Air Products/Penn State Expand Research Alliance

4-11-97

Lehigh Valley, Pa. -- Air Products and Chemicals Inc. Chairman H. A. Wagner and Penn State President Graham Spanier met today at Air Products. headquarters campus in Trexlertown to formally sign an agreement between the two organizations.

The agreement will enable Air Products to further expand its access to Penn State's world-class research capabilities. In return, Air Products is making a multimillion-dollar commitment to fund research at Penn State in fields of mutual interest over the next several years. These fields include chemistry, chemical engineering, and materials science, among others.

A steering committee comprised of members from the University and Air Products will oversee the partnership.

At a celebratory luncheon attended by many of the 500 Penn State graduates who currently work at Air Products, Mr. Wagner said, "We are very pleased to be expanding our long and fruitful association with one of the largest and most respected academic research institutions in the nation."

He noted that Air Products invests well over $100 million annually in research and development, primarily to further strengthen the company's core industrial gases and chemicals businesses. Mr. Wagner added, "Combining Penn State's intellectual resources with those in our own organization and at other leading universities around the world where we have similar alliances will be a key element in our company's long-term growth."

Dr. Spanier noted, "Penn State takes its mission to provide research and service to the Commonwealth as seriously as its mission to teach. The University ranks second in the nation in industry-supported research and continually strives to make its partnerships with industry more efficient and fruitful."

The partnership with Air Products is one of eight Master Research Agreements or Preferred Partnerships that Penn State has undertaken recently with major corporations. These general or "blanket" agreements enable the corporations to undertake collaborative research efforts with the University without the need to renegotiate terms each time. The Master Agreements save administrative time and money for both the University and the corporate partner.

Penn State and Air Products have conducted more than 20 joint endeavors over the past five years. These endeavors have included research contracts for specific cooperative efforts in high temperature chemistry, advanced materials and catalyst evaluation, for example, as well as general grants-in-aid for basic research in chemical engineering, chemistry, and materials science.

Dr. Spanier added, "Corporations are increasingly integrating major research universities into their technology management strategies. Penn State's Master Agreements are a means for aiding this integration and for speeding the conversion of university research results into commercial products and processes."

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. is a major international supplier of industrial gases, specialty and intermediate chemicals, and equipment and services. The Trexlertown-based company has annual sales of $4 billion and operations in 30 countries. Approximately 5,000 of the 15,000 people Air Products employs worldwide are located in Pennsylvania.

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Contacts: Air Products, Greta Campbell 610) 481-4986
Penn State, Barbara Hale(814) 865-9481 bah@psu.edu