Federal grant could help establish tech hub in greater Phoenix area
A consortium led by the Greater Phoenix Economic Council was awarded a federal grant that will help establish Phoenix as a designated technology hub focused on health care innovation — a fast-growing industry in the Valley.
Through the federal CHIPS Act, the U.S. Economic Development Administration designated 31 tech hubs in October focused on building up workforce, research, manufacturing, innovation, commercialization and national defense in emerging technologies across the country.
In addition to the Tech Hub designations, the EDA also awarded Strategy Development Grants to tech hubs and groups that applied solely for the grants such as GPEC.
The grant will help the Phoenix consortium achieve a tech hub designation and support its public-private collaboration and investment “designed to further position greater Phoenix within the healthcare innovation economy,” GPEC said in a release about the grant.
The Medical Device Manufacturing Multiplier Strategy Development Consortium (MDM2) led by GPEC in Phoenix was one of 29 applicants awarded a Strategic Development Grant as part of the EDA’s Tech Hubs program under the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Kathleen Lee, senior vice president of regional initiatives for GPEC, said the grant will go toward developing a tech hub strategy to advance economic growth in the medical device manufacturing ecosystem in Phoenix, driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning.
It will help identify opportunities to attract further private investment in the industry and expand the region’s infrastructure and capabilities “in terms of creating that acceleration from lab to market,” Lee told the Business Journal.
A tech hub designation could also help boost the region’s competitiveness and help address needs such as small batch production and prototyping capabilities, Lee added.
“The tech hubs are really intended as a program to enhance that ecosystem in the areas where there’s a critical national need,” Lee said. “Medical devices, particularly as we see a shifting trend in health care and biosciences, is one of those critical areas.”
The Phoenix group comprises about 25 public, private and academic partners focused on medical device manufacturing in the region. The consortium was the only applicant in Arizona to receive a grant in the first phase of the program, according to GPEC.
MDM2 requested approximately $430,000 for the Strategy Development Grant, which they expect to receive, Lee said. Part of the funding is also expected to be matched by the Flinn Foundation, Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust and Vitalyst Health Foundation.
A spokesperson for the EDA said their agency is in the process of finalizing the total grant dollar amounts and will announce this information “soon.” Applicants and information on the winning designees will also be available on TechHubs.gov in the coming weeks, the spokesperson said.
The bioscience and health care industries have also made big plans for Phoenix. In October, Phoenix City Council rezoned a site to make way for Mayo Clinic’s Discovery Oasis biotech corridor, which is expected to bring 2,000 new high-wage jobs to the city and represent a $250 million investment.
Arizona State University also recently announced plans to locate its new medical school in downtown Phoenix, where one of the city’s three major bioscience cores is located.