Clemson opens Advanced Materials Innovation Complex

Clemson University celebrated the official opening of what the school says is South Carolina’s most technologically advanced research facility, the 150,000-square-foot Advanced Materials Innovation Complex.

The new building sits in the center of campus and provides classrooms and labs that support the university’s three core advanced materials departments: materials science and engineering, chemistry, and chemical and biomolecular engineering.

The three departments have historically been housed in separate spaces scattered across the main campus and satellite campuses around the Upstate, according to a news release. The complex centralizes materials science-related classes, offices and labs into a sweeping new space designed to promote multidisciplinary research and education and to solidify South Carolina as a major player in the advanced materials industry.

Advanced materials are created by manipulating substances at an atomic level, creating new, purpose-built materials with enhanced properties like strength, conductivity and responsiveness that outperform naturally occurring materials, the release stated. These materials have become crucial to high-tech industries such as aerospace, electronics and health care. In South Carolina alone, the advanced materials industry accounted for 5,800 job announcements and $1.7 billion in capital investment announcements from 2017-25, according to the state Department of Commerce.

The building includes a 140-person auditorium and wood tables and benches made from trees that once grew on the spot, which was dominated by a parking lot. It is at the corner of Williamson Road and S. Palmetto Boulevard, uphill from Memorial stadium.

The university recently announced that Kyocera AVX recently donated $1 million to the project, and the lobby will bear the company’s name.

Headquartered in Fountain Inn, Kyocera AVX has a longstanding relationship with Clemson through research, workforce development and student initiatives. The company’s investment supports the growth of regional innovation ecosystems and technological development. The company is a global manufacturer of advanced electronic components engineered to accelerate technological innovation.

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