Ann Arbor

Vision Computer Solutions opens new downtown Ann Arbor office

By Newsroom

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June 8, 2011

Vision Computer Solutions has opened an office in downtown Ann Arbor so the Northville-based IT firm can better take advantage of the growth in the area's emerging technology sector."We would like to do more business with some of the companies out there," says Peter Marsack, vice president of business development for Vision Computer Solutions. "Ann Arbor is very loyal to Ann Arbor businesses so we want to make a splash out there."Prompting this move is the exponential growth of one of its largest clients, InstruMedics. The start-up specializes in surgical tool repair and equipment. "They're definitely in an aggressive growth mode," Marsack says.Vision Computer Solutions' Ann Arbor office will have 2-3 staffers. The company plans to expand that office while maintaining its downtown Northville headquarters. It employs 11 people overall.Source: Peter Marsack, vice president of business development for Vision Computer SolutionsWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Motawi Tileworks acquires supplier, plans 3 new positions

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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May 25, 2011

Motawi Tileworks is on a bit of a growth spurt lately -- a vertical one.The arts-and-craft ceramic tile company based in Ann Arbor recently acquired one of its suppliers, Rovin Ceramics. The Taylor-based company was on its way to liquidation because its owner wanted to retire and no one in the family wanted to take it on. Rather than let it fall by the wayside, Motawi decided to shore up one of her company's main suppliers."We had to do something about our supply," says Nawal Motawi, president & owner of Motawi Tileworks. "It seemed like a nice little profit-making business."Motawi Tileworks was already growing before the acquisition. It had hired six people, including for three newly created roles. Its staff now rounds out to 30 employees and one independent contractor. Rovin Ceramics staff and operations will move to Ann Arbor.The tile maker has watched its walk-in business go up recently, prompting Motawi to focus more on direct homeowner sales this year. She expects her company's current growth curve to allow her to hire at least two more people on top of the firm's current job opening."We're in a healthy place, just cruising along," says Motawi. Source: Nawal Motawi, president & owner of Motawi TileworksWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Ann Arbor childcare entrepreneur looks to launch new iPad app

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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May 25, 2011

Robert Kennedy sees a lot of paperwork in his child-care center business. Enough that the boss of 70 employees that oversee 300-plus kids is pioneering a new mobile app for smartphones and iPads to help eliminate that paperwork and make children more accessible to their tech-savvy parents.The way it stands now, Kennedy's employees fill out a piece of paper each day that serves as a report of the child's activity. For instance, it says if they took a nap, a bathroom break, etc. Kennedy is working with a team of local mobile app developers led by Mobile Monday Ann Arbor founder Keith Bourne to digitize this information and more."There has to be a better way than all of these pieces of paper at the end of the day," says Kennedy, CEO of Childcare Daily App. "We also want child-care centers to take advantage of this technology."The new app, expected to be widely available to the public by September, provides a much more comprehensive report for parents. It will tell them when their kids went to the bathroom, if there were any irregularities, when they took a nap and how long it was, among other details that worried parents often call the childcare center about.The Childcare Daily App will also store all of this information so parents and caregivers can see any sort of patterns and receive real-time updates. Not to mention, all of the paper that once held this valuable yet scattered information will now be safely stored in their mobile devices.Source: Robert Kennedy, CEO of Childcare Daily AppWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Google Adwords to turn its downtown offices green

By Newsroom

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In The News

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May 25, 2011

Solar panels, a garden to supply its cafe, and zipcars for employee use are the first arrows in Google's sustainable quiver, as the Internet giant teams with landlord, McKinley, to make its Ann Arbor office greener. Excerpt: "At the five-story McKinley Towne Centre where Google operates its main Michigan office, a large array of rooftop solar panels are turning sunlight into clean energy. Work has begun to create an outdoor green space on another portion of the building's roof. And two vehicles from the car-sharing service Zipcar can be found in the parking lot, making it easier for employees to walk, bike or take the bus to work without having to worry about needing a car later in the day. Greenhouse veggies coming Google also plans to transform part of the building's basement into a greenhouse. The vegetables grown there will be used by Google's chef for meals served in the company's café." Read the rest of the story here.

New U-M healthcare policy institute set to attract 500 researchers

By Newsroom

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Healthy Communities

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May 25, 2011

The University of Michigan Health System is launching the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation from the North Campus Research Complex, a move that could attract 500 researchers to the former Pfizer site.The institute will harness innovative, interdisciplinary health services research to improve the health of local, national and global populations. It brings together hundreds of university researchers working on ground-breaking studies tackling issues like support for patients with chronic conditions, insurance design, and preventative care. U-M officials hope that by bringing them together at the North Campus Research Complex more collaborations and potential public-private partnerships will form."It's very entrepreneurial and exciting," says Dr. Thomas Schwenk, professor and chair of the Dept. of Family Medicine at the University of Michigan Health System. "It's not something every university could do or would be willing to do. That says a lot about university leadership."If the institute reaches its goal of bringing 500 researchers to the North Campus Research Complex, it would make it one of the nation's largest concentrations of healthcare policy and services researchers."This has great potential," Schwenk says. "We're all very excited. There are hundreds of investigators from across the university that can come together on this."Source: Dr. Thomas Schwenk, professor and chair of the Dept. of Family Medicine at the University of Michigan Health SystemWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

A2 soul singer Mayer Hawthorne signs with Universal

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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May 25, 2011

Local boy makes good... and sounds good doing it. Ann Arbor soul singer Mayer Hawthorne has signed with Universal's imprint music label Republic. Excerpt: "After releasing his self-produced debut album 'A Strange Arrangement' in 2009 and receiving high praises, Hawthorne also spent much of the time performing and even DJing shows. Though going the independent route, he caught the attention of many due to his unique sound and approach to soul music. Most recently, Hawthorne released his 'Impressions' EP for free, which featured six cover tracks." Read the rest here. Get his free EP here.

A Wall Of Their Own – Opportunities For New Artists

By Constance Crump

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Community Development

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May 25, 2011

Successful cities offer more than just good-paying jobs, they also provide opportunities for creative expression. Whether it's open stages for performers, literary groups for writers, or build spaces for makers, young professionals are looking for a place to exercise their right brain. And that includes our aspiring Rembrandts. Concentrate looks into where and how local artists display their work.

Pair of A2 girl scouts campaign against eco-ravaging cookies

By Newsroom

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In The News

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May 25, 2011

A pair of local girl scouts are making good on Ann Arbor's eco cred while chafing their parent organization. Looks like all those yummy Girl Scout cookies (...can't live without Thin Mints...) are made with rainforest ravaging palm oil, home to the endangered orangutan. Excerpt: "The issue started back in 2006 when two bright, motivated and well-meaning sixth grader Girl Scouts from Ann Arbor, Mich. — just the sorts of girls the GSUSA is supposed to champion and nurture — realized the cookies they were selling contained palm oil, much of which comes from Indonesia and Malaysia where farmers are clear cutting rainforests to plant palm trees. These forests are an important habitat for many species, but the orangutans, the most intelligent and human-like of the apes, are particularly threatened." Read the rest of the story here.

Washtenaw County holds its own in the Green Communities Challenge

By Newsroom

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Development News

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May 25, 2011

In what's deemed a friendly competition, the cities of Saline, Ypsilanti, and Ann Arbor, along with the village of Dexter, are taking part with roughly 90 other communities state-wide in the Michigan Municipal League (MML) Green Communities Challenge. The challenge began two years ago as a collaboration between the MML and the state to offer resources and information on eco-friendly activities and serve as a forum for local governments to share environmental intelligence.Any unit of local government in the state is eligible to join, says Project Coordinator Luke Forrest. While the MML stops short of directly offering financial resources, "we work with the state and federal government and share information about finding resources and other sorts of assistance that's available, so it's a good way for a local government official or activist to really stay on top of the cutting edge in terms of what communities can do in order to be more environmentally sustainable." Communities earn green brownie points for various qualifying activities. For instance, Ann Arbor is developing a comprehensive Sustainability Plan to meld over 20 documents the city has on environmental issues. "They'd be one of few cities in the state that have done something that ambitious," Forrest says.Ann Arbor is also the first city to offer a Property-Assessed Clean Energy program, which allows it to finance energy efficiency improvements for private commercial buildings through public bond offerings. Property owners reimburse the city by spreading payments out via several years' worth of property tax bills. In other examples, Dexter has replaced 124 streetlights downtown with LED lights.Saline installed solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on the roof of its city hall, and also has a water protection education and tree planting and preservation programs.Ypsilanti also has solar PV panels on its city hall. And it created an energy efficiency revolving loan fund to pay for future projects, including LEDs on Cross Street and in several city buildings. "Washtenaw [County] definitely has a lot of leader communities in this area," Forrest notes.In what officials hope will become an annual event, the MML will be hosting the Michigan Green Communities Conference in Lansing this fall to recognize exemplary work and serve as an information swap for local governing bodies. Source: Luke Forrest, project coordinator for the Michigan Municipal LeagueWriter: Tanya Muzumdar

Clean Energy Coalition moves to new HQ, to add up to 8 jobs

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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May 25, 2011

The Clean Energy Coalition is adding more staff members and space to house them, moving to a bigger office in Ann Arbor just north of downtown."We're continually expanding," says Sean Reed, executive director of the Clean Energy Coalition. "We're in the process of hiring three people right now. We have the potential for another 4-8 hires later this year as we continue to grow."That brings the sustainability-oriented non-profit's staff to 14 employees, four interns, and two independent contractors. That growth also prompted the organization to move into its fourth office in six years. It had been occupying two spaces (1,000 and 1,500 square feet, respectively) in Ypsilanti's Depot Town for the last few years. Today, it calls 6,000 square feet on the near north side of Ann Arbor home."This allows us to bring the staffs of the offices together under one roof," Reed says. He adds that it also gives adequate room for growth for the Clean Energy Coalition, which is debuting its new website this week.The Clean Energy Coalition has landed several million dollars in grant funding in recent years, including $15 million from the federal stimulus package. That money is part of Michigan's $31 million Green Fleets project, which will integrate more alternative fuels and advanced fuel-efficient technology (i.e. bio-diesel) into municipal vehicle fleets. The non-profit is also working to help make local government buildings more energy efficient.Source: Sean Reed, executive director of the Clean Energy CoalitionWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.