The UNC Charlotte Department of Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Science welcomed Dr. Caitlyn Clarkson from Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility today for a Spring 2026 seminar that gave our faculty and students a front-row seat to some genuinely exciting applied materials science.
Dr. Clarkson’s talk, “Large Scale Additive Manufacturing of Biobased and Biodegradable Precast Concrete Tooling,” explored how large-scale additive manufacturing (LSAM), a material extrusion process, can be extended beyond its traditional role in low-volume, high-precision concrete formwork into high-volume applications like manholes, catch basins, curbs, and pavers.
After the seminar, Dr. Clarkson joined us for a tour of two of the department’s core research facilities: the Center for Additive Manufacturing of Advanced Ceramics and the Center for Precision Metrology. The conversations that flowed through both labs reflected exactly what makes visits like this valuable. Shared technical interests, cross-institutional curiosity, and the kind of collegial exchange that doesn’t fit neatly into a conference poster session.
We are grateful to Dr. Clarkson for making the trip to Charlotte and for sharing her work so generously with our community. The intersection of advanced manufacturing, sustainable materials, and real-world infrastructure challenges is a rich space, and today’s seminar reminded us why it matters.