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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

Research Park

    Kaleb Medina

    Community Events News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    Farmer Will Glazik Awarded 2021 Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism

    Champaign, Illinois (March 10, 2021) — Fifth generation Illinois farmer Will Glazik was named the inaugural recipient of the Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism, an award that honors an individual who exemplifies an entrepreneurial spirit and advances innovation through their business practices. The award was presented at the 2021 AgTech Innovation Summit, hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park. Glazik’s nominations highlighted these qualities as a farmer, researcher, public speaker, distillery owner, and entrepreneur.  “Will is blazing a trail for a new generation of farmers in Illinois who want to be active managers and marketers for a diverse array of products,” said nominator Dr. Adam Davis,  head of the Department of Crop Sciences in the UI College of ACES.  “He is creative and fearless in trying out new innovations in production methods, marketing and new product creation. He is generous with sharing his knowledge, reaching and teaching hundreds of other growers through his work with the IDEA Farm Network.” The Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism was established in 2021 in honor of Glen “GB” Brandt, a legendary figure in the field of Illinois agriculture, who passed away in late 2020. The BRANDT Foundation partnered with the University of Illinois to provide the winner a $10,000 prize.  Glazik manages Cow Creek Organics Farms in Paxton, Ill., where he has diversified the farming system, moving from producing grain to an integrated crop-livestock operation selling high-quality organic meats, grains, and seeds. His business ventures use modern technology to innovate more efficient processes and minimize the carbon footprint of farming, with the end goal of all being carbon negative. Together with his two brothers Clayton and Dallas, the family founded Silver Tree Beer and Spirits in 2017. Silver Tree is a carbon-negative farm distillery taking the organic grains they grow on their home farm to distill into spirits.  Silver Tree Spirits is currently working with the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Lab to research flavor profiles in bourbon. “I am honored and very excited to be awarded this grant,” Glazik said. “It comes at a very exciting time as our farm diversifies, and Silver Tree is transitioning from having our grain custom distilled, to now owning our own still, and will soon be doing everything in Paxton. “ Glazik also helped co-found the IDEA Farm Network, a peer-to-peer information exchange network for farmers in Illinois and beyond interested in innovative farm management that balances productivity, profitability and environmental health. The group is active through online discussion groups, webinars and on-farm field days. It has blossomed from 45 people to more than 400 members across the Midwest. A proud alumnus from the University of Illinois College of ACES, Glazik graduated in 2013 with a degree in crop science. About The BRANDT Foundation The BRANDT Foundation was established in 2012 as a philanthropic extension of BRANDT, Inc. The Brandt family has always stood with their communities and as their company grew, so did the opportunities to give back. The BRANDT Foundation offers donations, grants, and support to the charities, organizations, and communities that reside in the same area of the company; geographically and industry-related. About the AgTech Innovation Summit The AgTech Innovation Summit is an interactive conference where participants learn and share knowledge about the current state of agtech and get a looking into the future through dynamic panels, inspiring keynote presentations, and networking opportunities. It is produced by the University of Illinois Research Park in partnership with the College of ACES and the Office of Corporate Relations. One of the premier AgTech hubs in the nation, Champaign-Urbana is uniquely positioned to bring together entrepreneurs, investors, academics, and industry for learning, networking, and advancing this sector.

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    Grand Openings Media Gallery

    Synchrony Opens Emerging Technology Center

    Synchrony Opens Emerging Technology Center Synchrony, a leading consumer financial services company, opened the Emerging Technology Center on April 12, 2018 at the University of Illinois Research Park. The Emerging Technology Center will focus on advancing Synchrony’s finance and technology capabilities as well as providing real-world skills for students in artificial intelligence, data science, human-centered design and other emerging technologies. 

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    News

    Research Park on Track to Change World with Innovation

    The award-winning Research Park is largely the reason, sited by Reuters, that the University of Illinois was ranked the 25th most innovative university in the world out of 100. Rueters classified the University as an educational institution contributing to “advancing science, starting new markets and inventing new technologies.” The Research Park really began to flourish in the past ten years, after blossoming in 1999. Today, the park consists of 17 buildings with 100 leading companies and employs over 2,000 employees. “Innovation is in this community’s DNA,” associate director of the park, Laura Bleill said. “It’s really part of whom we are and what we do and why we’ve been so successful as an institution and as a community.” The Research Park is really known for student innovation, stemming directly from the University. “It provides opportunities for students to use their skills to develop and apply the ones they’re using in a classroom in an environment where those skills are needed and wanted and valued” Bleill said. This can be seen in EnterpriseWorks, the park’s start-up incubator. Lifefoundry, Inc., is using robotic tools to apply automation skills in an effort to reduce human error in science labs. Photonicare, Inc., another EnterpriseWorks startup, is working on a device that helps physicians quickly and accurately diagnose middle ear infections. These are just a few of the innovations stemming from the park. “It’s really about a continuum so from that first kernel of an idea all the way into making that first sale” Bleill said. “Research Park is for aspiring entrepreneurs to really stir the pot of what their ideas and dreams could be, but it’s also a place where businesses can launch and thrive in the early stages.” Read the full story on Fox Illinois. 

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    EnterpriseWorks Events News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EarthSense Receives 2018 Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Prize

    Champaign, IL — EarthSense, a company that develops ultracompact autonomous robots for crop breeders, agronomists, and growers, is the recipient of the second Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Prize. The award, generously funded by University of Illinois alumni and their families, rewards University of Illinois entrepreneurs focusing on agricultural innovations. Family members Penny DeYoung and Ed Moore presented the award to EarthSense during the Agriculture Technology Innovation Summit on Feb. 28 in Champaign. EarthSense provides herbicide-free superweed eradication using TerraSentia, an ultracompact autonomous robot. TerraSentia also delivers under-canopy plant health and trait information. In 2018, more than 25 TerraSentia robots are in paid trials. The team who developed the TerraSentia’s robotics and machine-vision technology includes CEO Chinmay Soman and CTO Girish Chowdhary, an assistant professor of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The company occupies a lab at EnterpriseWorks, the technology incubator in the Research Park. The Edwin Moore Agriculture Innovation Fund was established in 2016 with a generous gift to EnterpriseWorks. Its goal is to encourage startup companies engaged in development of new innovative technologies that may lead to increased productivity and/or efficiency in farming, or to create new agricultural opportunities, including new processes, new crops, and new food production systems. In addition to the prize given at the AgTech Innovation Summit, a second Edwin Moore Agriculture Innovation Fund award is at stake as part of the Cozad New Venture Competition, the university’s signature competition for student startups. It will be awarded in April. The award honors the legacy of Edwin E. Moore (1924), who graduated from the University of Illinois College of Agriculture and began farming in Will County. Throughout his agricultural career, he and wife, Iva, used innovative farming practices for both crop production and livestock management. Two of their four children became farmers, Edwin and Thomas (1953, College of Agriculture), and continued use of innovative farm practices. Subsequent generations of Edwin Moore’s family have continued to pursue farming and ag related careers capturing the same innovative spirit.

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    News Uncategorized

    Ran Chao Featured in News-Gazette

    The News-Gazette interviewed Ran Chao for the Wired-In column this week. Chao is the 29-year-old founder of LifeFoundry Inc., an organization that completes research for biotech companies through the use of synthetic biology and robotics, which is now a tenant in EnterpriseWorks. He created the company during his time as a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois. Chao and his collegues produced the first prototype for automative advanced biomanufacturing, and companies around the world are taking notice. Eventually, Chao plans to develop a system of algorithms that conducts the experiments as well as help humans make critical desicions. For more on Ran Chao and LifeFoundry Inc., visit the News-Gazette.

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    News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    AURP Honors Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as the 2011 Outstanding Research Park

    NEW ORLEANS — The Association of University Research Parks (AURP) named the Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign the 2011 Outstanding Research Park during its annual Awards of Excellence ceremony on Dec. 1. The awards were presented at the AURP 2011 International Conference in New Orleans. The 16th Annual AURP Awards of Excellence recognize the achievements of outstanding research parks and industry veterans and encourages the development of best practices among research and science parks. “AURP recognizes exceptional leadership in innovation by honoring university research parks, individuals and companies who are driving innovation in their communities,” said AURP President Harold Strong. “Among this year’s AURP Awards of Excellence recipients, we are proud to name the Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign the 2011 AURP Outstanding Research Park.” The Outstanding Research/Science Park Achievement Award recognizes parks that excel in bringing technology from the laboratory to economically viable business activities, thus promoting the growth of businesses, jobs and public revenue. “Over the last 10 years, the Research Park has had a significant impact on its community by incubating new startups, attracting large corporations to the region and creating jobs,” said Strong. “The Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has demonstrated leadership in the research park profession and is deserving of the honor and recognition as the 2011 Outstanding Research Park.” Laura Frerichs, Director of Research Park, accepted the award on behalf of the University of Illinois. “We are honored to receive this recognition, especially as we culminate our 10th anniversary celebration,” Frerichs said. “It reinforces our continuing efforts to build a community of technology entrepreneurship – one that fosters collaboration between the university and industry in addition to creating opportunities for faculty, staff, students, and members of the community at large.” About AURP: The Association of University Research Parks is a professional association of more than 700 university related research and science parks. AURP’s mission is to foster innovation, commercialization and economic growth through university, industry and government partnerships. For more information, visit AURP’s Web site at www.aurp.net or contact Chelsea Simpson at chelseasimpson@aurp.net. 

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    EnterpriseWorks Graduates News

    Company working on marine uses for its ‘self-healing’ coating

    CHAMPAIGN – Scott White is impatient about a few things. One is how long it takes new technologies to get into the marketplace. So White, a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Illinois, decided to do something about it – namely, start his own company. Autonomic Materials Inc. took up residence in the University of Illinois Research Park last fall. Housed in the park’s EnterpriseWorks business incubator, the company aims to develop commercial applications for the “self-healing” technologies White and his colleagues are creating at the UI’s Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. First up: developing “self-healing” polymer-based coatings for ships, oil rigs and other metal structures exposed to corrosive saltwater environments. During his 18 years at the UI, White has studied materials and how they fracture. Inspired by biology and nature, he considered how living things heal and wondered whether those concepts might be used to help materials repair themselves. White and his colleagues used the techniques of “microencapsulation” and “microvascular materials systems” to distribute healing substances throughout the material. When their findings were published, they received interest from many quarters in applying the concepts to products. But White decided if the technology was going to get to market quickly, he should start his own company. “I never thought I would do this,” he said. But from his observations, large companies aren’t the most efficient when it comes to employing new technologies. “They’re very slow,” White said. “The pace I see the fruits of our labor being used is too slow for me.” He concluded that if he wanted to see that kind of technology applied and used, it would have to be done by a small company. Autonomic Materials incorporated in 2005, with members of the UI’s Autonomic Materials System Group accounting for most of the core investors. At this point, the company has two full-time employees: senior development scientist Magnus Andersson and development scientist Gerald Wilson. Both have doctorates from the UI, Andersson in fluids mechanics and Wilson in materials science. For now, Wilson spends much of his time on technical development, while Andersson acts as the lead on business development. More technically trained employees will be needed this year as the company ramps up its testing program for evaluating coating systems. White said Autonomic Materials is focusing on developing epoxies, polyurethanes, vinyl esters and silicon rubber with self-healing properties that can be used in marine environments. Among the likely end users: commercial shipbuilders, defense contractors and companies that need to protect oil production platforms and piping from corrosion. Though Autonomic Materials is smack-dab in the Midwest, its lab at EnterpriseWorks is equipped with salt fog chambers that replicate the corrosive environment of the sea. White said he hopes to have Autonomic Materials Inc.’s first commercial product formulated by April. During the initial stage of the company, it will focus on developing commercial products, optimizing materials systems and proving performance characteristics, he said. Once it develops clients, the company expects to partner with large manufacturing firms to supply the product. Eventually, White hopes the broader paint industry will adopt self-healing technology in its products. “I want to walk into Lowe’s and see a self-healing paint on the shelf,” he said. “I don’t see any reason why this can’t occur in three to five years.” White said the technology is “remarkably cost-effective” and there are no significant costs that would boost the price of paint. “There’s not a magic dust that costs an ungodly amount,” he said. “The materials are widely available.”

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