SSTI Digest

The European Union (EU) launched the Technology Transfer Offices — Connecting Innovation and Research Centers and Laboratories in Europe (European TTO CIRCLE ), a network of tech transfer offices at Europe's 25 largest public research organizations. With the goal of increasing the market and societal impacts of publicly-funded research, the European TTO CIRCLE members already have adopted a set of several initiatives including:

A briefing on the planned Pilot Institute on Additive Manufacturing will be held May 16, 2012, in Arlington, Va. The pilot institute is envisioned as the initial step in building the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI) proposed by President Obama earlier this year. The meeting will acquaint potential candidates with the NNMI Pilot Institute concept and the associated technology needs in the areas of additive manufacturing. Attendance at the May 16 event is not a prerequisite for submitting a proposal.

PCAST provides several recommendations that will continue the success of NNI and translate the benefits of investments in nanotechnology to the public. Individual recommendations are given in four categories of key importance: strategic planning, program management, metrics and EHS research. Specific recommendations for 2012 and beyond include, but are not limited to:

A steady increase in personal income and sales taxes has helped state tax revenue in most states to surpass previous peak levels seen at the start of the recession. All regions of the country saw gains in the fourth quarter of 2011, with the exception of the Far West. The Plains had the largest gain, at 12.5 percent, followed by the Great Lakes states at 8.9 percent. However, tax collections for local governments are not faring as well mostly due to the lagged impact of falling housing prices on property tax collections. Findings are from a recent Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government report that looks at the impact of taxes on state revenue and highlights trends affecting state revenue changes.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has launched a new program to advance the participation and leadership of professional women in clean energy. The U.S. Clean Energy Education and Empowerment program will select a team of 20 distinguished ambassadors to serve as spokeswomen and mentors for women in clean energy and to participate in a symposium this fall. In addition, a new DOE awards program will recognize mid-career clean energy innovators, entrepreneurs and policy advocates with $10,000 cash prizes. Learn more...

U.S. community colleges are in dire need of an overhaul, according to a report issued by the 21st Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges. Currently, fewer than half (46 percent) of all student who enter community college with the goal of earning a degree or certificate achieve that goal. About 60 percent of students entering community college after high school must take developmental education classes to prepare for college-level work. Also, community college students are frequently unable to make smooth transitions into four-year institutions or the job market after graduation.

The commission calls for a redesign of the system that would focus efforts on local employment needs, emphasize transparency and accountability and offer coherent pathways for students. The commission was convened by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) last summer, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, ACT and the Education Testing Service.

Only 11 percent of business executives believe the U.S. educational system prepares workers for today’s economy according to a recent survey by ConvergeUS — Preparing America’s 21^st Century Workforce: the Business Sector Weighs in on Educational Gaps & Common Core State Standards. In the report, ConvergeUS surveyed almost 300 business executives on their attitudes regarding the current state of the U.S. workforce. The most significant trend was the overall lack of confidence by business executives in the U.S. education system, approximately 33 percent of business executive believe that the U.S. does a poor job of preparing workers.

Educational policy changes were most often cited by respondents (66 percent) as necessary to make the U.S. more competitive in the world economy. Other areas important in need of policy changes to increase competitiveness include investments in research and development (56 percent of respondents) and corporate tax reform (54 percent). According to respondents, three objectives standout as the most important to a high school education:

Talented human capital is singled out as the most critical resource differentiating the prosperity of countries and companies in the manufacturing sector, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum. Even as unemployment remains high across the globe, an average 10 million jobs cannot be filled because of a growing skills gap. Experts say the problem is likely to worsen as more skilled workers retire. The report highlights key trends that will define manufacturing competition over the next 20 years.

A 2011 survey by Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute found that 67 percent of U.S.-based manufacturers are facing a moderate to severe shortage of available, qualified workers and more than half expect the shortage to grow in the next five years. In fact, about 5 percent or around 600,000 manufacturing jobs remain unfilled in the U.S. Exacerbating the problem is an ageing workforce, especially in emerging countries. In China, 28 percent of the population will pass age 65 by 2040. The retirement trend is worldwide and is expected to sustain for the next 10 years, according to the report.

Innovation quickly is becoming the key phrase for the world’s economies. Increasingly nations are turning their economic development efforts towards building 21^st century economies that are cleaner, more efficient and built on collaboration, both domestically and internationally. The European Union, New Zealand, South Korea and the United Kingdom have announced new initiatives that target increasing their overall competiveness not simply in the short-term, but long-term. 

United Kingdom

United Kingdom (UK) launched a contest to support up to two pilot wave energy projects in hopes to scale up the clean technologies in the country. Companies and organizations across the country will be able to bid for a share of the £20 million (approximately $32.2 million) prize to establish one of the two pre-commercial projects. Currently, Marine power has the potential to provide up to 20% of current electricity demand in the UK, as well as support thousands of jobs. Read the press release…

A new fund established to capitalize on Maryland's leadership in R&D seeks to move 40 new discoveries and innovations out of the lab and into the marketplace each year through a partnership between the state and five universities. The Innovate Maryland initiative is seeded with $5 million in the FY13 budget with additional funds from the participating universities to provide grants to researchers. The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) will administer the fund. The goal of the fund is to promote commercialization of university research, encourage universities to partner with federal labs, and facilitate tech transfer from universities to commercial industries. Participating universities are Johns Hopkins University, Morgan State University, University of Maryland Baltimore, University of Maryland Baltimore County, and University of Maryland College Park. Each university will contribute between $100,000 and $200,000 on an annual basis. The initiative was unveiled in January as part of Gov. Martin O'Malley's 2012 legislative agenda (see the Jan. 25, 2012 issue of the Digest).

Despite the attention given to emerging metropolises in the developing world, large U.S. cities will continue to power the global economy over the next 15 years, according to a new report. McKinsey and Company examined the economic performance of the 259 "large" U.S. cities, cities with populations of 150,000 or more. In 2010, these cities generated almost 85 percent of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), making large cities more important to the U.S. economy than in Asia, Latin America or Western Europe. A separate recent effort to breakdown the qualities of successful entrepreneurial cities ranked eight U.S. metro areas among the top 25 global startup ecosystems. Two U.S. cities, New York and Los Angeles, rank in the elite tier of cities with more than 10 million inhabitants. Accordingly, these cities contribute greatly to U.S. GDP. However, the U.S. mega cities do not seem to be decisive in the importance of cities in the U.S. economy. Instead, the remaining 257 large cities are the focus of the McKinsey report, which observes that these cities dominate the U.S. economy because they represent an inordinately high percentage of the U.S.

The 2012 supplemental budget approved by Washington lawmakers includes funding for initiatives aimed at establishing a skilled workforce, enhancing competitiveness of existing industries and supporting university research to grow a strong aerospace cluster. The funding is part of a $9.8 million plan proposed by Gov. Chris Gregoire last year to enhance the state's education system in anticipation of new jobs in the aerospace sector (see the issue of the Nov. 16, 2011 issue of the Digest). To pursue joint industry-university research that can be used in aerospace firms, lawmakers passed a bill (SB 5982) creating the Center for Aerospace Technology and Innovation. The center will be operated as a multi-institutional education and research center under the authority of the University of Washington (UW) and Washington State University. A board appointed by the governor is charged with recruiting researchers, assisting researchers and firms in guarding intellectual property and developing non-state support for research. The center also will work with aerospace firms to identify research needs and opportunities for technology transfer.