News Coverage

Interest picks up in new tech park

April 20, 2006

By Mike Isaacs
STAFF WRITER

A large medical company is expected to sign on as a tenant with Skokie's new Illinois Science + Technology Park in the very near future, village officials said this week.

This would follow the recent announcement that NanoInk, a leading nanotechnology company, has signed a lease with the downtown park. That company will occupy about 21,000 square feet on the open technology park campus.

Nanotechnology is defined as the science and technology of building electronic circuits and devices from single atoms and molecules. NanoInk has developed its own unique technology - DPN Nanolithography (DPN), a method of nanoscale manufacturing.

NanoInk, Inc. is an emerging technology company specializing in nanometer-scale manufacturing and applications development for the life science and semiconductor industries.

Through Nanoencryption technology, NanoInk is able to offer its pharmaceutical customers useful solutions to fight counterfeiting and illegal diversion of blockbuster pharmaceutical products. Other key applications include nanoscale additive repair, and nanoscale rapid prototyping. NanoInk currently has over 100 patents and applications filed worldwide and has licensing agreements with Northwestern University, Stanford University, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

"We look forward to beginning a new era for our company as we move into our new headquarters at the Illinois Science + Technology Park and help to build a new nanotechnology/biotechnology cluster on Chicago's prestigious North Shore," said NanoInk President and Chief Executive Officer Cedric Loiret-Bernal in a statement released this month.

Loiret-Bernal said the new technology park offers "a high-quality and high-security location" with room for expansion.

Forest City Science + Technology Group president Gayle Farris said the company is the first "anchor tenant" signed for the technology park.

"We are pleased to have NanoInk join our new cluster at the park as it continues to grow its business and develop new products and applications for the pharmaceutical and semiconductor industries," she said.

"NanoInk is helping to begin and realize our vision for the Illinois Science + Technology Park, a place where companies can grow and where science and business come together."

Skokie Mayor George Van Dusen called the signing "very exciting news."

"We welcome NanoInk to Skokie and the Illinois Science + Technology Park, and look forward to their involvement in the community," he said.

Skokie's new technology p rk is expected to offer tenants about 2 million square feet of research and office spaces pread across nine buildings to accommodate cutting-edge work among the sciences.

Skokie Village Manager Al Rigoni said this week the village expects a well-known medical company to announce its signing soon.

The medical company would be the largest tenant for the park to date, he said, employing more than 400 people.

"We're very pleased with what's happening over there," Rigoni said. "Forest City has demolished the older buildings and has conducted tours for prospective tenants. There has been a lot of interest from tenants in the site."