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Dr. Leone Hermans-Blackburn to become acting executive director

The Pennsylvania NanoMaterials Commercialization Center (the Center) announced the retirement of its founding executive director, Dr. Alan Brown. Dr. Leone Hermans-Blackburn, previously the Center’s commercialization program manager, will become the acting executive director.

Dr. Brown was the Center’s first employee and established it as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization in 2006. Under his stewardship, the Center has received continued support from the Department of Community and Economic Development of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright Paterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

The Center’s vision was first established by several local organizations; Alcoa, Bayer MaterialScience, PPG Industries, US Steel, the Pittsburgh Technology Council and Carnegie Mellon University. Since that time, in addition to the organizations that founded the Center, many other organizations have provided support and guidance, such as; CONSOL Energy, Plextronics Inc., Jones Day, Pepperweed Consulting, University of Pittsburgh, The Pennsylvania State University and Lehigh University. A detailed list of the partner organizations of the Center can be found at the Center’s website.

Over the past six years, the Center has achieved a successful track record in enhancing high technology economic growth for the region. To date, the Center has invested more than $ 5.6 million in 31 technology development projects with Pennsylvania companies and universities. This has resulted in additional investment of more than $ 48 million, 170 jobs, 27 patents and 36 new technologies developed.

The mission of the Pennsylvania NanoMaterials Commercialization Center is to promote and support the technology development of nanomaterials research for new and enhanced products critical to the U.S. economy and manufacturing base. The Center builds upon Pennsylvania’s excellence in advanced materials research, development and manufacturing and acts as a new model for a public-private partnership among government, universities, entrepreneurs, small and large companies to accelerate the translation from nanomaterials innovation to the launch of new products and processes. Visit www.pananocenter.org for more information.

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