Taft Announces $2 Million in Research Commercialization Grants
COLUMBUS, OHIO (April 12, 2004) - Governor Bob Taft today announced that nine Ohio companies were awarded 12 grants worth $2 million dollars through the Ohio Research Commercialization Grant Program. The awards are part of the Third Frontier Project.
"The Research Commercialization Grant Program helps companies turn great ideas into great jobs," said Taft. "By building upon the federal research and development funding awarded to these companies, we are helping them to create new products and jobs for Ohioans."
The Third Frontier Commission awarded the grants through a competitive process. To qualify, the companies receiving awards must have their principal place of business in Ohio and have, over the last two years, received federal funding through the Small Business Innovation Research program, Small Business Technology Transfer program, or Advanced Technology Program.
"Our goal is to improve the commercial viability of federally funded research and development projects," said State Development Director Bruce Johnson. "The intent is to improve the ability of small technology companies to assess and realize the commercial potential of research projects, and to promote the competitiveness of these companies through the augmentation of federal research and development funding." The Ohio Department of Development administers the grant program.
The companies receiving grants are:
NexTech Materials, Ltd.-This Lewis Center (Delaware County) company is receiving two $175,000 grants for the commercialization of fuel cell technology. The overall objective of the first project is to develop low-cost materials and fabrication methods for planar solid oxide fuel cells for application in automotive and aircraft auxiliary power units, premium and back-up power, and residential and commercial combined heat and power distributed generation. The second project involves developing low-cost materials and fabrication methods for tubular Ceramic Oxygen Generator (COG) cells. Such tubes are critical to emerging ceramic electrochemical systems including solid oxide fuel cells and ceramic oxygen generation systems for small-scale supplies of high-purity oxygen for laboratory, medical, and other small-scale uses.
Sierra Lobo, Inc.-Located in Milan (Erie County), this company will use its $174,964 grant to establish a market entry plan and detailed business plan for mass production of its Cryo-TrackerTM device. The device, currently used primarily in space vehicles, is a low-cost, lightweight, accurate and reliable sensor to measure the liquid level and temperature inside cryogenic tanks. It's commercialization potential lies in cryogenic fluid storage in the transportation, medical, food, and energy industries. It would also have great potential as a fuel gauge for alternative fuel vehicles.
Cleveland Medical Devices, Inc.-This Cleveland company received three grants totaling $516,911. The first, for $174,791, is for a project involving a wireless device called the NeuroSENSE Monitor that monitors brain activity and the effect of anesthesia drugs on the brain. Commercialization of the device would provide anesthesiologists with a tool for more precise drug dosing and would be particularly useful in protecting the brain during complex cardio-vascular surgeries. The second grant for $170,030 is for cost engineering, manufacturing, marketing and sales, and initialization of customer support activities for a small, wireless monitor that can diagnose patients with sleep disorders in the comfort of their homes. The third grant, for $172,090, involves a small wireless device that can be mounted on the head of small research animals to monitor EEG, EKG and EMG. With competing devices restricting the movement of the animals, there is potential to capture a significant portion of the market, which includes more than 80 universities with biomedical departments, hundreds of research hospitals, and 1,000 pharmaceutical companies conducting animal research.
Orbital Research, Inc.-This Cleveland company is receiving $174,955 for the commercialization of a high-temperature pressure sensor for use in diesel engines. The active combustion monitoring sensor allows direct control of the fuel-air mixture thus maximizing engine performance and improving fuel efficiency. Focusing on the diesel engine market will help address more stringent EPA emissions regulations and prepare the company to leverage into the gasoline and turbine engine markets and then into industrial controls.
Excera Materials Group-A $175,000 grant was awarded to this Columbus company to develop manufacturing capacity for composite based tiles used in ballistic body armor. Excera has developed and patented a composite material manufacturing process called ONNEX. The material offers inherent toughness, the ability to fabricate intricate shapes, and lower costs manufacturing than competing materials. Commercialization would allow the manufacture of Small Arms Protective Inserts used in bulletproof vests.
Clifton Labs, Inc.-This Cincinnati company has developed a new type of optical sensor that combines video imaging and optical data communications in a single integrated device. Clifton Labs is receiving a $174,706 grant to transform the prototype system into production samples. Potential markets include the military for real-time location and asset tracking systems, or for secure point-to-point communications that are not susceptible to RF interference and cannot be easily intercepted. Also, since the technology does not use radio frequency communications, it can be deployed in environments such as factories and hospitals where RF-based systems could interfere with sensitive electronic equipment or be adversely affected by interference from large equipment and machinery.
Powdermet, Inc.-This Cleveland company is receiving a $175,000 grant. They have developed a technology to combine various materials with complimentary properties into powder form. It is currently used in developing radiation shielding and wear-resistant coatings for nuclear waste storage casks. The grant will be used to identify market opportunities, in areas such as hard chrome replacement, metal cutting and forming tools, refractory and heavy metal alloys, electronic packaging materials, magnetic materials, and other materials for the energy, paint, chemicals and aerospace industries.
BIOMEC, Inc.-This Cleveland company is developing a clinical prototype of a curved-array ultrasonic transducer to detect Acute Otitis Media (AOM), an inflammatory condition of the middle ear. Undiagnosed AOM can lead to hearing loss and consequently delay the development of speech and language skills in young children. Studies have shown the device is much more accurate than other non-invasive diagnostic devices. The $174,983 grant will be used to help BIOMEC conduct a detailed market analysis of the ear diagnostic market.
Enable Medical-This Cincinnati company has developed a technology referred to as Enable Bi-Polar RF (EBRF) for the treatment of atrial fibrillation, a heart condition that affects one percent of the general population and six percent of those over 65 years old. The device is a tissue ablation technology that creates lines of tissue isolation using bipolar RF energy without the morbidity associated with cutting and sewing atrial tissue. The company will use the $175,000 grant to support development of a product design and manufacturing system that will allow the EBRF technology to be used in a broader patient spectrum.
The Ohio Third Frontier Project is the state's largest-ever commitment to expand Ohio's high-tech research capabilities and promote start-up companies to create high-paying jobs for generations to come.
