An SCRA-led team was recently awarded a federal grant by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) as part of the 2018 Regional Innovation Strategies Competition. An award of approximately $750,000, the grant will fund the creation of the South Carolina Medical Device Alliance (MDA). As a collaborative effort between the Medical University of South Carolina, Clemson University, and industry leaders, the Medical Device Alliance will be used to grow the economic impact of the medical device industry through promoting the development of products, supporting the formation of startups, and increasing the commercialization of medical devices.
“The South Carolina Medical Device Alliance brings together a wide variety of life science expertise throughout the state to support commercialization of innovative, early-stage medical technologies coming out of our research institutions,” said Chris Gesswein, Executive Director of the Clemson University Research Foundation. “This program will embed industry knowledge and expertise early in the development phase to ensure that the medical device technologies it supports address validated market needs, which is critical to successful commercialization.”
In an effort to grow the economic impact of the medical sector, the MDA will advance medical technologies to the market by designing solutions, determining initial feasibility, de-risking innovations with multidisciplinary teams, and launching startups that have been evaluated by industry experts.
To learn more about the South Carolina Medical Device Alliance, click here.