In his visit to Albany Tuesday, President Barack Obama highlighted the nanotechnology initiatives in Upstate New York as the foundation for a new era in American manufacturing.

He spoke at the Albany College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, which is partnering with SUNYIT in Marcy to make New York a center for computer technology businesses and research.

The reason I came here today is because this school and this community represent the future of our economy, Obama said. Right now, some of the most advanced manufacturing work in America is being done right here in Upstate New York. Cutting-edge businesses from all over the world are deciding to build here and hire here.

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SUNYIT President Wolf Yeigh, who attended the event, said Obama had hit it right on.

He said bring these outsourced jobs back to America, and it is happening right there in Albany, Yeigh said. He mentioned that semiconductors are the next wave of American greatness. The Mohawk Valley is poised to be on that wave.

Albany's nanotechnology sector was jump-started in the mid-1990s, as state dollars were poured into the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering. It has been growing ever since.

SUNYIT was brought into the mix in 2009, when state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and other state officials announced $45 million to create a Computer Chip Commercialization Center and Center for Advanced technology.

Then, in September of 2011, $4.4 billion in government and private sector investments in nanotechnology statewide were announced. SUNYIT also is set to gain from that windfall.

All told, more than 900 jobs, many of them well paid, are expected to land in the Mohawk Valley, officials have said.

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Obama in Albany: CNY enters new era with nanotechnology