Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com January5,2015•Hartford Business Journal 3 UConn incubator seeks partnerships beyond bioscience By Brad Kane bkane@HartfordBusiness.com W hile building new partnerships through its affiliation with Jackson Laboratory, UConn wants to lever- age the $19 million expansion of its statewide incubator space to attract more diverse com- panies and industries, beyond bioscience. UConn is doubling its available incuba- tor space in Farmington, Storrs, and Groton from 28,000 to 56,000 square feet, allowing the state's flagship university to accommodate up to 67 startups, compared to about 22 today. "We could almost triple the size of the pro- gram right now," said Paul Parker, director of the UConn Technology Incubation Program. While most of the space is being added at UConn Health Center's Farmington campus and will house spinoff companies from the research performed at UCHC and Jackson Lab, the university wants companies of all ages and sizes from student startups to established firms looking for technological assistance, in indus- tries ranging from manufacturing to energy. "Incubators carry the mindset that we are only startups, and we want to be more than that," said Rita Zangari, UConn's director of innovation programs in the Office of the Vice President of Research. The three incubator locations carry their own unique traits that will fit certain industries better than others. Farmington and Avery Point are geared toward bioscience while UConn's new partnership with Hartford conglomerate United Technologies Corp. in Storrs focuses on advanced manufacturing. Still, with offices and laboratories in each location, all three can serve a variety of industries. "Think about us as something more than a life sciences incubator," Zangari said. "There are things here that would be expensive to buy otherwise." UConn has been trying to strengthen its technology transfer efforts for the last few years. In fiscal 2012, the school spent $183.9 mil- lion on research activities, up 13 percent from a year earlier, according to the Association of University Technology Managers, which tracks economic development and commercialization efforts by higher education institutions. That research spending led to 81 new invention disclosures and 36 new U.S. pat- ents, up from 67 inventions and 18 patents a year earlier. The school's researchers also raked in $965,252 in license income, up 27 percent from fiscal 2011, AUTM data shows. In addition to cultivating startups, UConn wants to create more university partnerships with established firms, where the school can provide faculty expertise and equipment to companies looking to develop new products or solve an existing problem. UConn doesn't want to compete with pri- vate incubators like reSET in Hartford or the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technol- ogy, Zangari said; the school wants startups and partnerships best served by UConn's facilities and faculty expertise. Roughly half of the companies that inquire about joining the Technology Incubation Pro- gram make it through the initial screening process and are approved by a committee. Based on their idea and business model, the committee awards startups workspace and access to anything at UConn that can help them develop. All TIP companies pay rent, unless they're run by students. "When we first look at them, we ask 'Is the company going to be a good fit for the TIP, and will the TIP be a good fit for them?'" said Natalie D'Oyen, TIP associate director. ImStem Biotechnology was approved for TIP less than two years ago, occupying office and lab space in Farmington. The company, founded off UConn research, seeks to use stem cells to cure multiple sclerosis, among other diseases and conditions. "Having all the access at UConn has been really, really helpful. It has enabled us to do a lot more," said Adam Lazorchak, senior scientist at ImStem. "We can do everything we need to do." The latest company to join TIP was the first Jackson Lab spinoff. MultiClonal Therapeu- tics joined TIP on Dec. 10, occupying space in Farmington to research and develop ways to treat diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and airways — like Crohn's Disease — using stem cells. MCT's co-founder Frank McKeon already has received a $1.1 million grant from the State Bond Commission for his research. Having UConn's incubator space nestled close to UCHC and Jackson Lab will be critical to making the Bioscience Connecticut initiative Continued (Left) A construction crew builds the addition to the UConn Cell & Genome Sciences Building in Farmington. (Right) One of the lab spaces in Farmington where incubator companies can advance their technology. (Left) Natalie D'Oyen, associate director of the UConn TIP program, works with companies interested in joining the incubator, to determine if they are the right fit. (Right) Rita Zangari, UConn director of innovation programs at the Office of the Vice President of Research, wants to drive a greater diversity of companies and industries into TIP, beyond bioscience. 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