UTP Hosts SBIR/STTR Training

Two dozen participants representing 20 companies and agencies attended a 2-day SBIR/STTR Grant Writing Workshop (January 29-30, 2007). The goal of the workshop was to aide start-ups in their efforts to secure non-dilutive funding from the NIH and other Federal agencies. Training was lead by Lisa Kurek of Biotechnology Business Consultants and was sponsored by the iBIO Institute, ITEC-Evanston, Chicago-ITEC, Champaign County Illinois, as well as UTP.

UTP Incubates Start-Ups Including Liquid Talk and All Cell

Within a year of operation UTP’s Incubator-North is now full with five start-up companies: All Cell, Sun Phocus, NanoFluence, Sigenics, and IITRI.  The IIT Tower and 3424 South State Street buildings are home to seven additional start-ups: Anagen Therapeutics, Network BlackBox, Air2Access, CleverSafe, Liquid Talk, Predictek, and Carbon Solutions.  For more information, go to:  http://www.universitytechnologypark.com/clients/index.html

Incubator-South (28,000 sq. ft.) is now under construction with space for 30 additional start-up companies.  Competition is expected in by the 1st quarter of 2008.

LiquidTalk, Inc., a Chicago-based maker of enterprise business applications raised a multi-million round in Series A funding led by Meakem Becker Venture Capital, according to a regulatory filing.  LiquidTalk, Inc. creates business applications for digital media devices such as iPods and smart phones.  Because digital media devices are portable, easy to use, and flexible, they make an excellent platform for employee knowledge transfer.  Liquid Talk’s patent-pending technology provides the tools for businesses to create, organize, and distribute business content for sales force and employee learning and communication.  www.liquidtalk.net

IIT’s Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) Project (sponsored by All Cell Technologies, LLC in collaboration with the City of Chicago, MicroSun Technologies, LLC, and ComEd) is moving forward.  IIT sent a prototype vehicle to the Chicago Department of Fleet Management (DFM), which will conduct field testing of the vehicle under various conditions to evaluate its performance and improvement in fuel efficiency and emission reduction. The project is an effort to double the fuel efficiency and reduce emissions from the city's fleet of hybrid vehicles.  At the conclusion of the testing period, the city will evaluate the concept and its potential for mass implementation for plug-in conversion of other hybrid vehicles in the city's fleet.  All Cell Technologies, LLC’s mission is to commercialize Lithium-ion batteries in military, medical, portable, and transportation applications.

Matthew Stewart (left) and Kevin Campbell with the City of Chicago’s Department of Fleet Management receive keys for the city’s Plug-in Hybrid Ford Escape from IIT’s David Baker and Peter Sveum and All Cell’s CEO John Presutti.

iBIO IndEx

UTP was a Bronze-level sponsor for the iBIO IndEx annual conference on February 22, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.  UTP unveiled its updated brochure, exhibit booth, and Services Directory for over 400 attendees representing the biotechnology industry in Illinois.  Keynote speakers included senior management from Monsanto, Baxter, and Takeda.

Leasing Contacts

For information about leasing space in the TBC, please contact:
Chad Freese
First Vice President
CB Richard Ellis
312-935-1451
chad.freese@cbre.com

For information about leasing space in the adjacent UTP Incubator or IIT Tower, please contact:

Daniel F. Marselle
Associate Director for Technology & Business Services
University Technology Park at IIT
10 West 35th Street, Suite 10F3 -1
Chicago, IL 60616
312-567-3900
marselle@utp.iit.edu