Providing Solutions for Stressed Economy: USA National Innovation Marketplace Opens To Public

CINCINNATI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Obama administration says that economic prosperity will depend on the United States becoming an “innovation economy.” But innovation success rates in the Unites States have plunged. The USA National Innovation Marketplace – which launches on April 20^th through a partnership between The US Department of Commerce NIST/MEP Network and Merwyn Research, Inc. - aims to address the critical challenge of matching inventions from America’s most talented minds with buyers, investors, distributors and manufacturers in desperate need of innovations in order to survive in this economic climate.

As more people are laid off from their jobs and dreaming that their invention sitting in their garage could be a lifeline, the Marketplace is a quick and painless communication tool for finding the right buyer for the innovation. More importantly, the technology provides a fair market price estimate for the innovation using a tested research never before available to the public giving inventors an answer to the age-old question, “What’s my idea really worth?”

At a special workshop held in Orlando on April 18 in advance of the National Innovation Marketplace launch at the Department of Commerce’s NIST/MEP Annual Convention, nearly 30 inventors from around the country gathered for a special preview of the program. After a full day intensive workshop, Mark Pasek of Chicago, Illinois found out from the research that his product called Lift Alone, a tool for do-it-yourself installation of everything from ceiling fans to sheet rock, could be worth over $1 million when licensed to a private company. Charles Miller of Lake Highland, Florida whose thirty years as an electrician informed the development of his Speedy Screwdriver, an all-in-one tool, learned that his invention could be worth nearly $2 million. “I’m speechless,” Miller said when presented with the results, “And really glad I came!” Other inventors with very positive results included Pam Turner of Minneapolis, Minnesota with the Spiral Eye side threading needle, and Tim Bourke of Detroit, Michigan with the Super Rope Cinch for boat enthusiasts. All these inventions will be listed in the National Innovation Marketplace when the program launches April 20.

WHAT IS THE NATIONAL INNOVATION MARKETPLACE? The USA National Innovation Marketplace, uses an open innovation strategy, which involves partnering, licensing, and co-developing innovations with partners outside of a company instead of traditional, internal research and development. It connects innovation sellers, buyers, investors and distributors in all industries through a three-pronged approach:

1) Translation Training
2) Valuation Forecasting
3) Access to Buyers, Investors & Distributors

Specialty marketplaces are provided for Green Economy Ideas and New Business Start Up Ideas as these areas offer the greatest potential for creating new jobs.

WHAT IS THE BENEFIT? For inventors or “sellers”, the Marketplace enhances credibility by providing a fact-based innovation research report and sales forecast that investors or “buyers” can understand in 60 seconds – based on the same sales forecasting methodology companies use to screen their internal innovations. The Marketplace web site also provides access to manufacturers via the NIST/MEP network across all 50 states and Puerto Rico, similar organizations in Canada and the UK and the publishing of innovation listings to other web partners such as the Kauffman Foundation’s I-Bridge network.

For Buyers, the Marketplace provides a virtual R&D resource that can triple innovation success rates and speed to market. Studies show it can also improve R&D productivity by up to 85% while cutting capital spending needs by 50%.

HOW IT WORKS:

1) Translation of innovations and technologies into easy to understand product & service opportunities.

A Merwyn Business Translation workshop – available both on-line or as a half day live workshop – teaches innovators how to translate their innovation or technology into a customer focused product or service description that can be easily understood by a businessperson who doesn’t have scientific training.

Here’s an example of an innovation before and after the Translation Workshop:

Before Barrier compositions and articles produced with the compositions		After Cancer Safe Fast Food Wraps
A stable, aqueous barrier coating composition includes: (a) prolamine; (b) cold water insoluble polymer; (c) water; (d) water-soluble co-solvent; and (e) stabilizer. The composition, when applied to a substrate, produces an article having a high surface energy and resistance to oil and grease penetration. A method of producing the article involves applying the composition to a substrate		The first biodegradable fast food sandwich wrap that provides grease protection without the chemicals that have been found to cause cancer.

2) Valuation of the bottom line business opportunity – sales, profits and fair market royalty.

A five-page Merwyn Business Simulation research report details everything that buyers need to know – What’s the big idea? How much might I sell? What stage of development is the invention? At what stage of proprietary protection is it? It includes sales forecasts for 60 different development marketing support scenarios plus details on development and proprietary protection status and fair market royalty rates.

The report was designed with the ideas and advice of an advisory board that included large companies (P&G, Lockheed Martin, Kraft, Best Buy, 3M), inventors/small companies (Inventors Digest Magazine, Kauffman Foundation, Balm Innovations) and universities/federal labs (University of Cincinnati, University of Maine plus over two dozen universities & labs).

Listings are powered by Merwyn Business Simulation Research using the same Fourt-Woodlock, sales forecasting algorithm that is used by leading corporations. Merwyn is unique in that it has been designed for use early in the process, when there is high uncertainty, and it’s been engineered to drive down forecasting cost by up to 98% by leveraging WEB 2.0 technologies and patent pending input and output systems.

3) Access to manufacturer connections by the 1,600 members of the NIST/MEP network.

The US Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership Network of 1,600 staff members across the USA drives connections between inventor’s offerings and the needs of US manufacturing companies. In 2008, companies working with the NIST/MEP network of manufacturing experts reported $6.25 billion in new and retained sales as a result of NIST/MEP training and coaching services.

The NIST/MEP’s primary focus is on small and mid sized manufacturers – the companies who are most likely to accelerate innovation success. Large companies register their innovation requests and set up innovation alerts that automatically notify them when an idea matches their needs.

In addition to responding to innovation offers, the USA Marketplace also makes it possible for innovation buyers, investors or distributors to post their innovation requests to accelerate innovation pull. The importance of pulling market-focused innovations is the reason why organizations in Maine, Vermont, Kansas and Arkansas are creating state specific marketplaces to help accelerate innovation driven business development in their states.

While US Companies are given priority access to all listings for the first 100 days, ideas are then published world wide through the PlanetEureka.com network of international innovation marketplaces. The significance of international connections are important as more US patents are being owned by companies outside the country

USA National Innovation Marketplace Details:

The USA National Innovation Marketplace website will go live on April 20, 2009 at www.planeteureka.com. There is no charge for inventors who would like to participate in the on-line version of the business translation workshop, or “buyers” registering requests for innovations. The five page, Merwyn Business Simulation Research report costs $2,000, however there is no fee for listing the report on the marketplace website.

Test pass codes are available to approved writers and reporters by contacting jpb@tentpoleny.com

Merwyn Research, Inc.

Merwyn Research Inc. is a market research company that provides innovation sales forecasts and publishes the PlanetEureka.com network of international innovation marketplaces. Merwyn is part of the Eureka! Ranch International family of companies.

Eureka! Ranch was founded in 1986 to use scientific methods to help business leaders find, filter and fast track innovations that drive more profitable products and service. During the past 12 months Eureka! Ranch consulting projects have helped corporations grow their innovation pipeline by over $2.5 billion.

Doug Hall is the founder and CEO of both companies. Doug started his career as an inventor at age 12 creating and marketing a line of magic and learn to juggle kits. Educated as a chemical engineer, he worked at P&G for 10 years rising to the rank of Master Marketing Inventor – shipping a record 9 innovations in a 12-month period using Open Innovation.

Doug is the author of five books. Since founding Eureka! in 1986, Doug has made numerous national media appearances, hosted a national Show for Public Radio International, written a syndicated column for United Press International and was the “Truth Teller” Judge on the first season of ABC TV’s American Inventor.

NIST/MEP

The Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is a program of the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). MEP is a national network of affiliated manufacturing extension centers and field offices located throughout all fifty States and Puerto Rico. Created in 1988, the MEP network provides services to small and mid-sized manufacturers to increase the competitiveness of these manufacturers. MEP Centers are funded by a combination of Federal, State, local and private resources; and work directly with manufacturing firms in their State or sub-State region. Centers provide expertise, services and assistance directed toward improving top-line growth, supply chain positioning, internal manufacturing processes, work force training, and the application and implementation of information and other technologies in their companies through direct assistance provided by center staff and from other organizations and consultants.

Research shows that the productivity of America's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the U.S. is growing at just half the rate of larger manufacturers. It is in our Nation's best interest to ensure that this country's roughly 330,000 SMEs remain viable by helping them to increase their productivity and competitiveness. The Federal Government, in partnership with the States and other public and private organizations, is providing the leadership in this effort. It is doing so through the NIST MEP. NIST MEP contributes funding and assistance to the nationwide network of nearly 400 Centers and field offices throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

U.S. SMEs require technical and business solutions tailored to their unique needs, but the large consulting firms, hardware vendors, and software vendors that typically develop and market such solutions traditionally under serve this segment of the economy. Therefore, U.S. SMES benefit greatly from the assistance they receive from the NIST MEP Centers. This assistance includes access to operational assessments, benchmarking, business and technical advice, performance improvement tools, and methodologies designed to improve their operations. Several of the advanced NIST MEP Centers have significant expertise in delivering specialized products such as Lean Manufacturing, productivity assessments and benchmarking tools to the U.S. SMEs. NIST MEP's intent is to leverage this work to benefit everyone in the MEP system.