Business
THE SCIENCE OF SUCCESS UNIVERSITY RESEARCH KEY FOR ECONOMY, REPORTS SAY
By Jane Larson, The Arizona Republic

04/25/2003
The Arizona Republic
D1
(c) Copyright 2003, The Arizona Republic. All Rights Reserved.

For Arizona to generate high-paying jobs, it will have to focus its universities on six key strengths, from electronics and optics to chemistry and space sciences, and track their progress for the long term.

That's the conclusion of two new reports on the economic potential of science and technology research at Arizona's universities. The Ohio-based Battelle Memorial Institute and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy at Arizona State University presented their findings Thursday to the Governor's Council on Innovation and Technology at a meeting in Tucson. The reports go to the Arizona Board of Regents today.

"We are moving in the right direction," said Gov. Janet Napolitano after a presentation at the meeting.

The research is key to building Arizona's economic future, the reports say. The reports emphasize that the universities and businesses must work closer together to help the state's economy grow in new ways.

"The products and services likely to generate the most new wealth and high-wage jobs will come from advances in science and technology," the Morrison report said.

The Battelle report, "Positioning Arizona's Research Universities: Science and Technology Core Competencies Assessment," identifies six core competencies of Arizona universities that can be competitive with other states and leveraged for economic development.

The institute is a consultant for private industry and government agencies that has helped Arizona take steps into new technology.

The institute previously did a study of Arizona's potential in biotechnology, which is being used as a roadmap for development of the Translational Genomics Institute and related organizations.

The six areas were chosen because of their breadth and depth at Arizona universities, competitiveness and relevance to a variety of business areas, the Battelle report said.

Arizona leads in ecological sciences and stands out for its electronics and optics sector, the institute said.

It also recommended combining research areas and developing them into "technology platforms" that could be sources of innovative technologies for Arizona's economy.

Specifically, it said Arizona can become a leader in these areas:

• Communications. Arizona's strengths in electronics and optics, computer modeling and simulation, chemistry and materials, and space sciences could yield advances in communications and in microsatellites.

• Information technology. Research in electronics, computer modeling and chemistry areas can give Arizona an edge in the software and materials that will be needed for "anywhere, anytime" use of the Internet.

• Bioengineering. This field taps nearly all the core competencies, plus Arizona's strength in biosciences, and could develop the use of optics in medicine, implantable devices and neural engineering.

• Sustainable systems. This is everything from environmentally friendly factories to new construction materials that don't require a lot of energy to make and are biodegradable. Although in the early stages, Arizona could use its strengths in ecological sciences and agriculture and plant sciences to create and lead this market.

Arizona lacks several factors, though, before any of this can become reality, the report said.

Universities and industry, which are often working in isolation on related research areas, need to create a more collaborative environment, it said.

The state also needs more research, management and entrepreneurial talent, whether it recruits or grows its own, the report said.

It also suggested the development of application centers, which would offer the facilities, equipment and experts needed to demonstrate new research.

And Arizona would need to improve its business development and marketing for the new areas, and the technology transfer from universities to start-up companies, the report said.

The Morrison report, "Seeds of Prosperity: Public Investment in Science and Technology Research," found that ASU did reasonably well in meeting its goals for the first year of research done under Proposition 301.

The effort, approved by voters in 2000, funnels about $45 million a year from state sales taxes to university research and education.

ASU targeted biosciences, information sciences, advanced materials and manufacturing for initial funding.

The Morrison report went further, though, and said Arizona should institute a new model of measuring the return on the public's investment in such research.

It recommends the state track the following:

• Connections. These are the links between university researchers and outside groups that can commercialize technology, using measures such as the number of researchers on company boards and the number of joint ventures and licenses.

• Attention. This is the awareness outside the universities of their research, measured by factors such as media attention, presentations and recruitment of science and technology students.

• Talent. This is the main ingredient today for attracting and retaining business, as measured by the recruitment and retention of top faculty, graduate students and "visitors in residence" at universities and businesses.

The measures are important because businesses rely on universities to attract and train innovators and to develop new products, the report said.

The state Commerce and Economic Development Commission will spend $600,000 to develop plans for furthering the recommendations, state officials said Thursday.