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University of Michigan's Zell Lurie Institute Launches Program for Research Commercialization

Monday, November 29, 2004

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Nov. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Optimizing the process of creating an immediate and direct public benefit from University research efforts, the Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business today unveiled the Program for Research Commercialization Potential (PRCP). The goal of the PRCP is to codify and streamline existing processes for screening, aggregating, and assessing the commercialization potential of research discoveries. As part of the launch, the Institute also announced that it is working with the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Integrated MicroSystems (WIMS ERC) at the University of Michigan as part to develop a methodology to screen, identify and shape the commercial potential of WIMS ERC's research.

Designed to ultimately identify new venture creation opportunities (at universities, research centers, or private companies), the PRCP offers benefits to both the WIMS ERC researchers and Zell Lurie's MBA students alike, providing key resources and learning opportunities at the initial stages of the research commercialization process for identifying new venture creation potential -- before the research goes to the business planning stage.

Work is guided primarily by Zell Lurie Institute staff and faculty and by WIMS ERC staff and researchers. With over $750M in total research dollars, the top-ranked University of Michigan research is the starting point for the PRCP program, and the Zell Lurie Institute is planning to roll it out to a larger audience of other universities, research centers and private companies in the coming months.

"Any large organization conducting research has untapped potential for venture creation and profit," said Timothy Faley, Ph.D., managing director of University of Michigan's Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. "The PRCP's model of effective research and technology evaluation, before expending the effort of developing a specific commercialization plan, is a key step in the discovery and realization of this potential. Moving forward, we believe that this model will be transferable to other universities, research centers like WIMS ERC, and companies, refining and heightening the pace of the new venture creation process."

Zell Lurie Institute MBA students are placed on the front lines of real, tangible research, exploring emerging technologies, identifying customer needs and assessing business models for commercialization potential. In turn, researchers are offered the opportunity to connect with business school students to conduct market research and assess market potential. The final deliverable is an articulated recommendation on whether to advance a given technology to the business planning stage.

Universities have been successfully commercializing technology for decades. In October of this year, for example, the University's Wolverine Venture Fund -- the oldest student-run venture fund in the United States and a key component of the Zell Lurie Entrepreneurial Studies program -- received a $1M return on its investment when IntraLase Corp., a University of Michigan spin-off technology company, went public. By codifying these early stages of the commercialization process, the PRCP hopes to increase the number of future such spinout successes.

"The biggest challenges of the research commercialization process are in the initial stages, trying to determine whether or not an idea in the lab has the potential to be a successful venture," said Joseph M. Giachino, External Programs Director (Industrial Liaison) for WIMS ERC. "By partnering with the Zell Lurie Institute in its PRCP program, we can create a model of effective research and technology evaluation before more formal commercialization activities. This is a better, more effective process for venture creation for WIMS ERC that utilizes University resources in its efforts to transfer laboratory research into profit for the University."

For more about WIMS ERC, visit: http://www.wimserc.org .

About the Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies

The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies was formed in October 1999. The Institute actively engages the nation's most successful entrepreneurs and offers an outstanding faculty composed of both academic researchers and practitioners in entrepreneurship. The Institute's mission is to focus the capabilities and resources of the University of Michigan Business School to provide education, experience and opportunities in entrepreneurship; serve as a catalyst for new venture development; and contribute important research in the field of entrepreneurship. Members of the Institute's Advisory Board include Samuel Zell, Chairman of Equity Group Investments; Michael Hallman, former COO of Microsoft Corporation; and Eugene Applebaum, Founder of Arbor Drugs Inc. For more information, visit the Institute online at http://www.zli.bus.umich.edu .

SOURCE Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies

CONTACT: Christian T. Potts of FitzGerald Communications, +1-617-585-2231, cpotts@fitzgerald.com ; or Mary Nickson of Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, +1-734-615-4424, mnickson@umich.edu

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