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42 | Old Heat CERB Feasibility Study <br />5. SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTATION, PROTOTYPING, AND APPLIED R&D <br />• Rationale: Small-batch, high-value instrumentation firms thrive in <br />university-adjacent environments, where prototyping, rapid iteration, and <br />faculty/student collaborations are possible. <br />• Regional Fit: CWU’s faculty-led applied research programs and student <br />talent pool can support prototyping, testing, and small-run manufacturing. <br />• On-Ramp/Launch Pad Role: Old Heat becomes the prototype funnel, <br />helping firms move from design and testing toward scalable production at <br />Bowers Field. <br />• Future Opportunity: Instrumentation firms may anchor collaborations <br />across sectors, serving as technology suppliers to ag-tech, aerospace, and <br />clean-tech enterprises. <br />ENABLING INSTITUTIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE: THE ACTI PROGRAM <br />A crucial complement to Old Heat’s tenant strategy is CWU’s proposed Advanced <br />Competitive Technology Institute (ACTI). If funded, ACTI would provide: <br />• Monthly training in advanced technologies (AI, robotics, 3D printing, <br />simulation). <br />• TechLift Specialists to deliver on-site technology adoption support to small <br />and mid-sized businesses. <br />• A talent pipeline that bridges CWU students, local firms, and regional <br />industries. <br />This advances the larger goal of leveraging Old Heat as an instrument to create <br />accelerative industries through collaboration with the county and CWU to help <br />local businesses integrate advanced technology into their current business <br />models. This increases their competitiveness and transitions the nature of their <br />local economic ecosystem impact towards accelerative rather than retentive or <br />additive models. <br />INDUSTRIES NOT TARGETED <br />To preserve Old Heat’s mission, the following are explicitly not targeted: <br />• Low-wage service or retail enterprises without multiplier effects. <br />• Externally owned firms with minimal local reinvestment. <br />• Firms with low technological intensity or innovation potential. <br />• This ensures Old Heat functions as a strategic inflection point, shifting <br />Kittitas County’s economy toward accelerative industries while lifting <br />existing firms onto higher-value pathways.