New Mexico Universities Setting Lofty Tech Transfer Goals
| August 5, 2004 |  View for printing |
Armed with more resources and new funding, the state's largest universities are setting ambitious tech transfer goals for the current fiscal year.
Officials from the Science and Technology Corp., the tech commercialization arm of the University of New Mexico, say they hope their new Lobo Venture Lab will help them create three new businesses in the next 12 months.
By: Clay Holtzman New Mexico Business Weekly
http://www.nasvf.org/web/allpress.nsf/pages/9373
New Mexico State University, stimulated by the July 1 official opening of its new Arrowhead Center for technology commercialization and business assistance, wants to spin out at least two and possibly three new tech companies before the end of December.
And the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, the state university not usually noted for its tech commercialization, is hoping its most recent spin-off can secure up to $8 million worth of contracts by this time next year.
Reflecting success
Optical Surface Technologies LLC (OST), which was spun from New Mexico Tech in late 2003 and recently inked an operating agreement with a Texas-based private engineering firm, has already signed some big-name customers and is expecting to become profitable this fiscal year.
The LLC is a joint venture between New Mexico Tech and Muņiz Engineering Inc. of Houston, a firm that has invested about $250,000 in the optics startup and has strong ties to Albuquerque's Air Force Research Laboratory. OST was founded by President Reed Schmell and Don Avritt, vice president and operations manager. Schmell, an expert in optical coatings, came to Tech from the research laboratory where the young company obtained about 80 percent of its equipment by way of an educational partnership agreement.
Originally, Schmell and Avritt were to work on the optical array for Tech's Magdalena Ridge Observatory but they, and Tech officials, saw the opportunity for something larger.
"It's a pretty good move for economic development," says Richard Cervantes, associate vice president of Research and Economic Development at New Mexico Tech.
OST, which employs between eight and 10, moved into its 12,000-square-foot facility in the Broadbent Business Park last year and recently secured additional space to support its growing manufacturing, coatings and testing operations.
"Fabrication demand has been so high, we've had to add an additional suite for 5,000 [square] feet," Schmell says, while adding that manufacturing capacity is running at 100 percent.
The company custom manufactures optical mirrors ranging in size from 9 inches up to around 2 meters wide and already has contracts with Los Alamos National Laboratory, New York-based Corning Inc. and some local firms. The company has several proprietary agreements and has received inquires from the Lincoln Laboratory within the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The joint partnership company has pulled down about $320,000 in revenue and, this year, is looking to secure $3 to $8 million worth of business it has quoted to potential clients.
"All of our marketing has literally been word of mouth," Schmell says, adding that Avritt's well-known reputation in the optics industry helped the company to sign up several customers early on.
Hatching businesses
UNM's Science and Technology Corp.'s new Lobo Venture Lab, which officially opened on July 1, with fiscal year funding of around $50,000, aims to provide would-be entrepreneurs looking to license from UNM's technology portfolio with the resources essential for starting a new company.
"We're trying to birth companies," says Peter Rachor, director of venture development with the Science and Technology Corp. "Once they're born, we want to send them to the various pediatricians."
The lab, called a "hatchery" by Rachor because it provides advantages like a business incubator, only at an earlier stage, provides meeting space, communications and computing equipment, reference materials about state and local economic incentives, and two interns to provide assistance for business plans and health sciences sector research.
"It's extremely important to get the right kind of advice early," says Science and Technology Corp. board of directors member Chuck Wellborn.
Rachor says the lab's goal is to spin out three companies during its first year, an objective Wellborn says is realistic and attainable.
Creation and education
Technology commercialization officials at New Mexico State University are anticipating big things from the Arrowhead Center which aims to spin out new companies, earn a return for the university on licensing efforts and help educate business students who will work with companies getting assistance from the university.
With funding of about $75,000 for the academic year ending next summer, the Arrowhead Center wants to educate hundreds of business students and create a handful of new companies.
"We've got four in the pipeline -- two closer than the others," says Kevin Boberg, director of the Arrowhead Center.
The core of the Arrowhead Center is housed in NMSU's College of Business Administration and Economics. Boberg says the center also provides assistance to local businesses and has set the goal of helping a total of 45 companies during the academic year. 
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