The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) has awarded a grant
of $1.5 million over 3 years to the Delaware Valley Industrial Resources
Center (DVIRC) and the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Partnership
(NJMEP), the MEP affiliate centers in Philadelphia and New Jersey, to
encourage expanded manufacturing of energy-efficient building
technologies.
The grant complements a larger U.S. Department of Energy project
announced on August 24, 2010, that provides up to $122 million to the
Pennsylvania State University for an Energy Innovation Hub. To be
located at the Philadelphia Navy Yard Clean Energy campus, the Hub will
focus on developing energy-efficient building designs that will save
energy, cut pollution, and position the United States as a leader in
this industry.
According to MEP, this project represents the first time that
federal, state, and local public and private resources will be pooled to
create a formal applied research/manufacturing cluster that spans from
the lab bench, through production to implementation.
“Expanding the capabilities of U.S. manufacturers to respond to the
market opportunities resulting from the development of new
energy-efficient building technologies is key to ensuring the linkage
between R&D and commercial application,” says Roger Kilmer, director
of the NIST MEP.
DVIRC and NJMEPs role will be to connect manufacturers, specifically
small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) to the project at all levels,
including R&D, design and testing of new products, materials,
technologies, and systems, and, more importantly, commercializing those
opportunities for business growth and job creation.
The Energy Innovation Hub will pursue a research, development and
demonstration (RD&D) program targeting technologies for single
buildings and district-wide systems. These new building systems and
components will need to be manufactured, presenting a unique opportunity
for businesses in the area to get in on the ground floor.
The DVIRC in collaboration with its sister-center, the NJMEP, will
leverage their knowledge of and relationships with regional companies to
identify technologies such as sensors, new building materials, and
computer simulation tools developed by the Energy Innovation Hub, and
translate them into components they can license, develop and
manufacture.
“Our region is home to a significant asset and essential resource to
innovate new products and technologies,” says Joe Houldin, CEO of DVIRC.
“SME manufacturers are true innovators and contribute substantial value
to the region’s economic prosperity, and will play a vital role in
taking energy research and applied technology to market.”
“We hope that this effort will be a model for public-private
collaborative partnerships across the nation,” says Aimee Dobrzeniecki,
deputy director of the NIST MEP.
Media Contact: Mark Esser, mark.esser@nist.gov, 301-975-8735
