Kansas Recent News – Page 2 – Swanson Reed

Wichita State University’s Innovation Campus Opens Opportunities in Aerospace Manufacturing

Did you know that Wichita has the highest concentration of aerospace manufacturing in the United States? It is ranked first for industry-funded aerospace R&D, at $31 million, and 4th in total aerospace R&D expenditure at $45 million.

The Innovation Campus at Wichita State University (WSU) is attracting leading global companies to the area, which is opening up even more opportunities for aerospace manufacturing. Airbus Engineering and Dassault Systèmes have partnered with WSU and are making use of their facilities such as research labs and collaboration rooms. It is a great opportunity for collaboration between researchers and industry. It allows students to work on real-world projects and helps them to transition into the workforce by training them for future advanced manufacturing and other new jobs.

The first student-run project involved developing an unmanned search-and-rescue aerial system. The team aimed high, and wanted to reduce the average production cycle (i.e. from idea to working prototype) from 2-5 years to just 90 days. The team delivered the product in nine months, which was still a great improvement over the average production timespan.

Digital testing is an important part of the innovation process, involving processes such as simulation and advanced Finite Element Analysis. It is estimated that for every dollar spent on digital testing, seven dollars are saved on physical testing. The 3DEXPERIENCE Centre on the Innovation Campus focuses on increasing the speed of virtual product development and innovation with 3D design software, digital mock-ups and produce lifecycle management solutions. It will be exciting to see the new aerospace developments that come out of WSU in the near future.

Kansas is the new hot spot for global baking innovation!

Plano county in Kansas is now home to a state-of-the-art, 30,000 square-foot, innovation baking center. Middleby Bakery Group has installed their truck-sized innovative baking machinery into the innovation center and is already churning out diet-busting sweets at almost the speed of sound.

The collection of machinery at the facility work together to automate baking in a way unimaginable to most bakers. The $2.3 million center will serve as a test kitchen, allowing commercial bakers who have been testing new products in small batches, to ramp up production and see what tweaks are needed when the muffins, buns or breads roll out at a rate of four tons an hour.

The facility is an extended R&D lab for bakers worldwide who want to try new things without having to shut down their own production lines to conduct tests. It allows bakers and food makers to test-drive their ideas at the center instead of spending large amounts of money in producing experimental lines in their stores. For consumers, the benefits consist of significantly reducing the time its takes innovative goods to come to the market, and also providing better consistency in the products out now.

Mark Salman, president of Middleby Bakery Group, says with the equipment available at the center, adjusting products to specific consumer dietary requirements or providing less fat and sugar options, can now be developed and produced in weeks and months, as apposed to several years. Additionally, the facility will also work on projects to improve the overall shelf life of its baked goods.

In addition the the hundreds of highly innovative and world class machinery at the facility, the R&D baking center also contains the world’s widest tunnel oven and is expected to draw commercial baking customers from across the globe to the industrial area. The center is also expected to bring people to the area from outside the state that want to partner with Middleby on improving the food production process and using automation and leveraging technology.

Currently the most impressive piece of machinery at the center is the Auto-Bake Line, a 46-foot long by 11-foot tall oven with three baking levels, which can produce more than 25,000 golden-topped blueberry muffins an hour.

While the introduction of the new equipment is a significant adjustment, the majority or workers have been able to embrace the change. Ron Baker, strategic campaign coordinator with the Grain Millers International Union, says “As a union, we don’t reject technology, we embrace it and make sure people are treated fairly when innovation comes into the workplace.”

To find out whether your experimental activities are eligible for the R&D tax credit, contact Swanson Reed R&D Tax Advisers for an obligation-free assessment.

Kansas City Gets New R&D Facility

DuPont Nutrition & Health has expanded its cheese R&D facility capabilities at its Kansas City metro area laboratory with the addition of several new pieces of equipment and expansion of its R&D innovation team.

DuPont Nutrition & Health serves the cheese and dairy industry with its portfolio of cultures, enzymes and tailored ingredients systems. The expansion in research and development fits into the company’s overall strategic prioritization of the cheese and dairy industry.

The Kansas facility will also be fitted out with all new equipment allowing the company to work and collaborate with its customers in a more direct and active way.

Roald Mason, DuPont Nutrition & Heath Director of dairy sales in North America says, “these improvements not only allow us to optimize our current cultures offerings and tailor them to our individual customers, but also equip us to develop new retail and finished products.”

Prior to this new investment in the plant, the DuPont team in Kansas City worked with the R&D facility in Wisconsin.

“This now makes the lab a self-sufficient operation to support our growing cultures and media product portfolio. We can now not only operate faster, but also get hands-on in most aspects of the cheese making process,” said Mason.

If you are a Kansas company conducting research and development within the states, you may qualify for the Kansas and Federal R&D Tax Credit. Contact a Swanson Reed specialist for further information.

How Kansas City’s accelerators are fueling innovation

Area leaders are evaluating the impact accelerators have on Kansas city’s entrepreneurial community. Since 2014, the Kansas City-based Sprint Accelerators was powered by Techstars, a global accelerator and investment firm. In 2017, these two powerhouses will divide to create an independent organizations. Techstars will focus in Kansas City, with Sprint Accelerators focusing on corporate innovation with both Dairy Farmers of America and Virgin Mobile.

Techstars Kansas City

World traveler and entrepreneurial advocate Lesa Mitchell began in January as Techstars KC’s managing director. Mitchell is a Kansas City native but plans to use her network from all over the world to put local entrepreneurs on the map.

Mitchell said that it has been easy to engage people thus far, thanks to the attractiveness of Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. She added that the connections made through Techstars will create a ripple effect in the city. But, she warned that we shouldn’t just meet up to meet up — we have to meet up with a purpose.

Mitchell is particularly interested in recruiting companies that dis-intermediate a market. She is also looking for diverse founders and those who believe in social impact.

Applications are now open and entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply.

Sprint Accelerator and Dairy Farmers of America

When the Dairy Farmers of America decided to come on board as a partner with the Sprint Accelerator, the large corporation — which produces one-third of all milk products in the United States — wasn’t sure what to expect.

However, the firm plans to drive new innovations in DFA’s logistics chain and learn how to better use data. The firm hopes to learn a thing or two from the entrepreneurs who are selected to the Sprint Accelerator 2017 cohort.

Sprint Accelerator manager Doug Dresslaer said that before the firms begin the 90-day program, they will establish three goals that they want to accomplish. Dresslaer hopes that each company will establish a working relationship with a corporate partner by the end of the program. Unlike the Sprint Accelerator in years past, the 2017 program will not make a financial investment in participating startups.

One of the main goals of the Sprint Accelerators is to encourage corporations to get more involved in the local startup scene. Dresslaer is thankful that Sprint has given them the opportunity to impact entrepreneurship in the city.

The Lean Lab

The Lean Lab is an education innovation incubator. Established three years ago, co-founder Katie Boody a former teacher and Teach for America alum, realized that teachers do not have the tools needed to prepare students for the modern world. She’s particularly excited to see the incubator improve local education.

The Lean Lab invested $100,000 in five teams last year, thanks to KC Social Innovation, Village Capital and the City of Kansas City, Mo. 2016 was the first year that the incubator recruited nationally and Boody said the Lean Lab will continue that in 2017.