The Transportation Research Center near Honda facilities northwest of Columbus has broken ground on a new laboratory to test vehicle safety.
The new lab is funded in part by a $24-million state grant and will be located on the center's campus in East Liberty between Marysville and Bellefontaine.
The new 66,000-square-foot Impact Laboratory will develop and test car safety features, determining how safe the next generation of vehicles is, including electronic and autonomous vehicles.
“Our current impact lab is aging,” said president and CEO of the TRC, Brett Roubinek. “It's 40 years old now. As it ages, we're not able to take advantage of the technology to deliver the fidelity of testing and data that's required not only for tomorrow but for 10 years from now as vehicles and transportation is developed.”
The center expects that its workforce will expand once construction is finished in about three years. The center currently employs 500 engineers and other specialists.
“This is an investment, a long term investment by the state of Ohio because it's being funded by one time funds that the legislature made available to us in the long term future,” Roubinek said about the funding.
“We are the place in the United States where the federal government comes to test, auto manufacturers come to test, technology companies come to test, anybody in the supply chain comes to test,” he said.
In the past, the Transportation Research Center has helped develop technologies for airbags, anti-locking brakes, and adaptive cruise control. Recently, TRC also has developed testing facilities for the development of self-driving cars.