2010 – Page 9 of 78 – Concentrate

AccuMedWeb expects 30% growth in sales

By Newsroom

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November 3, 2010

AccuMedWeb, a company that makes software for EMS personnel, is not in a rush these days. The Ann Arbor company is scoring double-digit revenue growth and numbers of new clients."In the last two years we have added 70 municipal EMS agencies," says Ned Suddendorf, vice president of AccuMedWeb. "In the year-to-date we have added 58, so we're growing pretty quickly now."AccuMedWeb is a subsidiary of Brownstown-based AccuMedBilling. The company creates and sells eMedicReports, a report and documentation system for first responders. The 5-year-old subsidiary is based in Ann Arbor but also has an office in downtown Detroit. It employs nine people (its parent employs 68) after hiring two over the last year. It expects to add 3-5 more jobs in Ann Arbor over the next year, thanks to expected revenue and client growth of 30 percent.AccuMedWeb's eMedicReports streamlines the electronic activities of EMS workers, such as fire and ambulance departments. The software allows for state and federal electronic data reporting, the ability to assemble and present historical data, and provide real-time information to first responders in the field from a central database. Source: Ned Suddendorf, vice president of AccuMedWebWriter: Jon Zemke

RetroSense Therapeutics develops gene therapy for vision restoration

By Newsroom

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Innovation News

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November 3, 2010

RetroSense Therapeutics is one of those growing numbers of companies that is helping bridge Detroit and Ann Arbor. The Ann Arbor-based startup is developing a gene therapy for vision restoration with technology licensed from Wayne State University in Detroit.The 1-year-old firm is extracting a new gene from blue-green algae that helps make cells more photo sensitive. The idea is to apply this gene to human cells to regenerate photo receptors in the retina. RetroSense Therapeutics spent its first year advancing the technology and building out its leadership team. Right now the company employs three people and a number of consultants."We're talking to additional advisors as well and we will probably bring a few on," says Sean Ainsworth, CEO of RetroSense Therapeutics.Ainsworth and his partners are in the process of fundraising for RetroSense Therapeutics' clinical trials. They plan to continue the company's pre-clinical development of the technology over the next year and commercialize it within 4-5 years at the earliest.Source: Sean Ainsworth, CEO of RetroSense TherapeuticsWriter: Jon Zemke

BodegaBid establishes virtual goods exchange, plans to double staffing

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 3, 2010

Lots of people love the games on social media sites like Facebook's Mafia or Farmville. So much so that gamers are usually willing to spend a few bucks for virtual goods. But what do you do when you're done playing and all you have is a few bucks worth of nada? BodegaBid thinks it has the answer.The 3-year-old startup has created a secondary website for Facebook game trading where gamers can trade and sell virtual goods and recoup some of their money. The website launched out of downtown Ann Arbor in July and is about to announce some new partners for iPhone games. BodegaBid was also recently named "One of the Most Promising Top 10 Early Stage Internet Start Ups" by TiECON Midwest 2010."The growth of virtual goods and currency is huge," says Mark Sendo, founder and CEO of BodegaBid, adding the average gamer spends $22 on virtual goods for these games. "When people are done playing the game they have nothing. I think there is a market for these goods."BodegaBid now employs seven people, five interns, and a few independent contractors. It expects to add 15 positions over the next year as the website grows in popularity. Sendo is working to move the new website's traffic from a few hundred people right now to 100,000 daily users within the next year."We're going to be growing quite a bit," Sendo says.Source: Mark Sendo, founder and CEO of BodegaBidWriter: Jon Zemke

Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition garners 570 entries, exceeds expectations

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 3, 2010

The entries are in for the Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition, and the winners are making their way through the first round of elimination.The Ann Arbor-based contest with $1 million worth of prizes attracted 570 entries from not only across the U.S. but around the world. Those applications were evenly split between student entrepreneurs pitching business concepts and established startups looking to take their next step up."The number of businesses was somewhat more than we expected," says Michael Finney, president and CEO of Ann Arbor SPARK, which is coordinating the event. "We set our expectations at 200-225 and it was 285."The Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition is offering $1 million in prizes to start-ups in Michigan or planning to move to Michigan. The idea is to showcase the state's entrepreneurial ecosystem to a large audience of investors in town for the Big Chill hockey game at Michigan Stadium on Dec. 11. There will also be a Student Idea Competition with $50,000 in prizes. Students must submit a one-page business plan, a three-minute video pitch, and formulate a 15-minute live pitch.The most popular areas of the competitions were products and services, IT, and life sciences. Entries came from states like California, Texas, and Massachusetts, and countries like Canada, Switzerland, and the West Cape of Africa. About 90 percent of the applications came from Michigan-based businesses and just over 10 percent of the entries came from people age 55 and older."There really is a need for us and our services for those people who fall into that demographic," Finney says.The competition is being run by the Business Accelerator Network, which is composed of southeast Michigan's major business accelerator agencies. Judges will start narrowing down the list of entrants to 45 company semifinalists and 25 student semifinalists by Tuesday. The Top 10 companies and students will be selected just before the event in December.Source: Michael Finney, president and CEO of Ann Arbor SPARKWriter: Jon Zemke

123.net brings high-speed wireless to downtown A2

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 3, 2010

Southfield-based 123.net is in the process of offering Wi-Fi service in most of downtown Ann Arbor, providing one more 21st Century option in the heart of Michigan's new economy nerve center.The company is in the process of setting up equipment for 4G WiMAX coverage on the top of Tower Plaza, a 26-story condo building across the street from the rear entrance of the Nickel's Arcade. Any person or business within a clean line of sight of the building should be able to purchase the Wi-Fi through 123.net's sales arm, downtown Ann Arbor-based 20/20 Communications."We cover a pretty broad base of businesses and residents in Washtenaw County," says Dave Curran, channel sales manager for 123.net. "This will cover most of downtown Ann Arbor."123.net's 4G (Fourth Generation) WiMAX is the first of its kind offered in southeast Michigan, and so far the service is available in Oakland County and Ann Arbor. The technology offers dedicated, symmetrical bandwidth packages from 1.5 Mbps to 8 Mbps.Source: Dave Curran, channel sales manager for 123.netWriter: Jon Zemke

U-M scientists create tech to harness brain’s electricity

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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November 3, 2010

Scientists at the University of Michigan's School of Kinesiology have created technology that allows people to measure electrical brain activity, a breakthrough that might have impact on a broad range of things, ranging from enhancing a soldier's athletic ability to helping overcome paralysis.U-M researchers teamed up with colleagues from the Swartz Center for Computational Neuroscience at the University of California, San Diego to develop the technology. It can be used for brain-computer interfaces that would allow a robotic exoskeleton controlled by a patient's thoughts to move that patient's limb without breaking the skin."It has shown that it is feasible to watch the electricity in people's brains without being invasive," says Daniel Ferris, associate professor in the U-M School of Kinesiology and co-principal investigator for the project. "We can see the signals in people's brains, record them, and decode them."The technology allows scientists to show which parts of the brain are activated and precisely when they are activated as subjects move in a natural environment. When scientists understand where in the brain impulses occur, they can use that geographic information for many different applications. Previously, scientists could only measure electrical brain activity on stationary patients.The military is also interested in this type of technology, which could be used to optimize soldier performance by monitoring the brain activity of soldiers in the field to know when soldiers are performing at their peak. It could also help the military understand how information can be best presented and handled by soldiers.Source: Daniel Ferris, associate professor in the University of Michigan School of KinesiologyWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor’s Clarity Quest Marketing adds Connecticut office, to expand nationwide

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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November 3, 2010

Clarity Quest Marketing has always been known as a company that can get the word out about techie startups. Now the downtown Ann Arbor-based firm is adding all things healthcare to that description.The 9-year-old marketing agency has traditionally done work for tech and bio-tech firms, but is now growing its customer base to include medical practices and physicians groups. The move is a logical one considering Clarity Quest Marketing's president, Christine Slocumb, is married to a doctor."It's a way to diversify," Slocumb says. "The healthcare industry doesn't go through as many ups and downs in hard times."Clarity Quest Marketing is growing now that the hard times are subsiding. The company has hired three people over the last year, expanding its staff to 12 employees, 10 independent contractors, and an occasional intern. About five of those employees are in the Ann Arbor office, with the rest spread between its Seattle location and the new office in Connecticut. The company expects to add another 3-5 positions over the next year as it continues its U.S. expansion."We're growing here to cover the entire country," Slocumb says.Source: Christine Slocumb, president of Clarity Quest MarketingWriter: Jon Zemke

Manufacturing The Future

By Dennis Archambault

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Economic Development

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November 3, 2010

While much of the world may be going virtual, most businesses still have to make stuff. Putting together teams of engineering and business students, U-M's Tauber Institute plays matchmaker for companies that are looking to improve their manufacturing process. It's a partnership that provides students with a valuable skill set and saves participating firms up to millions of dollars.

Issue Media Group Wants You!

By Issue Media Group

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General

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November 3, 2010

You like what you're seeing when Concentrate drops in your mailbox every Tuesday? We thought so. If you have account management experience we'd like to talk to you. Read on and let's hook up.

Video Concentrate Speaker Event: Going Green In Ann Arbor

By Roger Rayle

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Sustainability

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October 27, 2010

Everything you ever wanted to know about solar energy but were afraid to ask. Last month Concentrate's Speaker Event featured Dave Strenski and Andrew Brix talking up the policies, virtues, and challenges of going solar in Michigan. If you missed it, well, we've got the video right here. Ah, the marvels of technology.