OTHER ELECTRONICS & NANOTECHNOLOGY
INDUSTRY UPDATE
May 2019
McIlvaine Company
Riverside Research Presents Mini-Open
Innovation Center at STEM Symposium
Sanofi Manufactures Radiotherapy Nanoparticles
Glasgow University Plans hi-Tech Campus Expansion in Govan
New
Pendleton Crime Lab to Open this Summer
Construction of Oregon’s newest crime lab in
Pendleton is nearing completion.
The facility exceeds 9,500 square feet at the
bottom of Airport Hill in what is effectively the county’s law enforcement
center, with the entrance to the Pendleton Police Department and the Oregon
State Police Pendleton Area Command just up Airport Road, and the sheriff’s
office, jail and parole and probation department within a moment’s drive the
other way.
The state police Forensic Services Division
operates labs in Bend, Central Point, Pendleton, Portland and Springfield. For
years the agency and Oregon Legislature debated about closing the Pendleton lab
in the office building at the corner of Southeast Eighth Street and Emigrant
Avenue. The analysts work in tight spaces, contend with shrinking storage and
even a gnat infestation. Calvin Davis, the forensic scientist in charge of the
Pendleton lab, said a central issue is the building was not designed for the
work.
That soon will no longer matter. Davis during
a tour of the site Wednesday said, “It will be a substantial upgrade for us for
sure.”
Portland-based Fortis Construction Inc. is
building the $4.5 million lab and broke ground in August. Project superintendent
Tim Miner said about 30 people a day are working at the site. Contractors
measured, drilled and hammered around the place, working on everything from
cabinets to door frames to lighting.
The building’s west side houses the main
entrance, the front lobby, a conference room, office spaces and a high-density
file storage room. Project engineer Jacob Gerard explained the reception staff
will control the secure entrance with a video system to see and talk to anyone
wanting in and the front glass is bullet resistant.
The east side of the building houses the labs
and the new vehicle bay.
The general lab area provides five work
stations, there is a separate area for fingerprint collection, and another for
chemical analysis for controlled substances. Davis also pointed out two
side-by-side rooms for screening large items, such as bedding. He said that’s a
boon because staff can work on material from a suspect and a victim at the same
time in separate spaces.
Work is nearing completion on the vehicle
bay, also on the east end. The bay has a hydraulic lift to allow work under
vehicles. Davis said the bay is a significant addition and when not in use will
double as storage for the crime scene van. The bay leads to the room for firing
weapons into a ballistic water tank. Davis said that’s a better place to shoot a
gun than the general lab area.
Staff have to pass through a “bio-vestibule”
to get from one side of the building to the other. Gerard said that serves as a
“cleanroom space” to protect the labs against contamination.
A trailer-sized air exchange unit outside the
building also helps keep the lab clean, and a natural gas generator provides
backup power to the building. In the off chance electricity goes down and the
gas does not flow, the generator works off two large exterior propane tanks. In
essence, the backup has its own backup.
“The goal is to never, ever lose power here,”
Gerard said.
He also said the lab requires “a crazy amount
of equipment” and ensuring the myriad connections were right the first time
meant plenty of planning and coordination with state police prior to installing
anything. Miner said that work is reaping rewards.
Davis said the larger and better footprint
allows for staff expansion, should that ever occur. But the new lab is not
adding forensic disciplines, such as DNA analysis and comparison. The forensic
division handles all DNA extraction and comparison at its lab in Clackamas.
Likewise, toxicology work remains there and at the Springfield lab.
Google
to Build a New R&D Center in Taiwan
Rick Osterloh, SVP, Devices and Services at
Google, said that Google is planning on building a new research and development
center in Taiwan. Its purpose is to support Google’s hardware development
strategy.
The location chosen is Tpark, “a
telecommunication industrial park built by the Far Eastern Group in New Taipei
City, northern Taiwan”. The end of next year, 2020, is the target date for
finalizing construction, and, it will not only fit the entire current Google R&D
team in Taiwan, but has the capacity to double that.
Osterloh also said that the current R&D
center Google has in Taiwan is planning to recruit more personnel in 2019. It is
already Google’s largest in Asia Pacific, but apparently the Android-creator
wants to expand further. This existing Taiwan-based Google R&D team has been
developing several products, including Pixel 3, Pixel 3 XL and wireless charging
docks, according to Osterloh.
Riverside Research Presents Mini-Open
Innovation Center at STEM Symposium
As a not-for-profit serving the defense and
intelligence communities, Riverside Research is invested in developing the next
generation of great scientists and engineers. The organization is the presenting
sponsor of this year's WashingtonExec's STEM Symposium, bringing several
hands-on demonstrations in hopes of sparking curiosity to young students.
"The future of our nation relies on the
students who are in school today," says Riverside Research President and CEO,
Dr. Steve Omick. "For both our company and our nation, it's so important to
nurture curiosity in STEM education at a young age."
Riverside Research operates a series of
laboratories called the Open Innovation Center (OIC). Researchers within these
high-tech labs perform applied research in the areas of artificial intelligence
and machine learning, plasma physics, optics and photonics, and radar
engineering. Recognizing the OIC as a model for how STEM education translates to
careers that support our national interest, Riverside Research has developed a
mini-OIC to educate students on real-world applications of the STEM topics
they're learning in school. The mini-OIC is open for business at the STEM
Symposium at the Nysmith School for the Gifted in Herndon, VA, on 30 March.
Within the mini-OIC, students will have the
opportunity to participate in hands-on demonstrations on artificial
intelligence, plasma physics, optics, and radar engineering. Students will also
be able to talk one-on-one with scientists and engineers who have built careers
from their STEM educations.
Hands-on demonstration topics:
Artificial intelligence: By dancing a few
moves from popular kids' dances, students will learn how AI systems track and
recognize movement.
Machine learning: Students will trace a digit
(1-9) in the air using their hand. A machine learning algorithm will process the
video and display the number drawn, demonstrating cutting-edge machine learning
research.
Radar: The organization's radar engineers are
bringing a working radar to demonstrate how waves are used to track an object's
position and speed. Students will have the chance to move in front of the radar,
which will recognize the student's movement and speed.
Optics: Using a miniature model of the earth
and moon in space, students will use lasers to deliver a message from earth to a
satellite and back again. This puzzle demonstrates the capabilities of optical
communications.
Plasma physics: Investigating a small plasma
globe, students will learn about the fourth and most prevalent state of matter.
Experimenting with a disconnected fluorescent lamp, they'll learn about
electromagnetics as the lamp lights up, or ionizes, within the electric field
generated by the plasma globe. They will learn how plasma conducts electricity
and responds to outside influence.
The mini-OIC is also supported by two
non-profits. The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF) joins
the mini-OIC to provide a hands-on activity in which students will learn about
satellites and get to build their own. The satellite they build at USGIF's
station unlocks a special learning curriculum at all of the other demonstration
stations in the mini-OIC, through which students will learn how artificial
intelligence, machine learning, optics, and plasma all support the operation of
satellites. CyberPatriot is joining the mini-OIC to teach important cyber
security principles. Students who complete the CyberPatriot activities will earn
their cape as a cyber hero.
The STEM Symposium is one of the National
Capital Region's largest STEM events. It is open to all and is free to attend.
For more information, visit STEMsymposium.com.
About Riverside Research:
Riverside Research is a not-for-profit
organization chartered to advance scientific research for the benefit of the US
government and in the public interest. Through the company's open innovation
concept, they invest in multi-disciplinary research and development and
encourage collaboration to accelerate innovation and advance science. Riverside
Research conducts independent research in machine learning, trusted and
resilient systems, optics and photonics, electromagnetics, plasma physics, and
biomedical engineering.
Sanofi Manufactures Radiotherapy Nanoparticles
Sanofi agrees to produce French start-ups’
nanoparticle drug candidate indicated for the maximization of radiotherapy at
its French site.
Per the agreement, Sanofi will manufacture,
industrialize, and produce AGuIX – the radio sensitizing nanoparticle under
clinical development for solid tumors, discovered by French start-up NH
TherAGuIX.
Production of the drug will be done in both
clinical and commercial batches by Sanofi at its Aramon, France site.
A spokesperson for Sanofi said that start-up
companies are interested in partnering due to its industrialization capabilities
and relationship with health authorities.
“On Sanofi’s side, working with innovative
and agile partners enable us to improve our ways of working, to get involved on
new technologies," they further explained.
Sanofi stated that its Aramon facility has
been certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), European Medicines
Agency (EMA), and the Japanese Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency
(JPMDA).
Géraldine Le Duc, CEO of NH TherAguix, said
in a statement that this partnership will enable large scale batch production
for clinical trials and will be a major step forward in the development of the
company, “at the crucial moment as we enter Phase II.”
The first clinical batches of the product are
expected in September 2019. The drug candidate will be entering a Phase II study
on the indication of brain metastases.
AGuIXis a nanoparticle that, according to the
spokesperson, could enhance the ratio between X-Ray dose delivered to the tumor
and normal tissues during radiotherapy by interacting with the X-ray.
“Presently no drug that could interact with
radiotherapy and maximize its effects are available for the patients” the
spokesperson explained.
Glasgow University Plans hi-Tech Campus Expansion in Govan
Academia and 12 industry partners join forces
to create Scotland's "Silicon Valley" of nanofabrication and precision medicine.
The University of Glasgow has announced a
multimillion-pound investment to build the Clyde Waterfront Innovation Campus
(CWIC) on the south bank of the river in Govan. The project will see the
construction of the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre (JWNC) and the Precision
Medicine Living Lab.
Funding for these buildings comes from £28
million committed by the university and £27.5m from the Glasgow City Region City
Deal. The university is also bidding for a further £63m in funding. Construction
work is expected to begin within two years.
The JWNC will focus on industries demanding
nanofabrication for quantum technology and photonics, enabling the co-location
of high-quality academic and translational assets with cutting-edge industrial
R&D teams supported by state-of-the-art facilities. The initiative is already
supported by 12 major industry partners.
The site for the new campus is currently a
disused car park located in the southern end of the Clyde tunnel, near the Queen
Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH). The Precision Medicine Living Laboratory
will flow into the existing Clinical Innovation Zone at the Queen Elizabeth
University Hospital.
Commenting on the plans, Principal Professor,
Sir Anton Muscatelli, said the move could make the city synonymous with
innovation in the 21st century, in the same way that it was identified with
shipbuilding and heavy industry a century ago. "I have no doubt that the
innovation agenda and industries like quantum technology, nanofabrication and
precision medicine can be to the 21st century Glasgow economy, what shipbuilding
was in the past."
Dr Sara Diegoli, Strategic Project Manager at
the College of Science and Engineering and the lead for the quantum aspect of
the CWIC project, commented: "Glasgow is already a world-leader in areas likes
quantum technology, photonics and nanofabrication – and the Clyde Waterfront
Innovation Campus will bring together a cluster of excellence from both industry
and academia which will be truly unparalleled elsewhere."
This excellence has caused the university to
outgrow its cleanroom facilities on Gilmorehill in the West End, where
researchers are working on nanotechnology.
Speaking to BBC News, Diegoli explained: "The
cleanroom is in a Victorian building, so we have some constraints when it comes
to expansion."
The CWIC will act as a center of excellence
for a range of new technologies, co-locating industry and world-class research,
and will see hundreds of high-end jobs located in Govan in the first stage.
Vice-Principal and Head of the College of
Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak,
Scotland’s leading expert in Precision Medicine, said: “Scotland has the real
potential to lead the world in Precision Medicine – a field which could save
billions for our NHS, contribute massively to economic growth and job creation
and lead to major improvements in public health."
Amlex Ramps Up Capabilities for Global
Semiconductor Market
Amlex Holdings Bhd is investing up to RM4
million in design as well as research and development (R&D) activities.
The leadframe manufacturer listed on Bursa
Malaysia’s LEAP Market’s research will be focusing on motion sensors for
industrial automation and component in future smartphones.
“Being able to produce more complex
electronic packaging and interconnect solutions and in greater quantity will
enable us to grow our revenue, as well as place us in a better position to tap
the fast-growing global semiconductor industry,” group managing director, Lim
Say Soon said.
In a statement, he said Amlex intends to
increase manufacturing capacity by 10 percent, which will in turn contribute to
an about 25 percent increase in revenue in the near future.
The company has invested RM6 million to date
on new machines, equipment and R&D facilities to manufacture new products like
the pre-molded leadframes amid strong demand and has also started producing the
product at its new plant in Bukit Minyak, Seberang Prai, Penang.
Currently, it is able to produce about one
million strips of pre-molded leadframes a year, selling to multinational
corporations in Malaysia.
Amlex also exports directly to countries in
the Asia Pacific region and to the United States which would contribute to an
increase of 15 per cent in sales revenue.
It posted revenue of RM20.55 million and a pre-tax profit of RM340,000 for the half-year of the interim financial period ended Sept 30, 2018.
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