| New evaluation report gives
Maine Technology Institute high marks
Maine Technology Institute
March 3, 2003
GARDINER, Maine - The results of a recently completed evaluation of the
Maine Technology Institute's award programs report that the organization
is having a significant impact on the state's economy and small businesses.
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MTI
Award Programs
The
Maine Technology Institute was created by the Maine legislature
in 1999 to provide seed investment grants to private companies
and research laboratories in Maine. Its goal is to increase the
level of research and development in Maine and support the creation
of jobs and the growth of the state’s technology-intensive
economy. The Institute’s grant programs targets seven technology
sectors:
- Aquaculture
and marine technology;
- Advanced
technologies for forestry and agriculture;
- Biotechnology;
- Composite
materials technology;
- Environmental
technology;
- Information
technology;
- Precision
manufacturing technology.
MTI
administers three grant programs.
Seed
Grant Program
Grants of up to $10,000 per project are offered on a competitive basis to support
very early activities for product development, commercialization or business
planning and development. Grants are awarded up to six times per year.
Development
Awards
Investments of up to $500,000 are made to support research and development
of new products or services in the State's targeted technology sectors. This
program began in September, 2000. Development Awards are awarded two times
per year.
Cluster
Enhancement Awards
Awards of up to $500,000 per project are made on a competitive basis to seed
efforts that will stimulate and support the formation and growth of technology
businesses. This program requires that a letter of intent be submitted to the
MTI prior to submission of a full proposal. |
Performed by the Center
for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at the University of Southern
Maine, the "Year One Evaluation of the Maine
Technology Institute Grant Programs for Development Awards and Seed Grants" analyzes
the effects of these programs through a survey of grant recipients.
As CBER associate director,
Professor Charles S. Colgan of the Edmund S. Muskie School of Public
Service served as the principal investigator
for the evaluation. "We found that at this early stage, MTI support
is already showing itself to be very important for the future of Maine's
technology-based industries," he said. "For example, MTI funds
have leveraged 14 times as much in additional public and private funding,
and grant recipients are averaging one patent and trademark filing per
company.
According to the study, 69 organizations that completed their MTI-funded
projects prior to July 1, 2002, were mailed a survey by CBER last August.
The report focused on collecting and analyzing information from the 64
companies that returned their surveys.
"The funding assistance provided by MTI is designed to encourage
firms to undertake activities leading to future growth, by securing additional
funding and securing intellectual property protection for the results of
their research and development efforts," the evaluation states. "Results
indicate that MTI firms have been very successful in both endeavors."
CBER's evaluation shows that MTI grant awards have leveraged more than
$16.3 million in additional public and private funding beyond the $1.81
million provided by MTI. In addition, grant recipients matched MTI grants
with $2.73 million in cash or in-kind value, bringing the total available
resources for research and development to $4.54 million.
MTI grant recipients have also received 19 U.S. and foreign patents and
intend to file for over 100 more, and have registered 34 trademarks, copyrights
and trade secrets, and intend to file 71 additional requests for such registration.
The study pointed out that survey respondents indicated that 57 percent
of their revenues were derived from sales outside of Maine, demonstrating
an ability to compete in national markets. They indicated that they purchased
61 percent of their raw materials and services from companies within Maine.
"MTI grant assistance is noted by these companies as an important
factor in establishing the credibility of their businesses and projects
for securing additional funding. These firms are already having success
in national markets, and their level of intellectual property protection
activity is significantly higher than in Maine as a whole," the study
reports.
Dr. Janet Yancey-Wrona,
director of MTI, was pleased to hear the good news. "MTI's programs aim to stimulate growth in Maine's targeted
industries, and this is just what the CBER report suggests," she said. "We
hope to see more positive results with each subsequent evaluation report
through the success of these companies and the creation of new jobs."
MTI engaged the CBER to conduct this evaluation of its development and
seed grant programs to fulfill the requirements of reporting to the Maine
Legislature. All grant recipients will be resurveyed annually for a period
of five years as part of the ongoing nature of the evaluation process.
This is the first evaluation of MTI's grant programs.
The Center for Business and Economic Research, directed by Professor Bruce
Andrews, provides professional applied research and technical assistance
services to Maine's private and public sector organizations through the
combined expertise of faculty, staff, and students from the University
of Southern Maine's School of Business, the Muskie School of Public Service,
and other colleges and schools at the University of Southern Maine.
Established
by the Maine State Legislature in 1999 as a private, non-profit organization,
the Maine Technology Institute promotes and supports research
and development leading to the commercialization of new products and services
in the state's seven targeted technology sectors. Programs are designed
to enhance the competitive position of those sectors and increase the likelihood
that one or more of the sectors will support clusters of industrial activity
and create new jobs.
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