Aug. 24, 2007 - The University of Akron Research Foundation (UARF) has created the Akron Innovation Campus to help foster an open innovation culture in Northeast Ohio driven by universities, industry, business and other stakeholders in the region's communities.
This will fill a long-standing need for collaborative space close to our main campus for university spin-off technology companies, industry research partners and other innovation enterprises, says Wayne Watkins, the university's associate vice president for research. We are also working on a number of spin-in' ventures based on high-potential, corporate, non-core technologies that are ideally suited to this environment.
Located at 411 and 441 Wolf Ledges Parkway in Akron, the Akron Innovation Campus is one of UARF's expanding outreach and emerging enterprise support efforts. Established in 2001, UARF was designed to lower barriers to collaboration with a virtual organization that links regional research, manufacturing and business enterprise resources.
Companies that practice the open innovation technique go outside traditional in-house research and development to work with individuals, institutes and companies for product development. UARF hosted its first Open Innovation Conference in July to help engage Northeast Ohio companies in the process via networking on innovation opportunities. UARF plans more innovation conferences to strengthen networking and collaboration among companies and universities in the region.
The new innovation campus will continue to house and support a diverse range of health care, financial, legal and traditional enterprises that will serve the university's students, faculty and neighbors in the greater Akron community.
It will also be the new home for University Innovation Ventures (UIV), a commercialization support services provider to technology-based companies in collaboration with UARF. UIV serves a range of clientele ranging from start-up to Fortune 500 companies, providing regional and global connectivity for businesses, government, regional accelerators, and funds to enhance wealth creation in Northeast Ohio.
The campus will also be the new home for the ARCHAngel (Akron Regional CHange Angel) network, a regional forum that introduces investors to market-driven, technology-based investment opportunities in Northeast Ohio, particularly in the greater Akron area. The network, sponsored by UARF, brings together promising technology companies and angel investors, focusing on businesses that leverage the region's strengths in health care, information technologies, polymers and other advanced materials.
Real estate services firm CB Richard Ellis will provide leasing and property management services. Interested parties should contact CB Richard Ellis at 330-253-1702 or The University of Akron Research Foundation at 330-972-7840.
The University of Akron Research Foundation is a not-for-profit organization supporting The University of Akron. It has created 16 companies and continues to support research in the region and the university. For more information, visit www.uakron.edu/research/uarf/.