A yearlong study conducted by OED and Business Technology Center (BTC) identified emerging market opportunities for the New River Valley Region in energy and life science applications of nanomaterials.  These were a good fit for private and public sectors assets around the region: firms moving into commercial production, a growing portfolio of university research activity, and the availability of new characterization equipment at the university for both academic and commercial research. 

The OED/BTC study was prepared at the request of the Town of Pulaski as part of a joint effort by the Town and the County of Pulaski assisted by the New River Valley Planning District Commission.  The specific examination of opportunities related to nanotechnology is only a part of this process.  Working along with a number of public and private partners, community officials sought to develop a comprehensive approach to economic restructuring after a series of substantial layoffs in major manufacturing employers. Their efforts were supported by a number of funding agencies including: the Appalachian Regional Commission, US Economic Development Administration, and Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development.

This report examines the unique opportunity for a proposed Virginia Nanotechnology Park (VNP) in the New River Valley.  With a vibrant nanotechnology research base in the region, the VNP would provide new and existing nanotechnology companies and end-users with a location supportive to process developments that are needed to scale up their activities.  Such a facility would fill a unique niche in the technology life-cycle, and ensure the region’s ability to foster innovations from research concept, through product development, and into commercial production. 

In an extensive nationwide search, this study identified almost 300 nanotechnology firms that are marketing their products and are not tied to a specific location.  Such companies make up a base of prospective tenants for the VNP.  The field of potential competitors for the VNP that specifically target nanotechnology companies in this stage of development is extremely limited.

The needs of such nanotechnology firms present an opportunity to expand both the geographic footprint of technology-based developments in the New River Valley, as well as adding new advanced manufacturing to the region.  The NRV is home to several nanomaterials firms in commercial production, including Pulaski-based Nanochemonics and Blacksburg-based Nanosonic, as well as several startups working with nanomaterials and the emerging area of environmental safety of nanotechnology.

The VNP’s proximity to the research strengths of Virginia Tech is another critical asset.  Virginia Tech’s funded research in nanotechnology has more than tripled between 2003 and 2007. Just recently, the university has become part of a consortium of four universities that was awarded a $14 million grant to establish a national Center for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology.

The Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Sciences (ICTAS) provides direction to nanotechnology initiatives at Virginia Tech, in areas including biomedicine and sustainable energy.  The Nanoscale Characterization and Fabrication Laboratory, which provides material characterization services, recently opened on campus and is actively seeking corporate partners.