The UH Center for Industrial Partnerships has agreed to house the newly implemented Texas Bioproducts Industry Council in order to further develop and research alternative fuels.
"This partnership means a lot to the University," UH Vice President for Research Donald Birx said. "We will be facilitating and building relations both at the region and state levels."
UH is one of many statewide universities invited to join the TBIC, which also includes the University of Texas A’M, Baylor University and Texas Tech.
The Center for Industrial Partnerships, recently initiated in June, was established to bridge academia with industrial researchers from corporations in the energy, chemical and agricultural sectors. The agreement is also meant to spark collaborative research efforts between the institutions.
Research conducted within the UH colleges of engineering, technology, math and natural sciences are instrumental to make breakthroughs in this partnership, Birx said.
The TBIC was established in February for the development of state policy regarding alternative fuels even though its main focus is the Texas economy.
"Houston can be the hub of the bio-fuels, bio-chemicals and bio-material enterprises that play such a fundamental role in creating the state’s bio-economy," the Governor’s Statewide Energy Initiative project manager Lee Ann Woods said in a release.
In conjunction with the Center for Industrial Partnerships, the TBIC was initiated six months ago to advance alternative fuel breakthroughs.
"We want to increase the amount of research the University is doing with industry and other organizations," said UH Associate Vice Chancellor for Research John P. Warren.
The TBIC was created as a response to Gov. Rick Perry’s plans for bioenergy breakthroughs statewide.
"We’re pleased our Center for Industrial Partnerships will not only serve as a member of the council but also contribute a base of operations for this important new group," Warren said in a release.
