Colleges, Business Find Strength in Numbers
Published Apr 15, 2007
Life science chemist Roxana Martinez works in her lab at Evident Technologies, which partnered with Russell Sage College in a venture.
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts – a simple concept, but one that Tech Valley entities believe will hold true as they come together to launch new programming.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is in the process of creating the world’s most powerful university-based supercomputing center in partnership with the State of New York, IBM and other corporate collaborators.
John Kolb, chief information officer at Rensselaer, says the need for the Computational Center for Nanotechnology Innovations (CCNI), which will be among the top 10 in the world when it opens in March 2007, is to combat the “tyranny of scales.”
In some ways the nanotech industry has become a victim of its own success. Technology has rapidly improved processing speeds, but miniaturization has gotten to a point where new methods will be needed to extract further functionality.
“Now you’re dealing with materials at an atomic or molecular level, so the design rules for this industry have changed dramatically,” explains Kolb. “It is very exciting working on this in terms of trying to define where the next generation of this industry is going to go.”
Staying ahead of the curve is clearly beneficial to partner IBM, which has made its reputation embracing innovation. The promise of the center also represents a powerful economic driver to the state, which is why Sen. Joseph Bruno has been a leading advocate.
“I don’t think this center gets started at all without the partnership. You need what the different entities can bring to the table,” says Kolb.
In Troy, Evident Technologies has partnered with Russell Sage College to launch the Incubator for Nanotechnology Ventures, Emerging Sciences and Technologies (INVEST). The first of its kind nationally to be housed at a women’s college, the incubator is expected to create a classic win/win situation for the partners, students, entrepreneurs and region.
Dr. Jeanne Neff, president of The Sage Colleges, says Evident Technologies will occupy the entire space – about 10,000 square feet – for the first several years, and then the incubator will open up to other companies. Evident, a leader in quantum dot product development, has already begun collaborating with faculty and students on a variety of levels.
“They will be actively involved in helping us create nanoscience applications throughout our curriculum,” says Neff.
Clint Ballinger, CEO for Evident Technologies, agrees, noting that one of the benefits of being on a smaller campus is the amount of “face time” with faculty, staff and students.
“We hope to help foster entrepreneurship on campus,” he says.
The new facility also helps fill a need for lab space and offers the opportunity to actively promote the sciences among women. With a little more than 40 percent of Evident’s scientific staff being women, the company is leading by example and providing hands-on experience to Russell students by hiring interns.
“The students are learning about science in real world terms,” says Neff. “‘What can science do for the world?’ I think that is a motivating factor for any scientist and certainly for women.”
Story by Cindy Sanders
Photo by Wes Aldridge
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