Economic Development Month in Review: January 2018
For the Top Economic Development News of the Month, CEG selects news articles about projects or developments that promise to improve and/or transform the Capital Region’s economy, particularly those that related to manufacturing and initiatives outlined in Capital 20.20, a five-year, multi-pronged plan for bringing economic prosperity to the entire region.
To learn about more the Capital Region’s economic development news from the past month, see CEG’s Economic Development Week in Review posts:
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Tech company’s lights being used to kill germs in ambulances
“Vital Vio, the Troy, New York, company that designs lights meant to kill bacteria, such as MRSA, E. coli and salmonella, is expanding into new markets by bringing its technology to ambulances.
Vital Vio has been working with Code 3, a company based in St. Louis, Missouri, that designs and manufactures emergency lighting, through a licensing agreement. That partnership has brought about its first product, a light with Vital Vio’s technology that can be installed in place of regular interior ambulance lighting.”
Capital Region rides federal health care funding wave
“One day, patients doing exercises to strengthen their breathing might be able to use an electronic game to encourage them to push on in therapy.
An Albany-based company that makes a breath-controlled electronic musical instrument controller is looking to branch out into medical devices, as one of dozens of Capital Region companies to receive research grants recently from the National Institutes of Health.”
Proof is in the patents with Capital Region chip research
“A new study by the Center for Economic Growth in Albany shows the incredible research and development output of the Capital Region’s semiconductor industry, which produced more than 1,000 computer chip and semiconductor technology inventions in 2016.
CEG mined data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to uncover the findings. In all, local scientists had 1,095 patents issued for their semiconductor inventions in 2016, more than double the output of the entire state of Texas, which is where Samsung has its only U.S. chip fabs and where Texas Instruments is located, along with major operations of Apple, Advanced Micro Devices and others.”
Palace Theatre executive’s vision for revitalizing downtown Albany
“Susan Rosko Fogarty, executive director of the Palace Theatre, said major renovations to the theater are a critical piece to transforming downtown Albany, New York, into a place where people want to live and businesses want to grow.
‘Even though we’re enjoying a reasonable rate of unemployment in the northeast, you talk to business leaders and there’s still a mismatch in the skillset,” Fogarty said. “The folks people are trying to attract to this area are still not always coming here. And then you go to the intangible, how many businesses are not coming here that we don’t even know about because we don’t have enough to offer.’”
Four biotech start-ups awarded $40,000 prize
“Four companies were awarded a total of $40,000 in cash and services on Tuesday as part of a program that helps biotechnology start-ups bring their products to market.
The firms presented business plans last December during a competition as part of the BACC Academy, a partnership between Albany Medical College and Siena College and an extension of the Biomedical Accelerator and Commercialization Center at Albany Med.”
Schools create fast-track to careers at GlobalFoundries
“Capital Region BOCES will create a new pipeline of technicians to troubleshoot delays and repair equipment at the GlobalFoundries computer chip plant in Malta, New York.
High school seniors from 23 school districts and adults will begin enrolling in the coming weeks for a year-long engineering technician training program that begins in September.”
Hacker to sell boats in Southeast Asia
“Hacker Boat Co., the classic mahogany motorboat maker, announced last week it will carry the Hacker-Craft line in Southeast Asia.
Classic Boats Lifestyle Ltd. is the official dealer for the new markets in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Myanmar, according to a news release.”
23 companies selected for Start-Up NY program
“Twenty-three businesses will partner with local colleges and universities to create jobs in upstate New York through Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s highly touted Start-Up NY program.
The companies, spread across seven regions, plan to create nearly 300 new jobs and invest about $9.8 million over the next five years, according to a release by Empire State Development. Company industries include biotechnology, craft beverage production and manufacturing.”
Fab 8’s move to 7 nanometer chips more important than ever
“GlobalFoundries move this year to making better-performing chips using 7 nanometer architecture at its Fab 8 factory in Saratoga County can’t come soon enough.
Advanced Micro Devices, GlobalFoundries biggest customer, says it is chomping at the bit to get 7 nanometer chips as soon as possible, and GlobalFoundries plans to be making them in large volumes later this year.”
Developer maps out plan for 1 million-square-foot office park in Saratoga County
“Real estate developer Mark Rekucki plans to acquire 180 acres in Clifton Park, New York, where he wants to build up to 1 million square feet of office, manufacturing and warehouse space.
The proposed Synergy Tech Park would be located off Route 9 and Kinns Road, a mile south of Exit 10 of the Interstate 87 Northway.”
Capital Region broadband awarded $211.3M
“Greene and Columbia counties won big in the third and final round of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s initiative to secure high-speed internet for underserved areas across the state.
Nearly $211.3 million was awarded to broadband companies in the Capital Region on Wednesday as the final of three phases under the New NY Broadband program, which seeks to bring high-speed internet to every state resident by the end of 2018 through joint public-private investments in telecommunications infrastructure.”
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