WARREN, Ohio -  The Federal Government is recognizing a Warren-based non-profit that is working to encourage and develop innovative solutions to the world’s energy challenges.

The U.S. Department of Energy has named BRITE Energy Innovators as one of twenty incubators to receive a $50,000 Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC) prize.

The EPIC prize recognizes the most innovative and impactful incubators focused on developing strong regional innovation organizations for energy-related technology and entrepreneurship.

BRITE Operations Director Sara Daugherty says their application for the recognition focused on efforts to work with Case Western Reserve, Carnegie Mellon, and West Virginia University to develop better, more durable, and safer methods of energy storage such as batteries, fuel cells, and other advanced systems.

Daugherty tells 21 News that these are “exciting times” with BRITE’s Courthouse Square location being so close to Lordstown where General Motors is building a plant to manufacture efficient batteries for electric-powered vehicles.

Congressman Tim Ryan, who is one of the local elected leaders who have been promoting the area as “Voltage Valley”, is expected to make a formal announcement about the EPIC award next week.

According to Daugherty, energy storage is just part of the ideas being encouraged by BRITE.

An unexpected result of the Coronavirus pandemic is that inventors have had more time to create and develop ideas, according to Daugherty, who says that BRITE has gone from hearing from an average of one potential entrepreneur per week in January to getting interested from three or four inventors each week.

BRITE offers consultation services to startups and small-and-medium-size enterprises, lab space and equipment for device testing and R&D and affordable office space and coworking memberships.

According to the non-profit, BRITE’s efforts have resulted in $235 million in investments and 500 jobs, helping more than 250 companies innovate and grow over the past nine years. 

Daugherty says BRITE is on track to facilitate $1 billion in private investment for energy-related companies in the next three-to-five years.