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FSU’s High Performance Materials Institute highlights manufacturing, patents, workforce and commercialization plans
Summary
Florida State University described the High Performance Materials Institute’s interdisciplinary work in advanced materials, partnerships with industry, patent licensing and new commercialization facilities during a Senate committee hearing.
The High Performance Materials Institute at Florida State University told the Senate Education Postsecondary Committee about advanced-materials research, workforce development and local commercialization initiatives tied to an initial state investment.
Dr. Stacy Patterson said HPMI began as a Center of Excellence program with a one-time investment of $4,000,000 and has grown into an interdisciplinary institute focused on aerospace composites, nanomaterials and sensors, nanocomposites and AI-enabled materials research.
Patterson cited university totals attributing the institute’s work: FSU has been awarded about $45,700,000 in extramural funding associated with HPMI activities, reported $6,700,000 in expenditures in 2024, and the institute has supported about 170 competitive federal grants, roughly 60 U.S. patents (25 licensed), and roughly 40 peer-reviewed journal publications per year.
Patterson said HPMI supports workforce and commercialization through facilities and partnerships at Innovation Park, including a new 40,000-square-foot wet-lab incubator called Ignite Tallahassee, a 125,000-square-foot Interdisciplinary Research and Commercialization Building due to open in March and a planned 44,000-square-foot expansion by Danfoss Turbocore. She said the institute hosted industry days and maintains broad private-sector engagement—more than 50 companies in recent collaborations.
The institute has sought and won regional economic development funds, Patterson said, citing a Triumph Gulf Coast award of $98,400,000 for a project that leverages HPMI strengths to expand facilities in the Panama City area. She also said FSU is competing for a possible $160,000,000 National Science Foundation “Engine” program and had a proposal due in February.
Patterson said HPMI’s work has supported new academic programs—the FAMU–FSU Joint College of Engineering added a materials science and engineering department—and contributes to workforce pipelines and regional economic development. The committee received the presentation for information; no committee action was taken.
