CANANDAIGUA, N.Y., June 22 -- The Infotonics Technology Center, a New York State Center of Excellence in photonics and microsystems, and the Brookhaven National Laboratory have signed a memorandum of understanding to pursue initiatives that may lead to economic development and job creation in the Finger Lakes Region and across New York State. Brookhaven, located on Long Island, is a multiprogram national lab operated by Brookhaven Science Associates for the US Department of Energy. Six Nobel Prizes have been awarded for discoveries made at the lab. David R. Smith, president and CEO of Infotonics, said, "Our affiliation with this outstanding national research laboratory is another step in our drive to make New York State the high-technology thruway of the 21 st century. For example, we are exploring ways to work together to build capabilities beneficial to homeland security -- capabilities that neither of us could have created on our own. The collaboration with Brookhaven also provides a major boost to our efforts to help companies successfully negotiate the path from research to commercialization." The agreement was facilitated by Javelin Associates, which has worked with Brookhaven a number of times in the past. Javelin helps its clients secure federal contracts, assists them with business plans and networks on their behalf. Javelin recently moved its offices from Rochester to the Infotonics Center and will likely be involved with Brookhaven and Infotonics on some initiatives. The Infotonics Technology Center consortium is made up of founding participants Corning Inc., Eastman Kodak Co. and Xerox Corp. and 20 New York State colleges and universities. It is working to establish a research and development facility to enable commercialization of new products. For more information, visit: www.infotonics.org