The University of Oklahoma Research Campus has been named the nation’s top research park for 2013 by the Association of University Research Parks. The award recognizes the OU Research Campus for excellence in innovation and places it among such past recipients as the Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, Purdue Research Park in Indiana and University City Science Center in Pennsylvania.
“The University is honored to receive this prestigious award,” said OU President David L. Boren. “It is a great tribute to the strength of our research faculty, staff and students at OU.”
The Association made the announcement at the AURP 2013 International Conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, today. The 18th Annual AURP Awards of Excellence recognize the achievements of outstanding research parks and industry veterans and encourages the development of best practices among research and science parks.
"AURP recognizes exceptional leadership in innovation by honoring university research parks, individuals and companies who are driving innovation in their communities," said AURP President David Baker. "Among this year's AURP Awards of Excellence recipients, we are proud to name the University of Oklahoma Research Campus the 2013 AURP Outstanding Research Park."
In less than a decade, the 277-acre OU Research Campus has been transformed from an empty field to a thriving economic engine shaped by a community of public- and private sector collaborations located in nearly 1 million square feet of occupied space representing $300 million in investment. Today, the Research Campus brings together 1700 workers across academic, federal, state and industrial organizations in a mutually beneficial environment.
The National Weather Center, a 257,000 square-foot facility that opened in 2006, anchors the OU Research Campus on the south. The Center houses both academic and federal groups dedicated to forecasting, research and training. The 260,000 square-foot Stephenson Research complex houses cutting-edge research in fields including robotics, genomics, bioengineering and the OU Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, which includes a National Institutes of Health-funded structural biology program. A series of five “Partners Place” buildings, totaling 362,000 square-feet, enable the public and private sector collaboration on weather and radar research; innovation and entrepreneurship; and water, climate, and energy. Additionally, a 35,000 square-foot “one of a kind” Radar Innovations Laboratory is scheduled to open in 2014.
For more information about the OU Research Campus, visit http://urc.ou.edu or if you are interested in collaborating with OU, contact the OU Corporate Engagement Office at http://ceo.ou.edu or 405-325-4625.
About AURP
AURP is a professional association of university related research and science parks. The association’s mission is to foster innovation, commercialization and economic growth through university, industry and government partnerships. More online at www.aurp.net.
About the University of Oklahoma Research Campus
The University of Oklahoma Research Campus is a 277-acre research park located in Norman, Oklahoma, contiguous to the University’s main campus, 2.5 miles east of Interstate-35, and 20 minutes from Oklahoma City. Designated as Site Ready and an Enterprise Zone, the Campus optimizes State economic incentives while enabling rapid development by acting as its own municipality. Key site attributes include redundant power, communications, and environmental control systems; support for 24x7 operations; On site Fire and Police Departments; 6500 tons of chilled water, an 8” gas feed, and 16 megawatt power capacity; LEED certified buildings; and leading IT infrastructure including 1 GB to the desktop and 10-20 GB to the internet. The campus is ideally positioned to support university, industry, and government collaboration.
