Hardware Podcasts

308: From Prototype to Production: Inside Chicago’s Hardtech Innovation Engine with mHUB's Bill Fienup and Kim Blomquist

Manufacturing Happy Hour · 27 Oct 2026 · 42m

What this episode covers

Bill Fienup, Co-Founder and VP of Innovation Services, and Kim Blomquist, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications, explain how mHUB, a Chicago hardtech innovation center, helps startups move from prototype to production. They detail the facility's labs, accelerator program, and capital access, emphasizing the high barriers to entry for hardware compared to software. The conversation highlights specific success stories like HAAS Alert, which onshored production to avoid tariffs, and Zenblen, a food robotics company, illustrating how mHUB's network supports scaling and regional manufacturing retention.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
mHUB, HAAS Alert, Zenblen, Endeavor Health, Baxter, Andries, Horwoods, PTC, New Lab, Hack, Lacy

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