New name for earthquake center

Beginning tomorrow, the National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (NCEER), headquartered at UB, will become the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research, a national center of excellence in advanced technology applications.

The change was approved earlier this month by President William R. Greiner and the National Science Foundation (NSF), which is the center's founding sponsor.

The change in name also will include the center's Information Service, which will now be called the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research Information Service.

"This new name," said George C. Lee, Samuel P. Capen Professor of Engineering and director of the center, "emphasizes what we feel is the key to our success-past, present and future-the integration of diverse disciplines to solve engineering and societal problems caused by earthquakes. In the months and years ahead, the center seeks to increase multidisciplinary participation by further engaging manufacturers, practitioners and government officials to assist in the research and application processes," he added. "Our hope is that the new name will help encourage this collaboration." The new name and logo will be phased in over the next few months.

The need for a change in name became apparent last fall when NSF expanded its national earthquake research program by establishing two new earthquake engineering research centers in addition to the one at UB. These include the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center, headquartered at the University of California at Berkeley, and the Mid-America Earthquake Center, headquartered at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

The $10 million grant the center received last fall from NSF supports a program to study the application of advanced technologies to minimize earthquake damage and losses nationwide.