Laserfiche WebLink
Toward this goal, the NRI has been looking for game-changing locations with <br />a strong research and development base, combined with economic support at <br />the local and state levels. <br /> <br />And South Bend was one of those key locations. <br /> <br />The University of Notre Dame’s technical work in nanotechnology was <br />attractive to us, and the university’s commitment to building a new <br />engineering center also was important, too. <br /> <br />Officials from South Bend’s city government, as well as Project Future [which <br />promotes economic development in the area] met with us and made it clear <br />that they wanted to support MIND in very real ways. <br /> <br />The city supported the development of Innovation Park, which will provide <br />research and commercialization support for discoveries coming out of MIND <br />and Notre Dame. It also provided land and millions of dollars toward <br />developing another technology park – Ignition Park – in what is known as the <br />Studebaker corridor – for technology businesses to grow. <br /> <br />This was very much a tipping point in our decision to locate MIND in South <br />Bend. <br /> <br />Q: The city of South Bend has a strong partnership with the University <br />of Notre Dame. Is this sort of community-university partnership unique? <br /> <br />A: <br /> The strong partnership between the city of South Bend and the University <br />of Notre Dame is unlike any other city-university relationship we’ve seen. <br /> <br />Cities typically have not played the kind of active role that South Bend has <br />when it comes to establishing these types of centers. The City of South Bend <br />wanted to be an equal partner in promoting MIND, and has demonstrated its <br />support economically and in other ways. <br /> <br />Q: How will MIND benefit South Bend? <br /> <br /> <br />A: <br /> If you look back at any major industries going forward, the ones that bring <br />the most benefits have been based on some sort of breakthrough or major <br />technological innovation. <br /> <br />So I definitely think investing in research facilities that cover a broad set of <br />areas not only in nanoelectronics, but also the full range of nanotechnology, <br />gives you the best likelihood of finding breakthroughs that can lead to new <br />industries in the field. And South Bend is positioning itself to be at the ground <br />level of these new ground-breaking industries. <br /> <br /> <br />