When the Berlin Wall came tumbling down in 1989, a unique idea was born across the ocean at an Army base in Maryland.
With the end of the Cold War, generals and scientists at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County brainstormed: How could the Army forge research and development partnerships with private corporations and universities, and apply cutting-edge technology from the art of war to academia and commerce?
Tomorrow and Wednesday, Aberdeen Proving Ground will present a Technology Showcase for nearly 200 research-oriented companies and universities, whose representatives will consider the base's vast resources, from one of the nation's fastest supercomputers to advanced laboratories and testing facilities.
The event is "our coming-out party," said Brian Simmons, chairman of the Aberdeen Proving Ground Science and Technology Board. "When the wall in Berlin came down, we here on post started looking outside."
Officials hope the private business sector and academia can solve several nagging problems at the base, which has been in operation since 1917. Profits from private sector contracts could offset reduced defense spending while enhancing the facility's national prestige amid rumors of base closings.
Some contracts have been made, including deals with car manufacturer Volvo and Duke University, said C. David Brown, director of Test and Technology for the Developmental Test Command.
"A university research project will find it far less costly to utilize our state-of-the-art laboratories rather than build an entire facility on their campus," said Brown. "Firms like Volvo can make use of facilities like our test tracks."
The initiative is part of a regional push for a technology corridor along U.S. 40.
Harford County Executive James M. Harkins wants to create more high-tech jobs and form a more highly skilled work force that could feed into a new research and development zone within driving distance of Baltimore, Wilmington, Del., Philadelphia and Washington.
"The whole idea of this technology transfer program at APG came from behind the fence to in front of the fence," Harkins said. "The Army has learned to become `business-friendly' and that means good things for this area, including sustaining jobs that pay 50 to 60 percent more than service jobs."
