Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 13 O C T O B E R 1 9 , 2 0 1 5 Head of UMaine composite research center honored Habib Dagher, founding director of the University of Maine's Advanced Structures and Composites Center, was recognized Oct. 13 by the White House as one of the nation's top transportation innovators. Dagher, the primary inventor of the award-win- ning composite arch bridge system, known as the Bridge-in-a-Backpack, was honored with 10 other transpor- tation innovators. e bridge system uses composite arch tubes that can be rolled up and fi t into a bag. e tubes are infl ated and bent over a mold and then infused with a resin, resulting in a lightweight curved hollow arch twice as strong as steel, according to the university. e arch, which can be lifted into place by two people, is then fi lled with concrete. e univer- sity has licensed the composite arch bridge technology to a private start- up company, Advanced Infrastructure Technologies, which has designed and built 18 such bridges in the United States so far. e university's Advanced Structures and Composites Center, founded in 1996, is a research center dedicated to the development of advanced composite materials, technologies and structures. It has 180 full- and part-time employees and students, making it the largest STEM-based research center at a Maine university. N O T E W O R T H Y N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N Daigle Oil Co. in Fort Kent has transi- tioned from a privately held company to a 100% employee-owned company through an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP. The company, founded in 1955, has retail gas stations in Madawaska, Fort Kent, Caribou, Presque Isle, Houlton, Lincoln and Bangor. It also delivers a variety of heating options to customers in north- ern and central Maine. Murray's Lock Service Inc. opened a location at 71 Center St. in Brewer. The Maine Department of Economic and Community Development awarded the town of Dover-Foxcroft a $240,000 grant on behalf of GLOBEco Maine, a new manufacturing company that pro- duces a wood-fi ber cleaning cloth. Sutherland Weston Marketing Communications in Bangor merged with Cashman Communications in Bangor. Consulting Engineers and Scientists Contact Nick Sabatine at the idea-stage: Contact Nick Sabatine at the idea-stage: nsabatine@ransomenv.com \\ 207-772-2891 \\ www.RansomEnv.com D E V E L O P M E N T \ \ D U E D I L I G E N C E D U E D I L I G E N C E \ \ E N V I R O N M E N TA L H E A LT H & S A F E T Y E N V I R O N M E N TA L H E A LT H & S A F E T Y E N V I R O N M E N TA L H E A LT H & S A F E T Y \ \ M U N I C I P A L \ \ U T I L I T Y, E N E R G Y & M A N U F A C T U R I N G U T I L I T Y, E N E R G Y & M A N U F A C T U R I N G Revitalizing and Protecting Our Coastline F R O M C O A S T A L E N G I N E E R I N G T O R E D E V E L O P M E N T WI S CASS ET I S LE S B O R O STO N I N GTO N

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