Maritime cluster gets SBA funding

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced the Marine Industries Science and Technology (MIST) Cluster, centered at Stennis Space Center, is one of four new regional innovative clusters that will receive SBA funding. The MIST Cluster will cover an area that includes Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi. According to Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), MIST will be administred by the non-profit Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, a business incubator and technology transfer office. SBA funding will range from $500,000 to $550,000 for each of the clusters. According to SBA, the MIST Cluster will "focus on the Stennis Space Center's ecosystem of world class marine technology research, the highest concentration of oceanographers in the world, and a broad consortium of federal and state partners to provide targeted support for the creation and growth of small businesses involved in 'blue technology.'" The MIST Cluster, along with three other new regional innovation clusters announced Tuesday, expands the SBA initiative to 11 clusters nationwide. (Sources: SBA, 09/30/14, Mississippi Business Journal, 10/01/14)