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Sponsored by: University of Connecticut
Updated: September 1, 2019 Doing Business in Connecticut 2019

UConn’s Partnerships, Innovation Stretch Across the State

| Digital Media & Design/UConn Photo | Students from across Connecticut attended a November ConnectNext speaker event at UConn Stamford with Eric Urquhart, senior matte painter, from Blue Sky Studios.
| Nathan Oldham/UConn Photo | Radenka Maric, vice president for research

UConn is home to some of the most active and innovative researchers in the world. Across all of UConn’s campuses, scientists, scholars, and artists are working on projects that will help our state, society, economy, and the world.

“As the state’s flagship public research university, we recognize that we play a critical role in economic and workforce development across Connecticut and beyond,” says Radenka Maric, vice president for research. “To achieve this, we work alongside our industry partners, and we are responsive to their needs. Technology is advancing at a pace we have never before seen, and together we are making leaps and bounds to keep up and get ahead.”

The Innovation Partnership Building (IPB) at UConn Tech Park is evidence of what can be achieved through committed collaboration from industry, academic, and government leaders. In operation since 2017, the IPB officially opened in September of last year. The University’s premier center for cutting-edge research and industry collaboration, the IPB provides technological assistance to businesses of all sizes – from startups to global corporations – helping them develop novel approaches to real-world problems and find next generation solutions. 

IPB partners have invested more than $80 million for research projects in a variety of sectors, such as cybersecurity, aerospace, additive manufacturing, and biomedical devices. Coupled with specialized instrumentation valued at over $40 million and “dream teams” of industry-academic scientists, you have a recipe for scientific breakthroughs that fuel Connecticut’s economy, job creation, and new venture development. 

The IPB has three core research spaces: an advanced characterization lab with 13 electron microscopes, an advanced additive manufacturing center, and flexible space for tenant wet/dry labs that currently houses a cutting-edge cybersecurity research center, a Proof of Concept Center, and a Manufacturing Simulation Center. 

“The facility is unparalleled in the region, and boasts some of the most unique research capabilities in the country all under one roof,” says Pamir Alpay, IPB executive director. “To date, ten research centers funded by industry leaders like United Technologies Corp., Eversource, and Comcast are operating at the IPB, with more on the horizon.” 

Collaborations like these can have a big impact on the state and national economies. Between 1996 and 2015, university innovations contributed $591 billion to U.S. gross domestic product and supported over 4 million jobs. Tech transfer experts within UConn’s Office of the Vice President for Research add to this figure by facilitating the transformation of UConn technologies into products and services that benefit patients, industry, and society.

To take a holistic approach to innovations means working across disciplines, business sectors, and regions. A new partnership between UConn and Innovate Stamford aims to provide a platform of new programs that will strengthen the city’s position as a leader in technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. A key objective of the collaboration is to extend UConn’s Technology Incubation Program (TIP) to include a fully-fledged physical incubator in Stamford. 

TIP currently has two primary locations in Storrs and at UConn Health. TIP’s proximity to world-class researchers and colleagues from The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine (JAX) in Farmington make it a hub for entrepreneurial activity that bolsters promising businesses in the life sciences. 

The ecosystem TIP supports helps attract startups to or keeps them in the state, and fuels potential economic growth in a variety of fields. The program connects entrepreneurs with internationally recognized faculty experts and provides access to research infrastructure and specialized equipment that can only be found at a top research institution like UConn. 

Add to this the customized business support services and pool of talented graduates who can become future employees, and you can see how invaluable TIP’s offerings are for a startup getting off the ground.