Associated Press
12-05-06
ISU Awarded Five-Year Contract to Keep Running Energy Lab
AMES, Iowa (AP)-- Iowa State University has been awarded a $150 million
contract to continue to manage and operate a U.S. Department of Energy lab
located on campus.
The five-year contract for the Ames Laboratory, established on the ISU campus
in 1947, takes effect in January, according to a news release from the university.
ISU President Gregory Geoffroy said the contract showcases a long-standing
relationship between the university and the federal government.
"We have shown over a period of six decades our ability to manage and operate
this important federal research facility, and it has been a valuable part of the
education and research programs at Iowa State,'' he said in a statement.
ISU has been the sole manager and operator of the Ames Lab's contract for the
DOE since the lab's inception in the 1940s, the release said. The first work
performed at the lab was for the historic Manhattan Project.
The DOE Office of Science laboratory researches energy resources, high-speed
computer design, environmental cleanup and restoration, and the synthesis and
study of new materials.
Its budget is about $33 million, and its annual payroll is about $16 million. The lab
has more than 440 employees. About 20 percent of its work force is made up of
ISU students.
The new contract will run from Jan. 1, 2007, to Dec. 31, 2011. ISU will have the
opportunity to extend the contract for incremental periods up to 15 years beyond
the initial five-year term as an incentive for superior performance, the university
said.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)