Buffalo, New York – Buffalo All Access: In and around BNMC, a new initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) under the ITS4US Deployment Program, will use technology to improve transportation options for travelers in and around the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC), regardless of ability, age, or income. The initiative aims to make it easier for people of all abilities to utilize public transit and access the many essential services and destinations on and around the medical campus. The initiative focuses on providing:
An All Access App: a mobile app, website (https://bnmc.org/allaccess), and call center for people to plan trips based on their unique needs and abilities.
A Shuttle Program: an on-demand community shuttle that includes both human-driven shuttles and a self-driving shuttle.
Smart Infrastructure: wayfinding technologies on the medical campus that assist people who need support with both outdoor navigation and indoor navigation (inside VIA and the Buffalo General Medical Center).
The project is led by the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA) in partnership with BNMC, the Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council (GBNRTC), the University at Buffalo (UB), City of Buffalo, NITTEC, Kaleida Health, Buffalo Hearing & Speech Center, VIA, Heart of the City Neighborhoods, and FruitBelt Coalition, Inc. aka Fruit of the City. Consultant partners on the project include ICF, ETCH, RSG, and the Open Doors Organization. The project team has just produced an overview video that showcases more details about this project. For more information, please watch the video on the website (https://bnmc.org/allaccess/).
Speaking about the project, Jamie Hamann-Burney, Director of Planning & Implementation for BNMC, said: “The lack of safe and inclusive trip planning and travel options for people of all abilities can be a major barrier to employment, healthcare, and other quality of life essentials in our community. We’re thrilled to be a part of this initiative that will help break down these barriers.”
The ITS4US Deployment Program (https://its.dot.gov/its4us/) is a $40 million multimodal effort, led by the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Joint Program Office (JPO) and supported by the Office of the Secretary, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Transit Administration, to identify ways to provide more efficient, affordable, and accessible transportation options for underserved communities that often face greater challenges in accessing essential services.
The U.S. DOT launched Phase 1 of the program in January 2021 and supported the concept development efforts of select sites, including Buffalo All Access. In June 2022, Buffalo All Access was selected to continue Phases 2 and 3 of the program, which includes the design, testing, operation, and evaluation of the deployment.
About Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus
For more than twenty years, The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus organization (BNMC) has been a driving force of Buffalo’s economic renaissance. Throughout its management of the growth of Buffalo’s premier innovation district, the BNMC has foregrounded smart economic, social, and environmental development, prioritizing health & well-being and sustainability. Today, the BNMC is focused on the next phase of Buffalo’s ongoing resurgence, cultivating inclusive innovation in partnership with our community. BNMC launched its flagship program, IC Success in 2021 to provide support to aspiring entrepreneurs from all backgrounds to help them start or grow a business. Program graduates form the heart of Buffalo’s growing Innovation Community comprised of businesses large and small in an array of disciplines and leading the region’s next wave of economic development and growth. BNMC www.bnmc.org.
The BNMC has recently partnered with Twisted Rope to launch augmented reality (AR) signage in the Innovation Center to communicate safety information more efficiently using the AReveryware wp-content. Download on Google Play or the App Store. This exciting technology uses augmented reality with signage to play videos on smartphones to give employees and visitors important instructions.
“Until Sam Mazzarro from BNMC contacted us, we had not considered how our augmented reality technology might help in a safety context. BNMC has been a great partner and catalyst. Since that first call, the ideas and uses of the technology as an informational system have been expanding incredibly and it’s led us into additional deployments with public and private companies.” – Greg Norton, President – Twisted Rope
Benefits of SafeReopen
Reduce Risk
Easy to Use
Update Information Remotely
Customize Information for Your Facility
If you’re interested in learning more about this technology for your facility or workplace, please reach out to Parrish Gust atparrish.gust@twisted-rope.com.
Long before the COVID-19 pandemic caused unemployment rates to soar, a group of collaborators in Buffalo were working toward a hands-on, lab-oriented technology certificate program designed to get out-of-work individuals back to work.
Last fall, Mark Hoeber, Dean of Continuing Education at SUNY Erie, began pulling together key local partners to help him build the full stack web development boot camp he saw successfully run in other communities. He identified David Adkins, formerly the VP for Information Technology at the Buffalo News, currently an engineering manager at Facebook, as a partner to develop and lead the course. He also reached out to Sam Marrazzo, BNMC’s Chief Innovation Officer.
Sam provided curriculum support and also brought in Raj Suchak, founder of Grit Seed, which offered the use of its technology platform pro bono to help market the program and identify candidates likely to succeed. Grit Seed’s technology made it convenient for people to wp-contently via text. After a potential candidate expressed interest, they were automatically encouraged to complete the process and answer simple questions.
Cristina Lopez from Workforce Buffalo was instrumental in providing funding for tuition. Seventeen people are currently enrolled in this class, with 14 students’ tuition paid for by Workforce Buffalo as part of its efforts to help upskill unemployed or dislocated workers. Originally designed as an in-person class starting in April, the class launched on Zoom in June and runs through mid-August. Graduates will earn a Microsoft certificate. SUNY Erie is also developing a Google programs and a Facebook marketing course.
Other partners include TechBuffalo and InfoTech WNY, which are helping to connect the students to mentors during the program and employment opportunities after completion.
Congratulations to M&T Bank on its feature in Buffalo Business First for the establishment of new tech company Nota! Nota – a digital banking solution — functions like any other fast-growing startup in the Thomas R. Beecher Jr. Innovation Center. The only difference? It was created by one of the region’s largest companies. To read more about M&T’s new tech company, CLICK HERE! (Pictured: Paul Garibian, who leads M&T’s new tech startup, Nota.)
This event has been postponed, We will make an announcement when it can be rescheduled.
On March 18, 2020, 2:30-4:30 pm, TIBCO will be at the Innovation Center to show YOU how you can accurately predict the winners and losers of the largest basketball tournament of the year with TIBCO’s industry-leading data analytics software. Last year, TIBCO customers had a 98% accuracy rate, and a majority of last year’s attendees actually won their office pools! So come ready to make your predictions, compare your bracket with other attendees, and gain last-minute tips to improve your chances of winning this season!
Oh yeah, did we mention that there’s a FREE HAPPY HOUR too???
How is your organization going to attract the best and brightest talent?
The race for talent today means that corporations will have to use novel methods to attract new talent. From sponsoring technology schools to hiring experienced expat knowledge workers to return back home so they can retool their organizations. Firms will begin to retool their legacy office spaces and hire architecture firms to create a new vibe allowing for more creativity that will attract and retain talent. Firms will begin to rebrand their organizations to be a cool and unique organization that uses the latest and greatest in culture, healthy living and a focus on the employee wants and needs. New roles like Ambassador of Buzz and Chief Curator establish a vibe to attract talent from Bay Area tech firms. Corporations will begin to reduce their dependence on off-shore tech companies and consulting firms and move forward to build in-house innovation departments. Corporations will need to increase corporate spending on retraining of mature employee.
So what are some of the steps to help retain and provide your employees a place to separate time and space to innovate?
The first steps needed within an organization prior to beginning your innovation journey is to examine your own team’s innovation readiness. Some of the best ideas come from your own team members. Many of your own team members with years of domain experience can produce a constant pipeline of ideas that can help your organization disrupt your industry. Your organization also has team members that may not be ready to share their insights due to a legacy corporate culture that does not enable a safe and open and honest conversation to inspire an innovative culture. Building an innovation culture is the first step prior to acquiring an idea management software like Spigit or Ideator. You must consider your organization’s innovation culture. Organizations are prematurely acquiring these types of software to help collect ideas from their own organizations without examining their own team innovation maturity.
Before I explain what an innovation culture is, I should discuss the current state of the public or privately held corporation, colleges / universities and how students are opting out of traditional employment in corporations. Universities and colleges are producing prospective students for corporations. Many of these students are selecting other opportunities like the start-up market that is fast paced, risk filled and, in a fail fast culture. Other reasons are that banks, hospitals, and insurance companies are not attracting the talent needed to backfill retiring employees due to existing legacy technologies stacks and stodgy leadership teams with attitudes that cannot relate to the students’ needs. These needs include latest technologies, flexible work schedules, health and wellness, relaxed dress codes, diverse workforce and a support system that allows for a culture that helps the community.
The lack of progressive corporate leadership styles are souring many talented prospects from entering the corporate job market. The same legacy corporations that are souring prospective talent have a great deal of influence on the universities and colleges to shape the curriculum to become more creative and innovative. Due to the focus on maintaining the status quo within a firm and the tenure within the firm they take years to make a course correction. When a “Hippo” 1 (highest paid person’s opinion) makes the decisions within an organization the innovation and the culture offer suffers. The paradox in all of this is that students that graduated 20 years ago from the very universities that were innovative at the time have become so conservative that they have created a culture of status quo to keep the machine running, vs a culture of innovation.
In many corporations the execution of projects is the focus of many of the activities from upgrading business systems to building new production plants, projects are a primary activity within the company. Corporate projects fall into a few categories: revenue, operations, and compliance, and are run by a project management office or project manager. A focus on quality, time, and cost ensures when projects are completed. With all the focus on project execution, there is little time for innovation and employees are not taught to think creatively. We are taught to execute on projects and not to fail or rapid learning culture. Business schools teach management principles that were developed in the later industrial revolution to solve the large-company management problem–not the innovation problem 2. Corporations focused on project execution and maintaining the status quo can overlook talent that comes nontraditional degrees like art, English and history and focused on a traditional employee from accounting, finance, and engineering. This could be why organizations need to unlearn from the traditional organizational wp-contentroaches and learn how to inspire and mentor talent and begin to build a brand around innovation. Innovation as a culture is an wp-contentroach that needs to be developed from the middle up and top down with total support form executive leadership. The innovation culture enables teams to fail, create, learn and are giving employees an opportunity to talk freely in a safe environment. What a safety environment provides your employees is a safety net to ask why to anyone in your organization or to experiment on a new business model with support.
The innovation journey doesn’t start with deploying mega trends like AR/VR, deep learning or blockchain, it is about changing the organization’s culture that supports their careers by supporting a separation in time a space to allow innovation of ideas and concepts. Meaning separation of time and space allows employees to leave the organization to fulfill outside interests helping the journey to an innovative culture. Along with understanding your team’s current leadership state of mind, your teams need to be evaluated to determine their ability to innovate. If team members are not motivated or are prepared to help, you will need to provide the tools to unlearn their team style to effectively change the culture. If they cannot or are not willing to change they need to be managed out of the organization.
The organization that changes the scenery and believe that have made a cool space with high end coffee and cool seating arrangements will not move the needle. The organization must challenge employees with work that is inspiring by reducing emails and meetings and exposing employees to work that is stimulating and exciting.
BNMC Welcomed 450 People at 5th Annual Student Open House!
On Saturday, April 13th, we welcomed more than 450 people to the Campus for our 5thAnnual BNMC Student Open House! Attendees participated in a myriad of hands-on STEM activities, experienced behind-the-scene tours of our state-of-the-art facilities, and learned about career opportunities on the Medial Campus. We are thankful for our partners who participated in the event including, UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, Hauptman-Woodward Institute, Jacobs Institute, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Oishei Children’s Hospital, Unyts, theCoderSchool Buffalo, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and UBMD Physicians’ Group. Several construction industry professionals and trades associations also joined us for the day.
Some of the activities highlighted:
Scrubbing into laparoscopic surgery using the LapSim Virtual Training sustem at Roswell Park’s ATLAS Lab.
Observing the process of preparing a kidney for transplant at Unyts
Touring a new 800 sq. ft. operating room at Oishei Children’s Hospital (bunny suits and all!)
Working alongside lab technicians and medical residents on laparoscopic trainers, orthopedic FAS simulators, and suturing at the UB Jacobs School of Medicine.
Learning about crystals and how they are formed and used to study diseases at Hauptman-Woodward Institute
Trying your skills at bio-art at UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences
And so much more! Check out the event photo album on Facebook to see it all.
Register Today for BNMC’s 5th Annual Student Open House on Saturday, April 13
Explore Career Opportunities on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus!
Students in 7th-12th grade, accompanied by an adult, are invited to tour our state-of-the-art Campus facilities, participate in hands-on STEM activities, and hear from experts at Hauptman-Woodward Institute, the Jacobs Institute, Oishei Children’s Hospital, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics, UBMD Physicians’ Group, and Unyts.
This event is free! Space is limited and registration is required by April 3, 2019.
Start your exploration of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus by registering and picking up your program in the Innovation Center lobby, 640 Ellicott St. Free parking across the street and two blocks from Allen/Medical Campus NFTA Station
ACTIVITIES
Scrub into laparoscopic surgery using the LapSim Virtual Training system
Observe the process of preparing a kidney for transplant
See an active research laboratory
Meet physicians and ask questions about their career paths and medical school journey
Work alongside a lab technician and medical residents on laparospic trainers, orthopedic FAS simulators, and suturing
Watch a pre-recorded surgery
Learn about crystals and how they are formed and used to study diseases
Register Today for BNMC’s 5th Annual Student Open House on Saturday, April 13
Explore Career Opportunities on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus!
Students in 7th-12th grade, accompanied by an adult, are invited to tour our state-of-the-art Campus facilities, participate in hands-on STEM activities, and hear from experts at Hauptman-Woodward Institute, the Jacobs Institute, Oishei Children’s Hospital, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics, UBMD Physicians’ Group, and Unyts.
This event is free! Space is limited and registration is required by April 3, 2019.
Start your exploration of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus by registering and picking up your program in the Innovation Center lobby, 640 Ellicott St. Free parking across the street and two blocks from Allen/Medical Campus NFTA Station
ACTIVITIES
Scrub into laparoscopic surgery using the LapSim Virtual Training system
Observe the process of preparing a kidney for transplant
See an active research laboratory
Meet physicians and ask questions about their career paths and medical school journey
Work alongside a lab technician and medical residents on laparospic trainers, orthopedic FAS simulators, and suturing
Watch a pre-recorded surgery
Learn about crystals and how they are formed and used to study diseases
The Medical Campus is a dynamic consortium of world-class hospitals and health care facilities, exceptional education institutions, and innovative research institutions. Made up of 8 member institutions, the Medical Campus is home to hundreds of renowned physicians, clinicians, scientists, and researchers in oncology, neurology, immunology, vascular surgery, personalized medicine, cardiology, and beyond. The collaboration among our institutions combined with the significant research and clinical capabilities offered on the Medical Campus has led to the creation or co-location of more than 150 public and private companies including a dynamic and growing cluster of technology, life sciences, bioinformatics, energy, and social innovation companies, and not-for-profit organizations. View companies located on the Medical Campus below.
Member Institutions & Partner Organizations Located on BNMC
Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc.
Buffalo Medical Group
Buffalo Hearing & Speech Center
Buffalo Manufacturing Works
Hauptman-Woodward Institute
Kaleida Health – Buffalo General Medical Center, Gates Vascular Institute, HighPointe, Oishei Children’s Hospital
Kevin Guest House
Jacobs Institute
Olmsted Center for Sight
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
St. Jude Center
University at Buffalo – Center for Biomedicine and Life Sciences; Center for Computation Research; Center for Material Informatics; Clinical & Translational Research Center; Educational Opportunity Center; Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences; Research Institute on Addictions; Ross Eye Institute
ZeptoMetrix
*For restaurants & other food options, visit www.bnmc-old.local/food
Innovation Center
43North
81 Eighteen
911 Flex
Acara Solutions
ACV Auctions
AirExpert
All Pro Parking
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Apena Care Inc
Assisted Living Consultants, Inc.
Block Chain Resources Group LLC
Bozer
Boxcraft Studio
Brien’s Business Umbrella
Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc.
Buffalo Niagara Sleep Center
Buffalo Perspective
CAI Gobal/Hope Buffalo
Canadian Consulate in NY
Capital Insights Group of WNY
Cheiron
Connare Tech, Inc
Crews Group
Debitrum
EB-5 New York State LLC
Everon Biosciences
Explora Connections
Forsake
Genome Protection
Girls Education Collaborative
Glide Health IT, Inc
Global Dyamic Group
GoBike Buffalo
Guideline Medical
HiOperator
Huntview
Immersed Games
Inside Insight LLC
Jeca Energy Bar
JMS Technical Solutions
Kangarootime
Kermis Profitability Solutions
Koobusoft
Lena Levine Studio
LenderLogix
Let There be Light International
Lincoln Archives Family of Companies
Lindquist
MED VAR
Med-Scribe Inc
Memory Fox
New York Technology
Niagara Share
OncoTartis
Parson Group
Produce Peddlers
Peeva LLC
PurEndo
Queen City Risk Management
Quidni Labs
Rel8ed.to Analytics
Robb Surgical
Rodriguez Construction Group
Secureware Technologies
Shared Mobility, Inc
SNAPCAP of WNY
SparkCharge
Squire
Suite It
Suncayr
Talking Pictues/ Randford
TARA. Ai
Tartis
Tarvos.io
Toca Travel Services
TrainSmart
Travel Healthcare Accrediation
TROVE
Vargas Associates, Inc.
Wesolowski & Associates PC
Western NY Environmental Alliance
White Buffalo Creative
WNY Works Staffing Placement
Wynne Creative Group
Your Corporate Agent/ Vonsway
Z80 Labs
Zany Nomad
Zwp-contentos
BioSciences Incubator at the CTRC
AccuTheranostics
NeuroTrauma Sciences
Neurovascular Diagnostics
UB Gateway
3AM Innovations
Buffalo Employment & Training Center
Burner
Clean Capital, LLC
CleanFiber
Clearview Social
Decision Pace Inc.
Erie Niagara Health Education Center (AHEC)
Femi Secrets
Garwood Medical
Helm
Ignition Life Solutions
Kickfurther
Launch NY
LegWorks
Magnusmode
Quantranalytic Corporation
Sedara, LLC
Silo City IT, Inc.
SomaDetect
UB Associates, Inc. (UBF) – UBMD
UB Emergency Medicine
UB Family Medicine (UBF)
73 High Street
22nd Century
Buffalo BioLabs
Buffalo Molecular Design & Development
CH3 Biosystems
Cleveland BioLabs
CPL Associates
Photolitec
Robb Surgical
Tactiva Therapeutics
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
Global Biotechnology & Cancer Therapeutics
MimiVax
Panacela Labs
Hauptman-Woodward Institute
HarkerBIO
OmniSeq
American Crystallography Association
Conventus at 1001 Main Street
Athenex
AMRI
KeyBank
UBMD Offices
Oishei Children’s Outpatient Clinic
UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences
Acudex, Inc.
Aesku NY, Inc
AHRM, Inc.
AMI Oncotheranostics, LLC
Athenex, Inc.
Canget BioTekpharma, LLC
CH3 Biosystems, LLC
Chronicle Life Sci America Corp
Efferent Labs, Inc.
Enhanced Pharmacodynamics, LLC
Frontier Science & Technology Res Foundation, Inc.
BNMC’s healthy communities team has been busy catalyzing wellness initiatives across Campus and our surrounding neighborhoods! From Spark micro-grants to workplace wellbeing and federal grants, we’re proud to be at the forefront of building a healthier city.
Our wp-contentroach includes:
Piloting new technologies:
We installed Byte in the lobby of the Innovation Center earlier in 2018 in partnership with Farmers & Artisans. They keep it stocked with fresh, wholesome, local food options available 24/7. We were able to purchse this through our Creating Healthy Schools and Communities grant from the NYS Department of Health. We have purchased two other machines, are rebranding them as FRESHTAKES, and will be installing them at the Jacobs Institute in the Gates Vascular Institute and the UBMD offices at Conventus.
Growing fresh produce when possible:
Through this same grant, we were able to get several Grow Towers to allow local organizations to grow their own fresh produce. Our Grow Tower in the Innovation Center has produced a variety of greens – gourmet lettuces, dinosaur kale, bok choy, and herbs like basil and parsley. We had a building get-together and made soup for everyone, and on harvest days have salad parties. We provided a tower to Hospice Buffalo, where they have been growing fresh produce to use in their cafeteria and patient menus. We also provided a Grow Tower to Erie Community College Downtown Campus for their culinary program, which supports healthier ingredients on their menu for staff, students, and the general public.
Providing Spark funding:
Through the BNMC Spark microgrant program, we provided funding for 17 different local projects, several of which involved increasing access to fresh food for our local neighborhoods. The Moot Center, a longtime partner of the BNMC, was able to build a pergola to finish off its raised garden beds that our team helped them build in 2017, allowing seniors to garden in the shade, and providing covered space for their weekly farmer’s market and events. We also supported Fresh Fix, a local CSA that has a buy one, give one wp-contentroach.
Promoting healthy eating options on and around Campus:
We debuted our Food Map this year and quickly ran out! This guide showcases places within a few minute walk from institutions on the BNMC and encourages employees to get out and get moving on their breaks. We are currently updating and reprinting, so please let us know if you see something missing.
Seeking grant funding to support projects:
We recently launched a three-year, $351K project with support from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Local Food Promotion Program to create a model for health care institutions to integrate technology and cultivate a culture of healthy food practices to increase local food procurement. We will be moving into the public phase of this effort in 2019, so stay tuned for more! This implementation grant was a follow-on to a $25,000 planning grant we received two years ago through the same program to increase healthy food in health care.
Collaborating to eliminate disparities in food access:
Under the lead of the Mobile Safety-Net Team, we are part of a collaborative coalition of local organizations, store owners, and community members to address urban food deserts. The Healthy Corner Store Initiative aims to bring fresh fruits and vegetables, taste tests, and nutrition education, to convenience stores throughout the city to engage residents in a healthy lifestyle.
This is just a brief snapshot at some of the work the BNMC team is doing to create a culture of health and wellbeing in our community. Learn more at bnmc-old.local/health.
BNMC & UB Celebrate Computer Science & Engineering Month at AI & Machine Learning Summit
October is Computer Science & Engineering Month, and the BNMC celebrated on Friday, October 5th by hosting an AI & Machine Learning Summit with the University at Buffalo! More than 200 students, faculty, and industry professionals attended the event, which was held at UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences on the Medical Campus. BNMC’s CEO, Matt Enstice, welcomed the crowd and addressed the future of health care and medicine with the disruption of technology, followed by a keynote from Dr. Sargur Srihari, SUNY Distinguished Professor in the UB Dept. of Computer Science & Engineering.
The evening then led into a technical roundtable, comprised of Dr. David Doermann, SUNY Empire Innovation Professor & Program Manager for DARPA, Robert Ruocco, CIO for BlueCross BlueShield of WNY, and George Small, CTO at Moog, Inc. BNMC’s CIO, Sam Marrazzo, moderated the discussion, which focused on how AI and machine learning is currently affecting their organizations and visions for the future, as well as how they’re preparing for the next wave of technology. BNMC is proud to have hosted this event with our partners, and we look forward to continue building and supporting a culture of technology in Buffalo.
BNMC Stands with National Coalition in Announcing Policy Recommendations to Transform, Innovate and Invest to Reduce Transportation Energy Consumption in the US
A prominent national transportation commission, including the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC), released a new report today and launched a campaign to cut U.S. transportation energy use by 50 percent by 2050 (dubbed the “50×50” goal) while also improving mobility.
Amid rapidly evolving transportation trends like ride-sharing, electrification, autonomous vehicles, and other technologies, the Alliance to Save Energy’s 50×50 Commission on U.S. Transportation Sector Efficiency issued consensus recommendations calling on policymakers – at all levels of government – to act urgently in a coordinated manner to lead a successful energy efficiency transformation of the transportation sector.
“As the U.S. transportation system continues to evolve, it is critical that we develop an integrated, leading-edge wp-contentroach connecting technology, urban planning, and optimization,” said Matthew K. Enstice, CEO, Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. “Our goal is to improve broad community access to an equitable and sustainable transportation system, with an eye on reducing energy use and meeting future mobility needs. From supporting infrastructure and technology to increase electric vehicle use and piloting autonomous vehicles to integrating artificial intelligence and improving streetscape design, we are building the system of the future.”
The BNMC is part of a diverse national coalition of stakeholders – including automakers, technology companies, utilities, mayors, environmental and labor leaders – dedicated to setting a policy agenda to reach these goals. Matt Enstice is a founding member of the coalition established in November 2017. Read the BNMC’s press release on the recommendations and the column in the Buffalo News about its importance.
The BNMC received the EE Visionary Americas Award from the Alliance to Save Energy in 2012, one of four international leaders in energy to receive prestigious awards from the global organization that year.
BNMC Research Discovery Day Encourages Collaboration
BNMC Partners recently hosted the first Annual BNMC Research Discovery Day. More than 250 researchers, scientists, students, and leaders attended this collaborative event designed to promote the services and shared resources of the biomedical companies and institutions on the Medical Campus.
Dr. Johnson Lau, CEO and Board Chairman of Athenex was the luncheon keynote speaker, inspiring local researchers to dream big and take their idea or company global. More than 50 researchers, postdocs, PIs, technicians, companies, and vendors presented posters in an afternoon session designed to raise awareness of the services available right here in Buffalo.
The morning session focused on the power of collaboration and creative brainstorming, led by international creativity expert Dr. Roger Firestein. Partners from Hauptman-Woodward Institute, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, AMRI, Zeptometrix, and the University at Buffalo spoke about their research offerings and attendees were able to identify high-level collaboration opportunities.
This event would not have been possible without the generous support from KeyBank, and the dynamic planning committee led by leaders from Hauptman-Woodward Institute, AMRI, Zeptometrix, and Roswell Park. Many thanks to everyone who participated in this event – we hope to see even more next year!
See what we did there?! Our transportation team is working with the City of Buffalo and other partners to ensure the redevelopment of Main Street along the BNMC integrates smart transportation infrastructure and technology. We received$75,000 in funding from NYSERDA to support this effort, as featured in the Buffalo News recently. The Smart Corridor Plan will focus on opportunities for improving multi-modal traffic efficiency, emissions reduction, access and mobility, and safety by incorporating leading-edge technology such as Internet of Things sensors, artificial intelligence, and streetscape design in the corridor’s transportation system. Design elements and technology improvements to be considered are wireless communications; sensing technologies; dynamic traffic control and crossing signalization; smart parking technologies; transit technologies including real time data and systems coordination; and renewable energy and energy efficiency wp-contentlications. Specific recommendations and anticipated costs for improvements to the City’s central thoroughfare between Goodell Street and Humboldt Parkway will be included. Stay tuned for more information as we begin the study.
Buffalo’s Role in Bike Start-Up’s Uber Acquisition
Congratulations to Jump Bikes! The BNMC is proud to be one of the local nonprofits that were early partners of the original Social Bikes, which is now joining Uber.
This week ride-hailing giant Uber announced its intention to purchase Jump Bikes, an electric bike start-up that has pioneered electric dockless bike sharing services in a deal that is rumored to be valued at between $100 and $200 million.
The BNMC, Shared Mobility Inc. (SMI), and other local partners were thrilled to hear the news since the nonprofits had worked with the organization in its very early days of developing the first public flexible bike sharing service.
The BNMC is proud to have partially funded the first city hub, as well as providing early support to SMI for a bikeshare business plan in 2011. In 2012, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) funded SMI with a $150,000 project to pilot and test the Brooklyn start-up Social Bicycles (now called Jump Bikes). As is the case today, the BNMC was interested in supporting social innovators, particularly those that offered a new business model and benefits for communities.
Building on the success of the Topcoder Open 2017 that we hosted in the fall, the BNMC has partnered with Dr. Bina Ramamurthy and UB’s Department of Computer Science & Engineering to hold the Blockchain Buildathon. This three-day event engages more than 200 students and members of the business community for a weekend of hacking to solve local and global business challenges in 48 hours.
We have been thrilled by the enthusiasm and support from the local business community who will be providing these students with real-world experience, networking and business contacts, and – hopefully – high-tech job opportunities right here in Buffalo after graduation.
The future of technology, talent and innovation in Buffalo. Why Blockchain?
Blockchain technology provides solutions to corporations in security, optimizations in processes, and transparency. This technology will help organizations to better prepare for disruptions in their business. Companies will need to adapt to this evolving technology, as all aspects of your organization will be disrupted. Internal business systems, relationships with partners/vendors/customers and staff will need to become focused in this space.
As this technology matures, changes will come frequently until industries standardize on the blockchain platform. This will allow for free exchange of peer to peer transactions. The disruption will require retooling of staff, existing technologies and mindsets, which is why our Blockchain event is so important to Buffalo and the community.
We must be prepare organizations to move into the next phase of innovation. This will mean preparing the next generations of professionals to be ready for the Blockchain wave.
BNMC to Explore Ways to Create Greener, Safer and More Accessible Main Street Through Smart Infrastructure
When the City of Buffalo begins its $13 million streetscape improvement project on Main Street this spring, the BNMC team will work alongside them to identify opportunities for integrating smart transportation infrastructure and technology into the design to create a greener, safer, and more efficient streetscape ready for future transportation advancements.
The Smart Corridor Plan will focus on opportunities for improving multi-modal traffic efficiency, emissions reduction, access and mobility, and safety by incorporating leading-edge technology such as Internet of Things sensors, artificial intelligence, and streetscape design in the corridor’s transportation system. Design elements and technology improvements to be considered are wireless communications; sensing technologies; dynamic traffic control and crossing signalization; smart parking technologies; transit technologies including real time data and systems coordination; and renewable energy and energy efficiency wp-contentlications. Specific recommendations and anticipated costs for improvements to the City’s central thoroughfare between Goodell Street and Humboldt Parkway will be included.
The BNMC received $75,000 in funding for the project from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and New York State Department of Transportation.
The newly opened $270 million John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital was a page turner in the latest chapter of the burgeoning downtown Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.
So was the December opening of the University at Buffalo’s $375 million new home for its Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
The completion of the new projects mark a turning point for the 120-acre campus at the epicenter of Buffalo’s renaissance.
In 2002, the campus was in its infancy with just three companies. Now boasting 4.5 million square feet of development and $1.4 billion in investments, the campus has moved beyond just medical institutions. It has taken shape with a diverse mix of health care, life science and technology companies, becoming fertile ground for entrepreneurs and their startups.
There is still more to come.
Campus planners are aiming for BNMC to rival medical campuses in places like Cleveland and Pittsburgh. Among the next steps are strengthening ties with higher education and the private sectors.
“We are so well positioned with all the institutions and assets that are here and now want to embrace the excellent universities and colleges,” said Matthew K. Enstice, CEO and president of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Inc. “We plan to build out” – meaning renovate – “more space for them to have a location so they can interact and be a part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem that we have here.”
A big part of that vision is twp-contenting into local small and large companies, especially mature ones, and including them in the campus’ vision for its innovation district. “The world is changing so quickly in technology, that we’re putting a structure in place to help multiple, different companies innovate,” Enstice said.
Here’s what’s coming next on the Medical Campus:
• Design work is expected to start for renovation of existing buildings on the former Osmose Holdings site. In 2016, BNMC bought the 4.4-acre parcel, which is located at the northern edge of campus at Ellicott and Best streets and has parking for 200. It is expected to be a magnet for mature private-sector companies, along with universities and colleges, but will not be a second incubator, BNMC officials say.
• Ellicott Development Co. has a $4 million adaptive reuse development project underway at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, just north of the campus at Main and Best streets. To the south, Ellicott is planning a six-story retail and office building at 1091 Main St.
• Along the western edge of the campus, design work will begin for a redo of a critical stretch of Main Street from Goodell toward Canisius College. Meanwhile, a $7.5 million overhaul of Allen Street, including redesigned sidewalks and widened sections of the street, is expected to begin. Work will be done in phases, stretching from the eastern end of Allen toward Wadsworth.
• Workers will put the finishing touches on the exterior of UB’s Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, which opened to students earlier this month at 955 Main St. Final terra cotta panels are being installed on the Washington Street side of the building by spring. Most of the university’s labs are being moved in from mid-January through mid-March. With the medical school fully operational, 2,000 faculty, staff and students will be there daily.
• The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority’s newly renovated Allen Medical Campus Station has been integrated into the medical school. The station features “Gut Flora,” a colorful public art sculpture by Shasti O’Leary Soudant, and a newsstand opens this month. A one-block tunnel that serves as a pedestrian passageway to Washington Street will open beneath the medical school.
• The campus’ ninth pedestrian skybridge will be designed and constructed later in the year. It will span High Street, linking the Conventus medical office building to the UB Medical School. The new $1.5 million connector comes after three other skybridges just opened in November: one from Conventus to Oishei Children’s Hospital, another from Children’s Hospital to Buffalo General Medical Center/Gates Vascular Institute, and a third leading out the back of Children’s Hospital to a new parking ramp at 854 Ellicott St.
• By late May, the $40 million, 1,825-space parking ramp behind Oishei Children’s Hospital at 854 Ellicott will be completed. The top half of the eight-story ramp has been under construction since late 2017. The bottom half of the eight-story ramp opened Nov. 10 with Oishei Children’s Hospital.
• The 128,000-square-foot Thomas R. Beecher Innovation Center at 640 Ellicott St. will be completely full by the end of March.
After Amherst native Matthew K. Enstice wrwp-contented up stints in the entertainment industry that took him to Broadway Pictures in Los Angeles and “Saturday Night Live” in New York City, his career dramatically swerved back to Buffalo.
He landed at the helm of the nonprofit organization overseeing the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. Now, 17 years later, Enstice finds himself at the pulse of the expanding campus footprint, as he guides a shifting momentum in the campus’ growth.
With a collective projected workforce of 16,000 this year, the Medical Campus continues to make its mark – from hospitals to clinical and research facilities.
“We deliver health care here, and we’re going to do high-end health care here, but it’s changing,” said Enstice, president and chief executive officer of BNMC Inc. “Health care, as you know it, is a very, very different place. As that changes and evolves, you’re going to see opportunities in our community to utilize technology to develop companies for the future.”
The Medical Campus is already home to startup companies, entrepreneurs building businesses and high-tech companies. The momentum shows no signs of tapering off.
The future vision for the campus reflects a dedicated shift toward making room for local companies as they cut their teeth on new initiatives. The Medical Campus also looks to expand its innovation district to a 4.4-acre site on the northern edge of campus that once was the home of Osmose Holdings.
A visionary with high energy, Enstice is related to the prominent Jacobs family. His late father-in-law, Dr. Lawrence D. Jacobs, was a neurologist and world-renowned researcher specializing in the treatment of multiple sclerosis.
Often wearing a blue or white button-down shirt and khakis, he is known for his casual attire and carefree manner. He rarely breaks out a tie or suit.
Enstice recently met with The Buffalo News inside the campus Innovation Center to talk about the campus’ growth and future.
Q: What do monumental projects such as Children’s Hospital and the UB medical school say about the future of the campus?
A: People talked in years past that Children’s wasn’t moving over and there was a lot of controversy. But I think it showed how the community coming together can do great things, and that’s what Children’s is a true sign of.
Right now, the (medical school) has a major presence in the city. That, to me, is a game changer that I don’t think we can define right now.
I was sitting there at the opening, looking right out the window down Allen Street, and it was just amazing to envision what is Allen going to be like. What was so wild to see, was that I used to never see people walking there and there must have been 20 or 30 people coming out of that subway. It’s just the fact that we have so much traffic starting to develop down here. And that’s a real positive.
It’s just the beginning of more opportunities for our community to leverage these great assets and great organizations being here on the campus.
Q: How does Buffalo’s regional health care hub fit within the national mix?
A: I think that we’re one of the leading innovation districts. I just don’t think about it as health. If you look back to what Jerry Jacobs commissioned for looking at the future of medicine, it’s changing dramatically. And I believe we’re very well positioned because of our computer science school, our school of engineering and our ability to be leaders in the technology field. That’s what I think of.
So, we’ve been on the map. Having Children’s and the medical school down here, puts it on the map even more.
What we need to figure out how to do, and what we really want to do, in our next phases of development is to integrate the school of engineering and the schools of business.
How does Canisius College play a role here? How does Niagara University play a role here? How does Buffalo State College play a role here? We are so well positioned with all the institutions and assets that are here. So we plan to build out more space for them to have a location so they can interact and be a part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem that we have here.
Q: What kind of involvement?
A: Let’s look at the future of medicine and all the work that we’re doing in energy, all the work that we’re doing in transportation. What’s the major driver behind those industries as they’re changing? It’s technology. We’re well positioned in building our community out to have a technology foundation that can enable health care, energy, transportation.
I’m talking this campus. We have all the resources. I don’t think we’ll build a building for a college. We want to build an environment where local businesses, big companies, are going to have a presence here.
Our plan is to build out space to embrace the local economy. I think, for too long, a lot of local businesses have not been engaged, because there hasn’t been a vehicle.
I believe that if you look across as to what’s going to help strengthen local companies, they have to be a part of what we’re doing. I think we can all help one another. That is what this is all about. How do we build a platform and a foundation in technology for everybody? Tech is not the next chapter. It’s the current chapter. It’s really what is going to be our great opportunity for the future.
We’ll use the footprint of the existing (Osmose) space that we have. As of right now, we are not planning to build a new building in the near future. We are planning to renovate the existing space. I think, over time, various companies will start to come in, but within the year is our goal is to start to see this development really start to take off.
Q: What would you say to naysayers who didn’t think this vision for the campus would ever materialize in the fashion that it has so far?
A: If you stay together and you’re straightforward and honest with one another, great things can hwp-contenten. That is at the core of what builds all the great stuff that’s down here on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus … If you look at the 4.5 million square feet of development, the $1.4 billion worth of investment, that was because people worked, planned, developed together.
Q: What is the greatest challenge facing the campus?
A: I think the greatest challenge is that people continue to work together and support one another … I think the biggest challenge you have is that sometimes people forget what got you here.
Q: Parking is a constant complaint or concern, and there’s a huge push to get people to use public transit more.
A: We have off-campus shuttles running. We have public transportation being utilized and programs in place. And it’s starting to work. People are actually trying it and it’s working. While it’s not perfect, it is an option. And so to me, we will always have a parking spot here for every patient and visitor that comes down here.
What we would hope to see is that more people live in and around the campus, in and around the subway station.
The mayor continues to talk about reinvesting in Main Street with infrastructure. He’s committed $10 million so far, going toward Canisius. We want to see the mayor continue on that and go all the way and connect us to Canisius College. … I believe if you continue to do that, you’ll see more residential units pop up on Main Street. You’ll see more people using the transit. That’s what we want to see.
Q: There are signs of spinoff development in Allentown. But for the Fruit Belt neighborhood, there always seems to be an undercurrent of concern, gentrification, trying to preserve the Michigan Avenue corridor, and a push for more parking. What do you foresee for the Fruit Belt?
A: For the Fruit Belt, I hope that there’s continued investment there in the infrastructure. The mayor has done a great job at fixing the streets, the sidewalks, the trees and the lights. I hope they continue to do that because I want to see more people invest in that neighborhood. … We believe that will be a positive if the community is part of the solution there.
I’m really intrigued by what’s going on in Masten, Fruit Belt and Allentown – to me, they’re very similar in the sense that they’ve always been engaged in a part of the process with what’s going on with the campus. Everybody’s always talked about it. Everybody’s had a light on it.
What I’m interested in is what is going on to the north. We believe there’s going to need to be more of an engagement there. I think it’s a community that people maybe have not paid as much attention to. But they’re on the border of all this stuff that’s going on here. So, it’s probably already hwp-contentening and we don’t know it.
Matt talks with Bill Maggio, a health care, medical diagnostics, and business development executive from Buffalo, New York. They talk about the Jacobs Institute’s recently released landmark report on The Future of Medicine, and the role of health care systems in transforming how care is delivered. Bill highlights his role as an investor as well as a leader in the local start-up community as past chair of 43North business competition to spur economic development in Buffalo. They touch on his lifelong love of music as a classically-trained pianist as well as the impact rowing has had on his life.
Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) to Create Smart Corridor for Main Street
Plan to be developed to integrate smart transportation infrastructure and technology to create an innovative, greener, safer, and more accessible street
Buffalo, N.Y., January 11, 2018 – The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. (BNMC) has received $75,000 in funding to develop an innovative solution for smart transportation infrastructure and technology, on Main Street along the BNMC, in downtown Buffalo. The BNMC project will complement the City of Buffalo’s ongoing Complete Streets initiative.
The project, Creating a Smart Corridor Plan for Main Street in Buffalo, N.Y., will focus on the current conditions, best practices and opportunities for improving energy efficiency, emissions reduction, access and mobility, and traffic safety on a densely populated section of Main Street. The study will result in specific recommendations and anticipated costs for improvements to the City’s central thoroughfare that runs from downtown, northeast to the City’s northern suburbs.
The study, which is being funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and New York State Department of Transportation, supports Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s nation-leading energy goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030.
The study will be conducted at the same time that the City of Buffalo is beginning the design process for a large-scale $13 million streetscape improvement project on Main Street from Goodell Street to Ferry Street, adjacent to the Medical Campus. The BNMC and the City of Buffalo plan to work together to identify opportunities for the implementation of smart transportation infrastructure and technology at the same time. The primary goal of the project will be to create a more innovative streetscape to ensure a greener, safer, more efficient and integrated transportation system for the future.
Main Street in the City of Buffalo, already a densely populated, mixed-use street with a multiple transportation options, has undergone a tremendous amount of new development, particularly near the thriving BNMC. It has been identified as a top priority for reconstruction though multiple planning efforts. As the area grows, there has been increasing interest in updating aging infrastructure, adding traffic calming measures, improving pedestrian and bicycling access and infrastructure, and improving access to the Metro Rail Stations along Main Street.
According to William Smith, Director of Access and Planning for BNMC, “The funding affords us the ability to identify opportunities to improve the street for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists while at the same time, to plan for the future with new technologies such as sensing technologies, wireless communications, autonomous vehicles, and dynamic and smart parking technologies that can help Buffalo become a model of efficiency, safety, and more sustainable environmental wp-contentroaches.” He added, “The timing is ideal, as we have the opportunity to work with the City of Buffalo as they embark on streetscape improvements that may allow us to integrate our recommendations simultaneously, vastly improving Main Street for all.”
“The Main Street corridor through the Medical Campus area is ripe for infrastructure improvements to compliment the development that continues to transform this area. My administration has led the way in initiating the transformation of Buffalo’s transportation network following the Complete Streets model that accommodates bicycles, pedestrians and motorists in an equitable manner. Working with the BNMC on this grant will afford the opportunity to advance the Complete Streets model with the latest technology,” Mayor Byron W. Brown said.
Work on the Smart Corridor Plan will begin this year and include developing an RFP process to choose a subcontractor who will work with BNMC and the City on smart corridor design considerations, anticipated benefits and associated costs; developing a project steering committee to guide the project, ensure coordination among stakeholders, provide relevant data, insight and information, and to review and comment on project findings; and developing a Smart Corridor recommendations report which will include a review of existing plans, technologies and conditions, an outline of best practices and potential opportunities, and specific recommendations and anticipated costs.
As part of its effort to develop a set of recommendations on design and technology considerations, BNMC expects to focus on elements including wireless communications; sensing technologies; connected and autonomous technologies including connected safety systems; dynamic traffic control and crossing signalization; smart parking technologies; transit technologies including real time data and systems coordination; and renewable energy and energy efficiency wp-contentlications.
In addition to the City of Buffalo, BNMC expects to work with representatives from BNMC member institutions, transportation service providers, utility companies, surrounding neighborhoods, and local and national experts in the field of smart transportation and city planning. The overall project is expected to be completed in 12 months.
About the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc.
The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. (BNMC) is a self-sustaining social enterprise successfully combining innovation, job creation, and urban revitalization. It serves as the umbrella organization of the anchor institutions that make up the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus located within the 120-acre campus bordering Allentown, the Fruit Belt and Downtown. The BNMC Inc. fosters conversation and collaboration among its member institutions, its partners and the community to address critical issues impacting them, including entrepreneurship, energy, access and transportation, workforce and procurement, neighborhoods, and healthy communities, with the goal of increasing economic development and building a strong community. www.bnmc-old.local.
In this episode, Matt talks with Nic Perez, Chief Technologist at Booz Allen Hamilton, about his journey with crowdsourcing and how he’s seen technology develop over the years with companies like Netscape Communications, Charles Schwab and America Online; his passion for using technology for the greater good and the lives he’s impacted working as the web technical architect for American Red Cross; and his views on the the power of the gig economy and its ability to allow people to work on whatever they want, wherever they want.
