Ben Franklin News
New Member Incubators in Reading, Wilkes-Barre, Honesdale, and Jessup
One of the largest incubator networks in the U.S. just got bigger. The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) expanded its Ben Franklin Business Incubator Network to now also include Jump Start Incubator, Reading; Allan P. Kirby Enterprise Center at Wilkes University,Wilkes-Barre; The Stourbridge Incubator, Honesdale; and The TekRidge Center, Jessup.
Business incubation provides vital support to entrepreneurs and early-stage firms at their most vulnerable times and is often pivotal to their survival and prosperity. With 33 years owning and managing its own incubator, BFTP/NEP was one of the pioneers of business incubation in the nation. Ben Franklin’s experience in business incubation has been recognized with its Ben Franklin TechVentures® winning the National Business Incubator Association Incubator of the Year Award on two occasions.
The incubator network is an important element in BFTP/NEP’s strategy for developing the technology infrastructure in its 21-county northeastern Pennsylvania region. Ben Franklin staff meet with incubator network managers annually to exchange ideas and information, work collaboratively, and provide guidelines and training that are in accordance with National Business Incubation Association standards.
The reduced operating costs of starting a company in a business incubator are typically what initially draw early-stage companies to an incubator facility. But the business development assistance and sharing of best practices among tenants are often even more important.
BFTP/NEP owns and manages both Ben Franklin TechVentures and the Bloomsburg Regional Technology Center. Members of the newly expanded Ben Franklin Business Incubator Network are:
1. AEDC Bridgeworks Enterprise Center
Allentown — http://allentownedc.com/business-incubation/bridgeworks-enterprise-center/
2. Ben Franklin TechVentures®
Bethlehem – www.nep.benfranklin.org/incubator-network/ben-franklin-techventures/
3. The Bloomsburg Regional Technology Center
Bloomsburg – https://nep.benfranklin.org/incubator-network/bloomsburg-regional-technology-center/
4. Carbondale Technology Transfer Center
Carbondale – www.4cttc.org
5. East Stroudsburg University Innovation Center
East Stroudsburg – www.esu.edu/busaccelerator
6. The Enterprise Center
Sayre – www.sayreenterprisecenter.com
7. The Greater Hazleton CAN BE
West Hazleton – www.canbe.biz
8. The Innovation Center @ Wilkes-Barre
Wilkes-Barre – http://connect.wilkes-barre.org/
9. Jump Start Incubator
Reading – www.jumpstartberks.org
10. Allan P. Kirby Enterprise Center at Wilkes University
Wilkes-Barre – www.wilkes.edu/kirby
11. Pottsville/Schuylkill Technology Incubator
Pottsville – www.incubator-tech.com
12. The Scranton Enterprise Center
Scranton – www.scrantonenterprisecenter.com
13. The Stourbridge Incubator
Honesdale – http://stourbridgeproject.com
14. The TekRidge Center
Jessup – http://scrantonplan.com/tekridge.html
Coverage via Morning Call: http://bit.ly/2apFuBW; Lehigh Valley Business: http://bit.ly/2aJQL5w; Keystone Edge: http://bit.ly/2aQw45k
