WV Executive

Five years from now, soldiers will be immune to Anthrax, doctors will use a "Star Trek" scanner to diagnose patients, and the United States will have a new, viable domestic oil source. These predictions are not science fiction; rather they are current research projects-all in West Virginia.

Such revolutionary concepts descend from a brand new business in the Kanawha Valley-Mid-Atlantic Technology Research and Innovation Center (MATRIC). Its headquarters may be tucked away in an unassuming third floor office of the old BIDCO Building in Charleston, but it has been strategically positioned to take the world by storm. "We really are an applied research organization, so we want to create intellectual property, innovations and patents and take those things to the market place," says Keith Pauley, president and chief executive officer of MATRIC.

The seventh generation West Virginian holds a masters degree in nuclear engineering from Oregon State University and has worked for both the United States Department of Energy and the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston. He proudly gestures to a space shuttle pin, which has become a staple on his lapel. "Two of the Columbia Astronauts worked for me when I was at NASA. I wear this pin in honor of William McCool and Rick Husband." For a second, he seems to reach back over time to his beloved friends and employees, then says, "Working on a vision can be exciting, but it also has its risks and dangers."

Ironically, MATRIC may be one of the few new business "visions" in the country with a nearly air tight model against risks and dangers. As Pauley begins his presentation, the stark white office transforms with his enthusiasm into a colorful array of possibilities. "We began in August 2003 as a 501 C3 nonprofit. Our mission is to get our arms around those PhDs and other researchers who were laid off from Union Carbide when Dow took over and get them engaged in contract research."

The concept of MATRIC began with Dr. George Keller, a senior fellow at Union Carbide. At the time of the buy out, Keller was on the BIDCO Board. He knew that throughout the years he and his colleagues had created 33,000 patents worth $18 billion. With their ability to take intellectual properties and turn them into marketable products, it made perfect sense to create a world-class research facility. He took his idea to the board, which did an S.W.O.T. (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis and confirmed Keller's theory. West Virginia was sitting on a gold mine of skill, talent and opportunity. With the community behind it and Newton Thomas as the fund-raising chair, the company received more than $500,000 in seed money, and the beginning of West Virginia's Technology Revolution was under way.

MATRIC uses North Carolina's Research Triangle Institute as its business model. The company does research and development on a contract basis, drawing on the strengths of the educational community. As Pauley flips the pages of his power point handout, he says "What we've decided to do is act as the catalyst between the research community that already exists at the universities and other entities across the state, to be able to do larger more significant research. So we have the five university presidents on our board."

In addition, MATRIC also has cooperative research agreements with West Virginia University, Marshall University, West Virginia State University, Charleston Area Medical Center, West Virginia Medical Institute and West Virginia University Institute of Technology. This allows the company to preferentially write proposals with the institutions and to mix and match the best from each with former Union Carbide scientists to create world-class research teams. "To date, we've never had one entity within the state that has enough collection of capability to really play in a major way on the national scene of research and development, but across the state we do. So we treat everyone as partners and bring those collaborations together. That's one of the unique parts of our research model."

As a collection of partners, MATRIC has established a nearly unheard of intellectual property equity model. Normally, inventors get 5 percent or less of the equity share they invented. In order to bolster incentive and continue the inventing and intellectual properties creative process, MATRIC plans to share half of the equity with those who create the products. "That is very unique," says Pauley. "I haven't seen any other technology development organization in the United States be that aggressive with rewarding the innovator."

Unlike their counterparts, MATRIC scientists and researchers will not struggle to find the proper facilities either. The company will soon be moving into the 701 building on the Dow Campus. There, it will have use of the 650-acre technology park with 800,000 square feet of world-class labs and computer facilities.

Because the purpose of MATRIC is to invent tangible products that can spin off into small businesses, the company is organized into four subsections. The first, chemicals and chemical products, will tackle such issues as chemical forensics or the breaking down of chemical compositions to help analyze an accident or crime, as well as quantum and molecular modeling such as coal gasification. The liquid extracted from coal is a more efficient use than burning and may be parlayed into a variety of new chemicals. This is the project that will someday help the United States to be independent of foreign oil sources.

The second element of MATRIC is biosystems, which deals with such fields as bioinformatics or the ability to analyze medical records and develop better patient care, clinical trials and counter bioterrorism. Company scientists and researchers are currently working on a naturally occurring substance that deactivates anthrax and other biohazards. It can be placed in the gas masks of soldiers during combat situations to create immunity to Anthrax. It can also be added to a community's water source in emergency situations. The division is also developing several medical tools such as a scanner that will detect electrical changes in patients' organs and diagnose a variety of illnesses.

The third component of MATRIC is a software systems division. It is capable of developing data mining and fusion techniques as well as critical control software to run such things as the Joint Strike Fighter, International Space Station and power facilities.

Finally, MATRIC has an economic development office that takes the intellectual properties created by the other three and finds ways to commercialize the products. If they cannot find small businesses willing to spin off from its new products, MATRIC is prepared to start some of those businesses itself.

"We're geographically located in the right place. We have the natural resources, the physical assets, the world-class scientists and the community behind us. There is no reason we can't take all those things and make something really exciting and successful out of it," says Pauley.

The folks at Research Triangle Institute (RTI) agree. Every year they get dozens of inquiries in to how to build a world-class research facility. This year they believe only two will succeed; MATRIC and a company in Ireland. In fact, RTI is so convinced that it has asked to be on the board of directors.

In addition MATRIC's nonprofit status may strengthen the company's chances even further. Unlike for-profit companies, which must divide profits with shareholders, MATRIC rolls its revenue back into the company. It plans to buy cutting-edge, new technology to help its world-class scientists and researchers stay ahead of the curve. "Our goal is to be as significant in size and scope as RTI. We want to employ hundreds of thousands of our own scientists and engineers and do millions of dollars worth of research," says Pauley. He believes there are two small dangers standing in the way of success: whether MATRIC becomes fully capitalized and whether the community keeps the Dow research campus together versus selling it for development.

Since its incorporation fewer than two years ago, MATRIC has written 27 proposals worth $21 million. Of the initial seven that have been awarded, MATRIC received three, worth $1.5 million. There are 20 proposals outstanding and more being written every day. As he ends the presentation, Pauley says he is confident many of those contracts will be awarded to his company.

In its short existence, MATRIC has already made presence on the national stage. Delegations around the country are visiting, interested in learning more about what MATRIC does and how they can become involved. Some of the working relationships currently being established include California Institute of Technology, University of Virginia, Oak Ridge National Lab, Miami University (Ohio) and Boston University. Most recently, the Advantage Valley group included MATRIC in a tour it was conducting for a United Kingdom Trade delegation.

"MATRIC gives people a sense of hope that they have not had in our community for decades, as the manufacturing industries and extractive industries in our state have declined," Pauley says. "The sense of hopelessness in West Virginia is very tangible. I want to get that hope back. MATRIC isn't just for the next five years to solve a problem; it will be a multi-generational technology hub for the world. We can make that happen."