S. African ambassador pays visit to ever-growing TechTown

Barbara Masekela, South African ambassador to the United States and former chief of staff for her nation's former president Nelson Mandela, recently visited Detroit's TechTown. She toured the 100,000-square foot business park that is a project of Wayne State University in order to seek out ideas about urban renewal and learn about the facility's investment in the convergence of research and jobs.

Randal Charlton, TechTown's interim executive director, says this convergence is what TechTown brings to Detroit. "What we've got to do is grow out a high tech business community right next door to the research community, so that the research community can keep feeding the businesses. This is the way we're going to get Michigan back on top."

To this end, Charlton does not view TechTown as an incubator – a "nest" in which fledgling companies begin, but then leave when they have funding or legs. "The challenge is to grow jobs locally rather than licensing a technology to some company in New Jersey or the Netherlands," he explains. "Wherever possible, we want to license to a company that stays right next door to WSU and grows jobs. We're a high technology hub, and the whole point of high technology is that it is always evolving, always changing, and the best place to grow and prosper is here in TechTown."

TechTown is currently home to 28 start-up and early stage companies, which fill the one-third of the building that is currently built-out and employ approximately 200. Charlton says he hopes to get approval to build out the remaining two-thirds of the building in one or two stages over the next year. There is need for the space: "We have 50 people, or companies, who have put themselves on a list as being interested in becoming TechTown tenants." Charlton estimates that, once the space is completed and filled, the building will house 400-500 jobs.

Charlton sees Masekela's visit as indicative of the role WSU can play in Michgan's participation in the global economy. He points out the success of Asterand – a company he knows intimately, since he stepped down as its CEO to take on his current TechTown position. 

Asterand, a human tissue research company, was TechTown's first tenant and is now listed on the London stock exchange. Half of the company's staff works in labs all over Europe, yet Charlton insists its home base will remain in Detroit. "Asterand has no plans to do anything other than grow at TechTown. The whole point about this community is that we're developing it close by to a university, WSU, that is spending over $200 million per year in research, and is producing 50 patentable inventions a year."

Point well taken.

Source: Randal Charlton, TechTown
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh