May 23, 2023

New Lab Facilities at the Dickinson Research Extension Center

Chris Augustin – Director, Dickinson Research Extension Center 701-456-1103 Chris.augustin@ndsu.edu

Happy Tuesday everyone! I am excited to report that on May 17, 2023 construction began (Figure 1) on the new agricultural research lab/shop at the Dickinson Research Extension Center. This 75 by 100-foot building will greatly improve our outputs and further help the people we serve. The current agronomy lab is not climate controlled; the new lab/shop will be. When we prepare research trials in the winter, we are strategic and pick warm afternoons to work in the building. Subsequently, when processing grain samples throughout August and early September, we conduct those tasks as early as 5am to beat the heat. We collaborate with the NDSU Animal Science Department on cattle genetics. This will improve safety and allow us to better handle and prepare collected blood samples for analysis. Cleaning and drying space for forage and grain samples will increase. The enhanced drying system is more efficient and will improve analysis. Our current shop facility is quite small and can house equipment up to the size of a pickup. Maintenance on the plot combine, plot planter, and more are done outside or in a machine shed. The new agricultural facility will improve our ability to better fix, maintain, and fabricate plot research equipment.   This lab will increase our output by enhancing safety and comfort. I am confident that will improve retention and recruitment of the DREC team. This will ultimately help us better meet our charge and mission. This building would not be possible without the support of our local legislators, commodity organizations, and farmers/ranchers we serve. Thank you everyone for your help! This will be a field day stop during our agronomy tour on July 13. Construction updates will be posted on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/DickinsonREC/

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