Oregon BEST E-news Masthead
JANUARY 2013          
 
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In This Issue...
Recycling Wooden Pallets into Insulated Building Blocks
Agenda Development Series Takes Off! Feb 1 Event: "Occupant Behavior"
Two Solar Technologies Nab Oregon BEST Grants
Oregon BEST Support Advances Wave Energy
Sen. Ron Wyden's New Role
Have PV Panels, Will Travel!
Obama Appoints Oregon BEST Researcher
Oregon BEST Researchers Make Headlines

Oregon BEST Commercialization Grants



Funding Opportunities
Upcoming
Events
January 27-29, 2013 

Join leading innovators and clean energy pioneers from the agriculture, forestry, economic development and utility industries to better understand opportunities in biomass/biofuels, wind power, solar, geothermal, and small hydro. Includes financing, technical expertise, and partnership opportunities. Corvallis, OR

  

January 31 - February 1, 2013 

Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference 

Keynote Speaker: David Kenney of Oregon BEST. Colleges and universities have a responsibility to investigate societal challenges, test drive potential solutions, and serve as the shepherds of a sustainable future. Join campus professionals, faculty, and students for two days of dialogue, networking, and training. Portland

  

February 1 

The potential for behavior of occupants to either exceed or derail the efficiency efforts of a buildings' design is widely recognized. This Forum will focus on what new understanding is necessary to move from recognition to effective action in the design and retrofit of the built environment. Join practitioners from across the Pacific NW (through our partnership with the Pacific NW Hub of the Garrison Institute's Climate Mind and Behavior program) and faculty experts from the Oregon University System. Portland, OR. Register here.    

February 25-27 

The premier event dedicated to transformative energy solutions, this event brings together thought leaders from academia, business, and government to discuss cutting-edge energy issues and facilitate relationships to help move technologies into the marketplace. The Summit's strategic combination of leaders makes it the perfect forum for developing energy solutions that will enable America to out-innovate its global competitors. Washington, DC

  
March 1
(Call for Papers deadline)

2013 IEEE Conference on Technologies for Sustainability: Engineering & the Environment 

What can we do to develop new products and processes that may need or use resources, but are more sustainable in the long run? The goal of this conference is to explore the development and application of technology in alternative energy, energy efficiency, electric vehicles, smart grid, electronic materials, and quality of life. Papers solicited for both oral and poster presentations from industry, government, and academia (including students) covering relevant research, technologies, methodologies, tools and case studies. Conference is August 1-2 in Portland, OR in conjunction with the 2013 IEEE-USA Annual Meeting.

  

March 7-8

Oregon Wood Innovation Center's "Innovation Days" 

Learn about cutting-edge wood technologies during Oregon State University's first Innovation Days conference. Day One includes dinner, meetings with students in OSU's new Renewable Materials Program, and address by Forestry Dean Thomas Maness. Day Two features seminars on topics such as wood modification (with Oregon BEST researcher Fred Kamke), cross-laminated timber, as well as company case studies, and tours of OSU's Wood Science and Engineering lab. Corvallis, OR 

  

March 15 

(Call for Papers Deadline)  

2013 International Wood Composites Symposium 

An industry-driven forum for producers, suppliers, and researchers to focus on competing demands and opportunities in the wood composites industry. Topics include the latest developments in: fiber, particle, and strand composites; plywood, veneer, and engineered wood products; and wood-polymer composite materials. Symposium is April 3-4 in Seattle, WA.

  

March 20-11, 2013 

University Startups Conference 2013 

This 7th annual event is a unique best practices conference series dedicated exclusively to creating and funding globally-competitive, venture-backable university startups. It brings together universities creating startups with VCs, angel investors, SBIR program managers, and Fortune 500 technology scouts. Also includes NSF, NIH, NIST, DOD, DOE, DHS and other government agencies working on improving the Innovation Economy by increasing the quality and quantity of startups coming out of universities. Includes the new 100 Best University Startups Showcase. Washington, DC

  

April 11

Southern Oregon Angel Conference 

An angel-investor-driven business plan competition, where a lucky start-up company will win an estimated $125,000 investment from a network of regional accredited investors. Attendees include entrepreneurs, investors, venture capitalists, community/civic leaders, state officials, and service providers from across Oregon. Jacksonville, OR  


April 17
 

OEN Angel Oregon Conference 

For entrepreneurs, investors, and networkers alike, OEN's Angel Oregon is where breakthrough ideas are nurtured, new markets are discovered, and invaluable business connections are made. 

  

May 9
Application Deadline: Feb. 14 

Willamette Angel Conference 

An investor conference that connects early-stage and seed businesses with angel and venture investors. Entrepreneurs and start-ups can submit a business plan for review and coaching, ultimately vying for an investment of up to $200,000. Corvallis, OR    

 

May 15-17

Living Future unConference 

Resilience & Regeneration is this year's theme. Finalists for the Oregon BEST Red List Design Challenge will be announced! Seattle, WA.  

 

More About
Oregon BEST 
Oregon BEST Researchers

Oregon BEST in the News

Oregon BEST Sustainable Built Environment Shared-User Research Network

Oregon BEST Solar Energy Shared-User Research Network

Oregon BEST Sustainable Built Environment Research Consortium

Oregon BEST Commercialization Program 


CONTACT US

 Oregon BEST
P.O. Box 212
Portland, OR 97207
Tel. 503-725-9849




Executive Director's Report

A New Year, Expanded Horizons... 
 
David Kenney portraitGreetings!
 

We're kicking off 2013 with lots of enthusiasm about the future. 2012 was another great year here at Oregon BEST, and I'd like to say thank you to our many stakeholders for tremendous engagement and support. We ratified a new 3-year Strategic Plan last spring that broadened our technology scope to fully embrace a wide range of clean technologies, while also ensuring that we are laser focused on the research and commercialization activities that will drive new products and services into the marketplace.

 
Here are some 2012 highlights:

  • We announced seven commercialization grants totaling nearly $800,000. Our first four grant awardees from 2011 have attracted $1.8 million in follow-on private investments and federal grants and added employees.
  • We provided matching fund commitments to 19 Member Faculty research proposals. This program has played a role in bringing more than $16 million in research funding to our university partners since 2008.
  • We brought together a diverse group of speakers and attendees in September for our 4th Oregon BEST FEST, showcasing university research, Oregon cleantech startups, and collaboration opportunities for industry partners, researchers, and others.

What's ahead for 2013?

  • More commercialization grants, each using university expertise, facilities, or intellectual property to accelerate the time-to-market for Oregon companies. We'll be announcing more soon and have a great pipeline of promising projects.
  • Plans for a fantastic Oregon BEST FEST '13 are well underway!
  • The finalists in our Red List Design Challenge will be announced in May at the Living Future unConference, with the winner  announced at Oregon BEST FEST in September.
  • Look for announcements of new program activities that will leverage our university relationships and expertise in clean technology commercialization.

We hope you'll join us as we work to make 2013 a great year for clean technology research and commercialization! 

 

David Kenney, President & Executive Director

Oregon BEST


Pallets into Insulated Building Blocks
Oregon BEST grant helps Oregon company expand

  

Tom Van Denand of ShelterWorks A commercialization grant from Oregon BEST is helping an Oregon manufacturer of insulated building blocks made from recycled wooden pallets and cement expand sales into the commercial construction market.

 

Tom Van Denend (right) of ShelterWorks, Ltd. (which operates from a former lumber mill site in Philomath, Ore.) says the funding is timely and will help his company tap seismic research expertise and tools at Portland State University's infraStructure Testing & Applied Research (iSTAR) Lab (one of Oregon BEST's signature research facilities). The project, led by Oregon BEST researcher and PSU professor Peter Dusicka, will generate data that engineers and developers can use to more easily engineer the alternative building material into commercial building plans. Full story.

 
Agenda Development Series Takes Off!

Third Forum in Series (Occupant Behavior) set for Feb. 1  

Agenda Development Series logo Oregon BEST's recently launched Agenda Development Series, which brings together industry leaders to articulate research priorities in a given interest area of the design and construction sector, is seeing growing interest and success.

The agendas generated from previous forums in the Series are now available online, and the third forum, "Occupant Behavior" takes place on Friday, February 1st in Portland. Register now.

Two Solar Technologies Win Grants

Two solar energy innovation teams awarded Oregon BEST grants 

 

SunCooler installation on rooftop

Two Oregon startups with two different solar energy technologies have been awarded Oregon BEST Commercialization Grants. Both companies are working with Oregon BEST faculty. 

 

The manufacturer of a solar powered rooftop ventilator that can be used on commercial buildings ranging from poultry barns and modular classrooms to big-box stores and military bases is partnering with Oregon BEST researcher Sean Sloan and students at Oregon Tech in Klamath Falls, Ore. The collaboration will generate key data that will enable Northwest Renewable Energy Corporation to access new markets for its SunCooler Destratifyer (pictured above). Full story

 

Inspired Light logo Corvallis, Ore.-based startup, Inspired Light is developing a solar energy system capable of harvesting about 50 percent more energy per square foot of rooftop space on commercial buildings than conventional systems. Led by Frank Cloutier (considered the father of Hewlett-Packard's inkjet printing technology), the company is working with Oregon BEST researcher and OSU professor Chih-Hung Chang at the Oregon Process Innovation Center for Sustainable Solar Cell Manufacturing, one of Oregon BEST's signature research facilities. Full story


Oregon BEST Support for Wave Energy
Program helps leverage funds for test facility at Newport

 

PMEC illustration Oregon BEST is pleased that our Proposal Matching Program played a key role in helping secure $4 million from the U.S. Dept. of Energy for the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, or NNMREC.

 

Based at Oregon State University, NNMREC recently selected Newport, Ore., as the future site of the Pacific Marine Energy Center (PMEC), the first utility-scale, grid-connected wave energy test site in the U.S. 

 

When complete, the four-berth PMEC will be capable of simultaneously testing energy generation potential and environmental impacts of four different wave energy devices at a site five miles off shore. Submerged cables will transmit power from the devices to the local power grid and data to scientists and engineers at on-shore facilities. Full story

 
Sen. Wyden's New Energy Role

Oregon Senator to chair Committee on Energy & Natural Resources   
Sen. Ron Wyden Oregon BEST extends our congratulations to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden on his appointment as the new Chair of the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources. Wyden takes the gavel from New Mexico Democrat Jeff Bingaman, who retired at the end of the year.

This powerful Senate Committee oversees four subcommittees: Energy, Water & Power, National Parks, and Public Lands & Forests. We look forward to working with Sen. Wyden in his new role. Read The Oregonian column.


Have PV Panels, Will Travel!

UO lab helps test solar panels making way around country 

   

PV test array

A rooftop at the University of Oregon is now home to an array of 14 different photovoltaic modules that will stay on the roof for 14 months before moving on to the next test location in the nation.  

 

Oregon BEST's Proposal Matching Program helped bring the project to the UO. 

 

"The purpose of this monitoring is to provide stringent tests for PV models and to see if models work as accurately in different locations around the country," says Oregon BEST researcher Frank Vignola, who directs the Solar Radiation Monitoring Laboratory at the UO. "We will be introducing spectral measurements that were not used at the previous solar monitoring site, so this information will provide a more stringent test and produce better future models of PV performance."


President Obama Appoints Researcher

Oregon BEST Member Faculty to advise Congress on NSF, Education 

 

Geri Richmond President Obama has appointed Oregon BEST researcher and University of Oregon chemistry professor Geri Richmond to a six-year term on the National Science Board.

The 25-member board not only sets policies and approves programs for the National Science Foundation, but also advises the president and Congress on science and engineering policy and education.  

Richmond, who specializes in chemistry, materials science, and chemical reactions on liquid surfaces, co-founded the Committee on the Advancement of Women Chemists (COACh), an organization that provides mentoring and support to women scientists around the world. Full story

 
From better EV batteries to wave energy testing to medical sensors the size of postage stamps...
 
Oregon BEST Researchers IN THE NEWS...
  
Shannon Boettcher OSU's David Ji ��� Assistant professors of chemistry SHANNON BOETTCHER at the UO and DAVID JI at OSU are involved in a $1.6M project funded by ARPA-E to develop batteries for electric vehicles that could charge within minutes. More.


Evan Thomas, PSU ��� EVAN THOMAS, a professor in PSU's Maseeh College of Engineering & Computer Science, continues his international work leading PSU spin-off SweetSense,which develops and installs remote monitoring systems in developing nations to wirelessly measure flow rates of water pumps, cookstove efficiency, latrine use, and more. More.


Cindy Cooper, PSUMateo Aboy, Oregon Tech��� CINDY COOPER, director of the Social Innovation Incubator at PSU, and MATEO ABOY, associate professor of electrical engineering at Oregon Tech, have been selected by the Portland Business Journal as two of publication's "Forty Under 40" awardees. More.


Patrick Chiang, OSU
���  PATRICK CHIANG, a professor in the OSU School of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, and colleagues have developed a new technology to monitor medical vital signs with sophisticated sensors so small and cheap they could fit onto a bandage, be manufactured in high volumes, and cost less than a quarter. More.

 
Johanna Brickman, Oregon BEST ��� JOHANNA BRICKMAN, manager of Oregon BEST's Sustainable Built Environment Program, sheds new light on an old but hidden problem: the ubiquity of toxic chemicals embedded in many of the materials used in our indoor environment, including halogenated flame retardants. More in Metropolis Magazine.



Ted Brekken, OSU ��� TED BREKKEN, a professor in the OSU School of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, is helping Oregon's coastal communities like Coos Bay work through issues that arise when plans call for installing wind turbines. He's also helping residents understand the obstacles to installing residential wind turbines in urban environments. More.



Belinda Batten
��� BELINDA BATTEN, a professor of mechanical engineering at OSU and director of the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center has been in the news a lot lately (including a Weather Channel video, below), as Oregon continues to be the national leader in wave energy innovation. Watch video.

Weather Channel Video  
The nexus for clean technology innovation, Oregon BEST builds capability, convenes collaborations, and accelerates the solutions to environmental challenges that deliver prosperity in all corners of Oregon. Our founding partner universities include Oregon State University, the Oregon Institute of Technology, Portland State University, and the University of Oregon.

Oregon BEST � PO Box 212 � Portland, OR 97207-0212
Tel. 503-725-9849 � On the web: oregonbest.org