There's Room to Grow at UTP
 
Michael Scholle

UTP gives high-tech startups a big advantage most incubators can't: the ability to grow in place.  


"Companies who come here with 2 or 3 principals often lease more space as they expand," explains UTP Director Daniel Marselle. "Usually, the extra square feet they need are right next door, so there's minimal disruption to their work."

SAMDI Tech, Inc., an early-stage company offering label-free assay solutions for drug discovery, has doubled its space since arriving in 2011, says Director of Operations and Technology Michael Scholle, MS, MBA, left"We've just welcomed Senior Director of Business Development Lisa Sanford to our team and we plan to add more people and equipment in the coming months. It's great to have the room we need right here."

Another UTP resident benefiting from flexible space: Advanced Cooling Therapy. "We've gained regulatory clearance in Europe and recently, Canada," says ACT's Erik Kulstad, MD, MS, "so we're expanding to make room for product inventory. Our company now has 2 side-by-side suites, making the moving process very straightforward while saving us the headache of changing our mailing address." ACT has received its 4th U.S. patent, 1st Chinese patent and is awaiting FDA clearance for its innovative patient temperature control system.

More about our amazing space, including lab and floor plans: universitytechnologypark.com.

Our Global Network Expands
UTP has formed a new partnership with the Toscana Life Sciences Foundation, a group of private and public institutions fostering life sciences research in the Tuscan region of Italy. As part of a 3-year agreement, UTP and TLS will partner in the joint promotion of their bio-cluster communities and the life-science-focused companies within them.

"Bio-clusters across the globe provide a natural landing place for life science companies seeking new markets," says UTP's David Baker. "This collaboration puts our companies in touch with Tuscany's life sciences community and will also benefit Northern Italian firms hoping to do business in the U.S."

TLS is the latest addition to UTP's  international network of research and science parks, incubators and innovation communities.

TLS and UTP Sign Collaboration Agreement Francesco Maria Senatore, Business Development Director at Toscana Life Sciences Foundation (left) and David Baker sign the collaboration agreement at the 2014 International Biotechnology Convention.

New Alliance with Coalition:Energy
On July 2, UTP formed a first-of-its-kind partnership with Coalition:Energy, a downtown co-working space focused on the needs of clean-tech startups. The goal is to enable energy-focused companies in both communities to share key resources.

Under the agreement, UTP companies working on clean energy concepts can use available conference rooms and working spaces at Coalition:Energy's hub, 18 S. Michigan. Coalition:Energy tenants can use available lab space and equipment at UTP in the same manner.

Participating companies will complete a 1-page agreement and provide a certificate of insurance. More about Coalition:Energy's role in fostering clean-tech innovation in Midwest Energy News.


Coalition:Energy space in Chicago's South Loop
 
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Summer 2014
IN THIS ISSUE

 We're BIG NEWS
 

Spurred by a front-page story in Crain's Chicago Business, UTP and its affiliated comanies are capturing fresh attention. UTP Executive Director David Baker recently spoke with ipTV's "Bootstrapping in America," detailing the successes of Advanced Cooling Therapy, ForeLight and others. Also featured in Crain's: Sarfaraz Niazi, founder of Therapeutic Proteins International and Daphne Preuss, the innovator behind UTP graduate Chromatin. 

Want more UTP news? Follow us on Twitter: @IIT_Tech_Park and @davidbakerchi

 

 TBC Strairs

 


$1M Grant for SiNode Systems 
 
UTP company SiNode Systems has earned a $1 million Phase 2 grant through the U.S. Department of Energy's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.

The funds will further SiNode's work on lithium-ion cells that promise to significantly enhance the energy density of standard batteries while making them lighter and less expensive. The concept may greatly boost the efficiency of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, the DOE noted in its press release, adding that SiNode's "novel silicon-graphene composite anodes use highly developed, affordable components that are compatible with current manufacturing processes."

SiNode won the Energy Department's National Clean Business Competition in 2013 and has garnered over $1 million in private financing.

"The new grant is certainly helpful, but so is the public validation of our team and our technology," says SiNode CEO Samir Mayekar. "We worked hard for this, especially in a more constrained federal funding landscape. I am proud of our persistence."
SiNode CEO Samir Mayekar
Samir Mayekar
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