3 Mohawk Valley firms start producing COVID-19-related equipment to support in-state needs

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Three Mohawk Valley manufacturers are among 12 New York companies that have recently received support from New York State to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the three Mohawk Valley companies and how much they received in grants, according to New York State government: Environmental Composites, Inc. (ECI), Utica: $772,259 ECI is a custom […]

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Three Mohawk Valley manufacturers are among 12 New York companies that have recently received support from New York State to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here are the three Mohawk Valley companies and how much they received in grants, according to New York State government:

Environmental Composites, Inc. (ECI), Utica: $772,259

ECI is a custom manufacturer of advanced textile materials and filtration products. The company, located at 2200 Bleecker St. in Utica, will manufacture N95 respirators. ECI, seeking to increase New York state-manufactured personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies, identified a supply-chain bottleneck, and developed an alternative manufacturing solution to quickly increase the domestic production of N95 respirators in the state. ECI says it will invest nearly $3.25 million in the production of N95 respirators with a target production rate of over 6 million units per month. The effort is expected to create an estimated 50 jobs. ECI is working with local distributors and the state government for allocation. N95 respirators will not be available for direct purchase by the general public.

Genesis Disposables, LLC, Frankfort: $135,000

Genesis Disposables has manufactured disposable garments and accessories for a diverse customer base for more than 30 years at its facility located in Frankfort in Herkimer County. The company carries a wide range of raw materials that can be rapidly converted into finished goods, enabling fast turnaround time. The initial company goal was to produce disposable hospital garments and has been expanded to include products for maintenance and industrial use as well as products designed to fit specific specialty needs within the disposable market. Genesis Disposables will invest $390,000 to produce 65,000 level 1 & level 2 isolation gowns and will create 20 jobs. New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Congressman Anthony Brindisi toured the Genesis Disposables facility in mid-July.

HPK Industries, Utica: $1 million

HPK has an established reputation for manufacturing high quality, technologically advanced disposable garments and accessories, the state says. It designs and manufactures protective garments for health care, pharmaceutical, scientific, cleanroom, and industrial safety. HPK Industries, located at 1208 Broad St. in Utica, is a currently a New York State supplier of PPE and it will produce 3-ply surgical masks, level-3 barrier-type gowns, and level-2 gowns. The company will invest nearly $6.7 million, produce 1 million units, and create 30 jobs, expanding production to keep the state’s supply levels high.

New York State says the grant funds disbursed to the winning companies will help alleviate product shortages due to supply chain issues that could lead to unfair pricing practices. The recipient companies will also increase the state’s manufacturing capacity while creating new jobs and market opportunities. To date, more than $11 million in grants have been awarded to 20 qualifying New York state–based companies to retool their business lines and pivot to manufacturing vital supplies for ongoing response and recovery efforts.

In March, Gov. Andrew Cuomo asked companies with New York–based operations to retool production lines in order to manufacture approved COVID-19 critical supplies, such as ventilators, test kits, and PPE, including N95 respirators, surgical masks, disposable surgical gloves, gowns, face shields, and biohazard bags. More recently, the governor announced Empire State Development had identified 20 companies for state investment to manufacture supplies to address COVID-19, eight of which were previously awarded $4 million to help make the products in New York state. The 12 latest companies to win awards include the three Mohawk Valley firms, four in Western New York, three companies in New York City, one on Long Island, and one in the Southern Tier.

Redeveloping the Duofold site in Herkimer County

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Regional News, Subscriber Only

A long-vacant, 14-acre brownfield site in the village of Ilion has a rich history. In the 1800s, it was a racetrack. In the 1900s, bookcases for the Library of Congress, shells for the U.S. Navy, and adding machines were manufactured there. Univac made some of the first computers there. It was the site of the Herkimer County

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A long-vacant, 14-acre brownfield site in the village of Ilion has a rich history.

In the 1800s, it was a racetrack. In the 1900s, bookcases for the Library of Congress, shells for the U.S. Navy, and adding machines were manufactured there. Univac made some of the first computers there. It was the site of the Herkimer County Community College for a time. And the building, now commonly known as the “Duofold” site in the Mohawk Valley, was also where Duofold processed long-john garments.

Now, Herkimer County officials hope that the next phase in 7 Spruce St.’s history will be for redevelopment for a cybersecurity or artificial-intelligence firm.

“We want to see development here that will help the rest of Ilion rise up to another level,” says John J. Piseck, Jr., executive director of the Herkimer County Industrial Development Agency (HCIDA).

Piseck notes the success of Griffiss Business and Technology Park in Rome and the growth of cybersecurity and artificial intelligence in the area may make it a good site for a similar use in Ilion.

“We think that can flow over here,” Piseck says.

About a year ago, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a $200,000 grant to HCIDA to assess brownfield sites throughout Herkimer County. The Duofield site is just one of them. Funding is available for phase I and phase II environmental site assessments.

The first step to redevelop the Duofold site, which was purchased by the Village of Ilion in May 2019, was to conduct a phase I environmental site assessment.

During the phase I process, environmental consulting firm HRP Associates, Inc. investigated the entire history of the site to identify if there was a potential environmental contamination, says Thomas Seguljic, a regional sales manager with HRP, who has 30 years of experience in environmental-engineering consulting. HRP is based in Farmington, Connecticut and has upstate New York offices in the Albany, Syracuse, and Buffalo areas.

“During phase I [of the environmental site assessment], you’re like Indiana Jones,” Piseck says. “You’re searching out the history.”

During the upcoming Duofold phase II assessment, samples will be collected to determine how extensive any environmental contamination is at the site from its past use for manufacturing, Seguljic says. He notes that the phase I study found that the level of environmental contamination was “nothing horrific. It’s manageable.”

Once the phase II environmental study is done in two or three months, a remediation plan, subject to approval by regulators, will be developed and will allow Piseck to market the site to developers, Segulijic says. The phase II environmental study will be able to quantify how much it will cost to remediate the site for development, he says. That cost is not known yet.

Once the EPA and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation are satisfied that the study has adequately quantified the environmental contamination at the site, then a plan can be made for remediation, Seguljic says.

The subsidies available to underwrite the cost of developing a brownfield site can set up a brownfield property to compete with greenfield sites for development, he says.

Quantifying the actual costs of remediation removes the unknowns for developers of what it would cost to bring a property back to life and can make a brownfield equal to, if even not more competitive, to a greenfield site, Seguljic says. For example, a brownfield site that already has water and electricity installed removes one worry for a developer, he says.

It also “removes the environmental stigma from these sites to breathe new life into these buildings,” Seguljic says. “Hopefully, it becomes a seed. If you can redevelop a brownfield, you can increase the property value right around that site and extend that out for quite a distance.”

Piseck points to the Duofold’s 169,000 square feet of redevelopment space, low-cost power at 3-cents a kilowatt, redundant high-speed fiber Internet, and proximity to Interstate 90 and Route 5 as attractive elements to a developer.

Earlier this year, the village of Ilion and other taxing authorities also approved an abatement on collecting property taxes for 10 years for whoever purchases the property, Piseck says.

He adds that there are multiple tax credits and other programs available to underwrite the cost of redeveloping the site such as opportunity zone, new market, historic rehabilitation, and brownfield tax credits.

In addition to the Duofold site, HCIDA has identified other viable brownfield sites in Herkimer County for development after looking at 25 to 30 sites, Piseck says.

HCIDA could not move forward with some sites for environmental studies if the property owners did not want to cooperate or if the viability of those sites for redevelopment did not seem very promising, Piseck says. For example, the agency looked at a landfill site for use as a solar installation but had to reject it because there was not a transfer station within reasonable distance, per Seguljic.

As part of the EPA grant, the abandoned L.W. Bills School on North Washington St. in Herkimer received a phase I environmental study and an asbestos study. As a result of those studies, Segulijic said the HCIDA was able to document that there were not any environmental concerns, and the property is better poised for redevelopment.

“The school has great bones there,” Piseck says.

Yet another site that is part of the EPA brownfield grant is the Quackenbush building at 220 Prospect Street in Herkimer, where the now-bankrupt company produced air rifles and nutcrackers.

HCIDA owns the building, but it is tied up in litigation over whether HCIDA is responsible for unpaid water bills, Piseck says. Long-term, the site is keyed to be redeveloped as affordable housing because of its location in the center of Herkimer.

The EPA grant will fund 10 phase I and four phase II environmental site assessments in Herkimer County. Ryan Biggs/Clark Davis Engineering & Surveying has been engaged in the brownfield project for structural assessment and Landmark Consulting has been engaged for its historic review services.

Until HCIDA received the EPA grant, nothing had been done with brownfield sites for 20 years in the county, Piseck says.

During the past two years, HCIDA has examined many of Herkimer’s brownfields to see what can be done to return them to use, engaged experts like HRP, obtained input from municipal leaders and citizens about their hopes for the brownfield sites, and has begun to market the brownfield sites, according to Piseck.

“What we’ve done has really made a difference in the brownfield world in Herkimer County,” Piseck says.

COVID-19 has slowed the process to be able to bring developers to see the brownfield properties that have been identified for the grant, he adds.

But Piseck is hopeful that the momentum that has been developing for rejuvenating Herkimer’s brownfields will continue.

“This is the right time to be doing all these projects. Economic development shouldn’t slow down at all,” he says.

Virtual Accelerator to showcase Innovare Advancement Center in Rome

Regional News, Subscriber Only

ROME — Innovare Advancement Center is getting ready to host the upcoming $1 million International Quantum U Tech Accelerator in a virtual event in early September. Innovare (pronounced Inn-oh-VAR-ay) Advancement Center is the new “open innovation” campus located at the Griffiss Business and Technology Park in Rome, the Griffiss Institute announced in mid-July. The accelerator

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ROME — Innovare Advancement Center is getting ready to host the upcoming $1 million International Quantum U Tech Accelerator in a virtual event in early September.

Innovare (pronounced Inn-oh-VAR-ay) Advancement Center is the new “open innovation” campus located at the Griffiss Business and Technology Park in Rome, the Griffiss Institute announced in mid-July.

The accelerator is scheduled from Sept. 1-3 as a virtual event, Jennifer Sumner, public relations and marketing manager at the Griffiss Institute, tells CNYBJ. Organizers originally planned to include an in-person component as well, but that has been shelved as the coronavirus pandemic continues.

The event will include a $1 million quantum-focused pitch competition for university researchers; fast-pitch sessions for members of industry, government, and academia; as well as keynotes and remarks by world leaders in quantum information science (QIS).

A selection committee spent a few weeks in August reviewing more than 200 submissions and will invite 36 teams to pitch during the three-day event, Sumner says.

Innovare is a partnership of the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate (AFRL/RI or Rome Lab), Griffiss Institute in Rome, Oneida County, and SUNY.

The announcement expands upon that partnership with the support of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) for a global quantum pitch event. It will include the launch of the Innovare Advancement Center, which is located “just over the fence” from the Rome Lab.

National Building & Restoration Corporation of Utica served as the contractor on the Innovare project, while the C&S Companies of Syracuse designed the center, according to Sumner.

Innovare contends it enables a “robust high-tech entrepreneurial, [research & development], and educational ecosystem” for the region and the nation by “driving advancements in key strategic areas,” including artificial intelligence/machine learning; cybersecurity; and quantum, with Innovare-connected research “taking place at partnering organizations all over the world.”

“AFRL is committed to transformational areas of [science and technology] like quantum, and we are excited to bring together the world’s leading researchers and trailblazers across government, industry, and academia,” Brig. Gen. Heather Pringle, commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory, Air Force Materiel Command in Dayton, Ohio, said. “This million-dollar international quantum accelerator and the Innovare open campus provide new opportunities to accelerate quantum basic research and facilitate innovation.”

The Innovare launch is a “significant step forward” in implementing the National Quantum Initiative Act, which aims to foster the development of a quantum technology ecosystem among government, industry, and academia.

Innovare says it and its strategic partners seek to engage partners in various technology areas through entrepreneurial ventures and tech startups, in addition to building a “robust talent pipeline at a time when scientific advancement across boundaries is needed now more than ever to remain economically and strategically competitive in this fast-changing world.”

“Oneida County continues to emerge as a global epicenter for high-tech innovation and advancement,” Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr. contended. “As the Innovare Advancement Center begins to take shape at our Griffiss International Airport in Rome, the partnership we have forged with Rome Lab, the Griffiss Institute, and SUNY will lead this region to new heights. This Quantum U Tech Accelerator event will be a great opportunity to showcase the amazing things that are on the horizon.”

About the accelerator

The Accelerator event will connect QIS researchers to advance technologies and applications in this critical area. A total of 36 teams across four quantum tracks related to timing, sensing, information processing/computing, and communications/networking are expected to compete before a panel of cross-agency quantum leaders.

The top-performing university teams will be eligible for more than $1 million in basic research funding provided by the AFRL/RI, AFOSR, and ONR.

This competition builds upon the success of the QIS 1st International Workshop, hosted by AFRL/RI and held at SUNY Polytechnic Institute. The event enabled nearly 200 researchers and leaders from 13 countries to share their discoveries and advancements in this “rapidly expanding” field, facilitating “invaluable opportunities” to connect with the agencies spearheading or taking part in the experience.

“Significantly, the Accelerator will act as a launching pad for the discovery and promotion of international university collaborations and research in the pursuit of novel quantum solutions,” Col. Timothy Lawrence, director of the Information Directorate and Commander, Detachment 4, Air Force Research Laboratory, said.

William Wolf, president of Griffiss Institute, added, “This $1 [million] International Quantum U Tech Accelerator is an exciting way to share with the world the new Innovare Advancement Center, which will continue to push talent and technologies ‘into the new’ for years to come.”

Cree targeting spring 2021 for completion of Mohawk Valley Fab

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MARCY — Cree, Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) says its Mohawk Valley Fab is on track for completion in the spring of 2021. Stuttgart, Germany–based Exyte, Inc. — which operates an office in Albany — is handling the construction on the Fab project, Cree tells CNYBJ in an email interview. Cree announced in mid-July it had “surpassed

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MARCY — Cree, Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) says its Mohawk Valley Fab is on track for completion in the spring of 2021.

Stuttgart, Germany–based Exyte, Inc. — which operates an office in Albany — is handling the construction on the Fab project, Cree tells CNYBJ in an email interview.

Cree announced in mid-July it had “surpassed foundational targets” for the construction of its Mohawk Valley Fab in Marcy. It’s under development at the Marcy Nanocenter site on the SUNY Polytechnic Institute campus.

Crews in early July poured the last batch of concrete for the Fab building’s foundation, having used a total of 26,000 cubic feet of concrete in the process, the company said.

They have now started vertical work with two cranes on site to begin the roof trusses and placement of steel columns. The foundation work is also underway for the central utility and administration buildings adjacent to the fab.

Durham, North Carolina–based Cree focuses on silicon carbide (SiC) technology. Cree describes itself as an “innovator” of Wolfspeed power and radio frequency (RF) semiconductors and lighting-class LEDs.

The expansion in New York is “great news for the long-term growth and success” of Cree, says Rex Felton, VP of operations at Cree when asked why the company chose Marcy for the Fab project.

“The strategic partnership the company has executed with New York and affiliated agencies enables Cree to build a bigger factory, with greater output capacity at a lower net cost to the company — increasing its competitiveness and giving it greater financial flexibility to make decisions that drive growth. A mega materials factory expansion is currently underway in Durham, North Carolina as well, which remains Cree’s global headquarters and its silicon-carbide center of excellence,” Felton says.

He went on to say, “With a mega materials factory in Durham and a state-of-the-art wafer fabrication facility in Marcy, Cree will establish a “silicon carbide corridor,” leveraging its 30-year heritage of research and development in the Research Triangle of North Carolina and tapping into the rich technological base of resources situated in New York’s Mohawk Valley.”

As previously announced, Cree has committed to creating more than 600 new jobs within eight years, as well as providing internships for SUNY students as part of its presence in the area.

The “highly-automated,” 200mm silicon-carbide wafer fabrication facility will be “the first of its kind,” and is forecast to bring 614 jobs with an average salary of $75,000 to Oneida County, the county said in February.

Cree currently has 30 full-time employees in New York and 24 interns from local universities throughout the state, the company said. Cree also has multiple job openings listed for the fab, which include engineering and technician-related positions.

Additionally, Cree plans to partner with local community and four-year colleges in North Carolina and New York to develop training and internship programs to prepare its workforce for the high-tech employment and long-term growth opportunities in both locations that the company’s revised expansion plan presents.

“This work has already begun, which is evident through the company’s recent announcement that it has established the “Cree/Wolfspeed Scholarship” program and endowed faculty chairs to continue the expansion of STEM opportunities for SUNY Polytechnic Institute students as well as help train tomorrow’s high-tech workforce,” says Felton.

ANDRO wins Army contract to develop adaptive radios for unmanned vehicle communications

Manufacturing & Engineering, Regional News, Small Business, Subscriber Only, Technology

ROME — The U.S. Army has awarded ANDRO Computational Solutions, LLC a $1.1 million contract to develop a next-generation, miniaturized tactical radio called ARROW (adaptive radio for robotic warfare) for use in unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). A UAS includes a drone and equipment used to control its flight. ANDRO, which

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A UAS includes a drone and equipment used to control its flight.

ANDRO, which has been in business for just over a quarter century, is located at the Beeches Business Park in Rome.

ANDRO’s Marconi-Rosenblatt artificial intelligence and machine-learning lab will perform the work. Anu Jagannath and Dr. Jithin Jagannath, both part of ANDRO’s advanced research and development team, will lead the work, the company said.

The ARROW research will combine “unique” signal-processing approaches to develop a next-generation radio that can “sense and avoid” contested spectrum environments. ARROW, as a radio product is also envisioned to enable resilient communication for the Army, first responders, and other rescue operators who depend on unmanned aircraft systems.

“This is a strategic opportunity but just one in a series of new contracts that are in the award pipeline for ANDRO, many of which will leverage the state of the art in artificial intelligence and machine learning that are also being extended to counter small UAS scenarios,” Andrew Drozd, president of ANDRO, said in a statement. “The company continues to make steady growth strides and is looking to fill new jobs in the areas of wireless command, control, communications, cyber, and computational technologies for edge services.”

ANDRO is in the middle of an expansion of its Marconi-Rosenblatt artificial intelligence and machine learning innovation lab through the regional economic development council (REDC) grant reimbursement program. The company plans to announce further expansions of its quantum communications and networking lab and medical technology research subsidiary.

About ANDRO

ANDRO Computational Solutions, LLC — which is headquartered in the Beeches Business Park at One Beeches Place at 7980 Turin Road in Rome — provides research, engineering, and technical services to defense and commercial industries.

Established in 1994, the independently owned company focuses on research, development, and the application of advanced computer software and hardware products for spectrum exploitation, secure wireless communications for cognitive radios, multisensor and multi target tracking, advanced radar-data fusion, and sensor-resource management.

ANDRO also has offices in Syracuse at the Central New York Biotech Accelerator and in Dayton, Ohio. The firm said it anticipates opening additional offices in Rochester, N.Y. and Melbourne, Florida.

Oneida County awarded NASA contract for air-mobility research at Griffiss Airport

Regional News, Subscriber Only

ROME — Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr. on Aug. 11 announced that NASA awarded the county an $897,000 task order for advanced air- mobility development through a NASA contract with its UAS test site at Griffiss International Airport. UAS is short for unmanned-aircraft system. A UAS includes a drone and equipment used to control

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UAS is short for unmanned-aircraft system. A UAS includes a drone and equipment used to control its flight. A drone is also referred to in the industry as an unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV.

The county’s UAS test site in Rome will conduct research for NASA in automation technology to support “high-density” vertiport operations that allow for vertical take-off and landing of aircraft.

The Rome test site is one of just seven sanctioned by the Federal Aviation Administration in the U.S.

“Oneida County’s long-standing partnership with NASA has proven to be a productive one,” Picente said. “Together, we have conducted crucial research that has led to transformative advancements in the UAS industry. I look forward to the impact this new collaboration will have on the future of this emerging technology.”

The task order is part of the advanced air mobility project, which is part of the integrated-aviation systems program of NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, per the news release.

The work conducted will help support the project in understanding barriers to the operation of vertiports, “developing infrastructure requirements needed to increase their scale and maturing automation technologies to support the growth of their traffic,” Oneida County said.

The goal of the research is to develop technology that will support “safe, secure, resilient and efficient,” heavy-lift UAS cargo delivery.

The task is the latest in a line of orders from NASA and will be executed over the next year. Additional work is expected to be awarded as a result, Oneida County said.

“This new NASA task order has positioned Oneida County to be the leader in Advanced Air Mobility development,” Oneida County Aviation Commissioner Chad Lawrence said. “It is a testament to the high quality of work conducted by our UAS test site and its partners.”

Syracuse football player named to advisory committee to help select next ACC commissioner

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Health Care, New York News, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

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Onondaga County could lay off up to 250 people due to COVID-19 financial losses

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Law, Accounting & Taxes

The 154,000 workforce hours translates to about 250 people, he said. McMahon declined to specify which county departments the layoffs would affect. If the federal

Innovare Advancement Center in Rome selects 36 teams for quantum accelerator

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Health Care, Regional News, Technology

The Innovare Advancement Center is a partnership between the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate (AFRL/RI); New York State; Oneida County (OC); the City of

Symphoria to live stream concerts in ninth season; no audiences through at least November

Nonprofits, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Technology

the country” planning on performing a full season of live music, per its news release. Beginning with the first concert Sept. 26, musicians will perform

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