Jones Lang LaSalle
In shrinking innovation sector, Picatinny center grows strong
BY MICHAEL DAIGLE DAILY RECORD
The Picatinny Technology Innovation Center has 15 tenants and is the proud "parent" of three companies that outgrew the Rockaway Township facility.
Patricia Milley, the center's director since 2000, also said four other companies are considered "virtual" tenants because they are working with the center's staff to develop business plans that would allow them to rent space there.
The innovation center opened in 1996 as a joint effort of the state, Picatinny Arsenal and Morris County. It was designed as a place where small companies could develop new products in line with Picatinny's overall goals of supporting innovation in technology and enhancing the county's economy.
Morris County Freeholder Frank Druetzler said he was glad to see that businesses at the center are creating manufacturing jobs because those types of jobs have been leaving the county -- and the country -- in recent years.
According to the state labor department, New Jersey lost 1,800 more manufacturing jobs in November as part of a long-term slide that leaves the state with 323,600 manufacturing jobs.
Milley said two companies that recently outgrew the innovation center were Form, Fit and Function and AIT Glass.
Form Fit and Function, which designs systems that reduce vibration, won a $10 million contract with the Department of Defense to design and produce specialized gear for Ohio-class nuclear submarines.
Milley said the company is trying to find space in Morris County because its legal and financial support system is here.
AIT Glass, which makes specialty glass products for use in the medical field among others, is generating $2 million a year in revenue and has 12 employees.
A third company that outgrew the center, Beacon Dynamics, is working with a current tenant, VDC, she said.
Another tenant, Frontier Polymers, placed first in a competition for seed funds, she said, and four others have received small business innovative research grants.
Milley provided a comparison of activity at the center in 2000 and this year.
• The center has 15 tenants, up from six, and occupies 19,780 square feet at Picatinny, up from 6,492.
• The center generated $339,000 in revenue this year, up from $188,000 in 2000. Most of the income, $239,000, was fees from tenants.
• The center paid $107,000 in fees to Picatinny, up from $32,000 in 2000.
• Tenants had $7.5 million in revenue this year, up from $4.8 million in 2000.
• They employ 120 people, up from 14 five years ago.
• Tenants generated $12.6 million in outside funding this year. In 2000, they produced none.
The center has $180,000 on hand for expansion, Milley added.
Michael Daigle can be reached at (973) 267-7947 or mdaigle@gannett.com.
In shrinking innovation sector, Picatinny center grows strong
BY MICHAEL DAIGLE DAILY RECORD
The Picatinny Technology Innovation Center has 15 tenants and is the proud "parent" of three companies that outgrew the Rockaway Township facility.
Patricia Milley, the center's director since 2000, also said four other companies are considered "virtual" tenants because they are working with the center's staff to develop business plans that would allow them to rent space there.
The innovation center opened in 1996 as a joint effort of the state, Picatinny Arsenal and Morris County. It was designed as a place where small companies could develop new products in line with Picatinny's overall goals of supporting innovation in technology and enhancing the county's economy.
Morris County Freeholder Frank Druetzler said he was glad to see that businesses at the center are creating manufacturing jobs because those types of jobs have been leaving the county -- and the country -- in recent years.
According to the state labor department, New Jersey lost 1,800 more manufacturing jobs in November as part of a long-term slide that leaves the state with 323,600 manufacturing jobs.
Milley said two companies that recently outgrew the innovation center were Form, Fit and Function and AIT Glass.
Form Fit and Function, which designs systems that reduce vibration, won a $10 million contract with the Department of Defense to design and produce specialized gear for Ohio-class nuclear submarines.
Milley said the company is trying to find space in Morris County because its legal and financial support system is here.
AIT Glass, which makes specialty glass products for use in the medical field among others, is generating $2 million a year in revenue and has 12 employees.
A third company that outgrew the center, Beacon Dynamics, is working with a current tenant, VDC, she said.
Another tenant, Frontier Polymers, placed first in a competition for seed funds, she said, and four others have received small business innovative research grants.
Milley provided a comparison of activity at the center in 2000 and this year.
• The center has 15 tenants, up from six, and occupies 19,780 square feet at Picatinny, up from 6,492.
• The center generated $339,000 in revenue this year, up from $188,000 in 2000. Most of the income, $239,000, was fees from tenants.
• The center paid $107,000 in fees to Picatinny, up from $32,000 in 2000.
• Tenants had $7.5 million in revenue this year, up from $4.8 million in 2000.
• They employ 120 people, up from 14 five years ago.
• Tenants generated $12.6 million in outside funding this year. In 2000, they produced none.
The center has $180,000 on hand for expansion, Milley added.
Michael Daigle can be reached at (973) 267-7947 or mdaigle@gannett.com.
posted by Jones Lang LaSalle NJ News Blog at 11:56 AM
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