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Friday, March 29, 2024
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START-ing the Queen City

Gov. Cuomo's START-UP NY will bring internships to UB students

In an effort to revitalize Buffalo, Gov. Cuomo called for the relocation of seven companies on UB’s Campuses and buildings, including the UB Downtown Gateway Building.
Yusong Shi, The Spectrum
In an effort to revitalize Buffalo, Gov. Cuomo called for the relocation of seven companies on UB’s Campuses and buildings, including the UB Downtown Gateway Building. Yusong Shi, The Spectrum

This spring, UB students will have the opportunity to intern at businesses new to Buffalo, thanks to a multi-million dollar initiative spearheaded by New York State.

In a July visit to UB’s South Campus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the relocation of eight businesses to Western New York as part of the SUNY Tax Free Areas to Revitalize and Transform Upstate NY (START-UP NY) program. The businesses plan to invest $9.9 million and create an estimated 659 new jobs in tax-free areas that belong to the University at Buffalo in the next five years.

Karen Utz, director of program administration in UB’s Office of Economic Development, said the expansion of START-UP NY will provide “excellent experiential learning opportunities for students, jobs for graduates, research collaborations with our faculty, use of university assets and equipment, collaborations with our community partners and other Western New York schools.”

Vader Systems, a Buffalo company that specializes in a progressive form of 3D printing called liquid metal jet printing, plans to hire UB students through its Career Experience Internship Program.

Vader Systems is a start-up company based in Buffalo that builds 3D printers that use metal, instead of plastic, to print. The use of metal allows for more versatile uses like medical needs, transportation, energy and aerospace, said Scott Vader, co-founder of Vader Systems.

Vader applied to be part of UB’s START-UP NY program after contacting the university for technical support with their 3D printers. The company has been conducting research on droplet formation with Edward Furlani, a professor in the department of chemical and biomedical engineering.

It is a 12-week program that will pay $12 per hour beginning spring 2014. Full-time students can apply through Bullseye, a portion of UB’s Career Services website.

Sandra Small, a workforce development associate for the Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences and a Ph.D. student at UB, said the internship would give students insight on the opportunities in Western New York and allow businesses to develop economically.

START-UP NY, which took effect Jan. 1, 2014, “promotes entrepreneurialism and job creation by transforming public higher education through tax-free communities throughout the state,” according to a 2013 memorandum published by the governor’s office.

Higher education communities under START-UP NY will be 100 percent tax free, including no income tax for employees and no sales, property or business taxes, according to the memorandum. By establishing START-UP NY businesses in tax-free areas, companies that are part of the program will receive a tax elimination credit for 10 years, giving companies an incentive to join, according to Utz.

The SUNY system will serve as the framework of the program to attract “high-tech and other start-ups, venture capital, new business and investments from across the world,” per the governor’s memorandum.

Public and private colleges can apply for the program to claim spaces or land as tax-free areas, Utz said.

To be eligible to apply for START-UP NY, colleges are required to create a campus plan that includes the college’s mission and a list of companies the school wants to attract to the area. The plan is then sent to the Empire State Development, New York State’s largest economic development agency, which then reviews and accepts the company’s application within 60 days. After the campus plan is approved, colleges and universities can begin accepting applications from companies.

Currently, there are 51 schools participating in START-UP NY, including Binghamton University, Stony Brook University, University at Albany, Buffalo State College and Canisius College. SUNY Fredonia’s campus plan was approved Monday.

The goals of the participating businesses need to be aligned with the mission of the school, Utz said.

Bak USA Inc., a multinational social enterprise working on electronic PC tablets; Canget BioTekphamra LLC., a biotech and biopharma company spun off of Roswell Park Cancer Institute; and Clinical Support Services, a medication management solutions company, are three more businesses that will be utilizing an internship program next spring. The companies are targeting jobs for students, offering a five-year forecast for job stability and building a new workforce in Buffalo, Utz said.

“These areas of alignment, the creation of new jobs and the capital investments companies plan to make all will contribute to the revitalization of Buffalo,” Utz said.

Internships will have a focus on medical research, equipment and technical programming, Utz said. The internship and employment opportunities will meet UB’s “Academic Linkages,” meaning the goals of the companies parallel with UB’s academic mission, Utz said.

In March, UB approved eight companies for the program: Bak USA Inc., Liazon Corporation, Appistry Inc., Biologichem LLC., Canget BioTekpharma LLC., Clinical Support Services Inc., IFYE Association of the USA Inc. and Vader Systems LLC.

The director of IFYE Association of the USA Inc. recently resigned, moving the company out of New York. The company is no longer eligible to be a part of START-UP NY.

Utz and John DellaContrada, UB’s spokesperson, agreed the developing medical campus and medical program have attracted businesses to join START-UP NY.

Utz and DellaContrada hope the university can continue contributing to the city’s economic growth by companies making use of vacant space in Buffalo.

email: news@ubspectrum.com

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