REGIONAL OPEN ACCESS LABORATORY

a new york state not-for-profit corporation

Personnel

Director

Robert Muratore, Ph.D.
r.muratore AT openaccesslab.org

Board

Doris J. Benter, M.F.A.
Jason Winder
Robert Muratore, Ph.D.

Counsel

Michael J. Derevlany, Esq.

Mission

The Problem

The economic slowdown has caused a decrease in research opportunities for trained scientists leading to a brain drain.

The Solution

ROAL, the Regional Open Access Laboratory. This facility will provide work space, laboratory equipment, and supplies to displaced scientists, engineers, and inventors.

Regional - Currently Long Island NY USA; this model is replicable in other geographic regions.

Open Access - Open to all qualified users, without competition, and without an interest in their intellectual property.

Laboratory - Envisioned as a modern facility with basic equipment typically unavailable to the independent investigator.

Clients

The goal is to provide a laboratory that will serve:
  • major area universities, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, Brookhaven National Laboratory and others in their efforts to create a Long Island technology hub
  • incubators and angel investors by providing a stream of new ideas
  • independent scientists, engineers, and inventors
  • graduate students by providing an opportunity to practice and hone their skills, and to earn supplemental stipends
  • retired scientists and engineers by providing them with a means of sharing their valuable experiences and influencing new developments
  • area manufacturers who need access to equipment
  • major manufacturers of scientific equipment by providing training on their devices

Partners

To date, ROAL has received support from the Long Island Forum for Technology (LIFT), the IEEE Entrepreneurs Network, and leading patent attorneys who have offered significant discounts to those researchers in ROAL who wish to protect their intellectual property.

We are currently seeking operating space and start-up funds.

Resources

Whitepaper

Muratore R. Regional Open Access Laboratory: A pre-burner to fire up technology and business incubators. The Pulse of Long Island, IEEE. 2012 June; 60(26):11

Example Facility

A minimum 440 square foot single room facility is sketched here. The design is flexible; the example is just a starting point. It features four independent general workstations, a wet station and fume hood, a dark section with an optical table, fluorescent microscopy table, and macrophotography stand, a CNC mill and 3D printer, and a small meeting area. This facility could be fitted into a variety of surplus spaces. The lab itself is handicap accessible.