The Florida Advanced Center for Composite Technologies or FACCT (pronounced ˇ§factˇ¨) is recognized nationally and internationally as a leader in developing cost-effective high performance composite materials and structures.
FACCT's Mission
is to
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Increase the competitiveness of Florida and the nation in
the composite industry through applied research and integration
of technologies.
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Increase the base of competent professionals who are available
assets for employers.
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Increase technology transfer from such a wide ranging intellectual
property base to entities capable of sustaining the nation's
economic growth. |
Originally started in 1994 as an informal discussion forum among a few faculty and students, FACCT officially became a State of Florida Board of Regents (now Board of Education) Type III research institute in 1998. In a partnership with The Ohio State University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, FACCT was designated as a national center funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 2002. As a world-class research center and an integral part of higher education, FACCT researchers focus their efforts on the following three major activities: 1. conducting a broad range of research and integration to improve the performance and affordability of advanced composite materials, components, subsystems and structures; 2. expanding the pool of well-trained engineers and scientists for a technology sector of national and global significance; and 3. working with tech transfer and economic development professionals in transferring and commercializing composite technology and increasing economic impact.
Materials research, by its very nature, is multidisciplinary, involving basic sciences such as chemistry and physics, as well as chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering and mechanical engineering. FACCT program teams consist of researchers with a wide range of technical backgrounds who share the vision of conducting world-class research towards making high-performance composites affordable.
