OFFICE OF RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION NEWSLETTER | August 2007
(Volume VII, No. 2)
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OFFICE OF RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION NEWSLETTER | August 2007 |
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RESEARCH & COMMERCIALIZATION NEWS
UMSL Launches "IT Enterprises" The University of Missouri-St. Louis has purchased a 56,000 square-foot facility to house IT start-up companies and a high performance computing (HPC) center. The building, acquired in June for $2.7 million, sits across Highway 70 from the Lambert International Airport and formerly housed Incyte Genomics, Inc. (now Incyte Corporation), a Wilmington, DE, incorporated pharmaceutical company. Originally constructed as a data center for Magna Bank in 1991, the property was renovated extensively by Incyte in 2000 to include wet labs furnished with benches, sinks and hoods. IT Enterprises will serve as a catalyst for several university objectives, including research, technology transfer and economic development. The facility will provide a cross-discipline research center of excellence serving all academic and industry researchers requiring high-performance computing; a springboard for major external research funding, technology transfer activity and economic development; and an economic development engine encouraging new start-up companies in this high-growth industry, which in turn will provide high paying job opportunities for UMSL graduates and others in the field. This facility will not only provide traditional services to tenant companies, such as common conference rooms and a shared receptionist, but it will offer a state-of-the-art research center with high performance computing capabilities. The HPC Center will conduct cutting-edge R&D in collaboration with tenant companies and outside industry for the fast-growing IT sector. According to a report by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Information Technology (IT) is the fastest growing sector in the economy with a 68% increase in output growth rate projected between 2002 and 2012.” Beyond serving the IT sector, the IT Enterprises will also accommodate life sciences companies that are in need of complex bioinformatics computational capacity and expertise. The operation will carry significant educational benefits to faculty and students interested in academic research through hands-on, business problem-solving opportunities. In addition, the enterprise will serve as a testing ground for translational research in interdisciplinary centers on campus such as Center for Nanoscience and Center for Neurodynamics. The facility could generate several hundred jobs at full capacity. IT Enterprises is now available for prospective tenants to tour, and individual suites will be built out as tenants are signed up. The HPC Center will be up and running by December 2007. For more information, email Manager@ITenterprises.org. l
Senate Panel Approves Patent Reform Bill The bill's opponents include pharmaceutical, biotech and manufacturing companies, as well as technology companies that rely on licensing patents. July 19, 2007 By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER Associated Press/Forbes The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a sweeping patent reform bill (July 19) that seeks to improve patent quality and reduce the number of costly infringement lawsuits. The committee's move comes after the House Judiciary panel cleared a similar bill (July 18). The bills will now need to be considered by the full House and Senate. Members of Congress and industry groups say the legislation makes the most extensive changes to patent law in more than 50 years. l
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| The Office of Research Administration supports and advocates research and technology transfer by faculty, graduate students and staff. The ORA provides services in conjunction with external and internal sources of funding for research, along with services related to commercializing discoveries through technology transfer. The goal of this newsletter is to inform the campus community of grants received, to highlight the accomplishments of our faculty, graduate students and staff, and to share with you a calendar of important events and deadlines. Please direct any comments or questions regarding the newsletter to Tamara Wilgers (wilgerst@umsl.edu). | University of Missouri-St. Louis Office of Research Administration Fax: 314-516-6759 |
