>Subject: Potential Structure for a University Center Activity
>
>
>I would greatly appreciate any advice, success stories, or horror stories
>that you could give me concerning similar initiatives that other
>universities might have undertaken.  Our College of Engineering is thinking
>about establishing a center which would be directed towards pilot-scale
>operation of a production facility.  They have purchased equipment which
>would enable the center to produce pilot plant or semi-commercial
>quantities of Auburn patented microfibrous materials using an Auburn
>patented process.  The center would be multi-disciplinary and would enable
>engineering students and possibly business students to have experience in a
>production environment.  It has been proposed that such a center could
>supply prototype materials to our licensees of such technology; and since
>the capability exists to actually produce pilot plant or semi-commercial
>quantities of such materials, to actually manufacture certain amounts of
>product to sell to licensees prior to such licensee's actually setting up
>its own production facility.  Because the requirements of the production
>line vary with the specific application of the microfibrous materials, the
>production at the center could help us sell the "how to best do it" to our
>current and potential licensees.
>
>I know there are liability and tax issues associated with such an endeavor
>and probably a lot of other risk that I have not even begun to contemplate.
>I would welcome any comments or information that might be forthcoming from
>this group, especially if there is a similar successful initiative at
>another university.  Specific details as to how such an initiative was
>structured would be helpful.
>Auburn University has a research foundation which could be utilized to
>structure such an initiative.
>
>Thanks in advance for your help.  You may reach me by phone, fax or e-mail
>whichever is most convenient for you.
>
>                                Jan Dowdle Thornton, J.D.
>                                Director, Industrial Programs
>                                    and Technology Transfer
>                                309 Samford Hall
>                                Auburn University, AL  36849-5112
>                                Phone:  (334) 844-4977
>                                Fax:  (334) 844-5953
>                                E-mail:  xxxxxx@mail.auburn.edu
>
>http://www.auburn.edu/research/vpr/ipttadm/index.html