Corporate partners move into JVIC space

The partners – Applied Systems Intelligence, Brewer Science, Crosslink, Nantero, St. John’s Health System and Unidym – will work with Missouri State Unversity faculty, staff and students to develop new technologies.

“All of these companies are dedicated to developing new technologies and are actively hiring new scientists, engineers and technicians from the greater Springfield area to work in this facility,” said JVIC Executive Director Ryan Giedd in a news release. “We have several new projects beginning.”

As the result of a $4 million Office of Naval Research grant, Giedd said Brewer Science is bringing a new nano-sensor project to the facility; $1.4 million of that will be used by JVIC scientists to develop a new set of technologies, including both equipment and materials, to address the problems associated with packaging very delicate nano-sensor devices.

“Part of the challenge in getting new nano-sensor devices to market is developing ways to package the devices so that they can last for many years and still work properly,” Giedd said. “These very small instruments are very sensitive to dirt and other hazards present in the outside world. They work great in the laboratory, but frequently fail in the field because of dirt, dust, sunlight and other similar factors.”

JVIC scientists also are working with St. John’s on its cornea replacement project, an initiative that Giedd said has realized significant progress in the last few months.

“Many of our military men and women suffer from blast injuries to the head and eyes while serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, specifically to the eye’s window – the cornea,” Giedd said, explaining that donor tissue is in short supply, which creates a demand for a synthetic corneal material to help improve the victim’s chances of recovery.

“At JVIC, we’ve recently been able to electro-spin collagen, the material that forms the corneal scaffold,” Giedd said. “We hope to use this technology to manufacture a novel and revolutionary synthetic cornea material.”

JVIC’s Phase I opened officially on May 30 with a ceremony for the center’s namesake, southwest Missouri Congressman Roy Blunt, who was key to securing more than $14 million in federal funds for Phase I and Phase II renovations of the downtown building, which was once an abandoned MFA mill.

Construction on Phase II, which will include high-tech research space as well as advanced prototype manufacturing space, is ongoing with general contractor DeWitt & Associates.