Rochester
A Letter from RRPC Chairman, John Hart
Dear Colleagues,
As we look ahead toward 2007, I find myself reflecting on the important
events of this past year and on the progress that the Photonics Cluster
has collectively made in advancing Rochester and New York State as the
place to be for people, parts, projects and brains in our industry. A
few significant facts:
- Rochester and New York State now have a major Optics/Photonics Conference
every year (by the way, we are working examining the potential for adding
1 more event between the current shows)
- We cannot find all the people we need to fill our job openings –
both a good sign of growth and a tough problem to solve
- We have a full time professional with amazing skills working both
short term issues and long term strategy (don’t tell Tom that
I am talking about him.)
- Our educational institutes are adding facilities, classes, and research
programs - they are all needed!
- Companies from outside the region are buying technology and companies
and keeping them here because of our talent pool (think QED, RPO, EMF,
to name a few)
- Private and Professional finance organizations have been funding more
and more of our startups - I keep getting asked “can I put money
into your company?” Sorry, I don’t need it right now…
and that’s a good thing.
These things are happening not because RRPC is some amazing new organization,
or because the Institute of Optics has the best Optics training in the
world, or because MCC trains the best Opticians, or because APOMA brings
together the best technologies for glass fabrication, or because... there
are dozens of these examples. Things are happening because we are all
thinking about how we can interact together to advance the collective
goal of moving our industry, vocation, passion, call it whatever, forward.
And yes, I am proud to say that all these things are actually true.
Have a great year! We look forward to working with you in 2007.
A Glance Back at 2006
Early in 2006 Rochester had two new major optics shops readying to open:
JML and Rochester Precision Optics. GGC Imaging (Gary Conners, Conger
Gable and Nick George) were moving into offices on Allen's Creek Road.
Research dollars continued to fund projects in the Rochester Region,
including the UR/RIT/ITT infrared remote sensing project; RIT's NanoPower
solar energy research; RIT's Collaboratory in a variety of photonics-related
projects; the MINERvA nutrino project at UR; the CEIS at the UR; The Laboratory
for Laser Energetics - just to name a few.
A number of articles in Rochester newspapers throughout the year highlighted
the shortage of technically skilled workers to fill open jobs in OPI companies
in the Rochester Region, reflecting the national deficit in science and
technology college graduates. A lot of good work has been happening on
that front - by volunteer groups, at Infotonics in partnership with others,
at RIT - and more is being done by a couple of groups working to fill
gaps in what is currently offered.
Professor Stephen Jacobs, Senior Scientist at the UR Laboratory for
Laser Energetics was named an OSA Fellow for "For significant contributions
to the development and understanding of magneto-rheological finishing
and liquid crystal optics, and for pioneering work in educational outreach
and teacher training."
Duncan Moore, the Rudolf & Hilda Kingslake Professor of Optical
Engineering at the UR Institute of Optics won the OSA Gold Medal for his
contributions to the field.
John Howell, assistant physics professor from the University of Rochester,
won the 2006 Adolf Lomb Medal from the Optical Society of America. The
Lomb Medal is presented once annually to distinguished scientists who
have made noteworthy contributions to the field of optics before the age
of 35.
With its published study in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Laget,
a spinoff of the University of Rochester Medical Center, gained greater
credibility and edged closer to successful commercial adoption of its
"cartilage tissue restoration" gene therapy using ultraviolet
light.
The University of Rochester and Bausch & Lomb announced their expanded
research partnership in July, adding $11 Million to the $19 Million B&L
has already spent in research with UR since 2000. (We still wish that
more of the commercialized products resulting from the research were manufactured
in New York.)
Despite continued layoffs at Kodak and Xerox, both companies continued
to garner recognition for their commercial printing and medical imaging
products. Wonder what will happen to Medical Imaging?
Representatives of the Rochester Regional Photonics Cluster, an industry
association representing some 70 regional companies employing a few thousand
workers visited Washington DC and met with Congressional reps and their
appropriations staff. Nearly all of the Congressmen, Senators and staff
that we visited mistook us as representatives from the Center for Infotonics.
Talk about a public relations issue...
JenOptik, the German firm bearing the name of the town where George
Eastman likely was inspired to make his investment in the University of
Rochester Institute of Optics, purchased polymer optics assets from Eastman
Kodak and set up shop in Rochester, NY.
The OSA Annual Meeting: Frontiers in Optics, was held in Rochester in
October, and was the biggest and best annual meeting the organization
has ever held: over 100 exhibitors, a 44% increase over last year’s
exhibit, and more than 1,900 attendees, up 42% from last year.
In an editorial on September 19, 2006, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
stated that, "the place to seed the Optics and Photonics sector is
the Infotonics Technology Center in Canandaigua."
Throughout 2006 there were numerous articles authored by OPI researchers
and engineers from the Rochester Region in both technical and trade journals.
Doug Kindred and the folks at Gradient Lens made the cover of Quality
Digest in August. An article in Laser Focus World by John Kerekes, an
associate professor in the Chester F. Calrson Center for Imaging Science
at RIT, covered commercial imaging spectrometers.
The University of Rochester's Goergen Hall for Biomedical Engineering
& Optics neared completion. The RRPC hopes to be holding our annual
meeting there this year.
U of R Optics/BME Building, 1/3/2007
We hope you will share your news items with us in 2007. Stay tuned, stay
connected, and enjoy a prosperous new year.
Events
20 - 25 January 2007
Photonics West
San Jose, California USA
Exhibition
Medical Imaging
17 - 22 February 2007
San Diego, California USA
Exhibition
Defense and Security Symposium
9 - 13 April 2007
Orlando, Florida USA
Exhibition
OptiFab
14 - 17 May 2007
Rochester, New York USA
Exhibition
Photonics North (co-located
with Education and Training in Optics & Photonics)
3 -7 June 2007
Ottowa, Ontario, Canada
Call
for Papers (Photonics North)
Call for Papers (Education
& Training)
46th Annual Summer Course
Series
University of Rochester Institute of Optics
18-29 June 2007
Rochester, New York USA
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New York Photonics Unveils New Website
New Look, Expanded Search Capabilities & Services
Beginning Summer, 2006, New York Photonics began working on the redevelopment
of both the New York State Photonics Cluster and Rochester Regional Photonics
Cluster websites.
BrandOrchard was selected
from among the marketing communications firms that responded to our Request
for Proposals. The new website includes a sophisticated search engine
which will allow users to readily identify Cluster members who can satisfy
their development requirements.
The overall look of the web presence is also reflected in this newsletter
and in the New York Photonics supplemental pages in the 2007 Photonics
Spectra Buyer's Guide.
Your feedback is welcome.
Albany
Albany Nanotech, Hudson Valley CC, Einhorn Yaffee Prescott to Collaborate
on ‘GetNANO’ Program
Albany Nanotech and Hudson
Valley Community College signed an agreement on December 14th, 2006
that will provide critical education and training for students pursuing
careers in the nanoelectronics industry, while at the same time announcing
the start of discussions with Einhorn Yaffee Prescott Architecture &
Engineering PC of Albany (EYP) to create a unique initiative that represents
an important step in preparing the workforce necessary to attract additional
high-tech jobs, companies and investment to the Capital Region and New
York State.
A Memorandum of Understanding signed by CNSE and Hudson Valley established
a new set of laboratory courses for students in Hudson Valley's Electrical
Technology: Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology program. The program
will provide Hudson Valley students with unprecedented hands-on education
and training in Albany Nano's world-class laboratory and cleanroom facilities,
addressing topic areas that are critical to the fabrication of computer
nanochips in a process line, including mask preparation, wafer inspection,
metal deposition, photoresist coating, etching and metrology, as well
as cleanroom protocols, operations and safety training.
Officials from CNSE and Hudson Valley hope to build upon this important
partnership by beginning discussions with EYP to develop The Global Education
and Training for Nanotechnology, or "GetNANO" program, as a
way to ensure the development of the highly skilled workforce necessary
for the design and efficient operation of state-of-the-art nanoelectronics
research, development and manufacturing facilities. The first topic for
discussion will be the creation of a collaborative program that would
train architects and engineers to design high-tech buildings and facilities
with sustainability and zero energy, focusing on areas such as building
information modeling, energy simulation, and system monitoring and control.
Applied Image in New Partnership
Applied Image Inc., located
in Rochester NY, announced its latest partnership with Imatest LLC, of
Boulder CO.
 Expanding
their excellent product offerings for the Photonics industry, Applied
Image is now packaging the Imatest PRO and Imatest LIGHT software with
their test targets, including the ISO and I3A standard targets, such as
ISO12233, ISO14524 and ISO16067-1 as well as other standards, like the
IEEE STD 208-1995.
The Imatest software, developed by Imatest LLC, measures the sharpness
and image quality of digital camera images and digitized film images.
It allows users to accurately and conveniently determine the performance
of their cameras or imaging systems. Imatest LIGHT is ideal for individual
photographers and enthusiasts who want to test their cameras, lenses and
printers, while the Imatest PRO has a full range of features for professionals
and imaging system developers. Imatest runs under Windows 2000, 2003,
XP and Macintosh systems with Virtual PC 6 or 7.
Designed for ease of use, Imatest is the first commercially available
program with graphic user interface for analyzing digital image quality.
Imatest output can be exported to Excel or XML formats. Together, with
the Applied Image test targets users can verify the quality and performance
of their imaging systems with unprecedented convenience and accuracy.
Commenting about the new Applied - Imatest relationship, Norman Koren,
owner of Imatest, said, "The partnership between Applied Image and
Imatest offers exciting opportunities to better serve our customers with
new chart designs and enhanced software capabilities."
In addition to the distribution arrangement, Imatest LLC and Applied
Image, Inc. are working together to develop new test targets to meet the
needs of photographers as well as manufacturers throughout the supply
chain.
VC Corner
The Human Capital Issue
It may take a village to raise a child, but that seems like a trivial
task compared to the act of building a successful start up. An entrepreneur
aspiring for great heights requires contributions from legions of individuals
and organizations.
As a venture capitalist, I’ve had the opportunity to observe entrepreneurs
at many stages of company building. I’ve learned from the successful
ones the importance of being able to operate in a resource constrained
environment.
A lack of resources is one of the distinguishing features of an early
stage company versus its larger, established competitors. On the other
hand, a start up doesn’t face organizational constraints (bureaucracy)
common among larger companies. A small company’s ability to move
swiftly and adapt to the marketplace is its greatest strength in confronting
Goliath.
New businesses are frequently short of money. But, they often have to
tackle a more formidable shortfall – a lack of human capital. New
companies require the aid of numerous professionals. Many tech companies
need highly trained engineers. If intellectual property is important,
a patent attorney is essential. All start-ups need the basic organizational
help of a corporate attorney and CPA. If the management team is technically
proficient, they may lack marketing know how and sales experience. The
list goes on.
So, with little money, how does an entrepreneur acquire the resources
that are necessary to grow a company? By being creative, flexible and
prepared to evolve as the company achieves certain milestones.
I suggest that an entrepreneur start by explicitly identifying the resource
requirements essential for success, and, then specifying whom can provide
them. Now some out-of-the box (or non-big company thinking) will be in
order. How can the parties be attracted to contribute?
Some will have to be paid. Others may defer compensation. And, others
may not require any payment. To pick up on the “village” proverb,
there are the family members, neighbors and officials. Family members
are employees or professionals who work for cash compensation. Neighbors
are on the periphery and include people who provide financial support,
advice or contacts. Officials are affiliated with incubators, universities
or agencies and are frequently charged with helping the regional business
formation process.
The importance of networking by entrepreneurs is hard to overestimate.
An entrepreneur must build a neighborhood of supporters interested in
seeing the company succeed. Savvy entrepreneurs create networks of individuals
with relevant experience and contacts that can be leveraged. Whether or
not a formal board of advisors or directors is established isn’t
as important as having an assortment of people who behave as concerned
and accessible advisors.
I encourage entrepreneurs to seek out individuals who have first-hand
company building experience. Advisors who have tales of woe from prior
setbacks, as well as stories of glory from previous successes are particularly
valuable advisors. The two usually go hand-in-hand. Entrepreneurs or executives
with start up experience have wisdom to impart and valuable contacts to
share.
A future column will discuss networking and how to identify and recruit
people to your entrepreneurial neighborhood.
Richard A. Glaser is a financial advisor
at a major securities firm. You can send him email here.
Infotonics
Laura Weller-Brophy has joined the Infotonics Technology Center as Product
Development & Commercialization Manager. Laura was formerly Intellectual
Property and Business Strategist  for
Optical Display Films at Eastman Kodak, and served prior to that as Manager,
Photonics Applied Research, Component Technologies for Corning. In her
new capacity with the ITC Weller-Brophy will initially focus on Medical
Devices. Laura was also co-chair of the recent OSA Annual, Frontiers in
Optics, held in Rochester.
Contact RRPC
New York Photonics and the Rochester Regional Photonics
Cluster are active and growing collaborative organizations. Efforts are
under way on joint training events, workforce development, collaborative
advertising opportunities, promoting the commercialization of I.P., and
the development of our website to further facillitate business development.
Join us! There are advantages to working together, and
we are interested in working with you. Send an email to us at membership@rrpc-ny.org.
To subscribe, to unsubscribe, to submit a news item or upcoming event,
to suggest a feature or column, or to offer feedback, contact Tom
Battley, at 585-329-4029.
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