Ohio Third Frontier | Ohio's Leading Biomedical Imaging Cluster
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The Ohio State University - Columbus, Ohio.
Ohio has a long and rich history in the development
and manufacturing of biomedical imaging equipment
dating to 1930 with the establishment of the Picker X-Ray
Corporation in Cleveland. Today, the industry is rapidly
growing in Ohio, becoming the world's premier location
for biomedical imaging.
However, just a few years ago this bright future in Ohio was uncertain. Ohio Third Frontier investments supported the industry at a critical time and assured its future in Ohio. Continued support from Ohio Third Frontier is helping the biomedical imaging cluster mature into a global leader, responsible for nearly 3,000 Ohio jobs.
In 2001, Philips Medical Systems - a world leader in medical technology based in the Netherlands - acquired Marconi Medical which Cleveland's Picker X-Ray had evolved to become through a series of acquisitions. Due to currency exchange rates and external factors, strong consideration was being given to relocating manufacturing operations to Europe. Capital opportunities created by Ohio Third Frontier became a major factor in the decision to keep Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) manufacturing in Ohio and to expand new instrument development in our state.
In 2003, with funding from Ohio Third Frontier, The Ohio State University established the Wright Center of Innovation in Biomedical Imaging. A major goal of this award was the development of an Ultra High Field 7.0 Tesla MRI scanner that generates body scan images with extremely high resolution relative to current technology. The project is a collaboration with Philips Medical Systems and Case Western Reserve University.
As a result of the creation of the Wright Center, Philips decided to keep development of new imaging devices and manufacturing in Ohio. Additional Ohio Third Frontier grants have helped to advance the goals of the Wright Center and solidify Philip's corporate commitment to Ohio. Today, Philips Medical Systems is headquartered in Cleveland, representing a major anchor company within Ohio's growing biomedical imaging cluster. Ohio can also lay claim to the development and manufacture of the world's most advanced commercially available MRI.
Lt. Governor Lee Fisher visits
Quality Electrodynamics (QED)
- Cleveland, Ohio.
The Ohio Third Frontier award that established the
biomedical imaging center reinforced the collaborations
between world-class academic institutions in Ohio and
companies developing state-of-the-art imaging systems.
Industry clusters in fast moving high technology areas
invariably have strong links to near-by academic centers of
excellence. In the development of a new technology, some
aspects of a project are best accomplished in an academic
setting and some require the resources of a commercial
company. Ohio Third Frontier awards are structured to
require these relationships and have strengthened both
sides of these partnerships in an effort to make Ohio's
economy greater than the sum of its parts.
To move academic expertise in Ohio to the next level and further broaden the scope of biomedical imaging expertise, Ohio Third Frontier awarded one of its largest grants in the Ohio Research Scholars Program to the biomedical imaging arena. This award has supported a total of five endowed research positions: two at The Ohio State University, two at Case Western Reserve University, and one at Wright State University. The imaging groups at their respective academic institutions are among the most actively involved with the medical industry by virtue of their graduates being in high demand. Discussing students in the Imaging Physics group, Professor Robert Brown of Case Western said, "I don't even write letters of recommendation anymore - they just get hired".
The Ohio Research Scholars Program award brought the direct involvement of Cardinal Health of Dublin, Ohio into the imaging cluster. Cardinal Health is the leading provider of radiopharmaceuticals for molecular imaging in the United States. Quickly growing in importance, molecular imaging uses radioactive molecules that bind to targeted sites in the body, allowing enhanced imaging for early detection of specific diseases. Early detection leads to faster diagnoses and better outcomes for patients. In this partnership, Cardinal Health will work with academic researchers on the development of new imaging agents, while Philips focuses on improving the capabilities of the imaging system used in conjunction with the molecular agents.
As a result of Ohio's imaging expertise and resources, new start-up companies are forming and creating new jobs for Ohioans. For instance, three years ago, with assistance from Ohio Third Frontier, Quality Electrodynamics (QED) was founded to design and manufacture new magnetic coil technology that is the heart of an MRI scanner. QED's CEO holds a Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve's Physics department in magnetic resonance imaging. QED has already created 40 jobs and expects to reach 80 this year. With the world-class imaging research programs at nearby academic institutions and experienced workers trained at other imaging companies, QED found talented employees to support its rapid expansion. Many employees are engineering or physics graduates, helping to keep our intellectual capital in Ohio.
ViewRay - Bedford, Ohio.
Similar to QED, there are scores of companies in
Ohio that represent a supply chain for the tens of
thousands of parts that go into an imaging device. The
expertise in these smaller companies contributes to the
innovation represented by new imaging systems in the
form of advanced components. Hypertech Research,
Inc., in Columbus, with assistance from Ohio Third
Frontier, is developing specialty wire that will create
the superconducting capacity needed to make an MRI
coil work without the need for the supercooling that is
accomplished today with an expensive and limited supply
of liquid helium.
Companies located outside of Ohio are also recognizing the advantages of being near the resources associated with Ohio's biomedical imaging cluster. ViewRay, now located in Bedford, Ohio, was founded in Florida but relocated to be near the expertise in imaging and Ohio's existing supply chain advantages. Technology being developed by ViewRay, with assistance from the Ohio Third Frontier, will allow the simultaneous acquisition of MRI images to detect any internal motion of organs during delivery of radiation therapy associated with cancer treatment. If detected, the instrument will turn off the radiation beam to prevent damage to healthy tissue.
The exact targeting of the tumor and calculating the dose actually received is one of the major challenges of radiation therapy. Design and construction of an instrument that integrates an MRI with radiotherapy sources is an extremely complex undertaking.
Grounded in a long history in Ohio, the biomedical imaging industry is enjoying a resurgence in our state, partly due to the targeted, well-timed investments made by Ohio Third Frontier. With state-of-the-art research institutions, world-class companies large and small, and a growing base of talent, Ohio's biomedical imaging cluster is becoming a powerhouse of new innovation and a magnet for the attraction and expansion of leading imaging companies throughout the world.
However, just a few years ago this bright future in Ohio was uncertain. Ohio Third Frontier investments supported the industry at a critical time and assured its future in Ohio. Continued support from Ohio Third Frontier is helping the biomedical imaging cluster mature into a global leader, responsible for nearly 3,000 Ohio jobs.
In 2001, Philips Medical Systems - a world leader in medical technology based in the Netherlands - acquired Marconi Medical which Cleveland's Picker X-Ray had evolved to become through a series of acquisitions. Due to currency exchange rates and external factors, strong consideration was being given to relocating manufacturing operations to Europe. Capital opportunities created by Ohio Third Frontier became a major factor in the decision to keep Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) manufacturing in Ohio and to expand new instrument development in our state.
In 2003, with funding from Ohio Third Frontier, The Ohio State University established the Wright Center of Innovation in Biomedical Imaging. A major goal of this award was the development of an Ultra High Field 7.0 Tesla MRI scanner that generates body scan images with extremely high resolution relative to current technology. The project is a collaboration with Philips Medical Systems and Case Western Reserve University.
As a result of the creation of the Wright Center, Philips decided to keep development of new imaging devices and manufacturing in Ohio. Additional Ohio Third Frontier grants have helped to advance the goals of the Wright Center and solidify Philip's corporate commitment to Ohio. Today, Philips Medical Systems is headquartered in Cleveland, representing a major anchor company within Ohio's growing biomedical imaging cluster. Ohio can also lay claim to the development and manufacture of the world's most advanced commercially available MRI.
Quality Electrodynamics (QED)
- Cleveland, Ohio.
To move academic expertise in Ohio to the next level and further broaden the scope of biomedical imaging expertise, Ohio Third Frontier awarded one of its largest grants in the Ohio Research Scholars Program to the biomedical imaging arena. This award has supported a total of five endowed research positions: two at The Ohio State University, two at Case Western Reserve University, and one at Wright State University. The imaging groups at their respective academic institutions are among the most actively involved with the medical industry by virtue of their graduates being in high demand. Discussing students in the Imaging Physics group, Professor Robert Brown of Case Western said, "I don't even write letters of recommendation anymore - they just get hired".
The Ohio Research Scholars Program award brought the direct involvement of Cardinal Health of Dublin, Ohio into the imaging cluster. Cardinal Health is the leading provider of radiopharmaceuticals for molecular imaging in the United States. Quickly growing in importance, molecular imaging uses radioactive molecules that bind to targeted sites in the body, allowing enhanced imaging for early detection of specific diseases. Early detection leads to faster diagnoses and better outcomes for patients. In this partnership, Cardinal Health will work with academic researchers on the development of new imaging agents, while Philips focuses on improving the capabilities of the imaging system used in conjunction with the molecular agents.
As a result of Ohio's imaging expertise and resources, new start-up companies are forming and creating new jobs for Ohioans. For instance, three years ago, with assistance from Ohio Third Frontier, Quality Electrodynamics (QED) was founded to design and manufacture new magnetic coil technology that is the heart of an MRI scanner. QED's CEO holds a Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve's Physics department in magnetic resonance imaging. QED has already created 40 jobs and expects to reach 80 this year. With the world-class imaging research programs at nearby academic institutions and experienced workers trained at other imaging companies, QED found talented employees to support its rapid expansion. Many employees are engineering or physics graduates, helping to keep our intellectual capital in Ohio.
Companies located outside of Ohio are also recognizing the advantages of being near the resources associated with Ohio's biomedical imaging cluster. ViewRay, now located in Bedford, Ohio, was founded in Florida but relocated to be near the expertise in imaging and Ohio's existing supply chain advantages. Technology being developed by ViewRay, with assistance from the Ohio Third Frontier, will allow the simultaneous acquisition of MRI images to detect any internal motion of organs during delivery of radiation therapy associated with cancer treatment. If detected, the instrument will turn off the radiation beam to prevent damage to healthy tissue.
The exact targeting of the tumor and calculating the dose actually received is one of the major challenges of radiation therapy. Design and construction of an instrument that integrates an MRI with radiotherapy sources is an extremely complex undertaking.
Grounded in a long history in Ohio, the biomedical imaging industry is enjoying a resurgence in our state, partly due to the targeted, well-timed investments made by Ohio Third Frontier. With state-of-the-art research institutions, world-class companies large and small, and a growing base of talent, Ohio's biomedical imaging cluster is becoming a powerhouse of new innovation and a magnet for the attraction and expansion of leading imaging companies throughout the world.
Asset-Based Company Attraction Program (ABCAP)
Biomedical Research and Commercialization Program (BRCP)
Engineering and Physical Science Research Commercialization Program (EPSRCP)
Entrepreneurial Signature Program (ESP)
Innovation Ohio Loan Fund (IOF)
Ohio Research Commercialization Grant Program (ORCGP)
Pre-Seed Fund Initiative (PSFI)
Product Development Pilot Program (PDPP)
Research Commercialization Program (RCP)
Success and Pre-Seed Fund Initiative (SPSFI)
The Ohio Research Scholars Program (ORSP)
Third Frontier Advanced Energy Program (TFAEP)
Third Frontier Fuel Cell Program (TFFCP)
Third Frontier Internship Program (TFIP)
Wright Centers of Innovation in Biosciences (WCIB)
Wright Centers of Innovation in Engineering and Physical Sciences (WCIEPS)
Wright Mega-Centers of Innovation (WMCI)
Wright Projects (WP)