GSA Daily Staff Report
Published June 7, 2010

CU-ICAR’s reputation as a center of innovation for the automotive industry now has the potential to rub off on companies that locate on the Greenville campus, one of the new tenants for a new building there said Friday.

“We truly believe our reputation in the marketplace is enhanced by our association with CU-ICAR,” said Brian McSharry, chief operating officer for Sage Automotive.

Clemson University broke ground Friday for the Center for Emerging Technologies at the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research, and officials said the first multi-tenant building on the research campus adds an important component to the campus community and its service to the automotive industry.

Earthmoving equipment was preparing the site Friday when community and industry leaders gathered to celebrate the start of construction of the 60,000-square-foot building designed by Neal Prince Architects.

Construction of the Center for Emerging Technologies is expected to be complete by spring 2011.

"Entrepreneurs and their innovative problem-solving are crucial to the automotive industry's ability to change and improve," Clemson President James Barker said. "This building, which offers space for emerging companies in the transportation and energy sectors to develop technologies based on Clemson research or technologies that complement the research of our faculty and students, completes the innovation chain from the laboratory to the consumer end-user of technology."

Barker took a moment to reflect upon the achievements at the Greenville campus, which has come so far, so fast.

“Eight years ago, this was a farm; we were standing in a field,” Barker said about the beginning of the campus that now comprises four buildings and is starting construction on a fifth. “How many thought we would come this far this fast.”

He noted that today, graduate students in automotive engineering and design are engaged in a project called Deep Orange, designing a prototype automobile.

With the national automotive press now calling CU-ICAR a leader in automotive technology innovation, Barker said the new building is being built “because there’s demand from tenants.”

The Center for Emerging Technologies is a departure from past buildings, which are single-tenant structures. The new building will have multiple tenants, including Sage Automotive, and provide incubator space for startup companies.

The center represents a cumulative investment of $11 million. The Clemson University Real Estate Foundation received $3 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. The Center for Emerging Technologies will be built on property adjacent to the AutoPark and tower housing the CU-ICAR Partnership Office, St. Francis VRUM fitness center and Carolina First Gallery in Technology Neighborhood One.

"The Center for Emerging Technologies will provide office, administrative and laboratory space for both new companies and existing companies that wish to expand their base in the United States or the Southeast," CU-ICAR Executive Director Robert Geolas said. "This is a critical facility. We have provided some space to new companies in our existing facilities, but the demand far exceeds what we are able to offer. As new discoveries come out of the Campbell Graduate Engineering Center and other partners' research and development activities, this building will help us grow South Carolina's knowledge economy."

The city of Greenville also partnered with the university in the Economic Development Administration grant application and was instrumental in the funding. Mayor Knox White congratulated CU-ICAR on behalf of the city.

"The Center for Emerging Technologies is another major step forward for the CU-ICAR campus," he said. "This facility will serve as a launching pad for leading-edge companies in the transportation and energy sectors while providing more job opportunities, investment in our community and keeping CU-ICAR and Greenville in the forefront internationally."

Both the city of Greenville and Greenville County supported the project by providing economic development incentives.

“This new Center for Emerging Technologies will bear directly on the essence of a vibrant free enterprise economy: entrepreneurs, innovation and market exposure," noted H.G. “Butch” Kirven Jr., director of the Greenville Area Development Corp. and chairman of the Greenville County Council. “This reflects the vision and world-class leadership provided by Clemson University and its International Center for Automotive Research."

Sage Automotive Interiors, a spinoff company started by former employees of Milliken and Co. who have purchased the company's automotive fabric division, signed a letter of intent to become the first tenant to occupy the center with a commitment to approximately 15,000 square feet of space.

Approximately 7,000 square feet in the center will be designated as what Geolas called a "technology café," incubator space for international companies. Part of the advantage for entrepreneurial companies will be the availability of cubicle or small office space with more flexible terms than a traditional long-term lease, Geolas said.

"The requirement of large financial investment in infrastructure can be an obstacle for cash-strapped new companies," he said. "The availability of a 'soft-landing' site that does not require that kind of investment could make the difference between success and failure."