Ann Arbor

New Toyota Technical Center hosts grand opening Thursday

By Newsroom

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October 8, 2008

You know the work is done when the grand opening banners are rolled out, and that's just the case with Toyota's new technical center in York Township.The auto-manufacturer plans to hold a grand opening tomorrow in it's brand-spanking new nearly $200-million facility. Officials expect the 700-acre campus and its 530,000 square feet of space to house as many as 1,100 workers by 2010. These employees will specialize in engineering design and vehicle performance development.The new state-of-the-art research and development center will house 350,000 square feet for design engineering and 180,000 square feet for safety testing. It will located just south of Ann Arbor near the intersection of U.S. 23 and Willis Road.Toyota has traditionally done its engineering for its North American products out of Ann Arbor since the 1970s. Hundreds of engineers, scientists and other personnel work for Toyota at one of its now three locations around Ann Arbor.Source: Toyota and state of MichiganWriter: Jon Zemke

University of Michigan Office of Technology showcases inventions

By Newsroom

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Education

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October 8, 2008

Great inventions have traditionally come from the University of Michigan, which is showcasing a few more with that potential.Excerpt:At first glance, University of Michigan researcher Jay Guo's invention just might look like a small newspaper printing press.But look closer, he said, and you'll see a machine that can continuously imprint tiny computer chips with information nearly as easily as a compact disc burner writes on a CD.The U-M electrical engineering and computer science professor's hope is to bring down the cost of making the chips. The same technology can be used to more easily make solar panels and LCD screens."We want to perfect this technology and find more and more applications for it," Guo said.Read the rest of the story here.

Video Ann Arbor’s 24-Hour Downtown

By Tom Hendrickson

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Community Development

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October 8, 2008

an Ann Arbor become Michigan's frontline in the battle to end its brain drain? With its downtown slowly evolving into a dynamic place to live, work and play, people like XX-year old Googler Brian Tschoepe are finding more and more reasons to stay.

MASTERMIND: Jeff Kass

By Shannon McCarthy

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Economic Development

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October 8, 2008

In this world of text messaging, cell phones and email, the population of wordsmiths grows ever smaller. Thank goodness for Jeff Kass. A Pioneer High School teacher, poet and writer, Kass has been using performance poetry to attract Ann Arbor teens to the power of self expression through writing.

Design Sense, Local Logic

By Kim Shine North

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Arts & Culture

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October 8, 2008

Build it and they will come. Proving that the Internet makes all things global, 32-year old entrepreneur Shana Victor has turned her passion for the funky and frivolous into a million dollar local business with a decidely personal touch.

Ann Arbor SPARK gears up for entrepreneurial boot camp

By Newsroom

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Entrepreneurship

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October 8, 2008

The applications are in and Ann Arbor SPARK is looking to firm up the commitments to its 14th Entrepreneurial Boot Camp this month.The entrepreneurial boot camp is a unique combination of hands-on learning and one-on-one mentoring facilitated by SPARK. It squeezes three months worth of learning curve into an intensive two-day business planning and preparation event. The point is to help early stage technology businesses refine their business concepts. That will help them attract additional funding and resources. Mobatech, a cell-phone software firm, won the last boot camp. It won a $5,000 initial engagement at the Ann Arbor SPARK Business Accelerator.This fall's boot camp will feature 15 teams made up of two people each. The boot camp will be held between the evening of Oct. 31 and the morning of Nov. 2. For information, click here.Look for Concentrate's first person account of the process later in November!Source: Ann Arbor SPARKWriter: Jon Zemke

Internet2 creates 85 jobs in Ann Arbor, looks to add a few more

By Newsroom

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Education

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October 8, 2008

The laws of supply and demand at their most basic are working in favor of Internet2.The Ann Arbor-based non-profit started with four people a dozen years ago with the simple premise of providing high-performance networks for higher education and research labs. Today it has grown to 85 people and a handful of interns, picking up the slack that traditional companies couldn't provide."It turned out they weren't able to do that because the growth of the Internet was so rapid," says Douglas Van Houweling, CEO of Internet2.The non-profit's revenue has grown 30 percent and it expects to continue to grow at least another 5 percent each year in the near future. It also expects to add a few more employees in that time, too, to help keep up with demand.Van Houweling sees that demand steadily increasing as more and more research labs for the likes of the U.S. Department of Energy (one of its newest clients) and universities jump on its bandwagon. Just another simple case of an Ann Arbor firm taking advantage of supply and demand.Source: Douglas Van Houweling, CEO of Internet2Writer: Jon Zemke

A2 Media Corporation set to create 63 new jobs

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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October 8, 2008

It's a simple equation: More software development in Ann Arbor means more job development in Tree Town. Now that A2 Media Corporation (aka Icon Creative Technologies Group) is expanding its presence in Ann Arbor, the 18-person company expects to create 63 new jobs within the next 10 years. It's going to do that by investing nearly $2.7 million to relocate and expands its Ann Arbor facility. "A great deal of it will be invested in talent," says Sara Johns, project director for A2 Media Corporation.A2 Media Corporation develops enterprise-level software that allows marketing and communications professionals in the auto, biotech and financial services sector to manage their digital activities. The state of Michigan awarded A2 Media Corporation a $1.26 million tax credit, per the recommendation of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The incentive will be spaced out over 10 years, and is believed to be a key part of A2 Media Corporation choosing Ann Arbor over competing sites in India and Ireland. The company's principals are long-time Ann Arbor-area residents.Source: Sara Johns, project director for A2 Media Corporation and Michigan Economic Development CorporationWriter: Jon Zemke

Evigia adds 8 people, plans to triple staff

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 1, 2008

Ann Arbor-based Evigia Systems has big plans for its radio frequency ID tags, which should lead to greater local expansion."What we want to do to radio frequency ID tags is what has been done to cell phones," says Karl Ma, vice president of marketing for Evigia Systems. "We want to make them lighter, cheaper and smaller."The company started with one person in 2004 and has grown to 14 people today. Most of that growth has occurred in the last year as it added eight jobs. That expansion is expected to continue in the near future, with Ma foreseeing the firm's staff tripling.Key to that growth is landing a major contract, which Evigia hints will occur soon. The firm is partnering with "a well-known name brand" firm that Ma declined to name. He expects that partnership will be key in attracting the U.S. Department of Defense to the tune of $430-$480 million. Only a few other companies are competing for the contract and Ma sees Evigia as the company to beat. If all goes well, it will mean $100 million more in revenue and the addition of 70-100 people. A big bump in business for this small Ann Arbor start-up.Source: Karl Ma, vice president of marketing for Evigia SystemsWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor’s Thixomat looks to add 20-30 people within 3-5 years

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 1, 2008

Thixomat has always been known as a research and development company, not a manufacturer.That could soon change for the Ann Arbor-based firm if it capitalizes on its plans for growth. The company of eight people (and the occasional intern) licenses molding technology.However it is now looking at spinning out a couple of new joint ventures that could mean big growth in Ann Arbor. How about 20-30 new jobs within the next 3-5 years, and possibly between 50 and 100 new jobs in the foreseeable future?Thixomat is looking to form a joint partnership with a Jackson manufacturer that would allow it to create prototypes and short runs of its products. This would help the firm spread its innovations around the world.Thixomat is also working on an agreement with the University of Michigan for a new version of its bread-and-butter molding technology. It's investing $750,000 of its own money to scale up the technology that has attracted the attention of the U.S. Department of Defense."The marketing opportunities of this technology are in the eight-figure range," says Steve LeBeau, president of Thixomat. "It's very exciting."Source: Herb Pritzker, director of marketing of Thixomat and Steve LeBeau, president of ThixomatWriter: Jon Zemke