Coalition boosts coffers of fund for advanced manufacturers

There’s more to commerce in Florida than tourism, and an investment partnership among three of the state’s leading universities aims to reward the up-and-coming companies that key the Sunshine State’s future economic diversity.

FloridaMakes, an industry-led coalition, recently boosted the amount of grant money available to advanced manufacturing firms by $500,000. The Florida High Tech Corridor Council — an economic development organization created by the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida and the University of Florida — manages and disburses the funds via the Matching Grants Research Program at UCF, an initiative founded in 1996.