Две компании полуострова Олимпик получили гранты штата на инновации и расширение производства

Two Peninsula businesses receive Commerce grants for innovation Published 1:30 am Friday, September 4, 2026 Atlas Technologies in Port Townsend and the Natural Resources Innovation Center in Port Angeles have been awarded grants as part of an effort from the state Department of Commerce to encourage innovation in business and manufacturing. The awards, announced Aug. 21, are part of the third round of Evergreen Manufacturing Grants. This round saw a total of $1 million invested across the state. Jed Bothell, owner of Atlas Technologies, said the $150,000 grant came “at just the right time.” “We’ve increased customer count and production volume to the point that we just don’t fit in our current space,” he said. “The grant money will allow Atlas to increase innovation, expand production and grow our team, thus supporting more family-wage manufacturing jobs in our small, rural community.” Mel Janecka, Atlas marketing manager, said the grant funds will go toward architectural and engineering services to plan for the expansion of its current facility. “We’re super excited that we got the grant,” Janecka said. “We were already planning to do this work, but it suddenly gave us an influx of cash that allowed it to move forward a little more quickly.” The expansion is expected to cost about $1.6 million while the company plans to add between eight and 10 new jobs over the next three to five years. Atlas currently employs about 30 people in addition to hosting college interns, apprenticeship programs for high school students and participating in the AJAC apprenticeship program. In a town known for wooden boats and quaint Victorian homes, Atlas’ futuristic work stands out. The company is known for solving engineering puzzles by bonding dissimilar metals, and its technologies have ended up in rocket thrusters, satellites and moon landers — not to mention being used in clean energy and medical research. In Port Angeles, the Natural Resources Innovation Center (NRIC) — an initiative from Clallam County’s Economic Development Council — is working to reinvigorate the forest products industry. NRIC received a total of $130,000 from the state, which the Economic Development Council (EDC) will use to revive a 72-acre cogeneration facility on the Port Angeles waterfront. “This funding will support the feasibility study of what is economically and ecologically feasible to put at that site,” said Colleen McAleer, the EDC’s executive director. She hopes NRIC will establish high-wage jobs in the area, although the exact number will depend on future partnerships. “NRIC in general is trying to move our county from commodity-based industry sectors into more value-added and using more parts of the tree,” McAleer said. “Having a more ecological lens and creating higher-wage jobs.” The Olympic Peninsula competes with the southeastern United States in the timber economy, but given Washington’s stricter regulations, McAleer said it’s important to have an edge when it comes to innovation and sustainability. Much of the infrastructure for the cogeneration facility is already on the property, McAleer said. Once it’s revived, it will provide local grid resiliency. Further down the line, NRIC hopes to create an “industrial symbiosis campus.” “It basically means to co-locate companies that will use another’s waste streams as a feedstock,” McAleer said. The Evergreen Manufacturing Growth Grants are intended to support projects that will increase manufacturing and research and development jobs. “Washington offers manufacturers a strong culture of innovation and a highly skilled workforce,” said Department of Commerce interim director Sarah Clifthorne. “These investments build on those advantages, helping businesses grow and compete while expanding opportunities in rural and underserved communities.” ________ Reporter Christy Carley can be reached by email at [email protected].