NEWS

FRIB taking shape on MSU's campus

RJ Wolcott
Lansing State Journal

EAST LANSING - Civil construction on Michigan State University’s $730 million Facility for Rare Isotope Beams is 10 weeks ahead of schedule less than two years after the project’s groundbreaking.

And with $100 million in federal funding on the way next year thanks to the recently signed federal spending bill, officials say they are confident they will meet, if not preempt, the project’s 2022 deadline.

FRIB up for full $100M in federal funding

The facility’s exterior has undergone a number of significant changes in the past six months, said Brad Bull, conventional facilities and infrastructure division director.

Four-foot wide metal panels now cover previously exposed reinforced steel beams along the south and east ends of the main building. Workers also began installing the first pieces of technical equipment in recent months, Bull said, putting that aspect of the project 14 months ahead of schedule.

Having workers in place simultaneously on both ends of the main facility has been key in outpacing projections, he added.

Bull expects the nearly 300 skilled trade workers on site to install additional metal panels along the superstructure’s west end over the next six months. Plumbers and electricians will also have their work cut out for them installing electrical panels, air handlers and other components necessary for FRIB’s operation, Bull said.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan, said she was jubilant after President Obama signed the more than $1 trillion federal spending bill last week. She joined MSU President Lou Anna Simon Tuesday on a tour of the facility, led by Thomas Glasmacher, project manager and director.

“This project will lead to opportunities not only for today’s scientists, but will spin off into things we don’t know about yet,” Stabenow said.

The trio weaved their way through the facility, peering into the depths of the tunnels, from more than 30 feet above where the isotope beams will travel. Stabenow and Simon complimented workers on their efforts as they walked along the 570-foot-long tunnel, with Glasmacher pointing out where scientific equipment will rest when FRIB is completed.

Researchers using the facility will heat up desired elements, knocking off their electrons, before sending them careening down the linear accelerator tunnel at half the speed of light in order to better understand of the resulting isotopes.

Other construction milestones this year included the pouring of more than 3,600 cubic yards of concrete into the facility’s linear accelerator tunnel — enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool — and the placement of more than 250 tons of reinforced steel.

The project is a cooperative effort by MSU, the U.S. Department of Energy and the state of Michigan.

Contact RJ Wolcott at (517) 377-1026 or rwolcott@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @wolcottr.