UNM carves more room for business incubator

Startups that license technology from the University of New Mexico now have more room to grow at UNM's Science and Technology Corp.

The STC recently acquired a 1,608-square-foot space to provide facilities and services to nascent companies, said Lisa Kuuttila, STC president and CEO.

"Our business incubator now has four offices for startup firms, each one equipped with furniture, phones and wireless services," Kuuttila said. "For just $500 a month, companies can get access to all the administrative equipment and assistance they need to form and grow until they're ready to move into more permanent facilities."

Until now, STC's business accelerator was housed in a small, open room with a few cubicles. But a startup company, Senior Scientific, moved out of the space it occupied next to STC's offices, opening up more space for STC's business incubator.

In addition to individual offices, the renovated area includes cubicles for student interns and researchers assigned by the STC to assist the startups, Kuuttila said. It also encompasses a shared conference room.

"Companies that use the facilities will pay month-by-month rather than sign a lease," Kuuttila said. "That's important for startup firms that need flexibility for business decisions as they grow and evolve."

The incubator expansion coincides with an administrative reorganization that the STC implemented last November to streamline services for client firms. Under the redesign, one single STC professional is now assigned to each company that receives services from the program. That offers them more individualized attention as they advance from the earliest phases to later-stage development.

"Previously, different staff members handled different tasks," Kuuttila said. "Now we have a cradle-to-grave approach that connects one person with each company from start to finish."

The added incubator space and administrative modernization reflect the continued success of the STC, which helps UNM faculty and staff patent and commercialize new technology.

The program has led to the creation of 35 startup companies since 1996, plus 132 licensing agreements for firms to market UNM technology (see table, right). Many of the startups that STC helped launch are now housed at UNM's Science and Technology Park, where 33 companies and agencies currently rent offices and laboratory space.

STC's success is part of a growing trend nationwide. A new survey released in December by the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) shows that 697 new products were introduced into the market in 2006 and 553 new companies were created as a result of university-based technology transfer programs.

In the eight-year period from 1998 to 2006, a total of 4,350 new products were introduced and 5,724 startup companies created nationwide.

"These programs reinforce the university mission of transferring knowledge to the public," said AUTM President Patrick Jones. "Tech transfer is a way to disseminate knowledge while bringing direct economic benefits to the public and the communities that universities serve."