Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor VeoProject focuses on growth and partnerships

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May 27, 2009

Ann Arbor's VeoProject continues to grow as evidenced by its expanding payroll.Ann Arbor-based Bitcarvers, the creators of VeoProject, have increased its employee base to 10 people and are looking to add interns this summer. It hopes to add more employees later this year. "The market for our software has been expanding dramatically over the last year," says John Wyderko, chief technology officer of VeoProject. He adds that southeast Michigan is "a gold mine" for finding quality project managers.VeoProject is a lot like Microsoft Project. It helps users manage projects, tasks and their everyday worklife ...except its done from a website. This allows users to access it from anywhere they can get an Internet connection. In comparison, Microsoft Office is run from a single computer or system. The idea is to make it appealing to business travelers far from their home computing base or telecommuters working from home. Bitcarvers are now incorporating VeoProject with social media outlets, such as Twitter. The idea is to use these programs to help keep projects and their managers on track. Bitcarvers are also working to establish partnerships to help it hit its financial milestones and spur more growth.Source: John Wyderko, chief technology office for VeoProjectWriter: Jon Zemke

Zahn Medical moves forward with new building in Ann Arbor

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Community Development

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May 27, 2009

A bit of old Ann Arbor is getting ready to be broomed away to make room for a new medical office building on the city’s far west side.Zahn Medical, a dental office, plans to tear down a vacant old church on Jackson, across the street from Veterans Memorial Park. The Pentecostal Church of God occupied the building since the 1950s when most of the surrounding neighborhood was developed into a mix of strip mall-style commercial and post-World War II ranch brick bungalows.The proposed 2,854-square-foot medical building is designed to complement those surroundings in more ways than one. The new 20-foot-tall, single-story building incorporates a modern brick and stone work in a style that was in fashion in the mid 20th Century. A large glass entrance atrium welcomes people coming into the building. A bakers dozen of surface parking spaces split the lot with the building, much like the rest of the commercial buildings on the nearby Stadium Boulevard commercial strip. Updating this less-than new urbanist 1950’s design are two covered bicycle parking spots and three rain gardens along the perimeter of the building. The rain gardens will also be hooked into the city’s sewer system to help facilitate drainage during heavy rains. Repeated attempts over several days to reach the Zahn Medical Office for further comment of the plans were not returned.Source: City of Ann ArborWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor and Warren: A Tale of Two Economies

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Community Development

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May 27, 2009

Ann Arbor is once again held up as the example of the direction that Michigan needs to point its economy.Excerpt:ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan's economy is the worst in the country, dragged down by its dependency on an ailing auto industry. But in a lab at Accio Energy in Ann Arbor, engineers Dawn White and David Carmein are driving in a different direction.They have built what they call an "aerovoltaic" device, a two-inch loop of piping that generates electricity -- without moving blades or turbines -- when air flows through it. The engineers' next step: linking a series of these loops into screens that they see eventually generating wind electricity where windmills are too big, dangerous or noisy to go.Innovative companies like Accio are common in Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan, where a highly educated population has created a burgeoning economy, and a street-corner conversation can develop into a company and create jobs.Michigan's economic future rests on making the state look more like Ann Arbor, and less like Warren, 50 miles to the northeast, where factory buildings and warehouses built on the riches of the Big Three auto makers bear signs saying they are "priced to sell." The latest blow came earlier this month, when Chrysler LLC shut down its two plants in Warren as part of its bankruptcy filing.Read the rest of the story here.

U-M takes in $5 million gift, expands Google agreement

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Education

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May 27, 2009

The University of Michigan took two big steps forward recently, accepting a $5 million gift and expanding its relationship with Google.The D. Dan and Betty Kahn Foundation recently awarded $5 million to the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center. The money will fund research in biomedicine and bioengineering, such as understanding irregular heartbeats and other heart or blood vessel diseases.Dr. Kim Eagle, a director of U-M's Cardiovascular Center, says this money will help push forward the research of dozens of doctors at U-M and Israel's Technion University. The money is expected to last many years and produce a number of collaborations in higher education and medicine under the name of Dr. Kahn, a West Bloomfield-based physician."He is establishing a legacy that will last forever," Eagle says.U-M is also continuing its legacy of working with Google. The two institutions have expanded their agreement to digitize U-M’s library so it will create millions of copies of U-M texts. The expansion is made possible thanks to the settlement reached between Google and a broad class of authors and publishers.The idea behind the project is to put the enormous wealth of U-M’s libraries at the fingertips of any Internet surfer in the world. Making these 8 million books and more (Google has similar partnerships with other notable libraries) available will give everyone equal access to this wealth of information.Source: Dr. Kim Eagle, a director of U-M’s Cardiovascular Center and the University of MichiganWriter: Jon Zemke

GM places bet on Ann Arbor’s Sakti3 for battery production

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Education

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May 20, 2009

Chapter 11 or not, Ann Arbor's Sakti3 has found a big backer in GM.Excerpt:Michigan is ahead of the battery curve. That's no less obvious than with the University of Michigan's Ann Marie Sastry, CEO of Ann Arbor vehicle battery startup Sakti3. Sastry's next-generation lithium-ion battery manufacturing technology has become a magnet for auto companies, investors and politicians.Which is why General Motors' endorsement of Sakti3's $15 million federal energy grant application all but a deal clincher for the firm. As GM rushes to meet the expectations of President Barack Obama's auto task force, the firm is being pressured to focus its future on alternative propulsion vehicles. That means GM's support of the Sakti3 application could be seen as an important piece to GM's restructuring. "GM strongly supports this particular application for DOE stimulus dollars," said Bob Kruse, GM's Chevrolet Volt guru and executive director of global vehicle engineering for hybrids, electric vehicles and batteries.Sakti3 has secured $15 million in capital and is pursuing a matching $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to accelerate its expansion plans.Read the rest of the story here.

Firms boost bottom line with leased controllers

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Economic Development

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May 20, 2009

Need someone to balance your book quickly? Ann Arbor-based start-up Just in Time CFO Solution has the answer.Excerpt:When Jim Nader bought Plumb's Inc., an eight-store grocery chain in west Michigan, two years ago, its long-term financial projections seemed logical. But, in a rapidly changing business environment, the plan crumbled and the company needed assistance to chart a new course. Lacking funds to hire a full-time chief financial officer, Nader turned to Mike Rodocker of Just in Time CFO Solutions LLC in Ann Arbor. The company offers part-time chief financial officers to help firms figure out their financial standing, find out where they can cut costs, create new sales and profit goals and get on the path to achieving those objectives. "When we started out, we had a long-term plan but times have changed and we didn't understand what options were available," Nader said. "We weren't as good as we thought we should be in the financial area of our company." Read the rest of the story here.

Lofty living in Ann Arbor: Students move into new upscale apartment buildings

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Community Development

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May 20, 2009

Student living continues to climb higher in Ann Arbor in more ways than one.Excerpt:For University of Michigan student Devon Porter, living in 4Eleven Lofts is cheaper than what she paid for a single room in the Vera Baits residence hall last year - plus, it's got great views of downtown Ann Arbor and comes with a flat-screen TV.Fellow U-M student Matt Coleman said his new digs in Zaragon Place beat his fraternity house by a mile. He can see the Big House from his two-level, six-bedroom unit that's got Italian cabinets, a rubber floor and new stainless steel appliances.Welcome to the new realm of upscale student-living in Ann Arbor.Read the rest of the story here and more stories on green building here, here and here.

Pre-Seed Capital Fund hits three Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti businesses

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Economic Development

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May 20, 2009

Three new businesses in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area are about to get by with a little help from their new friend - Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund.White Pine Systems, OcuSciences and RealKidz (all Ann Arbor SPARK-sponsored start-ups) received between $142,000 and $250,000 in seed money. Ann Arbor SPARK administers this money."We hope this acts as an incentive to bring an angel (investor) to the table to make an investment," says Skip Simms, administrator of the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund. Ann Arbor-based White Pine Systems will use its $225,000 to further its internet-based medical records service. That service securely stores and manages personal information, such as medical and legal records.University of Michigan spin-off OcuSciences has $250,000 to develop its OcuMet line of ocular metabolic imaging products. The Ann Arbor-based firm’s products allow detection of several diseases through indicators in the eye, several years earlier than current clinical methods.Ypsilanti-based RealKidz, an on-line retailer, plans to use its $142,000 to further its development of of large size kids clothing and social network. RealKidz is a tenant of SPARK East business incubator.The Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund, a collaborative effort of Michigan's 15 SmartZones, is an equity investment fund. It receives the same returns as a private third-party investor. Ann Arbor SPARK is one of these SmartZones. Thirty-four companies have received seed money from the fund since its inception.Source: Skip Simms, administrator of the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital FundWriter: Jon Zemke

Arboretum Ventures makes 2nd investment, plans for 1-2 more

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Economic Development

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May 20, 2009

Venture capital is far from dead in Ann Arbor these days. Arboretum Ventures announced its second new investment last week, bringing its total investment so far for this year to $5 million.The Ann Arbor-based venture capital firm still expects to make 1-2 more investments before the end of 2009. So far it has invested in Aptus Endosystems and CerviLenz."We're still actively investing," says Tim Petersen, managing director of Arboretum Ventures. "There are some venture capital funds that are laying low because of the economy of they don’t have the capital."CerviLenz is a manufacturer and distributor of a disposable device used to predict the risk of preterm birth in pregnant women. Arboretum Ventures investment is part of $4 million the Ohio-based company raised during its initial round of venture funding. Louisville-based Chrysalis Ventures also invested in the financing.Arboretum Ventures focuses mainly on investing in up-and-coming companies that make medical devices. Peterson and Jan Garfinkle formed the firm in 2002. It recently closed a $74 million fund.Source: Tim Petersen, managing director of Arboretum VenturesWriter: Jon Zemke

New Ann Arbor Downtown Plan to impact Zingerman’s, South U

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Community Development

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May 20, 2009

New changes to Ann Arbor's downtown master plan (A2D2) could have significant implications for Zingerman's and the South University business district area.Zingerman's has been pushing to consolidate and expand in its corner of Kerrytown. However, those plans have stalled because they include some former or vacant residential property. The new changes would remove the residential zoning, making Zingerman's expansion plans easier. Similar zoning changes are proposed for the South University business district area. The idea is it would give more space for businesses to expand in the city's core.City official's have been developing zoning and design guidelines for the city's downtown for nearly three years. The general concepts it is working with are beefing up zoning for denser and more mixed-use developments, along with creating architectural guidelines that call for new buildings to blend in with their surroundings.The Ann Arbor Planning Commission is reviewing these changes. They're expected to go before the City Council later this summer.Source: Wendy Rampson, systems planner for the city of Ann ArborWriter: Jon Zemke