{"id":11638,"date":"2024-12-02T13:09:50","date_gmt":"2024-12-02T18:09:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/?p=11638"},"modified":"2026-03-26T15:16:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T19:16:31","slug":"first-flight-venture-center-launching-startups-successfully","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/startups\/first-flight-venture-center-launching-startups-successfully\/","title":{"rendered":"First Flight Venture Center: Launching Startups Successfully"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"embed-megaphone\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm?e=TLFIE1751525726\" width=\"100%\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><!-- Megaphone -->\n\n\n<p>What does it take for deep tech startups to move from idea to impact? How can innovation hubs like First Flight Venture Center provide the tools, mentorship, and support founders need to thrive?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this episode of Siemens for Startups, host Jim Gernatt welcomes Krista Covey and Ben Provan from First Flight Venture Center, North Carolina\u2019s leading business innovation hub. Krista, President of First Flight, and Ben, Director of Hangar 6, provide an in-depth look at how their organization fosters early-stage startups with mentorship, cutting-edge prototyping services, and a thriving ecosystem of support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Discover how First Flight bridges the gap between groundbreaking science and market-ready solutions, and learn how their collaboration with Siemens empowers deep tech entrepreneurs to accelerate their innovation cycles. Gain insights into their unique programs, such as Hangar 6\u2019s rapid prototyping resources, and hear inspiring success stories of startups that turned ambitious ideas into real-world impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Listeners will walk away with actionable takeaways for navigating the startup journey, including strategies for overcoming funding challenges, building strong teams, and creating scalable business models. Whether you\u2019re a startup founder, an investor looking to better understand deep tech, or an innovation enthusiast, this episode offers valuable lessons for transforming bold visions into sustainable success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What You\u2019ll Learn in This Episode:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>History and role of First Flight Venture Center and Hangar6&nbsp; (01:00)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Examples of company journeys in the Research Triangle Park (RTP) ecosystem (03:55)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How can founders stay focused and motivated when faced with challenges or setbacks? (6:50)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Why is it a good time now to start a start-up or invest in one? (25:10)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How do the investment community and Siemens\u2019 tools support deep tech?&nbsp; (29:00)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Vital questions that founders should ask to improve long-term success (39:35)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Siemens\u2019 special packaging and pricing for startups through First Flight Venture Center (43:40)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Siemens Xcelerator for Startups: Design &amp; Simulation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Siemens, we understand the struggles of early-stage startups. Let us remove the barriers on your startup journey by helping you transform your engineering ideas into real, marketable products with industry-leading software solutions. Join the&nbsp;Siemens <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sw.siemens.com\/en-US\/digital-transformation\/xcelerator-startup-solutions\/design-simulation-startups\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Xcelerator for Startups: Design &amp; Simulation<\/a> program and grow your startup to its full potential. Want to get in touch?&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/resources.sw.siemens.com\/en-US\/launch-your-engineering-startup?bc=eyJwYWdlIjoiNU5ZSk1KbXU0WFh6c3F3VE0wRmZ0RSIsInNpdGUiOiJkaXN3IiwibG9jYWxlIjoiZW4tVVMifQ==\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reach out here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-last bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2024\/12\/KristaCovey_FFVC_110124_RTPStudio_0138-LrPs-2.jpg\" alt=\"Guest: Krista Covey \" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">Guest: Krista Covey <\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Krista\u2019s passion is serving high-impact entrepreneurial ventures and helping them achieve success. She has been supporting the development and growth of early-stage companies through her work building and leading award-winning innovation hubs in Florida and Texas. She has an extensive background in banking and finance and has experience in business incubation and acceleration, strategic management, business development, marketing, economic development, economic gardening for high-growth science and tech companies, and public relations. As an entrepreneur at heart, she has also grown her own successful finance business with a profitable exit and served on several start-up boards. Krista is a certified Business Incubator Manager with the International Business Innovation Association (InBIA) and currently serves as the Chair of the InBIA Executive Board of Directors. She is part of the Startup Champions Network, driving long-term change by supporting innovation and entrepreneurship and working to reduce barriers for entrepreneurs, and has served on numerous community and industry boards. Krista holds a B.S. in Business Marketing from Southeastern University and her Master\u2019s in Business Administration from Saint Leo University.<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/kristacovey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Krista<\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-last bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2024\/12\/BenProvan_FFVC_110124_RTPStudio_0178-LrPs.jpg\" alt=\"Guest: Ben Provan\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">Guest: Ben Provan<\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Ben\u00a0Provan is a seasoned entrepreneur, mechanical engineer, and startup advisor with over 18 years of experience in cleantech, sustainable agriculture, and product design.\u00a0Ben\u00a0serves as Director of Hangar6, a hardware prototyping lab at First Flight Venture Center, where he supports deep tech startups to advance their hardware prototyping and commercialization efforts.\u00a0Ben\u00a0is a former founder himself, serving for 9 years as the CEO of OpenDoor Coliving, where he pioneered the co-living industry in the U.S., creating a model for socially-driven housing solutions that address urban housing shortages and social isolation. Under his leadership, OpenDoor expanded to a portfolio of 19 properties, amassing 406 units across three major markets and attracting $8M in funding. Previously,\u00a0Ben\u00a0served as Head of Commercialization at Achor Innovations, a waste-to-biofuels startup, as well as working as a mechanical design engineer at Bose Corporation, where he worked on pre-market prototypes and concepts in the consumer electronics industry. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell and an MBA in Sustainable Business from Presidio.\u00a0<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/benprovan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Ben<\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-last bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2024\/12\/a5f20293-a34e-423c-bf47-9ef309bfd734.jpg\" alt=\"Host: Jim Gernatt\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">Host: Jim Gernatt<\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Jim has been with Siemens for over a decade, leading a variety of sales &amp; new revenue strategy teams.\u00a0 As part of Siemens Digital Industries Software, Jim is the Americas Lead for SMB Ecosystems, Incubators &amp; Accelerators, where he drives thought leadership and sales execution to serve startups with the Siemens Xcelerator Platform.\u00a0 His experience forming new teams within Siemens, performing Technology \u2013 Product \u2013 Market segmentation and creating executable sales strategies is critical to helping startups focus and achieve milestones.\u00a0 He has extensive SaaS B2B enterprise software sales experience for technical users.\u00a0 When not helping startups achieve milestones, Jim will be found with his best friend and bride, Holly, and their growing family.<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jim-gernatt-jr-88329320\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Jim <\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-first bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2024\/12\/1b._FF_Logo_-_Plane_Top_-_No-Background.png\" alt=\"First Flight Venture Center\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">First Flight Venture Center<\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>First Flight Venture Center (FFVC) is North Carolina\u2019s Original Science-Based Technology Incubator. Since 1991, First Flight Venture Center has championed high-impact science and technology startups, supporting their journey from concept to commercialization. Located in the heart of Research Triangle Park, FFVC offers tailored resources, expert guidance, valuable connections, and a collaborative ecosystem to empower early-stage companies for long-term success. Originally launched by the North Carolina Department of Commerce, First Flight now operates as a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation with a mission to propel science-driven innovation. Their mission is to accelerate early-stage science companies through comprehensive resources, empowering innovators to transform good ideas into great successes. Their vision is to serve as a global hub of excellence, driving positive change by empowering science innovators. Learn <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ffvcnc.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">more here.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What does it take for deep tech startups to move from idea to impact? How can innovation hubs like First&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89293,"featured_media":11642,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spanish_translation":"","french_translation":"","german_translation":"","italian_translation":"","polish_translation":"","japanese_translation":"","chinese_translation":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[324],"tags":[883],"industry":[],"product":[],"coauthors":[754],"class_list":["post-11638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startups","tag-startups"],"featured_image_url":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2024\/12\/FFVC-Hero-Image-Option-3.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/89293"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11638"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11638\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11651,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11638\/revisions\/11651"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11638"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=11638"},{"taxonomy":"product","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product?post=11638"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=11638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}