Innovation Fund Manufacturing Grant Awardees

Bringing Leather Production Back to New York with Sustainable Innovation

Uncaged Innovations is a biomaterials company turning grain byproducts into sustainable leather alternatives. By diverting grains fed to cattle directly into leather, they simply skip the cow. Their BioLeather is crafted for fashion, automotive, and interior decor. With these grant funds, Uncaged is gearing up their material finishing techniques, catering to the diverse aesthetics demanded by designers. Get ready for a journey of innovation and style like never before!

Integrating real-time in-situ monitoring and control in metal additive manufacturing

Pushing the boundary of high-quality metal additive manufacturing (AM) systems requires multidisciplinary investigations spanning thermal, mechanical, and optical domains. Challenge lies in acquiring real-time data to investigate the phenomena underlying metal AM processes. The objective of this project is to obtain real-time data of metal AM process and develop AI-based models for in-situ process monitoring and control. Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund supports the partnership between RIT and Layer Metrics, and shedding light on the entrepreneurial success of a women-owned technology business.

Continuous Production Process Scale-Up of LISIC Solid-State Electrolyte Separator for Advanced Rechargeable Batteries

Natrion Inc., a Binghamton, NY-based battery technology company, is partnering with the Binghamton University Center for Advanced Microelectronics Manufacturing (CAMM) to scale production of Natrion’s LISIC component for rechargeable lithium batteries. LISIC is used in solid-state batteries that possess zero fire safety risks, faster charging, and more energy density. With the help of CAMM facilities and expertise, Natrion is pioneering advanced low-cost, high-yield manufacturing processes with which the company will be able to service the growing mass-market electric vehicle battery sector.

Floe-C Product Development

TDO, a Syracuse-based MEP center, has partnered with Floe Inc., an MIT/Yale startup that has developed the smart, cost-effective, and eco-friendly solution to tackle the $11B US ice dam market. Compared to the unsafe, expensive, and energy-intensive existing solutions, Floe reduces both operating costs and carbon emissions by >40% and >99%, respectively. This project provides critical funding to advance Floe’s development through improving design for manufacturability, adding Wi-Fi compatibility, conducting engineering validation testing, and obtaining key safety certifications.

Wellness Research Agency

The word “wellness” is now overused, but was coined in the 1950s by a leading public official, Dr. Halbert Dunn, as a holistic, patient-focused way to reorient healthcare to address growing epidemics in chronic, mental, and spiritual ailments. The Wellness Research Agency (WRA) provides better research, information, and expertise on wellness, including holistic, natural, and traditional medicines like homeopathy. WRA has now partnered with FuzeHub and 3 New York manufacturers —Topricin, Old Ways Indigenous Medicinals, and Jayne Street Distillery–to innovate new wellness products.

Prototyping the final step in clean, climate-smart, biological manufacturing of rare earth elements in Upstate NY

REEgen Inc. is a start-up spun out of Cornell University that aims to develop a clean, sustainable rare earth manufacturing facility in Upstate NY. The company receives support as a client in the Praxis Center for Venture Development on Cornell’s Ithaca campus. Rare earth elements are critical for sustainable energy infrastructure, but under serious supply chain risk. REEgen’s clean rare earth manufacturing uses natural, bacterial processes engineered for commercial success, and the company promotes circularity by recovering the elements from a variety of waste and end-of-life consumer goods.

Manufacturing design of sorbent beads that produce metals from waste

Critical metals such as copper and platinum are essential components in many clean energy technologies, including electric vehicles and wind turbines. However, 80% of the U.S. critical metal supply is sourced internationally, originating mainly from mining operations that damage the environment. ChemFinity Technologies, a minority-owned startup in the Downstate Technology Center incubator, is developing new sorbents that efficiently recover critical metals from local wastes. This award will be used to advance the manufacturing readiness and long-term stability of ChemFinity’s sorbent filters.

Modovolo Manufacturing Production Cell
Introducing the Modovolo Lift. A Drone with Amazing flight time; Extremely low cost. But wait: it's designed like a Lego kit?
Modovolo was founded with one mission: to build a drone that could carry any payload, for hours instead of minutes, and for a cost far below anything on the market. But it's also the only drone ever that is like Lego kit - completely modular with endless configurations. Need more payload capacity? Add Lift Pods for more thrust. Need a larger payload? Swap Utility Pods. The possibilities are as endless. Go to modovolo.com to learn more.

AgroChip - Handheld Rapid Water Analysis System for Agriculture
The AgroChip, developed by Nordetect, simplifies water analysis for greenhouse growers using a disposable cartridge and handheld reader to instantly measure irrigation water's fertilizer content.
Nordetect is a deep-tech startup that has previously won the GrowNY competition in 2021 and participated in highly selective accelerator programs such as Luminate and HAX. Through a partnership with NextCorps, a non-profit hub for innovation in Rochester, Nordetect is scaling the manufacturing of these cartridges to grow its customer base and expand its operations nationally.

KLAW Industries Advanced Processing for Alternative New York Glass Sources
Clarkson University and KLAW Industries are partnering with FuzeHub to bring a new recycling technology leveraging artificial intelligence to market in the Southern Tier. KLAW Industries is expanding to alternative recycling markets to source waste glass for use in high-performance, low-carbon concrete projects with the New York State Department of Transportation and the City of Binghamton. The partnership builds on federal investment by the Environmental Protection Agency to overhaul the recycling industry and demonstrates FuzeHub's ability to help scale industry-changing technologies

Disposable photonics input/output system prototype design, production and optimization.
Glucose monitors, COVID rapid antigen diagnostics, and pregnancy tests are all readily available over-the-counter biosensors that improve human health. What if these simple tests existed for every health related event? Phlotonics and the University of Rochester aim to achieve this purpose and expand human health diagnostics by creating a photonic (miniature fiber optic) biosensing system capable of measuring molecules that are critical to human health. The Fuzehub Manufacturing Grant will allow Phlotonics to revolutionize the healthcare diagnostic market.

Hybrid Automation of PPE Production
New York Embroidery Studio has developed an innovative approach to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) commercialization in the United States. They are supporting the dual goals of commercially competitive product pricing, and a durable, innovative workforce capable of ramping to surge capacity as needed. Their hybrid approach uses automation "blocks" to do specific tasks, in conjunction with a skilled labor force to do tasks that do not lend themselves to automation. They are combining innovative automation with skilled labor to remain competitive and to retain and create jobs in New York State.

Liquid Wall
The Liquid Wall is a resilient, low-carbon, high-performance curtain wall system introducing material and design innovations that will change the way we design, build and maintain building enclosures. In the Liquid Wall, aluminum is replaced with ultra-high-performance concrete, creating a durable, adaptable building envelope that reduces carbon footprint and the cost and energy required to operate buildings.

Elastomeric Arteriovenous Graft Prototyping and Scale-Up
800,000 Americans undergo dialysis every year as treatment for kidney failure. Vascular access - the conduit through which blood is collected for dialysis - is referred to as the Achilles’ Heel of dialysis. Faulty vascular access causes hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations every year and accounts for billions of dollars of excess spending in our healthcare system. The “Anova graft” will be the first vascular access to harness the body’s healing potential to transform from a synthetic implant to a fully biological conduit to revolutionize dialysis access for millions of patients.

Aurie Reusable Catheter System High Level Disinfectant Verification & Validation Testing

Hundreds of thousands of individuals in the United States suffer from neurogenic bladder and may use 4-6 intermittent single-use catheters a day for the duration of their lives. The Aurie System will provide patients with a catheter system that is both safe and affordable, through the development of a reusable catheterization system to make catheterization more cost-effective, sustainable, and healthier. The FuzeHub Manufacturing Grant funding will support testing required for their FDA product submission, ultimately leading to their ability to enter the Aurie System into the catheter market.

A Demonstration of Industry Innovation with Thermoplastic Composite Fishing Rods

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is partnering with Douglas Outdoors, a fishing rod manufacturer in Phoenix, NY, to demonstrate a new, innovative product and associated manufacturing process. Their 12-month project involves prototyping a fishing rod made of thermoplastic composites, a first of its kind in the recreational fishing market, using a novel manufacturing process called Hot Roll Wrapping. The new material and process will (1) improve rod performance and durability and (2) significantly reduce manufacturing time and cost as compared to the current thermoset composite materials used.

Manufacturing Platform for Medium Voltage SiC Power Modules

NoMIS Power is working to accelerate the clean tech revolution by enabling the adoption of silicon carbide (SiC) devices in the global power management industry; developing an indigenous U.S.-based supply chain for SiC semiconductor technology across energy, industrial, and transportation sectors. Through FuzeHub, NoMIS Power and SUNY Polytechnic Institute are focused on manufacturing improvements that will foster greater market adoption of this energy efficient power switch technology. As a result, NoMIS Power will be able to scale existing operations in New York State and beyond.

Planarization methods for manufacturing glass substrates for packaging advanced semiconductor chips

This project aims to develop a CMP process for manufacturing advanced substrates using thin glass wafers. Current challenges include non-uniform filling and limited availability of suitable CMP slurries for thin glass, resulting in low device yield. To overcome these challenges, the project aims to create a planarization process and integrate a Cu CMP process into Mosaic’s TGVs process. This will enable high yields, uniform TGV filling, and a smooth surface for thin glass wafers, crucial for high-performance semiconductor chip packaging in New York.

KHIO migraine cooling headband

KHIO is a portable wellness headband that delivers targeted cold therapy to help reduce the intense pain associated with migraines. The KHIO device brings instant and customizable cooling to the forehead and provides lasting pain relief to migraine sufferers. Prolivio has partnered with NextCorps as they prepare to produce their first 1,000 KHIO production units and start selling direct to migraine patients through their mykhio.com site and on Amazon. Over the next 3 years, Prolivio is projecting to grow to $5.5M in annual revenues with 5 full time employees in Rochester, NY.

Scalable Laser Nanopatterning for High-Efficiency Solar Absorbers in Photovoltaic and Photothermal Applications

The Guo lab at the University of Rochester will partner with three renewable energy firms, AlchLight, SunDensity, and E2H2Nano, to incorporate scalable laser nanopatterning into the development of high-efficiency renewable energy devices. The proposed laser nanopatterning can drastically speed up nano-manufacturing, enhance solar device efficiency, and increase membrane performance for fuel production. These partnerships highlight the significant potential of laser nanopatterning to drive the renewable energy industry towards a more sustainable and efficient future.

Microstructured Lithium Battery Manufacturing Validation Project

The promise of a 100% electrification of transportation cannot be achieved by chemistry or battery cell architecture innovations alone. A systems approach that includes electrode micro-engineering is needed. Microstructuring, additive manufacturing technology creates faster charging and longer cycle-life battery cells enabling practical an lower costs EVs. These batteries also have very high power output that is capable of powering a plane or VTOL vehicle at take off. Finally, the high cycle-life will enhance the lifetime of products.

Manufacturing development of advanced 3D anodes for lithium batteries

LiBAMA Power will optimize and scale the production of its patented Advanced Metal Anode technology designed to reduce the size, time required to charge, and cost of today’s Lithium-Ion batteries while improving overall battery safety. LiBAMA Power is headquartered at the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator where it plans to grow operations.

Building Opal – smart ring for personal safety

Safety is a fundamental human right – but unfortunately, not everyone has access to it. 1 in 3 women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Personal safety is also an ongoing concern for other groups including the LGBTQ+ community, and racial and religious minorities. Opal and Binghamton IEEC are partnering to develop a thoughtfully designed smart ring that provides discreet safety and protection. The device can silently send requests for help to 911 or emergency contacts with the user’s GPS location and information.

DTCI/Werewool – Specialized Equipment

The equipment purchased with this award enables Werewool, Inc., a women-founded startup biotechnology company, to develop biodegradable textile fibers through protein engineering, eliminating the water and microplastic pollution of traditional textile manufacturing. Werewool’s technology mimics nature, using proteins to control textile color, stretchability and toughness and has produced prototype bio-fibers with bright pink color and natural fluorescence. With this award, Werewool plans to expand the color palette and add features such as moisture control and UV protection.

Reimagining Leather Using the Power of Nature and Technology

The fashion industry is under tremendous pressure to lower its environmental impact, and over 70% of a brand’s environmental footprint comes from the materials they source. Uncaged Innovations is a biomaterials technology start-up company that combines the power of nature and technology to reimagine leather, which is one of the most damaging materials used by the fashion industry. The company’s leather alternative is vegan, plant-based, and biodegradable. Uncaged Innovations will use the FuzeHub grant to scale up the manufacturing of their innovative material. Providing a sustainably manufactured replica of animal hides will redefine the leather industry.

Scale-up and process development for manufacturing an enzyme-based foliar biochemical pesticide

Agrynex, an AgTech start-up company, is collaborating with the Center for Life Science Ventures, Cornell University, to scale up and improve the manufacturing process for a new and effective naturally derived foliar pesticide to control plant diseases. Successful development of this technology will provide an innovative and valuable tool for managing crop diseases. The non-toxic and biodegradable foliar product can be applied in conventional and organic farming operations. The NYS based company’s mission is to leverage their foliar crop protection and other products in the pipeline to increase profits for farmers by reducing crop losses and adding value to agricultural crops while decreasing the use of existing toxic pesticides – a boon to NY farm workers, consumers, and the environment.

Titanium ALLVAR Alloy Manufacturing for Optomechanical Sub-Assemblies

The ultimate goal of this project is to accelerate adoption of novel ALLVAR Alloys by demonstrating they can eliminate the detrimental effects of temperature changes on an optic’s performance. The effect of temperature on optics is particularly complicated because lenses change the way they bend light with temperature and each lens material changes at a different rate. This means that while an optic’s metal housing is growing and shrinking with increasing and decreasing temperatures, the lenses are also shifting focus depending on the lens’ materials. If successful, future applications for these alloys include sensors for autonomous vehicles and fiber-couplers and beam expanders for fiber-optics.

Enhancing multi-channel linear LED lighting fixtures with advanced AI vision system for early health condition evaluation of plants grown in controlled environments

Starco Lighting and Ellicottville Greens have partnered with Drs. JinJun Xiong & Sreyasee Das Bhattacharjee from UB’s Computer Science & Engineering Dept. to design and manufacture an Artificial Intelligence vision system to detect diseases and monitor plant health of indoor crops. Starco Lighting offers a line of horticulture lighting that allows users to tune the spectrum of up to 10 different wavelength channels. Ellicottville Greens produces indoor vertical farm containers that are modular and self-reliant. These grow container systems enable the production of high-quality greens (ex. lettuce, basil, cilantro) anywhere, regardless of climate. Starco Lighting expects to launch an AI vision integrated tunable grow light by Q2 of 2024 and expects sales revenue of $1M-$2M/year and to increase their employment count by up to 7 employees over the next 2-4 years including technicians and engineering positions.

Industrial Hemp Lumber Material Characterization

Structural BioComposites (SBC) was an idea born out of a desire to save the forests and help reduce deforestation by producing industrial hemp lumber. This award will support SBC’s efforts to become a leading manufacturer of Industrial Hemp Lumber, which is a dimensionally consistent, arrow straight, tree-free building material devoid of the natural defects associated with forest service products, which means less waste, easier installation and shorter production cycle times. Industrial Hemp Lumber is a self-extinguishing, rot resistant and insect resistant engineered structural member designed to save residential contractors and builders time and produce a high-performance home with finer build quality. After establishing valuable proven products, the suite of goods and techniques established by SBC could be franchised to establish textile mills and Industrial Hemp Lumber manufacturing hubs in each state in the USA.

Portable Manufacturing Pods (PMP)

Taro Manufacturing will be creating a new paradigm shift in manufacturing by developing sustainable Portable Manufacturing Pods (PMPs) that can provide significant reductions in costs, energy, and carbon footprints for manufacturing. PMPs create a portable manufacturing environment out of large 40-foot shipping containers. The shipping containers will have a large array of solar panels mounted above them and battery storage below. Inside will be specialized automated machinery to produce a single high-volume product or part. Targeted products are simple pieces that are currently made overseas. Raw material will be delivered in one end of the container, processed inside automatically, and retrieved from the other side. The entire container is configured not just for Industry 4.0 – but for Mobile Industry 4.0.

SecondNet ― Intelligent Coordinated Emergency Management for School Facility Rapid Alert & Threat Response

Industry lead ANDRO Computational Solutions, LLC of Rome, in collaboration with not-for-profit economic development partner Mohawk Valley EDGE, introduces SecondNet – a new concept in intelligent, coordinated emergency management for rapid alert/response to mitigate active threats in schools and other public spaces. ANDRO is adapting their SPEARLink radio developed for the Army, together with ancillary technologies from Swidget, Inc. to conduct proof-of-concept pilots to demonstrate the new capability. School violence and active shooter threats are rapidly escalating. There is an urgent need for reliable personal communication devices that provide real-time situational awareness during crisis situations. SecondNet fills current technology gaps and assures that the needs of our school community and any public space are met. SecondNet will demonstrate an unparalleled breakthrough in rapid alert/response that will save lives.

Integrated platform for measuring and reducing symptoms of ASD

SUNY Upstate Medical University will conduct a placebo-controlled clinical trial with 40 autistic children (ages 2 to 10). The study will measure the impact of novel technology – transcranial photobiomodulation – on the behavior, communication and social skills of participants. Transcranial Photobiomodulation means shining near-infra-red light through the skull, using a wearable device with embedded LEDs. The treatment is non-invasive and has no known side effects. The study will use Cognilium wearable device, developed by JelikaLite Corp., to deliver the treatment. In 2021, Cognilium was awarded FDA breakthrough device designation.

Scale-Up Nanomanufacturing of Carbon Nanotube Arrays for Cell-Based Therapies

Advanced Gene Transfer Company is partnering with Rochester Institute of Technology’s Mechanical Engineering Department to create carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays to create cell therapies. Cell-based therapies have incredible potential to treat diseases, including cancer, but current processes are limited, inefficient, and expensive. CNT array technology overcomes many limitations of current genetic material delivery methods at a fraction of the cost. State-of-the-art manufacturing processes used in the semiconductor industry will be utilized to scale up the production of CNT arrays for clinical use.

Industrial Design and DFM for the Smart Finishing Robotic Workcell

The Smart Finishing Robotic Workcell from Cohesive Robotics is a game-changer for autonomous material removal and surface finishing tasks. Designed for high-mix manufacturing and fabrication operations, the complete turnkey workcell solution will perform common material removal processes on nearly any part, of any quantity, and with no programming required. This project plays a critical role in maturing the overall system for introduction into a production shop floor environment. It focuses on design for manufacturing (DFM) and improvement of the system integration and functional safety aspects to accelerate commercialization and availability to manufacturing customers across industry sectors, including aerospace, renewable energy, heavy equipment and general fabrication.

GreenEgg Packaging
EndoGlow manufactures surgical instruments that fluoresce under near infrared imaging. The funds will be used for packaging design and testing and allow EndoGlow to release their first product.

Manufacturing Scaleup of Printable Copper Inks for Flexible Electronics
Copprium Inc. has partnered with Prof. Shenqiang Ren, UB's Dept. of Chemistry, to commercialize a family of conductive copper inks for applications in printable flexible electronics. The new patent-pending copper inks solve many of the problems with current conductive inks in the industry at a significant cost advantage. Leveraging the strong UB entrepreneurial ecosystem, this project enables Copprium to launch its new ink products in 2022 into applications using screen printing, direct writing, aerosol jetting and related printing technologies. The UB inks are printable, flexible, solderable, capable of low-to-high temperature sintering, compatible with traditional equipment and, importantly, are corrosion and oxidation resistant as well as shelf stable and shippable at ambient temperatures. Copprium expects to gain a significant competitive advantage globally, open new markets, increase sales revenue and grow their operations in Buffalo by creating high quality technical jobs.

SMT Production Line
Implement a surface mount technology (SMT) assembly line to modernize Kepco's DC power supplies to replace obsolete through hole electronic components and take advantage of more modern components only available in SMT. The SMT line will use lean manufacturing techniques to improve responsiveness to customer requirement in a low volume / high mix manufacturing environment. The improvement in product density will enable the expansion of Kepco's product line to include AC power supplies and recuperative electronic loads. The SMT line will facilitate the on shoring of manufacturing to the United States and the expansion of manufacturing jobs at Kepco's Flushing, NY factory.

Kegr Expanded Design and Manufacturing
Kegr LLC is partnering with the Manufacturing & Technology Enterprise Center (MTEC) to manufacture an app-connected electronic keg tap for consumer use. The Kegr device is an electronic smart tap that improves upon a standard hand pump without requiring CO2. Although developed for the keg industry, the technology can be adopted by many other monitoring applications looking for simple and sustainable solutions.

Developing commercial-scale wool scouring capacity: Phase II - drying line set-up
HVTP will partner with Battenkill Fibers to complete phase II of a wool scouring operation through addition of innovative Low Temperature Radio Frequency loose fiber drying to the washing line currently in development. Commercial-scale scouring is needed in order for the Hudson Valley's farm-to-fabric supply chain to expand to meet growing demand for locally-sourced materials. Shipments of materials from overseas have become unreliable and there is considerable fluctuation in quality. Several short-term jobs will be created installing equipment and renovating space. Once in place, the scouring facility is expected to create three new permanent first shift jobs; and two jobs on second shift as demand increases. Additionally, the operation will result in considerable processing cost savings to the agricultural sector; and reduce environmental impacts through lower flows of waste water and reduced fuel consumption by the RF dryer compared to traditional hot air equipment.

Aurie Reusable Catheter System Development
The Aurie Reusable Catheter System helps 600,000 intermittent catheter users in the US automatically clean, disinfect, and lubricate their catheters between uses with the help of tap water and pre-packaged cleaning supplies. The completed system will help improve access to high-quality catheters that help reduce potentially life-threatening infections by 30% relative to the standard, single-use intermittent catheters that are the standard of care today.
CathBuddy, Inc. is a client within the state certified business incubator, CNY Biotech Accelerator (CNYBAC), Upstate Medical University. CNYBAC provides targeted resource and networking assistance to their clients. This collaborative project will enable CathBuddy, Inc. to identify NYS-based contract manufacturers (CM) for the Aurie Reusable system, a novel portable catheter disinfection device to increase reprocessor prototype readiness.

Space Launch Assist by maglev in vacuum
Magnet Launch, LLC exists to reduce the cost and environmental impact of space launch by an order of magnitude each. To realize those goals, a launch assist system is proposed. This system will consist of a ground-based track, built on the side of a tall mountain. Inside the track will be a vacuum, and launch vehicles will be accelerated to a significant fraction of orbital speed by superconducting magnetic levitation. With this project, Magnet Launch and Brookhaven National Laboratory will work together to prove the feasibility of the launch assist concept, and create a system architecture to satisfy stakeholder requirements.

Recycled Glass Cement Replacement
For the past 40 years, New York's recycled glass has been sent to our landfills due to high contamination and the lack of an end market. KLAW Industries has developed a process to use this waste glass as a raw material to create Pantheon™, a cement replacement for concrete, to decarbonize the construction industry. Pantheon™ makes concrete stronger, lower cost, and drastically reduces the carbon impact, launching New York towards its Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) and Low Embodied Carbon Concrete Leadership Act (LECCLA) goals. Working with the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator, and its Southern Tier Clean Energy Incubator program, the proposed project will scale KLAW Industries' logistics system to pick up waste glass from Potential Environmental Justice Areas (PEJA) around New York and deploy Pantheon™ into the Southern Tier concrete market with partners at Barney & Dickenson Inc.

Additive Manufacturing of Durable Ceramics for Clean Energy Applications
Researchers at Cornell University are partnering with ceramic 3D printing company Lithoz America and energy startup Dimensional Energy (DE) to develop new advanced printable ceramics that are better able to withstand the challenging operating environments of clean energy reactors. This work targets specialized thermocatalytic reactors, which can create more environmentally responsible fuels and chemicals by improving the efficiency of traditional production processes and reducing their carbon footprint.

High efficiency, closed loop, thermal energy storage system for renewable and non-renewable power sources to help with power storage and/or grid balancing applications
Dr. Amit Maha of Alfred University's Mechanical Engineering Department will partner with Aestus Energy Storage to perform the assessment of heat sink vessel manufacturing methods and quantify the experimental investigations, by performing measurements of gas flow, pressure drop, temperature gradients to provide realistic heat storage capability of the Aestus design ceramic core heat sink vessel. This heat sink vessel is a key component in implementing a high efficiency, zero emission energy storage system that can be readily synchronized to an existing power line utility or micro grid. This system offers the ability to dispatch on-demand power to an electric load by storing energy from renewable energy and balance the grid power demand.

Smart Single-Photon Sensors for Quantum Information Technologies
It is widely accepted in the scientific community that the twenty-first century will be the quantum age, with quantum information technologies like quantum computing and quantum communication dramatically changing how we perceive reality and assuring absolute, unbreakable security of our global communications. In this project, we intend to develop and manufacture the next-generation, single-optical–photon Smart Sensor, based on superconducting nanostripe single-photon detectors integrated directly on chip with Josephson-junction–based digital processing circuitry. Smart Sensors will target applications in optical quantum networks and quantum information, such as high data rate quantum key-distribution schemes, single-photon photonics, or trapped ion quantum computing. Smart Sensors will also find wide-range applications in more conventional military and commercial systems that require ultra-sensitive, very-low light imaging for, e.g., surveillance or medical optical tomography.

Prototyping of a Flexible and Retractable Wing Structure for Drone Applications
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, are remotely piloted or autonomous aerial vehicles used widely in civilian and military applications. This project proposed a flexible, expandable and retractable drone wing design that can allow a UAV to fly as a fixed-wing drone yet store its wing into pre-designed geometry to reduce its overall profile to navigate through narrow passages. The wing structure has air channels inside the structure to achieve expansion or retraction by manipulating the air pressure in these channels. It has varying wall thickness to create artificial crease lines to control folding patterns. Its applications can go beyond UAV applications, for example, the same technology can be utilized in space applications where lightweight structures can be stored in tight storage space and expanded without heavy mechanical subsystems.

Preparation of Tetrafluorosulfanyl-containing Photopolymer Prototypes
SFluor is developing a new class of fast-curing, durable, environmentally friendly aerospace coatings that can reduce aircraft maintenance downtime by at least 50% and extend the lifetime of existing aircraft. This innovation is based on the discovery of a polymer that can be rapidly photocured with UV irradiation to form hard, chemically resistant, thermally stable, and abrasion-resistant coatings that may reduce lost in-revenue-service time by facilitating more rapid returns to service and reducing operator and maintainer expense. Qualified SFluor polymer prototype samples will be prepared that meet Military Performance Specifications (MIL-PRF-85285E), and subsequently Boeing, Airbus, Embraer, and other airframers’ standards for consideration of these and other potential aerospace customers.

Development and Manufacturing of a Ploughshare Mixing/Reactor Prototype for Energy Storage Market
University at Buffalo’s NYS Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics (CMI) has partnered with S. Howes LLC, a 160-year-old manufacturer of process equipment that has operated in the same location in Silver Creek, NY since 1856, to develop and launch a new, novel Ploughshare Mixer. The new mixer will significantly improve the mixing/reaction time of advanced energy materials. The customizable mixer design targets the increasing demand for battery and energy-related materials used for energy storage in automobiles as well as the food, chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The project enables the design, procurement, fabrication and product/system testing and validation/analysis prior to launch and delivery to current and pending customers. The ability to deliver specialized equipment to meet customer’s needs will give S. Howes a significant competitive advantage that will allow the company to close more sales, grow their operations, and create new manufacturing jobs in New York State.

Nuravine Indoor Plant Management System; Development and Launch of Flux Advanced Irrigation Controller
Nuravine is developing the Indoor Farming Automation Platform of the Future. Its first product, the Alchemist, automates water nutrient management and analysis for hydroponic systems. This product has saved clients about 100 hours of work per month while increasing their yields by 10%. The next evolution of the platform, the Flux, will deliver nutrient mixtures to different zones throughout an indoor farming facility and provide further data on the systems operations.

Individualized functionally-targeted repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation using a novel electromagnetic tracking system for treatment of auditory verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a promising new treatment for neuropsychiatric disorders that delivers brief magnetic pulses to modulate focal brain circuit activity. Standard targeting uses scalp landmarks, which do not account for individual variations in brain organization. TMS has been investigated as a treatment for hallucinations in schizophrenia, but lack of personalization has led to mixed results. The current project combines Soterix's novel electromagnetic neuronavigation technology and Columbia’s clinical expertise to pilot personalized MRI-guided TMS for hallucinations in patients unresponsive to medications. The pilot allows Soterix to develop their cloud-based neuronavigation service to include an indication for hallucinations which lays groundwork for delivering the treatment through a viable business model.

Development of novel polishing pads for sub 7 nm semiconductor manufacturing
Chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) pad innovation has been driven by novel materials, geometries, micro-features to enable smaller features and complex integration schemes in the devices. However, devices at 7 nm node and beyond have more stringent requirements for the level of acceptable CMP-related defects that cannot be met by current pad technology. In this project, Clarkson University and SMART PAD LLC aim to design the patterns of micro-features on the surface of the CMP pad to increase Peripheral Length and complicate the slurry flow-through with an increase of Contact Area between wafer and pad during the CMP process. This will allow them to not only overcome the technical challenges of CMP in the semiconductor industry such as post-CMP wafer-level uniformity, chip-level topography, planarization efficiency, and defects, but also expand the semiconductor material supply chain in Upstate New York.

Manufacturability Optimization of a Novel Vascular Access Device
Nearly 1% of the US federal budget is spent on dialysis. Treatment usually takes place three times a week at specialized clinics. Home dialysis would be far less costly and more convenient for patients, but is challenging for many. Engineers at the Icahn school of Medicine at Mount Sinai in NYC have developed an implantable device called SEAL (Safe Entry port for Av fistuLae) that directs a dialysis needle into the vasculature at the right place, angle, and depth with micrometer accuracy; thus, allowing the patients to perform the cannulations at home. They are working with Praxis Powder Technology, Inc. in Queensbury, NY to optimize the design for manufacture. Bringing SEAL to the marketplace will allow almost 500,000 patients to access home dialysis and may generate an estimated $250M annual global revenue for New York based institutions. Further, the successful commercialization of this product will bring additional manufacturing jobs to New York.

Transformational Manufacturing of Thin Composite Prepreg
Leveraging previous design and prototyping work sponsored by Douglas Outdoors, LLC, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will design, engineer, and build a small-scale R&D machine to manufacture thin thermoset prepreg (fiber reinforcement pre-impregnated with resin then semi-cured) for the company to use in high-performance fishing rods made of advanced composites. The R&D machine and future production versions will allow Douglas to make the small quantities of ultra-thin, narrow-width prepreg needed to manufacture fishing rods without having to rely on expensive and limited-availability material from large manufacturers that require large minimum order quantities. The company, which currently imports rods, will use the new manufacturing capability to more easily design innovative products, onshore production to NY State, have a unique competitive advantage over domestic and international competitors, and potentially sell specialty prepreg material to other US companies.

ITAC is partnering with New York Embroidery Studio (NYES) and working with RIT’s Golisano Institute for Sustainability, Precision Textiles, Vartest Laboratories and NYS Workforce Development Institute, to bring the ECOSAFE biodegradable gown to market. This gown is the first of its kind medical use biodegradable product manufactured from US made fabric that is cut and assembled in the NYC region. As used PPEs become a Medical Waste nightmare, the ECOSAFE medical gown made by NYES decomposes to water and harmless gas in a fraction of time versus the single use gowns currently being used.

Hudson Valley Textile Project is partnering with Battenkill Fibers Carding and Spinning Mill to implement a wool scouring line operation.

Dust on solar panels can reduce energy output by up to 25% in desert regions and up to 100% during dust storm events. The technology developed by Stony Brook University and Superclean Glass Inc. removes dust from solar panels and regains up to 98% of lost energy.

ArcWorks, a division of The Arc of Monroe, will partner with NextCorps to develop the LVCM Lab (Low Volume Contract Manufacturing Lab), a flexible, low volume assembly facility to enable rapid assembly /build of pre-EP and EP (Engineering Prototype) hardware.

Inso Biosciences Inc. (“Inso”) is a startup from Cornell University and a Client Company of Cornell’s Kevin M. McGovern Family Center for Venture Development in the Life Sciences incubator. Inso is developing a technology platform—originally invented at Cornell University– that can automate sample preparation for subsequent DNA sequencing or optical-mapping analysis.

Lux Semiconductors is developing a high performance, thin, and flexible platform for electronics called System-on-Foil, which represents a leap forward for printed circuit boards. The System-on-Foil platform will enable more durable, lightweight, and flexible electronics for a wide range of industries, including aerospace, defense, clean energy, medical wearables, and Internet-of-Things.

This project will accelerate the commercialization of technology developed at Clarkson University to address the growing problem of harmful algal blooms (HABs) in New York State and around the world. Through the generous funding provided by FuzeHub, startup company Reset Water, LLC will launch a prototype boat outfitted with “HABs Terminator” technology licensed from Clarkson. This technology applies a proprietary electrochemical oxidation process to treat waters affected by HABs, removing both the visible blooms as well as their toxic side effects.

The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation (BNYDC) partnered with Clip.bike to launch the Clip project and democratize access to e-bike technology. This project consists of producing CLIP, the world’s first portable propulsion device that can be attached to any bike to instantly upgrade it to an e-bike.

Associate Professor Jie Qiao of Rochester Institute of Technology’s Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science, is partnering with Aktiwave LLC to develop a Femtosecond-Laser-Based Welding System prototype, which provides epoxy-free bonding of optical, electronic, mechanical components, and medical devices.

Researchers at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) are partnering with Cinterest to develop alternatives to conventional packaging solutions by combining biochar with various plant-based and bioplastic materials that offer a pathway to significantly reduce cost and net greenhouse gas emissions.

Finger Lakes Textiles is proud to partner with woman-owned, Natural Beauty Breast Prosthesis, LLC, to manufacture an organic, all-natural fiber, external breast form for women who have had mastectomies without reconstruction.

CEBIP has partnered with Unique Electric Solutions (UES) to establish a pilot electric vehicle (EV) battery cell laser welding energy storage system (ESS) manufacturing production line.

In this project, the Center for Advanced Microelectronics Manufacturing (CAMM) at Binghamton University and Aincobio LLC, based in Syracuse, New York, are teaming up to produce new additively printed, conductive-ink microelectronic biosensors capable of quantifying the antibiotic resistance of bacterial pathogens in less than one hour.

SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s ability to leverage vast resources, including the New York State Center of Excellence in Nanoelectronics and Nanotechnology (NYS CENN) and New York State Center for Advanced Technology in Nanomaterials and Nanoelectronics (CATN2), along with nano/micro fabrication facilities and industrial partnerships, will underpin Professor of Nanobioscience Dr. Yubing Xie’s collaborative efforts with StemCultures to advance novel control release sutures for advanced wound healing.

In response to the COVID-19 ventilator shortage, our NYC team of clinicians, engineers, and supply chain experts from Newlab, 10xBeta, Boyce Technologies and Otherlab formed the Emergency Ventilator Response Initiative. The consortium worked closely with business partners and municipalities to form Spiro Devices LLC (Spiro), which is producing a low-cost automator for a manual resuscitator that maintains oxygenation and ventilation. It is not meant to replace conventional ventilators but expands the functionality of a manual resuscitator while freeing up human resources and increasing quality control. The device was designed to bypass some of the time, cost, and supply chain hurdles facing ventilator production efforts.

The PVA PREVENT™ is an emergency ventilator designed to treat patients suffering from COVID-19 respiratory failure. This motorized device automatically compresses an Ambu® bag to provide air to the lungs of a COVID-19 patient, eliminating the human error and fatigue that results from manual resuscitation. The PREVENT™ is a flexible, portable option to be used in critical care and emergency situations in hospital and institutional environments. It is designed for use when a conventional ventilator is not available or necessary.

General Composites Inc, a contract composite manufacturer located in Willsboro, NY, has initiated the process of converting existing carbon fiber & composite thermoforming processing equipment and developing tooling to manufacture N95 respirators. Further, General Composites is establishing the testing equipment to support quality control of production, producing prototypes to validate production process, and completing regulatory testing/submissions to achieve approval for the much needed N95 respirators.

The most critical supply chain issue related to the N95 respirator mask shortage: meltblown capacity. Meltblown nonwovens are currently used to achieve the sub-micron particle filtration efficiency requirements. However, other textile manufacturing methods can incorporate similar design principles, including electrostatic charge. Our innovative design will utilize a needle punch nonwoven with a ‘tuned’ electrostatic charge. Our cradle-to-grave operation boasts a 12 million mask/month capacity able to deliver a complete mask.

SUNY Upstate Medical University is pleased to announce receipt of a $50,000 FuzeHub Manufacturing Grant on behalf of the CNY Biotech Accelerator (CNYBAC) and their client, CathBuddy, Inc. in performance of CathBuddy, Inc.’s Catheter and Insertion Aid Design for Manufacture project.
CathBuddy, Inc., led by CEO Souvik Paul, was a CNYBAC 2019 Medical Device Innovation Challenge (MDIC) graduate and is now a client tenant. While participating in the MDIC program, CathBuddy, Inc. also won a FuzeHub Commercialization Competition Grant. The CathBuddy reusable urinary catheter technology provides a method for users to sterilize no-touch catheters between uses reducing their catheter supply costs and potentially improving user health The ultimate goal of CathBuddy, Inc.’s patented technology is to improve long-term urinary health through the implementation of reusable smart catheters that can gather key bladder and urine diagnostics repeatedly on a daily basis, allowing physicians to make personalized recommendations for patients.

This project involves vetting manufacturers to complete design for manufacture efforts and production of manufacturing molds for the completion of verification and validation testing for CathBuddy, Inc.’s FDA regulatory submission. Success in this project will directly translate to the allocation of annual manufacturing spend to NYS medical device manufacturers, increased CathBuddy, Inc. employment, and investment in manufacturing capital equipment. This project forms the foundation of in-state efforts to establish CathBuddy, Inc.’s manufacturing capabilities in New York.

Dr. Shenqiang Ren of the University at Buffalo’s Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Chemistry and RENEW is partnering with Innosek, LLC to develop advanced structural polymers. This project will leverage advanced polymer processing and local manufacturing capabilities to enable superior engineering polymer materials. The impact of this new technology will shine a light on the University at Buffalo and the entrepreneurial success of a Buffalo innovator. This project is transformative in that it will revolutionize additive manufacturing of UHMWPE-based personalized product applications in military, law enforcement, sports as well as medical implant devices that are lighter, stronger and biocompatible.

Researchers at Canisius College have patented a system for gait training and analysis of walking disabilities resulting from neuromuscular movement disorders that affect large patient populations. The technology has been licensed to Electroskip LLC, a local start-up founded by the inventors. In this all-New York State manufacturing collaboration, Canisius researchers will manage the production of a new FiberOptic Footbed utilizing technology from NYS start-ups and manufacturers that will be utilized in Electroskip’s product.

Dr. Alexis Clare and Dr. William LaCourse, professors of glass science in the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, in partnership with Hillcrest Industries of Attica, NY, will develop 2 related processes which allow glass powder waste to be reprocessed into retro-reflective beads and to novel luminescent glass microbeads. Hillcrest Industries is a leading manufacturer of glass beads used for highly reflective road markings. Alfred University’s low-temperature process is expected to increase Hillcrest Industries’ profitability and employment through process changes that not only recycle the waste powder into currently produced reflective beads, but also into a wide range of new “glow in the dark” luminescent glass formulations. The new compositions developed at Alfred causes the glass to emit light of a given color when exposed to ultraviolet light emitted by modern auto headlamps.

The Arany Lab, Department of Oral Biology and Biomedical Engineering, University at Buffalo and OptiMed Technology, Inc. has developed a novel approach to improve oral-dental health that is currently a 14 billion dollar market. A novel formulation with polymeric microspheres has been developed to address a condition termed Drug-Induced Gingival Overgrowth (DIGO) that is caused by side-effects of commonly used medications for high blood pressure, convulsions, and organ transplants. This disease affects over 20 million patients in the U.S currently. The commercialization of these formulations is currently underway.

Queens College, CUNY (QCC) is collaborating with the manufacturer and the distributor Quatcare LLC (QCL) in an all New York-based effort to create means for production of an antimicrobial treatment media. QCL has licensed CUNY IP for the use of novel porous media for the treatment of industrial process waters and as a result has the potential to decrease energy, water and biocide consumption. QCL in collaboration with QCC has developed initial manufacturing processes for coating of porous media including recycled glass. Through funding from the Innovation Fund with FuzeHub, the collaboration of Queens College and QCL can scale manufacturing for our innovative entrant into the expanding market for technologies that can reduce microbial loads in industrial process waters. This would enable scaling of manufacturing to meet QCL’s supply chain needs and position NY to lead in these novel antimicrobial treatment technologies.

The last decade has seen the emergence of miniature models of human tissues that have revolutionary promise for medicine. With tools such as the “gut-on-a-chip,” the “brain-on-a-chip,” and the “lung-on-a chip,” biomedical scientists are able to quickly make discoveries that were previously only available through slow and limited animal studies. The laboratory of PI James McGrath at the University of Rochester has used SiMPore’s ultrathin (< 300 nm) and transparent porous membranes to make a novel platform for “tissue chips” called the μSiM. The μSiM is quickly growing in popularity and has strong commercial potential. This project will have SiMPore adopt the manufacturing methods of the McGrath lab to create a commercial offering of the μSiM.

This project aims to capitalize on the existing commercial demand for improved power sources for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV or “drones”), by advancing fuel cell design and manufacturing. Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is collaborating with a local Monroe County company, Falcon Fuel Cells Inc. (Falcon), to develop a process to manufacture the crucial membrane-electrode assemblies (MEAs) needed for high-temperature proton exchange membrane (HT-PEM) fuel cells, and required system components capable of powering a UAV. A mobile system comprised of an HT-PEM fuel cell integrated with a propane fuel reformer has already been demonstrated by project team members in their prior work. However, further progress toward a validated MEA fabrication process is needed to demonstrate commercial scale manufacturability of such MEAs, and the fuel cell powered system as a whole. This project will provide critical design methods and data to advance the fabrication of the MEA component of the fuel cell, and the manufacturability of fuel cell propulsion systems for UAVs. The outcomes of this research could eventually lead to commercialization opportunities for Falcon and additional technological research advances for RIT.

New Scale Robotics (NSR) has a line of precision grippers and other tools that install in minutes on collaborative robots (cobots) from Universal Robots. NSR will collaborate with Dr. Samanta and his students at FLCC to develop a Smart Platform that expands plug-and-play compatibility of its tools to multiple additional cobot brands. A new cobot will be housed at FLCC’s Instrumentation and Controls program. Dr. Samanta will act as consultant on the Smart Platform development project and may use the cobot to teach students, demonstrate cobot applications, and problem-solve any issues that surface during development. The class can work with other local companies to develop solutions for assembly, loading, quality control, and packaging as a part of their curriculum or co-op experience. A successful collaboration for this innovation will increase revenue and employment for New Scale Technologies and will bring Industry 4.0 technology into the FLCC classroom.

The laboratory of University at Buffalo chemistry professor Luis A. Colón, in partnership with Molecular Glasses, Inc. will develop a new environmentally benign purification process to be implemented in the manufacturing of novel Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) materials that are used in displays on devices such as cell phones, tablets, and flat screen TVs. The purification approach is based on supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC), a technology that provides scaleup purification capabilities with the added benefit of minimizing the use of organic solvents in the purification process. The new purification method will allow Molecular Glasses, Inc. to improve reproducibility and replace current methodology that often has lacks the reproducibility to achieve the required purity of their novel OLED materials. The new purification process based on SFC will also enable the production of materials at a reduced manufacturing cost.

Dr. Shenqiang Ren of the University at Buffalo’s Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and RENEW is partnering with Coolnomics LLC and QSG Technologies to develop CoolPak Hydrogel for advanced personal cooling solutions. This project will leverage thermal management technology and local manufacturing capabilities to enable superior cooling wearables. The impact of this new cooling technology will shine a light on the University at Buffalo and the entrepreneurial success of a Buffalo innovator. More so, this new cooling technology will enhance physical and mental endurance while also preventing heat injuries among the many populations commonly challenged when exertional heat meets environmental heat; from the endurance athlete to the military. From occupational workers in the construction trades, to the oil, gas, and nuclear industries; the airline industry, fire fighters and first responders; and the one-in-three Americans who become worsened when overheated due to a chronic condition and/or disability.

Ionica Sciences has developed a high sensitivity, precision platform for the detection of infectious diseases in human serum samples. The first test under development is the IonLyme test, a high-sensitivity assay for Lyme disease in humans. Lyme disease, a tick-borne disease, is the fastest growing vector-borne infectious disease in the United States. There is a widely recognized and critical need for better assays to detect Lyme disease in humans. Currently Lyme disease is diagnosed using antibodies, or the body’s response to exposure to Lyme disease. This approach results in poor sensitivity, especially for patients tested within 30 days of infection, since antibody production has not reached detectable levels at that point. Further, new and old infections cannot be differentiated. To address the need for a better Lyme disease diagnostic, Ionica Sciences has combined two existing technologies, DNA aptamers and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) to create a novel direct test for Lyme disease. In collaboration with FuzeHub, Ionica will purchase a 96-well Raman spectrometer to help transition the IonLyme test from the research laboratory to a clinical reference lab for future sale of the assay to physicians.

The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is teaming up with Rich Brilliant Willing (RBW), a growing, Brooklyn-based company that designs and manufactures custom LED fixtures, to develop a novel approach using additive manufacturing for prototyping, concept validation, and manufacturing of functional 3D-printed heat sinks for LED fixtures. LED lighting products require the heat generated by the LEDs and other components to be properly dissipated. High operating temperatures negatively impact long-term performance and system reliability. Additive manufacturing will provide a simpler, faster, and better predictive design cycle to optimize RBW custom products, expanding their design possibilities without compromising performance or profitability. Through LRC outreach activities, the results from this project will benefit manufacturers of lighting and additive manufacturing equipment and materials at large.

The University of Rochester is partnering with Optel, Inc., to develop and build commercial clinical prototypes to characterize and assist in the management of dry eye disease (DED). These prototypes are based on a proprietary laboratory instrument developed at the University of Rochester, The Institute of Optics and Flaum Eye Institute that has been shown to characterize dye eye and the effect of several types of eye drops. DED affects an estimated 40 million individuals in the U.S. and given its predisposition and increased prevalence with age, along with its association with cataract and refractive surgery, incidence is predicted to increase with the aging population and increased use of digital displays that alters blink behavior.

Alfred University and Lithoz America, LLC have teamed up on an additive manufacturing (AM) of all solidstate fuel cells and batteries project using yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and Lithium Super Ionic Conductor (LISICON) for fuel cell and battery applications, respectively. This project intends to characterize particles and rheology of select ceramic suspensions for 3D printing, sinter AM ceramics, and evaluate AM data for adoption of AM technology for energy applications. This project will be the first step towards making all solid-state energy devices using AM in a commercial scale. The all solid-state energy devices have numerous advantages in terms of energy efficiency, compactness, form factor, low corrosion with no liquid or melt, and longer life. The AM will also dramatically cut the cost to manufacture with significant reductions in material loss due to generally reductive approaches used in manufacture of these materials and devices. Rapid production via AM and flexibility in size and shape will open up new markets for these materials and devices. Results will lay the foundation for scaling up and evaluation of this technology for all solidstate (ceramic) fuel cells and batteries produced by AM, thus revolutionizing energy conversion and storage industries in the NY state as well as across the US.

Alfred University and FlexTraPower, Inc. DBA Bonbouton are partnering to advance the manufacturing of conductive fibers for functional textiles via an extrusion-based 3D printing of carbon nanomaterials based (CNT, graphene) PDMS composites. This project will develop a novel extrusion-based 3D printing technology to manufacture conductive 1D fibers and 2D patterns for flexible and functional textiles using carbon nanomaterials based PDMS composites.

The Center of Excellence in Advanced and Sustainable Manufacturing (COE-ASM) at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) partnered with Enetics, Inc., headquartered in Victor NY, under a previous project to design and engineer a flow-loop testbed for a gas telemetry system that could be constructed for prototype and production unit testing. Enetics tested several prototypes with gas utility companies and ultimately uncovered the need for local testing of the prototypes to enable quicker design iterations. Under this new project, COE-ASM will fabricate a flow-loop testbed with the required features and sensor systems to allow Enetics’ product design to mature faster and create a more accurate and reliable product. Upon COE-ASM’s completion of the testbed, Enetics will be able to finalize development of their GasComm system, calibrate flow rates under prototypic conditions, and update their firmware for more accurate data collection. The company expects to deliver a thousand units to utilities customers in its first year, generating a projected net positive revenue.

Mohawk Machine Works, LLC is developing innovative tech for commercial transportation and infrastructure projects, using advanced Air Sabre TM technology for cleaning and drying surfaces.

The Entrepreneur Space, a food and business incubator, is partnering with its client, Pepplish Provisions, to obtain a Piston Head Fill Machine. Pepplish Provisions, a gourmet hot sauce company that has been manufacturing its products in our facility for approximately three years, will benefit from the productivity boost they will receive. QEDC expects that other clients will experience multiple benefits in the form of cost savings and increased productivity and sales and anticipate that roughly 25% of the client manufacturers will experience similar production boosts and compete for a larger share of the market. The QEDC and Entrepreneur Space are proud of their ongoing impact on small-to-medium sized manufacturing companies in New York City and the fledgling industry in Queens.

Researchers at Canisius College are partnering with established electronics manufacturer K-Technologies and startup Electroskip LLC, who will begin commercialization of a patented technology for gait training and analysis. The Electroskip devices will be manufactured with GMP’s to produce wireless wearable footwear medical devices for nationwide research sites conducting clinical studies. Originally developed for dancers and electronic musicians, a 2018 study with a Parkinson’s patient showed great promise, demonstrating improvements in physical and cognitive tasks while walking. Electroskip LLC will expand its clinical partnerships to nationwide research Institutes and beta locations to explore all the possible commercial applications of this platform technology. Over the next year, K-Technologies will collaborate with Canisius faculty on DFM and DFT and manufacture 30 product units to fulfil this demand.

The City College of New York (CCNY) of the City University of New York system (CUNY), in partnership with lnnovBot LLC, proposes to design and fabricate five Wind-Rider robots and distribute them to stakeholders (wind blade manufacturers, blade testing facilities, wind-farms, etc.) to evaluate their performance for six months. Feedback will be collected to improve Wind­Rider as a more mature product for providing visual & contact-based inspection of utility scale wind blades to benefit wind energy industry by means of improving quality control of blade manufacturing processes and in-service inspection of wind blades that will reduce O&M costs.

Researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will conceive, design, prototype and demonstrate an automated lamination process for Pvilion, Inc., a manufacturer of PV-integrated products in Brooklyn, NY, to integrate its solar modules with fabric panels. Shifting Pvilion’s solar fabric manufacturing from a manually intensive process to an automated or semi-automated process will significantly reduce its labor time and complexity, improving the quality and reliability of its products while lowering the unit price. An automated/robotic lamination process would be incredibly valuable for helping the company manufacture competitive products in a number of industries including flexible hybrid electronics, defense and aerospace.

Mohawk Valley Community College has been awarded a $35,000 FuzeHub grant to further grow the college’s FABLab digital fabrication capabilities. The grant will fund a state-of-the-art 3D scanner which will benefit the college’s programs as well as provide local business access to high-tech tools not normally available to them. Partnering with MVCC on the grant is a local startup, Casestry LLC. Highly accurate digital scanning is a crucial step in Casestry’s manufacturing process. Having the ability to scan items locally at MVCC will greatly reduce the time to get new products to market.

Prof. James McGrath (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering) will lead an effort to prototype and test a consumable component that is integral to a biomarker detection platform under development at SiMPore. A biomarker is a molecule, like a protein, that can be measured in a bodily fluid, like blood or urine, in order to gain information on health or disease status. An emerging area of biomarker interest is the use of vesicles, known as exosomes, that are released from all cell types throughout the body. Exosomes have been shown to provide more information-rich content as biomarkers, so there is tremendous interest in their application. The project will develop proof-of-concept demonstration that SiMPore’s novel, ultrathin, silicon-based filter membranes can serve as efficient means for isolating and then analyzing exosomes. The Company plans to build upon this project by developing a system for exosome analysis to support drug development and biomedical research.

United Aircraft Technologies, Inc. (UAT) is developing an aircraft clamp, which will replace a metal legacy design with a new ergonomic and lighter alternative. This clamp is designed to improve fuel economy (by reducing the overall weight of an aircraft), decrease the occurrence of Repetitive Strain Injuries, simplify maintenance, and reduce the environmental impact of CO2 emissions. The team’s focus is on the aviation industry and their entry into the aerospace military market. Through assistance from the Center of Economic Growth’s (CEG’s) Business Growth Service group and regional Manufacturing Extension Partnership, UAT and CEG have secured funding from the FuzeHub Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund to facilitate the commercialization of UAT’s technology.

Nuravine is developing The Indoor Farming Automation Platform of the Future. Their first product, The Elixir, automates water nutrient management and analysis for hydroponic systems. Early customer trials have already shown to save farmers 93 hours of work per month while increasing yields by 10%. MTEC is bringing their experience in Design for Manufacturing to usher Nuravine’s Elixir from prototype through to their initial production run of 50 units.

Free Form Fibers (FFF), working in partnership with Alfred University, seeks to develop a critical concept design for a strategic million fiber manufacturing facility in New York State. This will prepare FFF for investment and scale-up of their novel approach that uses laser chemical vapor deposition (LCVD) to grow a wide variety of value-added fibers. Prof. Holly Shulman, from Alfred University, will serve as principal investigator, leading a design team of engineering students to interface with FFF to analyze facility needs to accommodate a completely new concept in fiber manufacturing. The team will specify the physical and technical parameters of laser banks, power, cooling, gas handling, and analytical equipment, with a goal of minimizing handling and optimizing process flow.

Clarkson University continues to be a driving force behind efforts to facilitate sustained economic growth throughout New York State. This project aims to further this mission by enhancing the North Country Business lncubator with the installation of a paint booth in Clarkson’s Damon Hall. Damon Hall is one of three buildings that make up the North Country Business lncubator network. It has been renovated to house light manufacturing startups, including the flagship tenant LC Drives. This private company Is developing unique manufacturing processes and they, like many manufacturers, require a paint booth to put their product into production. This paint booth will begin helping LC Drives the day it is installed, but it will also provide long term benefits to future manufacturing startups in the region including some that are already in the pipeline.

University at Buffalo’s Center for Materials Informatics (CMI) has partnered with S Howes LLC, a 160- year-old manufacturer of process equipment. The company has continuously operated in the same location in Silver Creek, NY since 1856. The Innovation Grant will enable S Howes to improve upon an existing thermal conveyor design to better compete with older technologies and add up to 5 new high-quality jobs over the next three years.

RIT will study the use of how best to optimize fermentation growth parameters in the production of filamentous fungal mycelium, which are used by a Rochester based mushroom technology company, Empire Medicinals. In addition, RIT professor Thomas Trabold and his research team will study the potential of its commercial partner using excess whey, a common waste product in the yogurt industry, in a stirred tank reactor as a production resource for the commercial mushroom industry. RIT researchers also will conduct an economic assessment of whey and its scalability as a food waste up-cycling and re-use alternative to wastewater treatment for the New York state dairy industry.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Tire Conversion Technologies, Inc. (TCT) of Latham, NY are teaming up on a 12-month project to improve and implement a novel manufacturing process with US origins but only European execution, to date, that involves binder-less compression molding of ‘crumb’ rubber from recycled tires for solar, safety and environmental containment products. This technological advance could allow TCT to reduce product cost by 50%, generate unique IP, undercut foreign and domestic competition, push deeper penetration into domestic and international markets, and enter into markets currently out of reach due to price. If successful, expected economic impact within three years includes a 230% increase in sales volume, 20 new employees, up to $320K in capital expenditures, and opening up a second facility in NY State.

This project introduces technology and automation to manufacture an innovative product – reusable Tidy Tots diapers – that is currently manufactured with a labor-intensive process. This new production process will enable the company to meet market demand. The company contracts its labor from the Schenectady ARC, which provides vocational opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities. Success of this project will not only have a tremendous economic impact for the company, but will dramatically increase the number of jobs available to the clients of Schenectady ARC.

Vara Corporation is a firearm security company leading in design, technology, and user experience. Vara’s mission is to create innovation that embraces customers’ diverse lifestyles to enable safer, more convenient lives. In partnership with the Center for Economic Growth and support from FuzeHub’s Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund, Vara will be implementing a design for manufacturing project to assist them in creating new jobs, growing their supply chain, and improving their manufacturing capabilities here in Upstate NY.

Create Orthotics and Prosthetics will work closely with Clarkson University to finalize the design, sourcing and manufacturing plan of the company’s 3D printing systems. This project will lead to increased profitability at Create O&P, new manufacturing jobs in New York’s North Country Region, and the commercialization of Create’s cutting-edge fused deposition modeling printer head technology. Additionally, students at Clarkson University will benefit from real world experience in product design, process design, product sourcing and value engineering.

The Regenerative Research Foundation (RRF) and StemCultures, LLC collaborate to develop, manufacture and distribute StemBeads®, a revolutionary controlled-release growth factor technology. The StemBeads® product is currently used for improved cell culture in more than 100 scientific laboratories globally. The enhanced manufacturing process supported by FuzeHub will provide an improved StemBeads® product to the research community through the use of a new microfluidic method and will foster compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices established by the Food and Drug Administration.

The Center of Excellence in Advanced and Sustainable Manufacturing (COE-ASM) at Rochester Institute of Technology has partnered with Enetics, Inc., headquartered in Victor, NY, to design a test bed for advanced prototype and production unit testing of products that provide remote, near real-time condition monitoring of gas distribution pipelines. Natural gas distribution systems in the U.S. are under pressure to increase reliability and safety through monitoring. Enetics has partnered with multiple U.S. natural gas utilities to develop a first-of-its-kind telemetry product to remotely monitor the millions of miles of distribution pipelines. Under the project, COE-ASM will engineer and design a flow loop test bed for testing of gas telemetry systems. Upon COE-ASM’s completion of the design, the test flow loop will be fabricated by Enetics as an on-site platform to rigorously replicate the testing of their telemetry system to ensure it performs effectively.

Professor Diane Dalecki of the University of Rochester Department of Biomedical Engineering is partnering with Imaginant, Inc. to develop ultra-high-frequency ultrasound transducers and novel batch-manufacturing processes for the biomedical and biotechnology markets. Imaginant, Inc., located in Pittsford, N.Y., is a world leader in ultrasonic instrumentation for non-destructive testing. This joint project enables the advancement of Imaginant’s innovative, wafer-level, transducer-manufacturing process as well as the development of novel bio-engineering applications and systems based upon these transducers.

This project will produce a medical device that fluoresces using near infrared imaging for clinical evaluation. The device is called “The GreenEgg” and is used in robotic-assisted surgery to help the surgeon identify critical anatomy and improve surgical efficiency. The project will complete proof-of-concept manufacturing including injection molding, safety testing, sterilization, and packaging validation necessary for FDA approval of the device. A mold for manufacturing will be fabricated for production of GreenEgg devices. The clinical evaluation trial data will support the application to the FDA for regulatory approval as well as publication in scientific journals and marketing materials.

This project establishes a state-wide resource for advanced robotic arc welding to benefit manufacturers in multiple industries and across all regions. The latest robotic arc welding technologies are assembled into a shared resource for application development, technology evaluation and training in advanced robotic arc welding.

High Tech Rochester is partnering with an optics startup, LighTopTech Corp., and a design firm, BZDesign, Inc., to help launch an innovative instrument that enables optical biopsy — noninvasive imaging of cellular structures in the human body — in real time.

Vistex Composites LLC is a manufacturing innovation company currently developing and commercializing an advanced composites manufacturing process which is a sustainable alternative to autoclaving, the industry standard. This process drastically reduces capital investment, recurring manufacturing costs, energy consumption, and labor and cycle times while providing equivalent or better quality products. Vistex’s patented technology uses a special Pressure Focusing Layer (PFL) that through a proprietary optimization algorithm and FEA modeling is designed to apply a uniform pressure distribution during the manufacturing process. The proposed work performed by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute seeks to help the company lower the cost of initial prototypes and reduce turn-around time from order to delivery.

The Research Foundation for the State University of New York, on behalf of SUNY New Paltz, is partnering with Battenkill Fibers, Preprocess Inc, and Sunstrand LLC, who are key stakeholders committed to making New York a leader in industrial hemp, to develop a database of properties of technical industrial materials. These technical materials rely on processing to extract the fiber and hurd from the bast stalk with innovative processing techniques. As identified by these partners, the success of hemp in industrial and technical applications is a function of how it compares to other plant-based and man-made materials on a cost and performance basis. The equipment purchased, and housed at SUNY New Paltz, will allow for the group to develop new standardized testing methods specifically for these highly variable fibers. Thus, the impact of each variation on the fiber fineness, fibrillation, strength, and stiffness will allow for clear identification of key innovative material processing methods.

The Manufacturing and Technology Resource Consortium (MTRC) at Stony Brook University is working with Carson Optical, a consumer optics company located in Ronkonkoma, NY, to advance the optics industry. This award will fund a project which will integrate CNC-based machinery with state-of-the art technology employing advanced controls, software & metrology techniques. The expansion of the Long Island-based company into new sectors utilizing these innovative systems will aid Carson in retaining and increasing jobs, such as engineers, skilled technicians and additional support staff.

Dr. Edward Furlani of the University at Buffalo’s Depts. of Electrical Engineering and Chemical and Biological Engineering has partnered with CleanSlate UV and Grantwood Technologies to develop an innovative desktop ultra violet (UV)-based disinfection technology. This project will leverage CleanSlate UV’s current UVC countertop disinfection technology, which enables hospitals and food processing facilities to rapidly sanitize smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices. It will also leverage Grantwood Technologies’ optical design expertise and Dr. Furlani’s expertise in photonics. This project will generate at least 10 new advanced manufacturing jobs in Western New York within 12 months.

The University of Rochester is proposing to purchase two ophthalmic research instruments, a Visiometrics HD Analyzer, and a LambdaX NIMO, which allow measurement of a contact lens’ prescription, as well as the visual performance and scatter of the contact lens on the eye. These tools will initially be used to support a collaboration with The Institute of Optics and the Flaum Eye Institute at the University of Rochester and Clerio Vision, Inc. to support their sponsored research on developing a novel method to manufacture contact lenses. Clerio Vision will leverage this research to advance the diagnostic capability in order to manufacture refractive devices with higher accuracy and to further the understanding of the impact of the LIRIC manufacturing process on optical performance. This project will have a considerable impact on Clerio Vision’s ability to scale up to commercial contact lens manufacturing and is expected to create around 10 jobs in the Rochester region over the next 36 months.

Alfred State will collaborate with American Fuel Cell, a Rochester-area company that produces Fuel Cell MEAs is illustrative of New York State’s leadership in the field of alternative energies. Alfred’s Energy Storage and Conversion Laboratory will integrate new testing capabilities that will allow for rapid advances in the company’s manufacturing operations, and position the laboratory to pursue other collaborative projects with New York State-based fuel cell companies. American Fuel Cell expects to hire up to ten engineers and five technicians in the next four years with the skillset fostered by this project.

Clarkson University will use these grant funds to outfit its North Country Business Incubator with a ‘whole-building’ compressed air system critical to the operations of tenants like groundbreaking LC Drives, whose unique motor designs are half the size and more efficient than current leading motor designs. Clarkson’s Damon Hall, where the air system will be installed, is designed to house light manufacturing start-ups like LC Drives, and will provide long-term benefits to young manufacturing companies in the region.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is partnering with Ecovative Design—an award-winning biomaterials company famous for replacing synthetic protective packaging and construction materials with sustainable mycelium-based molded products—to help the company transition from a research start-up to a full-scale manufacturer. Upgrades to process flow, quality systems, and key production processes and capabilities will lead to improvements in plant performance including dramatic reductions in waste and increases in equipment utilization, helping Ecovative to meet growing market demand. Ecovative expects a threefold increase in sales and doubling of operations staff when a second shift is added.

Weill Cornell Medicine’s Laboratory of Bioregenerative Medicine Surgery (LBMS) will work with Sterifre Medical Inc. toward the commercialization of a new wound therapy device that delivers a patented therapeutic effluent to a wound site via gas-phase resulting in rapid, pain-free wound disinfection for the treatment of acute & chronic wounds. This treatment has practical and biological advantages over liquid and topical treatments and has the flexibility to account for different therapeutic needs. The FuzeHub Manufacturing Innovation Grant will help the team acquire key data necessary to securing FDA approval for a first-in-human study in 2018.

The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) is working with ThermoAura Inc. to help them with the integration of new equipment into their manufacturing process to enable the high-volume manufacture of advanced nanocrystalline thermoelectric alloys. ThermoAura is an early stage company commercializing high-performance nanostructured thermoelectrics produced by a unique chemical method. Through working with CEG and the new equipment the project will support, ThermoAura will be able to decrease assembly times by more than four-fold, permit a three-fold increase in the number of parts produced per cycle and yield per-unit manufacturing costs that are the best in the world and up to 20% more competitive with overseas manufacturers.

Clarkson University is creating a new shared laboratory for both academic and industry collaboration in which both will have access to laboratory tools and equipment. The new space, named the Clarkson Biomaterials Characterization Laboratory, will use the Manufacturing Innovation Grant award to purchase a Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer/ infrared (IR) microscope for the purpose of developing and manufacturing next-generation metamaterials-enhanced infrared imaging systems for commercial, security and defense markets. Industry demand for the FTIR/IR microscope at Clarkson is driven by Phoebus Optoelectronics LLC, which has been performing metamaterials research, development and commercialization over the last ten years. The project with Clarkson will generate significant economic impact for Phoebus Optoelectronics, Clarkson University, Potsdam and the surrounding communities, including the creation of 10 high quality jobs over the next two years.

Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR) and Professor Yong Joo of Cornell University’s School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering are working with IdealChain, a spinoff of Buckingham Manufacturing, who manufactures safety products (harnesses, rescue systems, etc.), to develop and build a bench-scale multi-nozzle Air-Controlled (AC) electrospray system for encapsulation of dyes, to use as stress indicators in safety products. The resulting roll-to-roll electrospray system will be used by IdealChain to fabricate stress-indicating fibers and patches for safety equipment, helping the user to determine when to safely retire their equipment. The manufacturing technology originally developed through the CCMR Industrial Partnerships Program between the Joo Group and Buckingham Manufacturing not only has a large impact on the safety industry, but also wide-ranging ramifications for the fragrance, food, drug delivery and self-healing material industries. Additionally, this project will help IdealChain add 10 new jobs in the next two years.

The Cornell NanoScale Facility (CNF) at Cornell University has partnered with Xallent LLC to develop a next generation diagnostic tool to more rapidly and economically test and characterize semiconductor devices and thin film materials during manufacturing. This tool is built on Xallent’s innovative nanoscale imaging and probing technology. The ability to rapidly probe and measure electrical components at the nanoscale for diagnostics and failure analysis non-destructively is expected to tap a broad range of industry applications. The Manufacturing Innovation Grant will be used to adapt Xallent’s nanomachine platforms to analytical instruments at the Cornell NanoScale Facility for validation, user interface focus, and reliability studies to ready the company for product launch and scale up. Additionally, this project will help Xallent add 8 new jobs by the end of 2019.

Cornell University researchers and VitaScan have developed the VitaScan diagnostics platform: a low cost and portable instrument that can determine micronutrient deficiencies including vitamin D and iron from a finger stick of blood. A key innovation that makes this possible is the design and manufacturing of a proprietary lateral flow assay that combines blood filtration, chemical mixing, and capture of antibodies into one rapid process. Cornell and VitaScan will together develop a medium-scale manufacturing and packaging process to optimize the procedure and create reliable tests for validation studies. VitaScan will pursue the manufacturing strategy in preparation for commercialization, and plans to create 10 new jobs in the next two years.

Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is working with OptiPro Systems on a project to develop an innovative ultrafast-laser-based polishing system and process for optical manufacturing to eliminate polishing waste, long lead-time, and high-cost factors. The laboratory version laser polishing system will be developed in the Laboratory for Advanced Optical Fabrication and Instrumentation by Dr. Jie Qiao and her team at RIT’s Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science with the award-winning research and development (R&D) engineering team led by R&D Manager Edward Fess at OptiPro Systems, a leading manufacturer in Rochester specializing in manufacturing equipment for the fabrication of high-precision optics.

Rochester Institute of Technology’s Additive Manufacturing and Multifunctional Printing (AMPrint) Center is working with Sensor Films on a project to define the operating conditions for high throughput additive manufacturing equipment capable of rapidly printing electrically conductive patterns on plastic substrates. The AMPrint Center will purchase an inkjet head assembly to be integrated with currently installed printing equipment to execute the project, adding long term manufacturing prototyping capability to the Center. Sensor Films’ ability to apply the experimental results to a suite of new manufacturing equipment will result in commercially implemented products to be built and sold in 2017 and beyond, and will create eight new high technology jobs in the local economy.

IncubatorWorks’ project with Emission Logistics will support market identification, manufacturing-related equipment purchase and manufacturing scale-up for emission control devices in vehicles. Emission Logistics’ focus is on the development and manufacture of emission control devices that address the negative health, safety, and environmental impact of exposure to diesel and other fossil fuel emissions.

This project involves the expansion of manufacturing capacity and capability for Extreme Molding, a contract manufacturer, that has had exponential growth inside the Watervliet Arsenal since 2002. Extreme Molding manufactures using silicone and plastic materials often in unique combinations. They do full packaging and order fulfillment for 85% of their customers, shipping around the world including exports to Asia. The primary markets they serve are infants, toddlers, pet care, and high end consumer products.

The Center of Excellence in Advanced & Sustainable Manufacturing’s proof-of-concept manufacturing project with Markin Tubing will help the company identify new materials and processes to further enhance the performance of its coated steel tubing products, which are primarily sold to the automotive industry. The proposed innovation is designed to have a significant impact on Markin Tubing’s ability to continue to grow and thrive in the Finger Lakes region.

The Tech Valley Center of Gravity, a makerspace in Troy, NY, is expanding their services to support NYS manufacturers with a Rapid Prototyping Center (RPC). Manufacturers and start-ups will have access to more equipment that will enable them to build prototypes of manufactured goods. No such center exists in the Capital Region for both entrepreneurs and manufacturers alike to work on prototypes. Five companies have committed to use the RPC in the first year, and as many as 20 companies a year will have access to the Center’s equipment. One Husdon, Shandor Engineering, Beckmann Engineering, Self Array, and Axiom North America, LLC will all use the RPC when it is complete.