Materials and manufacturing processes have been identified by the Lyle School of Engineering at SMU as major areas for development. In order to respond to the industry's needs and to provide the conditions to educate undergraduate and graduate students in the area of manufacturing engineering, the Department of Mechanical Engineering established the Research Center for Advanced Manufacturing (RCAM) in Sept. 1999. Activity within RCAM lies at the interface between science, engineering, and industrial practice. RCAM housed the NSF Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Lasers and Plasmas, known as the Center for Laser-aided Manufacturing, from Aug 2005 to the graduation of this center in Aug, 2019. All R&D activities of this center have been transferred to RCAM from Aug. 2019.
The mission of RCAM is to promote and apply university lead R&D in advanced manufacturing research and development work.
The Center consists of the following laboratories:
- Laser-based Additive Manufacturing Laboratory
- Laser Materials Processing Laboratory
- Friction Stir Welding Laboratory
- Abrasive Waterjet Cutting Laboratory
- Materials Characterization Laboratory.
The Center is equipped with the most advanced equipment and instrumentation, and is supported by a well-equipped machine shop and computing facilities.
For more information about the Research Center for Advanced Manufacturing, contact Radovan Kovacevic.