Grants for Growth

Piezoelectric crystals sound exotic, and in the right hands, they are. The crystals are used for myriad industrial purposes, and mass-producers make millions of pieces a year. Keramos, a division of Piezotech, LLC, on the other hand, makes only about 240,000 pieces a year at its Indianapolis facility, all for highly specialized purposes ranging from sensors in jet engines and components for medical devices to crystals used to measure the shock of a car collision and help determine when airbags are deployed.

Supported by a grant from the 21st Century Research and Technology Fund, Keramos, through its parent company Piezotech, is looking to boost business through a partnership with a Purdue University team led by Professor of Materials Engineering Keith J. Bowman. Keramos and Purdue received the grant to develop sensors able to withstand temperatures up to 700 degrees Celsius. Such sensors hold strong commercial potential, as they would allow more accurate measurements in extreme conditions, such as inside jet engines or even at the core of nuclear reactors. Keramos also benefits from access to some of Purdue’s best students—at least three master’s level students and one doctoral candidate will work on the project—as well as to high-power lab equipment.

One of the most dramatic immediate results of the 21st Century Fund assistance was to help Piezotech win a $2 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Advanced Technology Program (ATP). This is a very highly sought after grant; only 602 have been awarded since the program’s inception in 1990, and the award to Piezotech is only the third ever to go to an Indiana company. The ATP funds only high-profile projects that promise significant commercial payback and widespread benefits for the nation.

The grant is to be used to develop minimally invasive surgery devices, and much of the work will be done by Etalon, a Lebanon-based division of Piezotech, LLC. Ultimately, the devices will be used to treat a wide range of disorders, which could dramatically reduce healthcare costs and give Piezotech access to a potential world market in excess of $1.8 billion.

Judging from the early success of this project, it seems likely that the seed money from the 21st Century Fund will pay large dividends in its effect on Indiana’s economy. The original grant will help cement a long-term university-industry relationship between Purdue and Keramos and help increase sales and create new jobs at Keramos. The ATP grant to Piezotech greatly increases the likelihood of receiving additional federal grants from other agencies to continue the work. All this could have a significant effect in the state through the creation of new technology jobs, which will provide opportunities for many Indiana graduates who might otherwise seek employment out of state.