European Contingent to Tour Mississippi Polymer Institute at Southern Miss
Wed, 02/13/2013 - 02:02pm | By: Van Arnold
The Mississippi Polymer Institute at The University of Southern Mississippi will host a group of special European visitors on April 24-26 as part of a clean technology project that could lead to transformative partnerships.
The visit is being conducted within the European Commission's Worldwide Intercluster Initiative for New Materials and Processes Focused on Clean Technology (WIINTECH). The WIINTECH network links eight European world-class clusters representing more than 2,500 companies and research centers working in materials and processes applied to clean technologies.
The Mississippi Polymer Institute (MPI) is one of two sites in North American chosen by the commission to participate in the project. The other is PolymerOhio, an Ohio Edison Technology Center located in Westerville, Ohio.
Between 10-12 representatives from the European clusters will tour MPI's headquarters at Southern Miss' National Materials Science Innovation and Commercialization Accelerator. The group will also visit the School of Polymers and High Performance Materials, some industrial sites and networking events with researchers and businesses.
The WIINTECH project aims to identify and initiate opportunities for business development between the European sector and overseas partner clusters. This includes setting up research and development partnerships, establishing technology transfer activities and encouraging trade arrangements to help companies grow commercial relationships.
As a leader in the materials science sector, the Mississippi Polymer Institute emerged as a clear choice for further exploration by the European delegation. Serving as the industrial outreach arm of the School of Polymers and High Performance Materials at Southern Miss, MPI has played a key role in growing the state's multi-billion-dollar-a-year, high-tech polymer industry and has directly assisted in the creation of thousands of jobs.
For more information about MPI, call 601.266.4607 or visit: http://www.thepolymerinstitute.com/