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Ken Malone kicked off a recent celebration with an exciting personal announcement: a new tattoo.
“You can’t get a tattoo until you do something transformative,” he said of the fresh ink, which depicts the logo for Early Charm.
Malone cofounded the Pigtown-based company to commercialize scientific innovations that could be built in the area — a former industrial powerhouse that he’s helped make a hub for more eco-friendly advanced manufacturing.
“What it’s really about are the links of the chain,” he said of the tattooed logo. “And the links … are there to remind us every day that our job is first and foremost to do things for other people, to do things for our neighbors, to do things for our city, to do things for our region.”
Various political and private sector leaders joined Malone at the company’s facilities to celebrate that mission last month. The event specifically commemorated Early Charm portfolio company Materic’s springtime $10 million award from the Department of Energy (DOE). The award, meant to accelerate development toward the use of hydrogen fuel, also reinforced Baltimore’s position as a hub for advanced manufacturing.
The morning convening featured government and local institutional representatives like US Sen. Chris Van Hollen, Maryland Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller, the DOE’s Dimitrios Papageorgopoulos, Baltimore City Councilmember Phylicia Porter, TEDCO CEO Troy LeMaile-Stovall and Coppin State University President Anthony Jenkins.
These attendees reflected the mix of public and private players coalescing around entities like Early Charm. Much of the event highlighted the sustainable and equitable economic growth they, as well as Materic itself, seek through this cross-sector approach.
For instance, Van Hollen framed the award within the broader context of the bipartisan infrastructure law, calling it a critical step toward modernizing the country’s energy grid. He mentioned that the funds were part of a $9.5 billion allocation within that legislation for hydrogen infrastructure. The money aims to keep the US competitive in the global energy market.
“None of this work can happen without partnership and collaboration,” he said.
Miller echoed this message, noting Maryland’s 60 federal facilities, 50 colleges and universities, and a state government willing to invest in entrepreneurs.
“Our administration is excited to invest in ventures like these because the [return on investment] is higher than almost anything else,” she said.
LeMaile-Stovall of TEDCO, Maryland’s state-created innovation funder, further highlighted the importance of equitable growth, pointing out how Early Charm uses manufacturing spaces to revitalize distressed communities in Baltimore.
“We’re bringing innovation to market,” he said, “and we’re doing it in a way that creates opportunity for everyone.”
Hydrogen’s economic potential and Materic’s plan
Hydrogen has many possible advantages over carbon fuels, including zero emissions besides water vapor, more energy efficiency and versatility. Its various applications in the energy sector, from transportation to residential complexes to industrial plants, may also give it an economic advantage.
Papageorgopoulos detailed the opportunity for hydrogen fuel cell technology to meet the global energy demand, citing figures from a 2017 report assembled by the global, privately held and CEO-led Hydrogen Council: By 2050, hydrogen fuel cells could drive a $2.5 trillion market and create 30 million jobs globally, thus an estimated 18% of the final energy demand.
“They’re taking the blueprint of history and turning it into a workforce opportunity for thousands.”
Phylicia Porter, Baltimore City Council
However, challenges to making the technology feasible remain, including cost reduction, infrastructure and supply chain reliability.
Of the $9.5 billion the bipartisan infrastructure law invested into the clean hydrogen initiative, the DOE allocated $750 million for 52 projects around the country to reduce the cost of hydrogen and establish a stake in the global hydrogen fuel race.
From this amount, the DOE then gave $82 million to 10 organizations, including Materic, to address the “fuel cell supply chain development” topic of the National Clean Hydrogen Strategy. These projects will “conduct R&D to address critical deficiencies in the domestic supply chain” and develop respective components or technologies, according to the DOE.
Along with the $10 million from the DOE, Materic is cost-sharing approximately 20% of the award, which puts the total amount allocated toward this project at almost $12.5 million.
According to CEO Colin Harmer, a third of the funds will be used for equipment. Another third goes toward working with technical partners like Los Alamos National Labs, University of Toronto and the publicly traded company Plug Power. The final third supports hiring local personnel.
“This grant will let us develop our commercial product into full production,” he said. “This will create production jobs at Materic.”
Educating for industries of the future
The speakers also highlighted the role of education in shaping the future of Baltimore’s innovation landscape. Coppin State’s Jenkins described how programs like the historically Black university’s new polymer science degree, Center for Nanotechnology and Center for Strategic Entrepreneurship prepare students for emerging industries. To the right-hand side of the speakers, a class of elementary school students sat and watched, some with legs kicking, some playing with 3D-printed trinkets. This wasn’t a hypothetical future: they were in the room.
Porter of District 10, where the Early Charm facility is located, praised Early Charm’s ability to bring back manufacturing jobs while revitalizing neighborhoods and modernizing according to national priorities. The scientist-turned-politician also challenged the community to prioritize bold ideas, build meaningful partnerships and maintain a long-term vision for Baltimore’s growth.
“They’re taking the blueprint of history,” Porter said, “and turning it into a workforce opportunity for thousands.”
This article mentions TEDCO, a Technical.ly client. That relationship has no impact on this report.