Hiring begins for MSU's future physics facility

---

Tweet

When he graduated from MSU in 1968, Larry Roche hoped to return to campus one day, but he never realized his dream would come true almost 40 years after he left.

Roche works on cost engineering and scheduling for MSU’s future Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, or FRIB, something he thinks is a good fit.

“This is a lifelong dream because I never really lost my passion for MSU,” he said. “I used to walk by this tiny little building called the Cyclotron lab wondering, ‘I wonder what’s in there,’ … I had always wanted to come back and wanted to be a part of MSU in some capacity.”

FRIB will allow researchers to study isotopes, which are rare forms of atoms.

Although construction tentatively is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2012, with the facility set to begin operating in 2017, the hiring process has already begun.

In 2007, Roche accepted a job at the Cyclotron before the FRIB project and remembers working hard to make FRIB happen.

“We were all working with a lot of drive, believing in ourselves and believing that MSU was the right choice,” he said.

FRIB Project Director Thomas Glasmacher said hiring the staff is all a part of building up a project organization.

“You think it’s about staff, but it’s really about people making stuff happen,” he said. “It’s important to focus on the people.”

By the end of the hiring process, FRIB should have about 160 employees working on the project, Glasmacher said.

“It’s easier to hire talented people,” Glasmacher said. “The economy is bad and that’s not good, but it’s to our advantage right now.”

Megan Lashbrook, who graduated from MSU this past May, is a business modeler for FRIB.

She helps build the staff for FRIB and works on the implementation of a new business model, which will streamline the way business is done for the project.

Lashbrook heard about the opportunity to work on the project through an e-mail, which alerted her about the job opening.

“I jumped on the opportunity right away,” she said. “What really appealed to me was I knew that this project would be really great for the community because it’s going to be bringing in a lot of … people from all different backgrounds.”

Glasmacher said he is happy to have an excited staff that is interested in the project.

“I’m just glad that people are interested and excited about joining FRIB,” he said.

Although he plays a critical role in the project, Roche said the project team makes a difference in the success of FRIB.

“I think everybody would appreciate knowing the project is in the hands of people that really want to make it succeed,” Roche said.

---