Eugene Banucci, former chairman, CEO and founder of Danbury specialty semiconductor materials maker ATMI Inc. is an inaugural inductee into the Small Business Innovation Research Hall of Fame for his efforts as a groundbreaking technology entrepreneur.
Banucci, 66, and seven others were enshrined during The Tibbetts Awards in Washington, D.C. earlier this week. A hall of fame reception was held later at the White House. Â
The Tibbetts Awards, given by the U.S. Small Business Administration, honor outstanding small businesses and individuals who participate in the SBIR program.
“Gene Banucci has given back so much to the SBIR Program and to our office,” CT SBIR Director Deb Santy said in a statement Friday. “We are so proud to see that he has won this well-deserved honor and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.”
ATMI started out with five scientists in 1986 as part of the SBIR program. Thirteen years later, it emerged from the program to become a publicly traded company that employs 800 people.
ATMI products comprise virtually every semiconductor made today personal computers, cell phones, Apple iPads and iPods, and flat panel displays, among other products.
