TECHNOLOGY PARK AT FORT LEONARD WOOD EXPANDS

ST. LOUIS, MO – May 12, 2005 – The University of Missouri Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood will officially expand with the dedication of a second building on Thursday, May 19, at 4:00 p.m. University of Missouri System President Elson Floyd and Major General Randal Castro, Commanding General of Fort Leonard Wood, will participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony.

"This new facility will provide additional high-tech office and lab space to serve the rapidly expanding missions of Fort Leonard Wood." said Rick Finholt, executive director of the University of Missouri Office of Economic Development and Research Parks. Finholt also directs the University of Missouri’s Missouri Research Park located in St. Charles County, Missouri.

"The Fort Leonard Wood park is a boost to the entire region because it encourages technology transfer between the University of Missouri and the U.S. Army and provides job opportunities for students, alumni, local residents and military spouses," Finholt said. "Long-range plans for the Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood include additional buildings to provide office space, classrooms and training facilities, and engineering and wet labs."

The $2.2 Million, 18,000-square-foot building will initially house two corporate tenants – 21st Century Systems and Concurrent Technologies Corp. – and three Army facilities – the Terrain Visualization Center, the Topographic Engineering Center and the TRADOC Program Integration Office for Terrain Data. Approximately 4,595 square feet of space is currently available for lease.

The 62-acre Technology Park at Fort Leonard Wood is the first technology park in the nation to be located on an active Army post. The park provides a much-needed on-Post location for businesses that support and enhance the missions, activities and strategic goals of Fort Leonard Wood. Suppliers, contractors and other organizations that work closely with the Army have immediate access to military contacts.

The first building in the technology park is the $2 million, 18,000-square-foot MRP Business Center, which opened in late 2002 and is now fully leased. The MRP Business Center is a secure office environment, providing technology-equipped and furnished offices and meeting spaces plus 6,000 square feet of shared space with administrative services. As the park expands, the MRP Business Center will continue to serve as a central resource facility, accessible to all park tenants for meetings, conferences and business-support services.

Tenants of the MRP Business Center include Anteon, Battelle, BHE Environmental, C2 Technologies, Inc., Camber Corporation, CEST, CDM, The Directorate of Environmental Integration, Freedom Healthcare Education, GEC Inc., General Physics, IEM Inc., Lincoln University, Missouri Enterprise, MTS Technologies, NGA, Tec Masters, Titan, Tri-Care Therapy Group, and offices of the University of Missouri – Rolla.

The technology park is a joint venture between the University of Missouri and the Missouri Technology Corporation, a subsidiary of the Department of Economic Development. For more information, visit www.mrpbusinesscenter.org or call 573-329-8507.

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