| Mar 12, 2011 |
Irish nanotechnology centre reports significant milestones for 2009-2010 period
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(Nanowerk News) The Science Foundation Ireland funded centre CRANN has launched its public report for 2009 – 2010. The report highlights that CRANN, a Trinity College Dublin Institute founded in 2004, has continued to establish itself as a national and international force in nanoscience and nanotechnology research and collaborative industry engagement. The institute has achieved a number of key milestones including a significant expansion of its industry engagement programme, significant non-exchequer investment and international validation for its world class research.
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Commenting at the launch, Dr. Diarmuid O'Brien, Executive Director, CRANN, said, "CRANN is now demonstrating how world class research can lead to the generation of intellectual property that has an impact in the real economy, resulting in job creation, company formation and technology exports. The investment in research excellence by SFI has established CRANN as a leading nanoscience research centre on the international stage and ultimately led to economic return for Ireland. In order to continue to attract foreign direct investment to Ireland, it is vital that we continue to invest in research."
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Since mid 2008 CRANN has published over 270 papers. The quality of these publications have been independently verified by a Thomson-Reuters report in 2010 which placed Ireland 8th globally for materials science research based on citations per publication for the decade 2000 – 2010. CRANN researchers were responsible for more than 70% of these outputs leading to this national ranking.
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"Our reputation for excellence in fundamental research has enabled strong industry engagement" said O'Brien. "We are now working with 74 companies including industry giants like Intel and HP, helping them develop next generation technologies by acting as an innovation engine. We also work with a range of indigenous Irish companies, such as Aerogen and Eblana Photonics, helping them develop new products and services. Furthermore, we are producing high calibre graduates who are laying the foundation for Ireland's development into a Smart Economy."
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Two Companies have been spun out by CRANN PIs – Glantreo and Miravex. Glantreo recently signed a $10 million deal to supply silica based materials to a US company specialising in chromatography and chemical separations. Miravex was awarded the first eircom University Challenge Award at the Irish Technology Leadership Forum.
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CRANN has secured €8.7 million in non-exchequer funding from international competitive research programmes and industry. CRANN is presently leading two large collaborative programmes and is participating in another 11. The institute is collaborating with over 60 universities and 40 companies through European Framework programmes.
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Since 2008, CRANN researchers have made 37 invention disclosures, 21 patent applications across international territories with four patents granted, and have had two licenses negotiated.
As part of its continued success, CRANN acknowledges the vital support from key national funding agencies Science Foundation Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the Higher Education Authority, in addition to the support of Trinity College Dublin.
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