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Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA Creates/Retains 5,968 Jobs in 2018

by Ben Franklin Technology Partners

Feb 21, 2019
Ben Franklin Technology Partners

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) has reported that 5,968 northeastern Pennsylvania jobs were created or retained as a result of its work in 2018, for a cumulative total of 55,864 job creations or retentions since the program’s inception in 1983. Client companies raised an additional $62.9 million in follow-on funding from angel investors, venture capitalists, and other investors in 2018, for a total of $1.5597 billion in follow-on investment received since 2007. These results were accomplished in BFTP/NEP’s 21-county service area, including Berks, Bradford, Carbon, Columbia, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Luzerne, Lycoming, Monroe, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Pike, Schuylkill, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wayne, and Wyoming counties.

Client companies submit impacts to BFTP/NEP. Ben Franklin reports its results to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, which funds the statewide Ben Franklin program.

“These strong northeastern Pennsylvania impacts support the findings of the recent independent study conducted by the Pennsylvania Economy League,” said Laura Eppler, Chief Marketing Officer of BFTP/NEP. “According to the study, Pennsylvania’s investment in Ben Franklin statewide represents a $3.90 payback to the state treasury for every dollar invested. And the jobs created in Ben Franklin clients are in industries that pay 52% more than the average state wage.”

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania links clients with universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation. BFTP/NEP’s strategy encompasses three key areas:

  1. developing and growing early-stage technology-oriented companies;
  2. supporting established manufacturers as they creatively apply new technology to help them succeed globally by producing better, cheaper, and faster;
  3. promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that supports Pennsylvania’s business technology ecosystem.

The northeastern center is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative. BFTP/NEP is headquartered in, owns, and manages Ben Franklin TechVentures®, an award-winning technology business incubator/post-incubator facility on Lehigh University’s Mountaintop Campus in Bethlehem. BFTP/NEP also owns and manages the Bloomsburg Regional Technology Center. Both incubators are members of the BFTP/NEP-led, 13-member Ben Franklin Business Incubator Network. This network is among the largest in the United States.

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania reported the following 2018 results:

Created 480 New Jobs

Retained 5,488 Existing Jobs

Started 9 New Companies

Developed 202 New Products and Processes

BFTP/NEP was established in 1983 and has achieved the following cumulative results:

Created 18,536 New Jobs

Retained 37,328 Existing Jobs

Started 520 New Companies

Developed 1,935 New Products and Processes

In 2018, BFTP/NEP assisted 304 companies. Since 2007, the organization has assisted 3,411 client firms.

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