I wanted to share the following commentary article with you from the Albany Times Union:

By Tush Nikollaj, Commentary

Two years ago I wrote a commentary voicing my support for the  College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering spinning off from the University at Albany to become its own stand-alone school in the  SUNY system.

I got some flack from some well-intentioned — and well-known — business folks. Their concern was that CNSE's affiliation with UAlbany would help keep the school's positive impact focused here rather than be spread across the state.

My feeling was that UAlbany had done a great job nurturing the nanocollege to the point where it was strong enough to stand on its own. I likened it to a parent raising a child to leave the nest. But I also believed its roots were deep in the region and its presence here would be even greater.

Fast forward two years and it is hard to argue against how New York state overall and the Capital Region in particular have benefited from that spinoff, which was renamed  SUNY Polytechnic Institute following the merger with the SUNY IT in Utica.

Since my opinion piece ran, Gov.  Andrew Cuomo announced the state's data center would be consolidated and hosted at SUNY Poly. The governor announced SUNY Poly would lead an effort to transform a former Kodak building in Rochester into the  Solar Manufacturing and Technology Development Center. Cuomo also announced SUNY Poly would be a critical player in the new  New York Hub for Emerging Applications in Life Sciences initiative. He even announced a California film production company would anchor a new hub for emerging film industries in central New York.

That was a tiny sliver of the initiatives started in the last two years with SUNY Poly playing a central role. Do you see a pattern? Cuomo is leveraging the strength of this $20 billion institution with its more than 300 corporate partners and more than 3,500 scientists, engineers, students, faculty and staff.

SUNY Poly is a battering ram to get things done across the state.

Back here in the Capital Region, SUNY Poly is playing a role not just at the collegiate level but in secondary education as well —  Tech Valley High School is located on its campus.

And now SUNY Poly is looking to spread the love across the Hudson River as it considers expanding in a region hurt at least psychologically by losing a $280 million casino project.

So what's it mean for other businesses in the region?

I am convinced that companies being nurtured on the Albany NanoTech campus will have a spillover effect, much like General Electric did. Thanks to GE, companies like Intermagnetics (now Philips MRI) among others started and grew here. Whenever you have great minds under one roof, great things happen. I believe we're just at the beginning of the "SUNY Poly Effect."

I believe you'll also see more suppliers locating here to be near clients working with SUNY Poly or  GlobalFoundries, which located here to be near SUNY Poly in the first place. GlobalFoundries has invested more than $10 billion in its Saratoga operation, where it has 3,000 employees and payroll topping $340 million annually.

All this adds up to more potential clients for my business and other local business in the area. CEOs of local businesses have a great opportunity on their hands if they can think beyond just reading the latest SUNY Poly announcements and start thinking about how they can serve these incoming companies.

Tush Nikollaj is president and CEO of Logical Net Corp.

READ THE PDF OF THE ARTICLE HERE