UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences recently held a ribbon-cutting and naming ceremony to officially dedicate the Baker Hughes Production Engineering Laboratory.
The laboratory, located in the Hosler Building, is a critical educational tool for faculty and students in the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering (EME). It was completely renovated and modernized through a generous $350,000 gift from Baker Hughes.
“Having state-of-the-art facilities is without a doubt one of the main ingredients to continued success in EME and we are incredibly grateful to Baker Hughes for this extraordinary gift,” said William E. Easterling, dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. “It's absolutely critical that we provide our students with the best facilities in which to learn and it is gifts like this that make that possible.”
Baker Hughes Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Martin Craighead also presented the college with an additional $500,000 gift during the ceremony to provide support for faculty in petrophysics through the Institute for Natural Gas Research (INGaR).
INGaR is a collaborative effort between Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and College of Engineering. Currently, more than 50 faculty members in various departments at Penn State have significant research interests and active research programs in natural gas and related areas. Over the next four years, 12 new faculty members will be hired to further strengthen key areas and produce the needed joint information and knowledge that will solve some of the complex challenges related to the exploration and use of natural gas.
Baker Hughes is a leading supplier of oilfield services, products, technology and systems to the worldwide oil and natural gas industry. The company's 60,000-plus employees today work in more than 80 countries helping customers find, evaluate, drill, produce, transport and process hydrocarbon resources. For more information on Baker Hughes' century-long history, visit www.bakerhughes.com.
“We are very proud to be associated with Penn State. The lab turned out beyond my expectations,” said Craighead. “There is no doubt that as an industry, we are starving for the right feedstock of human talent, and our goal is that this facility will educate the next generation of engineers, scientists and researchers, and prepare them for work in our industry.”
The new lab is a much-needed improvement for student and faculty use. “I am confident that Baker Hughes’ meaningful gift will enhance our undergraduate students’ educational experiences immensely,” said Turgay Ertekin head of EME and co-director of INGaR. “The new state-of-the-art laboratory will go a long way in our instructional efforts towards achieving our goal of preparing our students as the best petroleum engineering graduates in the nation.
Craighead, a 1982 petroleum and natural gas engineering (PNGE) graduate, also received the 2010 C. Drew Stahl Distinguished Achievement Award in PNGE from the university. The award recognizes Penn State PNGE graduates for their pursuit of excellence and for achievements that advance their profession. The award was established in 1997 to honor the 50-year career of C. Drew Stahl, a legendary professor and mentor who inspired generations of students. Martin and his wife, Patricia, also support the Martin and Patricia Craighead Family Trustee Scholarship in PNGE.
Other representatives from Baker Hughes attending the event included Roy Borkhoche (Class of 2010; bachelor of science degree in PNGE), strategic integration engineer; Jennifer Cutaia, managing director, government relations; Ghazal Izadi (Class of 2012; doctorate in energy and mineral engineering), requirements definition document engineer; Dmitry Kuzovenkov, vice president, health safety and environment; and Mario Ruscev, vice president and chief technology officer.