Ohio State liaison helps businesses connect with resources at school - Business First of Columbus:

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The Industry Liaison Office started work in led bySharell Mikesell, an associate vice presiden t hired from a nearby polymer collaborative. His goal is to expandc the university’s partnerships with international companiesw that commission millions of dollars in sponsores research from just a few to abourta dozen, and increase the number of companies the universitty works with, especially smalo businesses, by 20 The office also aims to double internship s for students. “If I’d only known what had been availablew (at universities), my life in industry would have been a lot said Mikesell, who has held top technologyu posts at Co.
, and He plans to modeol the office after one at the . “It’as a pretty smart strategic decision on the part of saidDaniel Navin, assistant vice presidengt at the . Larger companies are aware of resources at the he said, but small and medium-size businessezs don’t have the same access. Mikesellp agreed, noting that medium and smalled companies employ 80 percent of Ohioans and are a majof target of theliaison office. The office also can help expandf long-standing relationships with corporations that might work with an engineering researcher but could get help from the medical orbusinesw schools, he said.
“There’s far more we could be doing for them if we continuw to push to learntheir needs,” Mikesell The office opened at the best possible time for findinhg an audience, Mikesell said, but the worst time for businesses to find money for research. That could slow but Ohio State could focus for nowon quick-turnaroundf projects. Establishing the liaison office alignes with an OSU goal formore cross-disciplinaru research, and a call from the stat e Board or Regents for schools to heed the researchy and training needs of business, Mikesell said.
Mikesell’ s previous experience as co-director of the Columbus-basec Center for Multifunctional Polymer Nanomaterials and a six-university collaborative, has drawnh two small polymer businesses to the “I’m really hoping they can smootgh the path for us,” said John sales engineer for . An independent spinoff from Texas-based , the company designs resins and othe materials at the molecular level to improvs their mechanical or electricalconducting properties. The TechColumbux tenant has used Ohio Statew business students for market research but is looking for more inroadsz in theengineering school, Frechettre said.
“They’re more than willing to work on projects with you if it fits theitrcurrent interests,” he said. Frechette is hoping the liaison can prod professorsw to take on research that meets immediated practical needsof industry. “If the universituy wants their students to get someindustriakl exposure, our opinion is they have to be a little more flexiblre on the technical side,” he said. “Getting experience here in Ohio companies, I will be a big deal.
” The Collegse of Engineering has a stront reputation for serving research needs of some 275companies it’d worked with in the past five said Randy Moses, interim associate dean for Zyvex just may have not linke with the right faculty member precisely the reason the liaisobn was created. Don Duffy, CEO of Lancaster-based research company , said the polymere group helped link him with the agriculture school for workon soybean-basedf insulating foam. Now goinb through the liaison, he’s hoping to win a granr to gain access toOhio State’s wind tunnell for testing a wind-driven generator and work with materialsa science researchers on developing turbine blades.
The liaison is “handy” for his five-employede shop, Duffy said, but he probably could have founx resources onhis own. “That’s what I’m good at, digginvg up information,” he said.