Mar 30 2009
$150M, 350,000-Square-Foot Expansion Will Support More Than $1 Billion in New Investments and 600 New High-Tech Jobs at CNSE's Albany Nanotech Complex
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Governor David A. Paterson and Capital Region Assembly members today joined Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros, Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany, IBM Senior Vice President and Director of Research Dr. John E. Kelly III, UAlbany Interim President George Philip and global technology leaders at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the official opening of a $150 million expansion at CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex that will support more than $1 billion in new investments and 600 new high-tech jobs by 2013, while further establishing New York State as a global leader in nanotechnology education, research, development and commercialization.
The opening of the NanoFab East (NFE) Office and Laboratory Building and NanoFab Central (NFC) Cleanroom Building will add more than 350,000 square feet of prime office, laboratory, and class 1 cleanroom space to CNSE's Albany NanoTech. With the expansion, the UAlbany NanoCollege now covers more than 800,000 square feet, including 80,000 square feet of Class 1 capable cleanroom space - by far the largest and most state-of-the-art high-tech complex at any university in the world.
The new buildings will host cutting-edge nanoelectronics research and development (R&D) programs, business deployment and commercialization outreach initiatives for a host of leading international companies, such as IBM, International SEMATECH, Vistec Lithography, M+W Zander, and Einhorn Yaffee Prescott (EYP) Architecture and Engineering; a number of their high-tech suppliers, contractors and service providers; and students, faculty, scientists and researchers at CNSE.
In addition, IBM announced that it will extend its R&D partnership with CNSE through 2013, by which time the company will have invested in excess of $1 billion into CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex, helping CNSE to create and retain thousands of high-tech jobs across Upstate New York.
"The continued expansion and growth of the UAlbany NanoCollege, along with New York State's recognition as a global leader in nanotechnology, is a testament to the significant investments that the New York State Assembly continues to make in this cutting-edge high-tech industry that offers promising careers, exceptional pay and benefits, and a bright future for all New Yorkers," said Silver (D-Manhattan) "Combined with the support and partnership of Governor Paterson, global technology leaders like John Kelly of IBM, Michael Polcari of SEMATECH and Papken Der Torossian of Vistec, and the commitment and leadership of CNSE's Alain Kaloyeros, a vibrant high-tech corridor is being created that promises substantial economic opportunity and growth across Upstate New York, and I truly believe the best is yet to come."
"This expanded facility at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering is an outstanding model for the broader development investments New York must continue to make in order to foster the job creation that will attract business to our State and transform the engine of our economy," Governor Paterson said. "We know that this strategic partnership between international technology companies and top-flight researchers will yield sustained results that will maintain New York's position as a center for high-tech advancement well into the future. This formula has been proven to promote business growth which is why, along with the Legislature and our Empire State Development Corporation, we have put forward these significant resources. I would like to thank Assembly Speaker Silver, CSNE Senior Vice President Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros, IBM Senior Vice President and Director of Research Dr. John E. Kelly III, University of Albany Interim President George Philip, Assembly Majority Leader Canestrari, and our other partners in the Legislature for their leadership and commitment."
The expansion is projected to enable employment growth at the UAlbany NanoCollege to more than 2,800 scientists, researchers, engineers, faculty and students by 2013, while further building the critical mass of leading global technology companies that will lure additional high-tech jobs, companies and investment to the global nanotechnology hub in Albany and New York State.
The 250,000-square-foot NFE will provide state-of-the-art office, virtual classroom, conferencing, laboratory, and business incubation space to support the R&D, education, and technology development and deployment of CNSE and its corporate partners. NFE also serves as headquarters for International SEMATECH and home to the Institute for Nanoelectronics Discovery and Exploration (INDEX), a $505 million initiative that focuses on cutting-edge nanotechnology research for future generations of transistor technologies.
UAlbany Interim President George Philip said, "The major expansion officially opened today at our College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering reinforces the University at Albany's growing reputation as an outstanding research institution, creating new opportunities for our students and faculty that are unmatched in the world of higher education. We are indebted to Speaker Silver and the Assembly for their longstanding support of the nanotechnology initiative at the University, which is providing an educational and economic impact that is truly the envy of the academic world."
CNSE Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros said, "Thanks to the bold vision, pioneering action and extraordinary support of Speaker Silver and the New York State Assembly, the UAlbany NanoCollege and New York State are now globally recognized as the world leaders in nanotechnology education, research and development, commercialization, and economic outreach. This expansion will reinforce and bolster New York's status on the world's high-tech stage as a Mecca for people and companies involved in nanotechnology, playing a critical role in the in-sourcing of high-tech jobs, companies and investment to the State and supporting innovative education and unique career opportunities that will keep New Yorkers living and working in their own backyard. It is truly a wonderful tribute to the leadership of the Speaker and Assembly, who have long championed New York's rapidly expanding nanotechnology initiative."
With the location of its headquarters at the UAlbany NanoCollege, International SEMATECH will create 450 new jobs, with another 4,550 high-tech jobs to be created and retained across New York State within the International SEMATECH "ecosystem" of 500 New York partner, supplier and contractor companies, more than two-thirds of which are located outside the Capital Region.