Technology Platforms
In 2004, the Idaho Science & Technology Advisory Council called for an industry summit to determine the state's core technology platforms. Battelle Energy Alliance assisted the summit participants with the effort and drafted Idaho's Core Competencies Report.
The following technologies emerged as central to Idaho’s innovation economy:
Agricultural/Biological SciencesPower & Energy
Digital Imaging & Sensor Technology
New Materials & Nanotechnology
Further analysis of Idaho's innovation industries has revealed competencies in the following two additional technology platforms:
Software Technology
Communication Technology
In 2006, Battelle Energy Alliance conducted another study to determine some specific emerging technology industries where Idaho has an opportunity to become a national and world leader. Idaho's Core Competencies Final Report identified the following technology industries as potential leadership opportunities for Idaho based on existing expertise and resources:
Environmental Health
Alternative Energy/Nuclear
Definition: The research, development and management of biologically-based organisms and their ecosystems.
Meaning / Related Industries: Idaho's strong agriculture industry, studies relating to the area's ecosystems and related research.
Companies / Research Institutions: Monsanto, Simplot, University of Idaho, Idaho National Lab.
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Definition: Pursuit of dependable, affordable and environmentally sound production and distribution of energy for the future
Meaning / Related Industries: Areas of focus include resource availability and sustainability, environmental and national security, and research in how environmentally sustainable energy sources (including nuclear energy) can mitigate climate change and improve water utilization.
Companies / Research Institutions: Idaho National Lab, Intrepid, Idaho Power, University of Idaho.
Idaho Software Technology industry has a new support organization called the Idaho Software Employers Alliance (ISEA) (http://www.idahosea.org/). The ISEA partners with higher education to expand the economic vitality of the state by increasing the availability of skilled software professionals and promoting the opportunities available in the state’s rapidly growing software industry.
The ISEA has begun the process of gathering data to measure the performance of the Idaho software industry, to identify their needs, and to help tell their story. The following is list of talking points that the ISEA has identified:
1. Idaho is home to over 800 software companies with nearly 400 software companies in the Boise metropolitan area. (Idaho Department of Commerce)
2. The software industry is the fastest growing technology sector in Idaho. (Idaho Department of Commerce)
3. Software companies make up one-fifth of the Idaho technology sector. (Idaho Department of Commerce)
4. Software employment in the U.S. is projected to grow by 44% over the next seven years.
5. The software industry has the highest projected employment growth rate of any other industrial sector, even higher than the medical sector.
6. In a survey of 26,000 workers, Software Developers had the most satisfying jobs.
7. A Computer Science degree allows you to work in almost any organization.
8. Software Engineers are needed in virtually every part of the economy, making this one of the fastest growing job titles in the U.S. (Money Magazine and Salary.com survey)
9. You can pay off your student loans and have fun doing it.
10. Total payroll for Idaho software companies has increased at a rate almost four times that of the overall technology sector in Idaho. (Idaho Department of Commerce)
11. One hundred percent of BSU’s Computer Science graduates received job offers upon graduation.
12. The average starting salaries for BSU’s Computer Science graduates in 2006 were the highest of all undergraduate majors.
13. The average starting salary reported by BSU’s Computer Science graduates was $61,900 for BS graduates and $82,750 for MS graduates.
14. The Boise metropolitan area has the 2nd highest per capita number of engineers and IT professionals in the U.S., second only to the Silicon Valley. (Forbes report)
15. In 2005, the average Computer Science salary in the U.S. was $83,593.
Idaho's communication technology sector includes the following industries:
- Telecommunications service providers (telephone, cellular, etc.)
- Television service providers (cable, satellite, etc.)
- Internet service providers (wireless, broadband, etc.)
- Radio and television broadcasting companies
- Telecommunications infrastructure design and construction companies
- Telecommunications product manufacturers
- Communications equipment service companies (audio, video, data centers, etc.)
Definition: The capture, reproduction, rendering and/or analysis of images, image sequences (video), photographs, documents.
Meaning / Related Industries: Printing, copying, digital photography, medical equipment, home entertainment systems or monitoring devices used in a variety of industries including agriculture, medical, security and defense.
Companies / Research Institutions: Hewlett-Packard Co., Micron Technology, Idaho National Lab, GeoEngineers, NorthWind, Dedicated Devices, University of Idaho.
Definition: Research, development, manufacture and analysis of materials with features between 100 nanometers and a tenth of a nanometer in size. In this science, manipulating materials near the atomic/molecular level is critical to the material's purpose.
Meaning / Related Industries: Nanotechnology will impact almost every industry because the ability to manipulate materials at the nano level has the potential to improve almost every aspect of materials used in electronics, biology, construction, and essentially every other field. In the semiconductor field, most new products and research are being done at the nano level.
Companies / Research Institutions: Micron Technology, Hewlett-Packard Co., NanoSteel, Positron Systems, Boise State University, Idaho State University, University of Idaho.