Tag: economic development

A&T to Drive AI Innovation, Economic Development in Collaboration with NVIDIA

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EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. – Sept. 6, 2024 – North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University today announced it has entered a collaboration with NVIDIA aimed at accelerating North Carolina’s economic growth, enhancing workforce capabilities and fostering innovation across key sectors, helping further position the university as a leader in research and technology.

This collaboration aligns with N.C. A&T’s goal to achieve Carnegie Classification R1 research status, the highest classification of research institutions in the United States. By leveraging NVIDIA’s AI technology and resources, A&T will boost its research capacity in fields critical to economic and human advancement.

“Through this impactful relationship, North Carolina A&T and NVIDIA will enhance a foundation for collaboration and innovation, economic development and workforce preparedness, and groundbreaking research,” said Timothy Minor, interim vice chancellor for the Division of Strategic Partnerships and Economic Development. “By integrating AI into every facet of learning, A&T is equipped to prepare students and faculty to find solutions to problems and meet the industry demands for talent in North Carolina and the nation.”

“Workforce enablement is foundational to economic development, and equipping students and faculty with AI training and tools is key to setting them up to foster generative AI innovation,” said Louis Stewart, head of Strategic Initiatives for Developer Ecosystem at NVIDIA. “This collaboration has the potential to greatly elevate NC A&T’s research capabilities and make a lasting impact on North Carolina’s economy and technology ecosystem.”

Key objectives of the collaboration are:

  • Research Enhancement. The collaboration will strengthen A&T’s research initiatives in areas such as AI, cybersecurity, biotechnology and sustainable agriculture. These fields are pivotal to the university’s strategic mission of achieving R1 status, reflecting A&T’s commitment to groundbreaking research and innovation.
  • Educational Excellence. Working with NVIDIA, A&T will develop and refine educational programs, equipping students with the critical AI skills needed to thrive in the global tech industry. This initiative aims to place A&T graduates at the forefront of technological innovation, preparing them for careers in technology.
  • Economic Development. The collaboration seeks to harness AI to drive economic growth in North Carolina’s key industries, including energy, biotechnology, and information technology. This AI-driven transformation will create new opportunities for businesses and communities, helping solidify North Carolina’s position as a tech hub.
  • Inclusivity and Community Engagement. As part of the initiative, A&T will work with NVIDIA to foster a diverse and inclusive technology ecosystem by engaging with community stakeholders, helping ensure that the benefits of AI innovation reach underserved populations.

“A&T is preparing the next generation of socially conscious leaders, pioneering researchers, visionary entrepreneurs, and global change-makers to transform lives and improve the human condition,” said Tonya Smith-Jackson, Ph.D., provost and executive vice chancellor for Academic Affairs. “Advanced technology, including generative AI, is integral to that mission.

“Our collaboration with NVIDIA supports synergies that our students and faculty can both contribute to and benefit from, such as advanced research applications, innovations in teaching and learning, and new ways to drive economic empowerment, particularly for those who are underserved. We appreciate the forward-thinking vision of NVIDIA and its recognition that a collaboration with A&T will undoubtedly serve the state, nation and globe.”

Media Contact Information: avallen@ncat.edu

Core Technology, homegrown Greensboro injection-molding company, to fledge nest for a home of its own

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GREENSBORO, NC – JULY 19, 2024 – The homegrown Greensboro company Core Technology Molding Corporation, a plastic injection molding company born as an MBA semester project, is about to fledge from its nest at the Gateway Research Park for a home of its own.

Greensboro City Council on Tuesday approved an economic-development incentive package for the company worth up to $520,407. It’s conditioned on Core Technology keeping its present workforce of about 52 plus creating 26 new jobs through 2029 and making a total capital investment of $27.85 million.

Core Technology is considering a site on Millstream Road. The county notice said the company is considering a site in the Millstream Industrial Park, which is along Interstate 40/85.

The company was founded in 2006 by Geoff Foster, an engineering alumnus of N.C. A&T State University and MBA alumnus of Wake Forest University. It’s based at the Gate City Boulevard South Campus of Gateway Research Park, a joint operation of N.C. A&T and UNC-Greensboro.City Economic Development Manager Marshall Yandle told council the company is considering other sites in the Southeast.

However, Foster, in brief remarks to the council Tuesday, was clearly leaning toward staying. He thanked the city and Greensboro Chamber of Commerce for supporting the company in its 18 years, noting it’s able to ship to 150 countries.

The move to the Greensboro site would allow Core Technology to consolidate operations under one roof and operate more efficiently, while offering career-track jobs in robotics and other advanced STEM fields, Foster said.

Mayor Nancy Vaughan and council members also heaped praise on Foster and the company, noting its Greensboro roots.

“I think he has a Fortune 500 company. If it isn’t already, it will be,” councilwoman Sharon Hightower said

While not yet a Fortune 500 company, Core Technology has been a frequent name on the Business Journal’s annual Fast 50 list of fastest-growing Triad companies, reflecting dollar and percentage growth. It is also one of the largest minority-owned businesses in Triad, and if it grows to 78 jobs, it would become the largest Black-owned business in Greensboro.

Core Technology and Foster have won recognition for work exposing young people to potential science, technology, engineering and math careers, such as through its nonprofit arm Molding Kids for Success, which has a summer STEM camp for youth.

Foster conceived of the business as a project for an entrepreneurship class during his final semester in graduate business school at Wake Forest University. Foster had earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from N.C. A&T State University and had been working in various engineering roles.

The company has registered triple-digit growth in the past few years as it has found success in an array of sectors, but primarily in pharmaceuticals and automotive.

A turning point came when it got tier-one supplier status with BMW in 2015, Foster said in an interview with Triad Business Journal. It made a part for vehicles assembled at the German company’s U.S. assembly plant near Greer in upstate South Carolina.

Foster put it this way: BMW recommended Core Technology across markets to drugmaker Merck, who recommended the company to Pfizer, and then to Volvo Group, whose North American base for Volvo Trucks and Mack Trucks is in Guilford County.

“And I think when we hit tier one status, it didn’t matter if it was automotive, pharmaceutical, appliance, semiconductor — when you get to that status, it gets people’s attention that you’re able to deliver on time,” Foster said. “In 2015 when we were able to hit that, I started to realize that I think we’ve got something.”

Automation has been key, Foster said.

 “We’re able to compete with China, India, Mexico, where some of our competitors, they either can’t make the investment, the automation is expensive, … or won’t make it, but they can’t compete, and that’s why they can’t get to this tier one status.”

For a while, automotive made up about two-thirds of the company’s business, but now biopharmaceuticals account for about 65% of business, Foster said. It helps to be relatively close to Research Triangle Park and its many drug-development and manufacturing companies, Foster noted.

The company has been asked many times to relocate near some of its major customers, from Alabama to South Carolina, but Foster said Greensboro has a special appeal. He remains an adjunct engineering faculty member at N.C. A&T, which offers ready access to a pipeline of vital new talent.

“I get to cherry pick the best engineers out of that school,” Foster said. “Having that relationship with the largest HBCU in the country, having that relationship and able to teach on campus, recruit, I wouldn’t give that up. It’d be hard to replicate that in Charleston. I don’t know anybody there, and there’s just so much talent in Greensboro on that campus.”

Core Technology is leaving a space of about 30,000 square feet, but which can have a second story added to double it, Gateway center Executive Director Paul Meyer told TBJ.

“The great news is we have a manufacturing space that somebody might very well be interested in locating on our campus. And given everything that’s taking place in the Carolina Core, we’re thinking that there’ll be a fair amount of interest.”

As for Core Technology leaving, “That’s a great success and a testament to the power of partnership with these universities, and certainly with Gateway itself, and so we’re excited for Core Technologies taking the next step.”

SOURCE:  Triad Business Journal
Article Written By David Hill – Reporter, Triad Business Journal

Paul Meyer Appointed as Executive Director of Gateway Research Park

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GREENSBORO, NC (January 23, 2024) – The Gateway Research Park (“Gateway”) Board of Directors have announced that Mr. Paul Meyer will assume the position of Executive Director of the organization effective Monday, January 29, 2024.  Meyer, who retired as Executive Director of the NC League of Municipalities in December 2021, has more than 25 years of non-profit leadership experience with a focus on growing organizations, developing talent, optimizing operations, and achieving positive financial performance.

In making the announcement and after a national search, Gateway Board Chair Kevin Baker said, “Paul’s experience in leading large and complex non-profit organizations, his deep understanding of both state and local government operations and funding, and his past ties to and relationships within the Piedmont Triad Region, all make Paul the right person to fill this critical role for Gateway.” Meyer will take over from Jim Westmoreland, who has served as Interim Director since March 2020 and announced his intention to resign in July 2023 to pursue other professional opportunities.

Meyer said, “I am honored to be provided the opportunity to serve as the Executive Director of Gateway. Having spent some time in the Piedmont Triad Region in the past and having become familiar with Gateway’s impressive portfolio of tenants and culture of on-going success, I look forward to working with the Gateway Board, NC A&T State University, UNCG, and the community to continue to advance the unlimited potential of Gateway and its future.”

The mission of Gateway Research Park, which is a partnership of NC A&T State University and UNCG, is to be a catalyst for university research, innovation, and economic development. Formed in 2003 as a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, Gateway maintains a 70-year land lease with the State of North Carolina, operates two 75-acre research and development campuses in Greensboro, and has a diverse mix of private, non-profit, and academic tenants on its campuses. In addition, Gateway also provides management support services for Union Square Campus Inc.

Gateway Research Park provides a collaborative environment, which combines groundbreaking business organizations with world-class laboratories, highly advanced equipment and the intellectual capital of faculty and students from partner universities. The tenants and organizations connected to Gateway provide rich shared resources for technological growth, discovery, and progress. Any company that can benefit from collaboration is welcome at Gateway South, located at 2901 East Gate City Boulevard in east Greensboro, and Gateway North located at 5900 Summit Avenue, near the Bryan Park complex just off the Greensboro Urban Loop.

For more information, visit www.GatewayResearchPark.com.

For more information contact:

Mr.Kevin Baker
Chair, Gateway Board of Directors and Executive Director, Piedmont Triad International Airport.
bakerk@gsoair.org
336-665-5600