Universities teach about green building

Oregon State University and Portland State University are collaborating to spend $1.6 million to create green building research programs at both universities.

The universities are working with the Oregon Built Environment and Sustainable Technologies Center (Oregon BEST) to establish research centers to offer Oregon’s green building businesses access to advanced research tools, expertise and better trained employees.

The OSU portion of the investment is $920,000, including $400,000 from Oregon BEST, $470,000 from certificates of participation (via Engineering and Technology Industry Council) and $50,000 from the OSU Research Office. It establishes the Oregon BEST Green Building Materials Laboratory at OSU, a collaboration between the College of Engineering and the OSU College of Forestry. Research in the shared facility, which will be accessible to and open for research by industry partners, will focus on innovating new green building materials, including: hybrid poplar wood engineered to be three times stronger than old-growth Douglas fir, new types of concrete and pavement that are more durable and environmentally friendly and recycled plastics used as building insulation.

Read the full Oregon State press release.

Read the full story in the Portland Business Journal.

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