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The eBearing News
August 29, 2005
Timken Will Staff ICAR With 110 Engineers
copyright © 2005 eBearing Inc.
The Timken Company (USA, publicly traded on the NYSE as TKR) announced it will set up and
staff a facility in the new International Center for Automotive Research
(ICAR) campus with at least 110 engineers.
ICAR, announced in November 2003, is the creation of Clemson University (Clemson, SC).
Although many supporters tend toward political hyperbole in describing ICAR,
Clemson-ICAR Executive Director Bob Geolas said its, "aspiration is to be the premier automotive and
motorsports research and educational facility in the world."
Clemson is considered a research university. It dates to 1862, established as a Land Grant College when
Congress passed the Morrill Act.
Clemson-ICAR is located on a 250-acre campus in Greenville, SC, midway between Atlanta and Charlotte.
The corridor is home to hundreds of automotive-related businesses, assemblers and suppliers;
Clemson material notes more than 1,000 are located within a day's drive of Greenville.
In addition, ICAR claims two-thirds of all U.S. auto racing teams are located in the corridor.
"We've said from day one that growing our state's auto cluster is one of this administration's
top economic development priorities," said Governor Mark Sanford. "We've seen a lot of progress on
that front over the past two years, and this announcement is another big step in terms of
strengthening our cluster and creating more opportunities for the citizens of South Carolina."
ICAR's master plan calls for the 250-acre campus to be developed as five densely populated
hilltop "villages" connected by valleys designed to be retreat-like settings, creating places
for intense collaboration, interaction and public access as well as areas for reflection and solitude.
The site is naturally divided into hilltops and valleys, and which contains one of the largest
water converge sites in the area. Mr Geolas said, "The hilltops will be nodes for diverse,
mixed-use facilities such as laboratories, classrooms, offices, as well as some housing and
shopping. Each node is roughly the equivalent of four downtown blocks in scope."
Early partners included BMW, Michelin, IBM, Microsoft, and the Society of Automotive Engineers.
The first facility on the site, the four-story, 80,000 square foot BMW Information Technology
Research Center, is scheduled to open this summer. This $15 million facility was paid for by the
state of South Carolina, is owned by the University, and leased by BMW.
The state also contributed $25 million toward Clemson University’s Carroll A. Campbell Jr. Graduate
Engineering Center, scheduled to open in the fall of 2006,
offering M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in automotive engineering with an emphasis on systems integration.
South Carolina funds Clemson's operating budget by more than $83 million per year.
Other facilities planned for the ICAR campus include a state-of-the-art wind tunnel.
SAE's 2005 President J.E.Robertson, said SAE participation in ICAR will have numerous
benefits: "Clemson-ICAR and the South Carolina Upstate region are critical and
exciting players in the automotive industry. The investment of BMW and other automotive
leaders in the region, and specifically in Clemson-ICAR, tells us we are joining another winning
team. SAE is committed to servicing the industry. The association with Clemson University in our
professional development and education programs will bring additional value."
Now Timken has announced it will locate a research and development facility on the ICAR campus.
Clemson President, James Barker, said: "Timken will be a tremendous partner. They have a rich
heritage and history in the automotive industry and a strong global presence, which aligns
perfectly with the core mission of Clemson-ICAR."
Jacqui Dedo, Timken's Automotive Group President, said: "Becoming part of the Clemson University
ICAR is a fantastic opportunity for our company and our customers. Clemson-ICAR provides unparalleled access
to world-class automotive research, educators and partners. Co-locating our product and process
engineering for powertrain products at Clemson-ICAR will strengthen our technical team, enhancing
the products and services we can offer our customers."
Timken has already announced it will be relocating its automotive powertrain engineering resource,
to combine Timken and Torrington engineering resources under one roof. Groups from Torrington, Connecticut
and Norcross, Georgia, will be combined into three enhanced engineering and customer service
locations, one of which will be ICAR.
Timken's R&D center will be located in a new facility, Collaboration III, currently under construction
and scheduled for first occupancy by fall 2006.
Governor Sanford said, "By building upon the economic clusters like the automotive center at Clemson
with ICAR, not only are more jobs being attracted to the area, but the jobs coming in are ultimately
higher-paying positions. In this case, the partnership with Timken has an added benefit. Not only will there
be higher-paying jobs, but the additional research being funded will continue to grow the area's
reputation as a leader in the automotive industry."
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- by Bruce A. Carr
from individual research,
tips and commercial sources.
Bruce Carr edited this content.
Copyrighted material; unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
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eBearing.com ... for everything that moves™
Entire contents Copyright © 1999-2011, eBearing Inc. All rights reserved.
eBearing.com and "... for everything that moves" are registered trademarks of eBearing Inc.
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