Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | September 7, 2026 | wbjournal.com NASA awards Worcester drug firm $8M Eascra Biotech has been awarded a NASA contract worth $7.96 million and added a new chief scientific officer, as the nanomedicine startup with a lab in Worcester looks to use microgravity in near-Earth orbit to develop better delivery methods for difficult-to-treat diseases. e NASA In Space Production Applications Phase 2 award will support Eascra's efforts to commercial low-orbit manufacturing of its delivery platform for RNA therapeutics, gene editing, and other treatments, the Worcester firm announced Aug. 27. e firm is looking to manufacture its drug delivery materials in a micro- gravity environment, as research has shown its nanomaterials have better stability and uniformity when pro- duced in an environment mostly free of gravity-driven effects, according to ISS National Laboratory. InSPA looks to use the environment of space to help produce novel materials and products for use on Earth. Eas- cra has completed six missions to the International Space Station in the last three years, with six additional missions planned for the next two years. Osteoarthritis is among the condi- tions Eascra hopes to target, with the firm saying its technology can deliver therapeutics to hard-to-penetrate tis- sues like cartilage and tumors. In a separate Aug. 27 announcement, Eascra announced Andrew Goodearl as its chief scientific officer. Goodearl most recently served as head of strategy and innovation for biotherapeutics and genetic medicine research at AbbVie, the Illinois-based drug manufacturer with an expanding Worcester presence. Goodearl has conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School. Prior to his time at AbbVie, he held di- rector-level roles at Chicago-based Ab- bott Laboratories and Cambridge-based Millennium Pharmaceuticals. Eascra Co-Founder and CEO Mari Anne Snow said Goodearl's leadership and experience would be valuable to the company as it works toward commer- cialization. Eascra Co-Founder Yupeng Chen had previously been listed as the firm's CSO. He remains with Eascra as a science advisor, according to the firm's website. Eascra continues to operate a labora- tory at Worcester-based Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, aer graduat- ing from its SPARK program in 2025. In addition to the NASA InSPA award, the firm has received more than $8 million in grants, awards, and commer- cial-sponsored research from organiza- tions that include the National Science Foundation and MassVentures. Spencer Technologies acquired by PE-backed firm Retail services provider Spencer Technologies has been acquired by a South Carolina-based company backed by a private equity firm. NewBold Technologies, a portfolio company of Boston-based Fort Point Capital, announced its acquisition of Medway-based Spencer on Aug. 27. A fellow retail service provider, NewBold said acquiring Spencer broadened its reach across North America and im- proved its project management capa- bilities. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Serving as a technology contractor for retailers and restaurants, Spencer assists its clients with selecting, buying, and servicing equipment like point-of- sale registers, payment systems, and self-service kiosks. Spencer's clients have included Trad- er Joe's, Ocean State Job Lot, Shake Shack, and BJ's Wholesale, according to its website. Spencer CEO David Strickler will stay on as a consultant. Worcester Business Journal (ISSN#1063-6595) is published bi- weekly, 24x per year, including 4 special issues in May, September, October, and December by New England Business Media, 446 Main St, Suite 201, Worcester, MA 01608. Periodicals postage paid at Worcester, MA. Copyright 2026. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Worcester Business Journal, 446 Main St, Suite 201, Worcester, MA 01608. Subscriptions: Annual subscriptions are available for $100.00. For more information, please email circulation@nebusinessmedia.com or contact our circulation department at 508-755-8004 x242. Advertising: For advertising information, please call Kris Prosser at 508-755-8004 ext. 286. Worcester Business Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or materials and in general does not return them to the sender. Worcester Business Journal 446 Main St, Suite 201, Worcester, MA 01608 508-755-8004 tel. • www.wbjournal.com Worcester Business Journal WBJ A division of: Editor, Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com Managing Editor, Eric Casey, ecasey@wbjournal.com (real estate, banking & finance) Contributors Sloane M. Perron, Sara Bedigian, Emily Micucci, Livia Gershon, Monica Benevides Photographers Matt Wright, Edd Cote, Christine Peterson Research Director Stephanie Meagher, smeagher@nebusinessmedia.com Research Assistant, Heide Martin, hmartin@nebusinessmedia.com Production Director, Kira Beaudoin, kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com General Manager Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com Account Executive Jeff Swerdlick, jswerdlick@wbjournal.com Special Product Manager Regina Stillings rstillings@nebusinessmedia.com Director of Finance, Sara Ward, sward@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Clerk, Rae Rogers, rrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Event Coordinator Patty Harris, pattyh@wbjournal.com Director of Audience Development and Operations, Leah Allen, lallen@nebusinessmedia.com Business Office Assistant Nicole Dunn, ndunn@nebusinessmedia.com Publisher and CEO, Tom Curtin tcurtin@hartfordbusinessjournal.com Chief Operating Officer Andrea Tetzlaff, atetzlaff@mainebiz.biz Publisher Emeritus, Peter Stanton pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Eascra Biotech aims to do drug development in space. 800-939-9103 cornerstonebank.com Member FDIC | Member DIF Scan the QR code to connect with us. More Than Half of Businesses in the U.S. Reported Fraud in the Past Two Years We Can Help with Positive Pay Positive Pay is the leading fraud-prevention solution designed to help protect your business against altered, forged, or counterfeit checks and ACH debits clearing your account—with the convenience of reviewing and acting on decision items right from online banking or the mobile app. In 2025, we protected our business customers from over $250,000 in fraudulent transactions, and we're just getting started. PHOTO | COURTESY OF NASA CORRECTION: The Shop Talk feature story "'Risk is not scary.'" in the Aug. 24 edition incorrectly credited Webster Five as providing the photo of Colleen Carney. The photo was provided by Webster First Federal Credit Union. W

• Cover