COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Guy Fipps, professor and agricultural engineer with the Texas Cooperative Extension Service, has been named the director of the Irrigation Technology Center.
The ITC was created by The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents in 2002 as a center of the Texas Water Resources Institute at the university.
“Guy Fipps is a dedicated professional with great expertise in irrigation engineering; he will bring outstanding leadership to the ITC and its important programs,” said Ed Hiler, vice chancellor for agriculture and life sciences at Texas A&M.
The goal of the ITC is to reduce waste in agricultural and landscape irrigation by helping the irrigation industry become more efficient, developing design and performance standards, developing a testing and equipment performance verification program, researching the most effective irrigation techniques, and educating industry and consumers about best irrigation practices.
As ITC director, Fipps will be responsible for implementing and expanding existing ITC programs in irrigation, as well as designing the testing laboratories and training facilities as part of a new, 500-acre center planned for the San Antonio area. He will also work with stakeholders in raising the funds needed to construct and operate the ITC.
Current programs Fipps oversees include the Texas A&M School of Irrigation, the irrigation district engineering and assistance program, Texas ET Network and Website, and international training programs.
Plans are under way to develop a turf and groundwater experimental site in San Antonio as the first ITC facilities.
Fipps earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University, and master’s and doctoral degrees from North Carolina State University.
He is a member of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, American Society of Civil Engineers, U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, American Geophysical Union; Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association, Texas Turf Irrigation Association. He is also a Registered Professional Engineer.
