The case studies below describe how exporters have increased exports because of the support and programming provided by the CIBE at the University of Maryland.

1) A leading Maryland-based company specializing in environmental hazard detection, worked with a team of six graduate students in the Maryland Global Consulting Program in February – May 2023 to explore expanding its wildfire and air quality monitoring solutions into European markets. With the increasing severity of wildfires and the need for accurate and early detection, the company aims to bring its innovative sensor systems to communities and businesses globally. The consulting team laid the groundwork for international expansion, identified key partners, and provided an actionable roadmap for the company to navigate the new market. As a result of recommendations from the project, the company decided to export to Canada first and is now active in three provinces (Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta). The company exported a total of 30 sensors in 2023 and plans to expand into British Columbia in 2024.

2) A Maryland-based product-oriented company dedicated to design, engineering, sales, and support of telemetry data systems and tactical communications solutions, worked with five students in the Maryland Global Consulting Program in September – December 2022 on a market penetration and brand internationalization project. The consulting team provided a high-level analysis and investigation to recommend a set of international markets and a competitive market landscape of the top three countries for the company to enter. As a result of its participation in the program, the company’s international product sales increased by approximately 52% from 2022 to 2023, resulting in sales of $380,000. As a next step recommended from the project, the company intends to sell its telemetry network recorder internationally to appeal to flight test engineers across the globe and translate their website into select foreign languages.

3) A Maryland-based biotechnology company that offers a blockchain powered global traceability platform for healthy livestock, participated in the Maryland Global Consulting Program on a market exploration venture, targeting expansion across Europe, Asia, and Central and Latin American in September – December 2022. The team identified several new foreign markets for the company to enter. As a result of the project, in 2023, the company added two more pilot countries and one full system, including Canada, representing expansion and a total addressable market of over 25 million animals. Other outcomes included a partnership with Merck Animal Sciences Division and new global versions of its app in Google Play and the Apple App store. In this time period, the company also received over two dozen patents and an investment of $2 million dollars at a $10 million valuation.

4) A biotechnology company providing RNA-based solutions for long lived plants based in Maryland, worked with five students through the Maryland Global Consulting Program on a market prioritization and market entry landscape for its RNA vaccine in September – December 2021. The team identified four countries that would be ideal market entry points for the company and generated a report detailing potential business partners in each location. For example, the team identified an organization that represents Australian fruit growers and connected them with company leadership. By spring 2022, this connection had resulted in a partnership agreement that generated over $1 million of revenue for the company. It also helped the company establish a business consortium made up of a leading Australian agricultural research institute, the fruit grower’s alliance, and a key nursery supplier that today serves as the company’s comprehensive distribution program in Australia. 5) A recognized Maryland-based leader in the export of high-quality American beef and food products, worked with interns through the Maximizing Maryland Internship Program in summer 2020 and 2022 to expand its international reach through website globalization. In 2020, a team of interns revamped the company’s website for the Middle East market. As a result, the company reported a 6% increase in exports to this region. In 2022, another team of interns continued work on the company’s global eCommerce tools resulting in new sales in a number of new markets in East Asia (Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand). As a result, the company added another member to its sales team to handle the new markets and increased volume. The company brought in over $24 million in export revenue in 2023, at least in part as a result of the work completed in the program.