SCHUMER ANNOUNCES, FOLLOWING HIS PUSH, RIT HAS RECEIVED MORE THAN $1 MILLION IN FED FUNDING TO CONTINUE MODERNIZING MLITARY EQUIPMENT FOR U.S. TROOPS; INVESTMENT IS PART OF GROUNDBREAKING PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN RIT AND DEPT. OF DEFENSE

In July 2014, Schumer Announced RIT Would Receive Up To $2.1 Million for Work Rehabbing & Upgrading Navy Equipment – Grant Kept 10-Year Public-Private Partnership Between RIT & DOD 

Now, RIT Will Receive More Than $1 Million in 2015 Additional Funding to Continue Equipment Modernizing Program – Schumer Led the Effort to Partner RIT, a Leading Global Research Facility, With Navy to Upgrade Military Equipment for Troops 

Schumer: Grant Ensures RIT Can Continue Groundbreaking Defense Department Work, Add Jobs, and Keep Dedicated Service Men and Women Safe

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that the U.S. Navy will award $1,028,000 from the FY2015 omnibus bill funding to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) to research and develop ways to rehabilitate and upgrade equipment for military personnel. This investment is part of a larger $2.2 million grant awarded to RIT in a broader ten-year public-private partnership between the university and the Department of Defense. With this funding, RIT will be able to add scientists, engineers and researchers onto a research team that has already made progress in improving the equipment used by the dedicated members of the United States military. Schumer played an integral role in forming this partnership and said this will allow RIT to continue conducting cutting-edge research and develop innovative ways to protect troops.

“The partnership between RIT and the Department of Defense is a win-win that allows one of our country’s great research institutions to develop groundbreaking technology to protect the dedicated men and women protecting the freedoms and liberties we hold so dear,” said Schumer. “This funding means the continuation of a program that brings good-paying, high-tech jobs to the Finger Lakes area and ensures Rochester will remain a global leader in developing military equipment. This strategic partnership serves both the Rochester community and the dedicated men and women who protect our country every day, and I will make sure it continues for years to come.”

RIT President William Destler said, “Senator Schumer has been a staunch advocate of RIT’s research program with the Navy from the very beginning and this award is a critical milestone for this important work.    Extending the life of critical defense systems through remanufacturing technologies has long been a focus of RIT’s Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies.   There is no doubt that the work of Dr. Nasr’s team has saved lives and millions of dollars for the Navy and the Department of Defense.  We are honored and proud to be able to serve our nation’s needs in this way, and very appreciative of Senator Schumer’s confidence and support.”

Schumer has played a leading role in bringing RIT and the Department of Defense together. In January 2014 Schumer announced the recently passed FY2014 omnibus funding bill would include a research contract for RIT with the Navy. Schumer said he had personally asked the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps and the Director of the Office of Naval Research to support a multimillion dollar strategic investment in RIT to allow scientist and engineers to develop new ways to rehabilitate and improve military equipment. Schumer’s request was granted and a ten-year public-private partnership between RIT and the Department of Defense began. The work will be overseen by Dr. Nabil Nasr, Associate Provost and Director of the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at RIT. Dr. Nasr and his team are industry leaders in discovering new ways to extend the life of military equipment and technology.

Prior to this, Schumer was integral in securing funding for the Department of Defense to build a state-of-the-art research lab at RIT to work on defense modernization and sustainment initiatives. RIT developed cost-effective ways to rehab and upgrade military equipment to ensure the equipment could last longer. Collectively, these initiatives represent a major investment by the defense community in Rochester and will bring jobs and technology to the region.

###