Collaboratory for Innovation

A collaboratory is more than an elaborate collection of information and communications technologies; it is a new networked organizational form that also includes social processes; collaboration techniques; formal and informal communication; and agreement on norms, principles, values, and rules.
Source: Wikipedia

Health Science

As one initial focus of a Collaboratory for Innovation, Greater Gainesville aspires to become a regional hub of Health Science (Biotechnology, Devices, Pharmaceuticals, Clinical Studies) development by leveraging and expanding the significant research and licensing engine at the University, the College of Medicine’s nationally ranked programs in sports medicine and studies of the aging, the existing cluster of biotechnology and Medical Device companies in the area, and Santa Fe’s demonstrated ability to quickly educate skilled employees necessary for entrepreneurs to seize market share in the health and life sciences.

Health Science is a diverse industry that links basic research innovations with new market opportunities for improving human health. This industry spans several markets including pharmaceuticals, medical devices and equipment, and research and testing laboratories. By 2013 the global pharmaceutical market is projected to reach $734 billion, with the largest market segments being cardiovascular drugs and central nervous system drugs, and the global medical device market will reach over $285 billion, driven largely by growth in the healthcare supply sector. Key drivers of the human life science market are seen on both the supply-side (technological advances in areas like DNA sequencing and imaging technologies pave the way for personalized medicine) and the demand-side (aging populations and rising wealth across many large developing countries is increasing the demand for healthcare). Niche market areas are emerging in cancer research and treatment; genetics; and regenerative health.

Greater Gainesville is extremely well-positioned in Health Science, with a growing cluster of companies that range in size from small start-ups to mid-sized manufacturing and research companies. Key innovative companies include: RTI Biologics (Orthopedic/Cardio Implants); Exactech, Inc. (Orthopedic Implant Devices); Banyan Biomarkers Inc (Biological Devices); and Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (Gene therapy). Company expansion is supported by one of the leading specialized Life Science incubators in the country, the Sid Martin Biotech Incubator, which has admitted 40 companies, graduated 24 (four of which were acquired), and raised nearly $300 million in private funding since its inception in 1995. The Health Science cluster will have an increasingly bright future in the region, as indicated by significant knowledge creation activity (nearly 130 Life Science patents were generated in the region between 2005 and 2007 alone) and research activity in the region. UF has demonstrated its ability to attract significant research dollars from state, federal, and private sources; the Health Science Center alone attracted over $290 million during the 2007-8 academic year, with $230 million going to Medicine. Leading research assets include the Center of Excellence in Regenerative Health Biotechnology; the Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research; McKnight Brain Institute; and the Powell Gene Therapy Center.

Green Technology

A second initial focus of our Collaboratory for Innovation is Greater Gainesville aspires to become a regional hub of Green Technology (Alternative energy/transportation, clean/green agriculture, environmental services, smart infrastructure) by leveraging and expanding the significant research and licensing engine at the University of Florida, the breadth of IFAS, the existing cluster of Environmental Services companies in the area, and Santa Fe’s practice of integrating sustainability into its entire liberal arts and technical curricula.

Growing concern over issues like global warming and environmental degradation as well as rising energy costs have led to increased interest in clean or “green” technology, intended to provide for alternative as well as more efficient uses of energy and resources. Alternative energy is currently the largest market in this area, led by solar voltaics (with global revenues of $29.6 billion in 2008), wind power ($51.4 billion), and biofuels ($34.8 billion). Together, these three markets accounted for $115.9 billion in global revenues 2008, up 53% through 2007. Although rapid growth is projected to slow somewhat in 2009, total revenues across these markets are projected to triple in size over the next ten years, reaching $325 billion. The global Biofuels market is expected to grow the most rapidly, expanding from $34.8 billion to $105.4 billion. Other areas of significant investment include advanced recycling technologies; residential and commercial solar projects; smart-grid technologies for the utility grids; electric or hybrid-electric transportation; advanced materials such as biodegradable plastics; water technologies; and alternative fuels, including biodiesel and ethanol.

Greater Gainesville possesses a portfolio of assets that position it to become a global leader in many of these areas in the future. Gainesville is home to a growing cluster of Alternative Energy companies, primarily consisting of small companies and start-ups, which include BioResource Management, Inc. (Biomass recycling); BioEnergy International (next generation biorefineries); Sestar Technologies (polymer photovoltaic materials); AZonic Solar (CIGS Photovoltaic Cells). It is also home to a cluster of clean technology companies like EnviroFlux, LLC (groundwater contamination assessment) and Sharklet Technologies (bio-organism control surfaces) as well as “smart” (efficient and technologically advanced) infrastructure software companies like Streamline Numerics (advanced engineering software) and Innovative Scheduling (transportation software). The region has been steadily expanding its research capabilities in Green Technology. In the 2007-8 academic year, UF received $10 million from the Dept. of Energy alone, in addition to various grants from the National Science Foundation and other state and local sources. Leading area research institutes include the Powell Center for Construction and Environment; the UF – DOE High Temperature Electrochemistry Center; the Florida Center for Solid and Hazardous Waste Management; and the Florida Institute for Sustainable Energy Technology Incubator and its two components, the Biofuel Pilot Plant and the Prototype Development & Demonstration Laboratory. These assets are complemented by cutting edge utilities practices, such as the Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) program to enact a solar feed-in-tariff to promote the expansion of solar PV systems in Gainesville, which is among the first such programs in the country.