The Athens News-Courier
The second phase of a one-of-a-kind technology facility opened Wednesday on the campus of Calhoun Community College in Limestone County.
The Advanced Technology Research and Development Center is part of the three-phase Alabama Robotics Technology Park. Part I, the 52,000-square-foot Robotic Maintenance Training Center, opened last November. Currently, short-term, non-credit training classes are being taught in the facility by instructors from Alabama Industrial Development Training. Credit courses for students from Calhoun are scheduled to be taught there soon.
Gov. Robert Bentley cut the ribbon Wednesday at the newest center. He was accompanied by officials from Calhoun Community College, AIDT, the Alabama state Board of Education and the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education. Attending were: Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur; Postsecondary Chancellor Freida Hill; Dr. Charles Elliott and Mary Scott Hunter, members of the Alabama state Board of Education; members of the center’s executive board; Calhoun College President Marilyn Beck; AIDT Executive Director Ed Castile; and elected officials and business leaders from across the region.
The RTP’s second phase is a 35,000-square-foot, $8.3 million building featuring a test facility for companies currently in the robotics manufacturing industry. The building will be used for the research, development and testing of leading edge robotics used for military projects, space exploration, and other applications. The center will have appropriate infrastructure to support these activities with substantial outdoor areas for testing in a variety of environments.