In our State-of-the-Art Spaces series, we’ll show you academic spaces all over the Colorado State University campus that boast unique features and technology to enhance learning, allow students to engage in hands-on experiences, and more. Get an inside look at CSU’s state-of-the-art spaces now.
CSU’s Engineering Manufacturing Education Center (often called the EMEC by engineering students) is a large lab dedicated to learning the machines and technology involved in manufacturing parts from metals like steel, aluminum, brass, and more. The lab holds multiple precision metal turners, various metal mills, and includes a foundry, where students can learn how to cast their own custom designs in molten metals. The lab also includes a CNC (computer numeric control) machine, which can take a solid block of metal and copy/carve it into any 3D item. This is especially useful for creating metal tools or parts that might not be possible to make on a mill or lathe. The EMEC is also one of the largest mechanical engineering labs in Colorado, drawing in students who already know the benefits of getting undergraduate access and experience in a large mechanical lab.
- Who studies here: Mechanical Engineering majors primarily use the lab; in special circumstances, majors from other engineering departments will come in (with approval and prior machinery training.) Because the machinery is dangerous and complex, the lab is not open to the greater campus. One class that spends a large amount of time in the lab is a second-year mechanical engineering course called Introduction to Manufacturing Processes, where students learn the basics of metal turning, milling, casting, and the safe use of each machine in the lab.
- Built: 1957 with updates in 1966, 1980, 1999
- Location: North/central area of campus, next to the Lory Student Center. See map for exact location.
