New Castle County’s economic development initiative NCCinnovates is showing results, County Executive Matt Meyer announced last month.
One inititiave is NCCinnovates.com, an interactive business web portal that provides customer, market and industry information, workforce data and helps in identifying available commercial properties. Also offered are modest grant awards startup companies through partnerships with local pitch competitions.
“We are working hard to make New Castle County a welcoming place for entrepreneurs with the next great idea and for growing businesses looking to invest for the future,” Matt Meyer said. “Over the past few months, hundreds of entrepreneurs have explored the information and resources on our new interactive business portal, and this year we attracted dozens of promising start-ups to compete for our first three grant awards. Visit NCCinnovates.com to learn how New Castle County can help you succeed.”
In 2018, NCCinnovates awarded its first grants to three local start-up companies:
- D150 Fueling received the County’s Entrepreneurial Sponsorship Award at the 2018 Delaware Entrepreneurial Summit in July. Founded by three University of Delaware graduates, D150 Fueling provides on-site fueling and fuel marketing for commercial fleets using cloud-based technology to track and control inventory.
- In September, New Castle County partnered with the Emerging Enterprise Centerto present SAS Nanotechnologies the annual Swim with the Sharks
The firm has developed a proprietary, patent-pending anticorrosive coating technology that not only prevents corrosion but also heals and protects metals from corrosion in the case of surface scratch/damage.
- Defendant Data Solutions. came out on top in the Great Dames Remarkable Ideas competition during Delaware Innovation Week in November. The company works to reduce disparities in federal sentencing by providing expert reports containing data and analysis to defense attorneys as an advocacy tool at sentencing.
NCCinnovates will offer several grant opportunities for start-up businesses in partnership with area pitch competitions in 2019.
NCCinnovates is administered by the New Castle County Office of Economic Development, which is focused on supporting the county’s innovation ecosystem by prioritizing new job creation through entrepreneurship, startup companies, existing small businesses and providing a predictable land use planning process, a release stated.