The Biden Administration recently named Wisconsin a winner of a highly sought-after Regional Technology Hub designation.
The Milwaukee-Madison consortium will now compete for up to $75 million in federal funding to develop as an industry leader in biohealth and personalized medicine. Its proposal was among 31 selected from more than 370 applicants across 49 states.
The tech hubs program, authorized by the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act, is predicated on the idea that the U.S. should invest in hubs outside of well-established places like Silicon Valley and Boston.
Major Milwaukee-area employers including Rockwell Automation and GE HealthCare are involved with the local effort, which is led by the industry group BioForward Wisconsin.
What would the funding mean for a company like Rockwell Automation?
"It's huge because it really means we can step up our collaboration locally around this emerging segment and the spaces around it. It also means that we can do a lot more advanced work in biohealth.
"I think for everyone, it's a big socio-economic impact at the end of the day. Innovations hubs have done a lot; if you look at the Raleigh Research Triangle over the years, it's driven employment; it's definitely upped the intensity and the level of advanced technology and automation; it drives higher-paying, higher-skilled jobs; it attracts people to the area."
— Michael Cook, Rockwell Automation, Wisconsin Biohealth Tech Hub steering committee
What else should the business community understand about this tech hub effort?
"You'll see the impact of this, we believe, across all of Wisconsin as the benefits of this flow into the supply chain and the workforce readiness of that supply chain.
"I don't think people realize how strong this sector is in southeast Wisconsin. ... if you think about every aspect of it, from software for electronic medical records with Epic, to GEHealthCare and Accuray in the diagnostic and therapy machines, to Exact Sciences and Illumina and a number of others who are in the genetics and molecular diagnostics."
— John "Jay" Hill, GE HealthCare, Wisconsin Biohealth Tech Hub steering committee
What are the next steps?
"We've already kicked off some initiatives around workforce, technology, supply chain, and then one around entrepreneurial space and shared lab space. Those four, at least initially, will be areas where we'll put together specific programs that we want to drive forward.
"We're just now in the process of putting together those leadership teams that will decide on the specifics around that."
— Wendy Harris, Wisconsin Biohealth Tech Hub regional innovation officer
