Technology & Innovation

Coverage of innovative research, development and deployment of technology and technological advance, including hardware, software and software as service.

Molded Materials consolidates operations in Saline

By Newsroom

●

Community Development

●

July 22, 2009

Molded Materials is casting a new die in Saline. The advanced materials technology company is consolidating its operations in the city southwest of Ann Arbor thanks largely to a tax break approved by the state."It keeps us in Michgan, basically," says Tom Elkington, chief operating officer of Molded Materials. "It was the tipping point for keeping us in Michigan."The state tax credit totals $420,388 over seven years and will result in hiring 29 people within the next five years, on top of its current staff of 45. Those jobs will come mainly from Molded Materials merging two of three plants in Saline, investing $2.9 million. It's Plymouth operation will also remain, but Saline will be the center of growth for Molded Materials."This community is very open and willing to work with companies to help them grow," Elkington says.Molded Materials designs, engineers and manufactures advanced composite components for a wide variety of industries.Source: Tom Elkington, chief operating officer of Molded MaterialsWriter: Jon Zemke

Latest in Technology & Innovation

Stout Systems hires 10 people, hopes to add more

By Newsroom

●

Economic Development

●

July 22, 2009

Ann Arbor's Stout Systems takes the "fake phone call to get out of a painfully long meeting" to a new level with its first iPhone application – ISoBusy. "Most of them (the other programs) ring your phone and you pretend you’re having a conversation," says John W Stout, president and founder of Stout Systems.ISoBusy actually provides a fake conversation to go with the fake phone call. They range from everything from a trainer yelling at you to work out to a fishing scam artist trying to steal money from you. Stout Systems hopes to capitalize on this with more iPhone applications.Right now it's capitalizing on its talent pool. The firm has hired 10 people so far this year, however, its employee turnover has keep the company's overall headcount to 25 people (the same as when we last checked in with Stout Systems) and a handful of independent contractors. Stout Systems started 15 years ago with just Stout. The firm specializes in software development and helping firms with technical staffing such as computer programmers or project managers. It hopes to add 1-3 more people by the end of the year as it continues to expand its product line."We're certainly adding to our staff," Stout says.Source: John W Stout, president and founder of Stout SystemsWriter: Jon Zemke

Wireless Ypsi turns a profit, county program hopes for stimulus funding

By Newsroom

●

Entrepreneurship

●

July 15, 2009

The duo behind Wireless Ypsi continues to increase its reach across the region... and fatten their wallets.Excerpt:An Ypsilanti-based tech startup is offering a new twist on the paradigm for deployment of wireless Internet in populated areas even as Washtenaw County's own initiative hopes for federal stimulus money.The success of Wireless Ypsi - which offers free wireless Internet access to Ypsilanti's entire downtown area - has led to inquiries from other Michigan municipalities, real estate companies and groups outside the state, co-founder Steve Pierce said."The idea is to be able to create a cloud of Internet access where visitors can just open up their laptop and immediately" get online, Pierce said.Read the rest of the story here.

Accuri Cytometers nearly doubles staff, takes in another $4 million in VC

By Newsroom

●

Education

●

July 15, 2009

Ann Arbor's Accuri Cytometers continues to blaze big trails toward rapid growth, bringing in millions in financing and creating dozens of new jobs.The Ann Arbor-based firm nailed down $4 million Series D financing (think venture capital funding) from the likes of Fidelity Biosciences, Flagship Ventures, Baird Venture Partners, Arboretum Ventures and InvestMichigan! The money is expected to help push forward the commercialization of its Accuri C6 Flow Cytometer System and open up markets in Europe and elsewhere around the world. "This is expected to take us through to profitability," says Jen Baird, CEO of Accuri Cytometers. The company has already growing its payroll at a rapid clip. It employed 32 people as of last fall when we last checked in with the company. Since then it has nearly doubled that number to 60 people. It expects to continue adding people this year to facilitate its rapid growth. This latest round of financing is on top of the $15 million in venture capital the company took in last year. That round of funding includes $1.9 million from Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund. Accuri Cytometers, a University of Michigan spin-off, specializes in making the cytomer systems that measure T-cell counts (among other things), which is an instrumental tool in tracking and treating diseases like AIDS and cancer. It is a research field with lots of room to grow in both the near and long term. Source: Jen Baird, CEO of Accuri Cytometers Writer: Jon Zemke

NanoBio nails down $22 million to finance future growth

By Newsroom

●

Education

●

July 15, 2009

NanoBio has some breathing room research-wise now that that it has locked down million of dollars in new financing. The Ann Arbor-based firm is expected to use its latest $22 million investment to fund the next two years of its clinical trails."It will fund several activities," says John Coffey, vice president of business development for NanoBio.That funding includes different phases of clinical trails of new drugs for acne, herpes and influenza. Right now the company's staff of 20 people (at the same level as the last time we checked in last fall) will handle that research. Coffey sees the company adding another 4-5 people within the next year or two.NanoBio, a University of Michigan spin-off, has taken in $60 million in private equity since 2006, including $30 million late last year. Source: John Coffey, vice president of business development for NanoBioWriter: Jon Zemke

Video A2 Mech Shop

By Keith Jefferies

●

Economic Development

●

July 1, 2009

It's all about playing nice together. Concentrate has reported on everything from food co-ops, to co-living communities to coworking facilities. It only seems fair to throw a little love to the A2Mech Shop, a shared technical space for entrepreneurial engineers and innovative mech heads.

WhereToFindCare.com opens HQ in Ypsilanti’s SPARK East

By Newsroom

●

Entrepreneurship

●

July 1, 2009

The three women behind WhereToFindCare.com weren't exactly centralized when they started the firm last year. The trio were spread out all over Metro Detroit, in places like Westland, Trenton and Allen Park. This type of virtual company didn't exactly lend itself to meetings and the like."It was very inconvenient," says Barbara O'Connell, co-founder of WhereToFindCare.com. "We're so spread out."Not anymore. The fledgling business just signed on to claim space in Ann Arbor SPARK's East incubator in downtown Ypsilanti. The three women and an intern will help occupy the quickly filling space of entrepreneurs and established businesses."It seems like a good community for entrepreneurs," O'Connell says. "We want to be involved with that."WhereToFindCare.com helps people choose health-care providers. Its website uses quality and satisfaction data of a number of different types of health care facilities and presents them in a format so users can make an easy decision. The Ann Arbor SPARK East incubator opened earlier this spring in the newly renovated Mack & Mack building. It’s located in the ground floor of 215 Michigan Ave. next to Bombadill’s Cafe.Source: Barbara O’Connell, co-founder of WhereToFindCare.comWriter: Jon Zemke

U-M’s Pfizer site acquisition reflects biotech transition for Ann Arbor region

By Newsroom

●

Education

●

June 24, 2009

Well it took two years, but Ann Arbor is starting to fully grasp the impact of Pfizer's decision to leave.Excerpt:Ann Arbor is no longer a big pharma town. Pfizer is gone - it's official today - and in its wake the University of Michigan is seizing a remarkable opportunity to expand its research operations and acquire coveted property on Plymouth and Huron Parkway.The University of Michigan's $108 million acquisition of the ex-Pfizer campus in northern Ann Arbor marks the end of the region's big pharmaceutical era. Parke-Davis, Warner Lambert and Pfizer are now ancestors of Ann Arbor's biotech evolution.U-M's acquisition of the 174-acre site with 2 million square feet in buildings could be misconstrued as another step in the university's conquest of the Ann Arbor economy.But the acquisition is not likely to lead to the demise of the region's biotech infrastructure. In fact, the emergence of a vibrant life sciences services sector in the wake of Pfizer's exit promises to sustain the local biotech community.U-M President Mary Sue Coleman said she wasn't losing sleep over the end of the big pharma industry in Ann Arbor."I think what we have to assume is that some of these small ones will become the giants of the future. I certainly hope so," Coleman told me at the National Summit in Detroit. "Every company in its origins started out small. So I absolutely believe that there's great promise for the future."Read the rest of the story here and the Top 5 lessons Ann Arbor learned from Pfizer's exit here.

Asterand eyes jump to Ann Arbor

By Newsroom

●

Education

●

June 24, 2009

Detroit's loss could turn into another gain for Ann Arbor.Excerpt:Asterand plc, the anchor tenant at Detroit-based TechTown, the incubator and technology park associated with Wayne State University, is considering a move to Ann Arbor and possible affiliations with the University of Michigan because of what its CEO says is neglect by WSU and its president, Dr. Jay Noren.Martyn Coombs, CEO of the tissue bank company which was the best performer on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: ATD) last year, said he has decided to rescind a tentative renewal lease agreement with TechTown and has retained two real estate brokers to look at opportunities in Ann Arbor.“Ann Arbor has a glowing reputation, and so does the University of Michigan,” said Coombs.Read the rest of the story here.

U-M spin-off SITUMBRA looks to build a better window

By Newsroom

●

Education

●

June 17, 2009

Imagine a window shade that's actually integrated into the window, eliminating the ugly shades that cover windows in otherwise beautiful buildings. The vision is becoming reality in Ann Arbor courtesy of SITUMBRA.The University of Michigan spin-off is developing the technology that came from research conducted by Harry Giles, an architecture professor at U-M. The window has two skins that sandwich an inner core. This passive solar technology allows the light to come in and warm a house during cold weather and reflects it during when its hot. "It's transparent and energy efficient," Giles says. His research came from an EPA grant about three years ago. The concept won a prestigious EPA award.SITUMBRA (the SIT stands for Structural Integrated Transparency and the UMBRA is a reference to umbrella) plans to continue to develop the technology for the next year. It then expects to raise money so it can begin production within the next couple of years. Giles is working with a number of experts in the field at the university and in the private sector. He declined to name how many people work at SITUMBRASource: Harry Giles, founder of SITUMBRAWriter: Jon Zemke