Campus elaborates on 'U-Hub' plan for energy innovation

by Dave Jones
September 30, 2011

UC Davis plans to move several energy-related research units into offices at UC Davis West Village, the nation’s largest planned zero net energy community, campus officials have announced.

Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi outlined the plan during her Fall Convocation speech Sept. 21. In bringing the energy-related research units together, the university is developing what the chancellor called a “University Hub” — a prototype for future "Innovation Hubs" aimed at better fostering collaboration among related research units, enhancing interaction with the private sector and accelerating the transfer of UC Davis inventions from the lab to the marketplace.

Two days after the convocation, Karl Mohr, assistant vice chancellor in Administrative and Resource Management, offered more details in an e-mail to the individuals, local governments and businesses that had responded to the campus’s February call for Innovation Hub concepts.

UC Davis West Village includes ground-floor space for retail and commercial uses for the community. The university anticipated that some of this space could accommodate campus units that are now renting space in the city of Davis, Mohr said.

The plan for the University Hub, or U-Hub, calls for that space to be allocated to such units as the Energy Efficiency Center and Western Cooling Efficiency Center.

“Combined with the zero net energy goals of West Village, this will create an identity for UC Davis West Village around energy-related research and innovation,” Mohr said.

The energy U-Hub will be the first of several planned thematic hubs that bring together distinct research groups, business people and community members. All of the hubs will focus on transferring new technologies from concepts to commerce.

Some, like the energy U-Hub, which will focus on clean energy technology, might have a physical location; others might be more of a virtual network. In addition to the energy U-Hub, others under consideration would focus on human, animal and environmental health, and food supply, safety and security.

The university received a wide range of responses to its request for Innovation Hub concepts. UC Davis is not picking any one “winner” from among the proposals, Mohr said. Instead, the campus is drawing on the ideas and proposals to come up with a comprehensive plan.

Many responses critiqued UC Davis’ process for transferring technology from the campus to business, or expressed concern that UC Davis is not as nimble as it could be in promoting technology transfer. Others suggested bringing together related campus research centers to create clearer points of entry for partners that want to connect with the campus research enterprise. Finally, there were comments on how the university encourages and rewards faculty for entrepreneurial activity.

The business sector is not looking simply for a one-way flow of ideas and intellectual property from UC Davis, Mohr said.

“We’re hearing from the private sector that they would like to come to us with their problems and work together on solutions,” he said.

Mohr pointed out that the chancellor’s recently announced 2020 Initiative, which aims to boost the region’s economy and create jobs on and off campus, will further expand opportunities for interaction between UC Davis and the private sector.

More information, including the complete request for concepts.