The Ohio Innovation Exchange (OIEx) is an industry-sought, higher education-led, state-sponsored initiative of the Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE) that provides access to university expertise, research services and shareable resources from a growing list of active research universities around the world. the state. Viewed as a public good, OIEx is an early-stage resource discovery tool, industries seeking expertise have the ability to navigate that state’s innovation marketplace and discover what is possible.

Ohio University, a founding university partner in the statewide initiative, helps develop the state’s business and industry research capabilities while playing a crucial role in fostering economic vitality and technological advancement in Ohio.

“Ohio University’s continued involvement in the Ohio Innovation Exchange highlights not only its robust research infrastructure, but also its continued dedication to spur economic growth and technological advancement through strategic academic-industry partnerships,” said Timothy Cain, OIEx Project Director and Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences. science at Ohio University.

Partnership to create innovation results

Since 2020, OHIO has secured more than $1 million in three successive rounds of Ohio Third Frontier Research Incentive funding, leading the multi-university team of professionals guiding feature enhancements, cultivating industry awareness, and expanding the initiative to now include ten featured universities in Ohioaccording to Cain, who serves as the lead investigator.

Providing access to nearly 12,000 STEM-focused faculty and 2,350 research support resources, the platform derives its powerful search functionality from the 500,000 bibliographic citations and abstracts extracted and associated with profiled users. OIEx now makes it easier for industries to find relevant expertise, potential collaborators and licenseable innovations.

“OHIO’s recent designation as an R1 university (Carnegie Classification denoting Very High Research Activity) is a significant recognition of our discovery ecosystem—our people, resources and commitment to innovation,” said Dr. Eric Muth, OHIO Vice President for research and creation activity. “The state’s investment in OIEx helps connect industry with our university innovators, and our fellow Ohioans will have a greater economic impact than any individual institution could alone. I am pleased that OHIO has played such an important leadership role in this statewide collaboration. ”