In a major speech yesterday, Deputy Mayor Bob Steel announced a new city initiative to help the city grow its technology sector that was influenced by the Center's innovation economy research. The deputy mayor pointed out that New York lacks the engineering strength of the nation's other leading tech regions and unveiled a plan to attract a top caliber academic institution to build an applied science and engineering school in the five boroughs. In September 2009, the Center's Building New York City's Innovation Economy report found that while New York has the scientific excellence that can provide the foundation for technology related innovation, the city lacks the engineering prowess that is often critical to converting breakthroughs from the lab into real world applications. Our report showed that compared to technology hubs like Boston, San Francisco and the Research Triangle, New York City has a small overall engineering presence and lacks a first-rate engineering school that exhibits across-the-board excellence and depth across the full spectrum of disciplines and applications. The Center first raised awareness about the need for a stronger engineering presence in Engineering a Tech Sector, our August 2007 commentary by David Hochman.