Tag: NSWC Crane

Entrepreneurs Take on Crane IP in New Pitch Competition

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By Matt Craig, Radius Indiana Director of Crane Community Support

 

With most every sector of our economy feeling the effects of the pandemic, organizations in our region have come together to offer a new opportunity that will help spur innovation and business growth. This month, Radius Indiana, in coordination with Elevate Ventures, the Indiana Small Business Development Center and Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, will host a virtual pitch competition for entrepreneurs, inventors and start-ups focused on patented technologies and intellectual property (IP) developed at Crane–the best news–it is royalty free.

Radius Indiana created the concept for “Royalty-Free IP” pitch competition after learning of NSWC Crane’s Rapid Response Licensing Program, which launched this spring in response to COVID-19. The Technology Transfer (T2) Program at NSWC Crane opened its portfolio of 300+ patented technologies to entrepreneurs to help rapidly transition federal research and development into the commercial sector and to help stimulate the economy.

Engineers and scientists at NSWC Crane continually create technical solutions to solve problems faced by the men and women protecting our nation, but many of these also can apply to the commercial needs of the public sector. The Royalty-Free IP pitch competition provides a venue to develop a practical application of a technology to create a new commercial product, or launch a new business that can grow here in our region.

Radius Indiana worked with NSWC Crane to identify 10 technologies from the patent portfolio with the greatest opportunity for commercialization and product development. Individuals or teams are invited to develop an innovative proposal for one of the selected intellectual properties and the top entries will share in cash prizes totaling $5,000. Subjects range from drone tracking, to battery charger and power reduction systems, to tunable detection systems and hyperspectral imaging. 

Participants will receive virtual coaching sessions and training at no cost from competition partners, Elevate Ventures, a private venture development organization that develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies and the Indiana Small Business Development Center, which offers entrepreneurs expert guidance and a comprehensive network of resources.

Radius Indiana encourages you to take advantage of this free opportunity to showcase the talent and bright ideas waiting to be discovered right here in southern Indiana. The deadline for registration to participate is July 13, and the pitch competition will be held via a virtual format on July 30. Visit www.radiusindiana.com to register. 

About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

 

###

Radius Indiana Hosts Royalty-Free Pitch Competition Ten Crane technologies available for entrepreneurs, inventors and start-ups.

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (July 8, 2020) – Radius Indiana, in coordination with Elevate Ventures, Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division, and the Indiana Small Business Development Center, will host the region’s first “Royalty-free IP Pitch Competition” July 30. Winning entries will share in cash prizes totaling $5,000.

The competition offers unprecedented, royalty-free access for those who seek to commercialize patented technologies and concepts developed at NSWC Crane–Indiana’s only federal research laboratory. Radius Indiana and Crane leaders hope that businesses and entrepreneurs will use these technologies to support new jobs and economic growth.

Individuals or teams are invited to develop an innovative proposal for one of 10 intellectual properties (IP) selected for the competition. Subjects range from drone tracking, to battery charger and power reduction systems, to Tunable Detection Systems and Hyperspectral Imaging. Descriptions of the IP can be found on the Radius Indiana website.

“The engineers and scientists at NSWC create these solutions to solve problems encountered by the men and women protecting our nation, but many of these also can apply to the needs of everyday life for people anywhere,” said Jeff Quyle, Radius president and CEO. “We hope that our pitch competitors will produce ‘win/win’ results: a practical application of the technology to make life better, and a new business that can grow here among our communities.” 

There is no cost to register and entrants will receive a template to create a slide presentation for the competition. In addition, virtual coaching sessions will be offered July 14, 15, and 16 to pick up pointers on delivering the best pitch, and individual coaching sessions will be available for each participant through the resources of Elevate Ventures and the Indiana Small Business Development Center.

“Programs like the Crane IP pitch competition provide a chance for founders, students, and faculty to innovate around strong intellectual property to create new innovation-driven technology companies in Indiana,” said Landon Young, director of university initiatives and entrepreneur-in-residence at Elevate Ventures. “We are excited to be a part of this event and are eager to see the proposals the applicants come up with.”

The deadline for registration to participate is July 13, 2020. The pitch competition will be held virtually on July 30 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Eastern Daylight Savings Time.

To register, visit www.radiusindiana.com.

###

About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

About NSWC Crane: NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electronic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi- spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s Warfighter.

About Elevate Ventures: Elevate Ventures is a private venture development organization that nurtures and develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies. Elevate Ventures accomplishes this by providing access to capital, rigorous business analysis and robust advisory services that connect companies with the right mix of resources businesses need to succeed long term. To learn more about Elevate Ventures, visit elevateventures.com.

About Indiana Small Business Development Center: The Indiana SBDC creates a positive and measurable impact on the formation, growth, and sustainability of Indiana’s small businesses by providing entrepreneurs expert guidance and a comprehensive network of resources.

 

Artisan Electronics Receives Award from Radius Indiana’s Regional Impact Fund, Continues Growth at WestGate@Crane Technology Park

Posted on by Radius Indiana

ODON, Ind. (June 22, 2020) — A Radius Indiana Regional Impact Fund grant of $3,625 was recently allocated to Artisan Electronics Inc. for workforce training and to expand its internship program. 

Artisan Electronics Inc. is a defense contractor based at WestGate@Crane Technology Park in Odon, Indiana. The small business specializes in engineering, technical, cybersecurity and IT services for the Department of Defense and the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division. 

“Artisan is attracting new talent to the region as they tackle some provocative technology issues for their clients,” said Jeff Quyle, president and CEO of Radius Indiana. “I’m glad to see a locally owned company like this growing and showing leadership in workforce and technology circles.”

Artisan Electronics, which was awarded second place by Best Places to Work in Indiana in 2019, plans to use part of the funding toward training programs which will result in adding 20 full-time employees to its current staff of 50 employees by 2023.  

“We are excited to offer more opportunities for exceptional people to build a rewarding career here in southern Indiana. The support of Radius, Daviess County Economic Development Foundation, and the IEDC has been phenomenal and we are looking forward to continuing to grow and add value to our DoD clients with their help,” said Greg Sapp, Vice President of Artisan Electronics.

Daviess County Economic Development Foundation will provide an additional $1,000 in matching funds to supplement the Regional Impact Fund grant.

“Artisan Electronics has established company culture and a brand that is recognized in the region, the state of Indiana and beyond,” said Bryant Niehoff, executive director of Daviess County Economic Development Corporation. “We are thrilled to be a part of Artisan’s continued growth in WestGate and proud that they call Daviess County home.”

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation has also offered Artisan Electronics $325,000 in Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credits to promote the company’s expansion. 

Including Artisan Electronics, there are currently five projects underway at the WestGate@Crane Technology Park. Two larger national firms and three locally-owned firms are looking at sites in the tech park in all three of the WestGate counties (Daviess, Martin, and Greene). The projects would involve increased employment within the tech park, and some include the construction of new buildings as well as the installation of new equipment. The Regional Impact Fund is involved in two of the projects and may assist others if needed to help finalize the projects.

“It is very encouraging to see all of the positive activity taking place at WestGate,” said Niehoff. “As NSWC Crane continues to demonstrate leadership at the national level, the Tech Park is becoming more and more of a destination for those innovative companies such as Artisan that support Crane’s mission. The level of interest and ongoing projects that we continue to remain engaged in are validation of WestGate’s growth potential.”

###

About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

About the Regional Impact Fund: The Regional Impact Fund is a sub-organization of Radius Indiana with the purpose of making investments in public and private organizations that advance regional economic development strategies. The Regional Impact Fund is a deal-closing fund that makes such investments in the form of grants, loans, equity investments, or other such vehicles deemed to be in the best interests of Southern Indiana. The Regional Impact Fund gives high priority to projects that include job creation, site development and expansion.

About Artisan Electronics: Artisan Electronics is a small business headquartered within the Westgate@Crane Technology Park. Since 1996, Artisan has been working with the Department of Defense and commercial clients to engineer results for complex issues. Its team translates client needs into comprehensive technical projects by bringing technical ability, dependability and applied creativity to engineering, information technology and electronics support projects.