding experiences to our students and to grow our research portfolio and capacity in ways that would not otherwise be possible.”

Why it’s important: Metrology is critical to Michigan Tech and its Mechanical Engineering – Engineer Mechanics department and the new lab better equips students in executing highly accurate measurements of their project components. As Jason Blough says, “Nucor’s donation allowed us to purchase a Leica DVM6 motorized digital microscope and a Hexagon Metrology absolute measurement arm, giving us the ability to do high-quality metrology measurements for part inspection. We are already using this technology in one of our research programs and in one of our undergraduate courses.”