Livermore and Sandia labs retool to attract business

San Francisco Business Times: Lawrence Livermore and Sandia National Laboratories—longtime secretive federal agencies working on classified weapons programs—are about to throw open their doors to the private sector.The labs are pursuing better ways of commercializing their technology with other-than-weapons applications. They are partnering with the private sector in new ways and pushing for an open campus on 50 acres to help the labs better collaborate with the best and brightest.In addition, the two Livermore-based labs are working with the local business council, consulting with MBA students, and launching a formal “hub” program to partner with the transportation industry.The shift could mean a transformation of the role the labs play in the Tri-Valley and the Bay Area economy, creating an economic engine with tech transfer capabilities that rival those of University of California, San Francisco and UC Berkeley.