On June 10, PowerGEM LLC, a leading provider of power grid and energy market simulation software, announced its acquisition of Marquette Energy Analytics LLC, a Milwaukee-based natural gas and electric demand forecasting company that began as a research lab in Marquette University’s Opus College of Engineering.
Today, MEA forecasts over 25% of the nation’s daily natural gas demand, saving utilities and their customers millions of dollars annually. With PowerGEM’s acquisition, the two teams will now operate as one organization to serve the energy industry with advanced forecasting software and services.
“This acquisition represents the innovative harmony of academic research and industry solutions, especially when creative, entrepreneurial engineers are empowered to lead their best work to solve problems for our communities,” said Dr. Kristina Ropella, Opus Dean of Marquette’s Opus College of Engineering. “I am grateful to Drs. Ronald Brown, George Corliss, Richard Povinelli and Mr. Tom Quinn for their decades of servant leadership at Marquette and for always incorporating meaningful student learning into their work.”
Beginnings as a Marquette research lab
Before co-founding MEA, Brown, associate professor emeritus of electrical and computer engineering, launched the GasDay Lab in 1993 to address a growing need for improved natural gas demand forecasting. Over three decades, GasDay operated as a research collaboration among faculty and students to serve utilities partners around the United States and develop industry-leading forecasting software tools. In addition to improving the country’s energy forecasting capabilities, GasDay also provided hands-on experience to over 300 Marquette students studying engineering, computer science, math and economics.
By 2019, GasDay’s growing demand and client base prompted the lab to officially spin out as Marquette Energy Analytics LLC, with Brown serving as chief science officer and Tom Quinn, GasDay’s business director, serving as CEO. This transition allowed MEA to scale their work with new product offerings and a growing team that includes several Marquette alumni. Since 2019, MEA has continued to collaborate with Marquette faculty on sponsored research projects to push technology forward, while also offering regular opportunities for students to engage in internships, course design projects and more.
Marquette as an innovation launch point
MEA’s trajectory from research idea to cutting-edge lab to industry leader reflects Marquette University’s commitment to research in action and transformational experiential learning for students. Dr. Kalpa Vithalani, executive director of technology transfer at Marquette, works with faculty across the university to identify and evaluate opportunities to commercialize their ideas to serve communities.
“Our universities are conducting ground-breaking science, educating our future workforce, and fueling a pipeline of discoveries that launches startups and powers new industries,” Vithalani said. “This is why I feel so privileged to work with our university innovators — to transform Marquette discoveries into products and services, importantly, for public benefit.”
According to AUTM, from 2019 to 2021, U.S. universities and colleges spun out between approximately 1,000 and 1,120 startups annually. At Marquette, MEA is joined by a growing portfolio of startup businesses that have emerged from faculty research efforts, including:
- Rapid Radicals Technology, Inc. — revolutionizing high-rate wastewater treatment, reducing processing time from eight hours to under 35 minutes.
- BattlePeer Corp — a peer-to-peer telehealth app expanding access and fostering connection with trauma-survivor veteran peers and others impacted by trauma.
- ticHELPER, LLC — an online, self-guided family therapy program rooted in evidence-based Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT) including Tourette Syndrome.
- Praximae, Inc. and Citizen DataScience — an accelerated, hands-on training that upskills individuals and teams to apply data science in real-world business settings without needing advanced coding or statistics backgrounds.
- Estrigenix Therapeutics, Inc. — developing estrogen-based therapies to help women live healthier, happier lives — reducing hot flashes and memory issues in their 50s and lowering dementia risk in their 60s and beyond.
- Venus Rehabilitation Technologies, LLC — developing a rehabilitation device that enhances high-intensity gait training for stroke patients. Designed to support therapists and improve mobility, it may also benefit individuals with cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries and other lower limb movement disorders.
