Internet2 adds a dozen people in Ann Arbor
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
Change and growth are becoming two key
words for Ann Arbor-based Internet2.
The network-providing
non-profit has expanded to 96 people, adding nearly a dozen people since
we checked
in last late in 2008. It has made two executive team additions,
including a new CTO. It also plans to replace its retiring CEO, Doug Van
Houweling, soon.
"Doug will continue to lead the organization,
as he has for the past twelve years, until the new CEO is selected and
transitioned into the role," Beth Miller, marketing communications
manager for Internet2,
wrote in an email. "The search effort is underway."
For now
Internet2 has a number of positions it is trying to fill. Those openings
include director for international relations, a director of network
services and business operations and a network software engineer. More
positions are set to open up later this year.
Internet2 got its
start in 1996 of providing high-performance networks for higher
education and research labs. That was with a team of four people in Ann
Arbor. Today it has an office in Washington, D.C., and several employees
working remotely across the country.
Source: Beth Miller,
marketing communications manager for Internet2
Writer: Jon
Zemke
Audiallo adds 1, plans to bring on 2-3 more
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
An interesting collaboration between the
University of Michigan and Georgia Tech is starting to make itself heard
through an emerging start-up called Audiallo.
The Ann
Arbor-based firm is in the later stages of developing a new microchip
that could significantly upgrades hearing aides. The two partners (one
from U-M and the other from Georgia Tech) are utilizing PhD research
from the Atlanta-based university as the basis for the new technology
that is taking root in Ann Arbor's Tech Brewery.
"It uses
significantly less battery and is much more powerful," says Aaron
Nelson, co-founder of Audiallo.
"It's supposed to work the same way your brain and ear work naturally."
Nelson
calls this technology a "fairly significant step forward" for
hearing-aid technology. He compares it to when hearing aids recently
made the change from analog to digital processes.
"It will change
the game for the companies that make hearing aids," Nelson says.
Right
now the 2-year-old start-up is raising seed money to develop commercial
prototypes. So far it has raised $150,000 of its $500,000 goal. It
hopes to double its staff of three people when it reaches it fundraising
goal.
Source: Aaron Nelson, co-founder of Audiallo
Writer:
Jon Zemke
Shepherd Intelligent Systems hires in downtown Ann Arbor
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
Shepherd Intelligent Systems is on a bit
of a roll. The Ann Arbor-based start-up is enjoying a rave review,
adding staff and getting ready to lock down a few new customers later
this year.
The University of Michigan spin-off turned the
university's Magic Bus program into a tracking system riders could use
follow their bus' progress on their smart phones. Users can see where
their bus is on real-time maps and estimate times of arrival.
The
Ann Arbor Transportation
Authority recently wrapped up its pilot project with Shepherd
Intelligent Systems rider-friendly software after extending the pilot
program a couple months. Mary Stasiak, a spokeswoman for AATA, used
words like "wonderful" and "valuable" to describe the pilot program that
ran along Route 6.
"AATA sees the value of a bus tracking system
for our riders and will be using our competitive procurement process to
implement this type of product fleet-wide in the future," Stasiak said
in a press release.
The nearly 1-year-old start-up has added one
person to its downtown Ann Arbor-based staff, rounding it out to five
people. It is gearing up for a big expansion within the next year by
hiring 10-15 people.
Shepherd
Intelligent Systems has a couple Beta customers testing out its
product right now. It's also negotiating with two potential clients, one
of which is close to coming to fruition.
"At least one of them
will be announced in the next 6-8 weeks," says Adrian Fortino, CEO of Shepherd
Intelligent Systems.
The company started out targeting
mostly college towns across North America. Now its trying to diversify
its potential client base beyond bus systems to include taxi, limo and
municipal clientele.
Source: Adrian Fortino, CEO of Shepherd
Intelligent Systems
Writer: Jon Zemke
Growing Hope continues hiring in Ypsilanti
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
Growing Hope is taking root and
flourishing in downtown Ypsilanti as it expands it budget and gets ready
to go on a hiring spree.
The non-profit has cultivated its
budget from nothing in 2003 to a little more than $300,000 this year.
That has allowed it to grow it staff to 11 people (nine full-time and
two part-time) and it expects to fill another eight positions this
spring. Those jobs are the equivalent of 10-week summer internships that
pay about $900 a month and come with a $1,200 education tax credit.
"The
growth has been tremendous," says Amanda Maria Edmonds, executive
director of Growing
Hope.
And its not just staff wise. The non-profit has
helped grow downtown Ypsilanti's Farmer's market from $20,000 in sales a
few years ago to $108,000 in sales last year. That includes about
$20,000 in sales that came from seniors or economically disadvantage
people utilizing government programs like Bridge Cards. It expects to
grow the farmer's market even more this year.
Another growth area
that is attracting attention to Growing Hope is its hoop house. That
has allowed the non-profit to raise crops year round and attract
hundreds of volunteers. Those volunteers range from people donating one
day of their time to one day a week during the growing season.
"The
hoop house has been the biggest attraction," Edmonds says. "It
continues to draw people to us. It's pretty amazing to see people
harvesting spinach in February when there is snow outside."
The
hoop house is next to Growing Hope's new home, a house on Michigan
Avenue in the midst of restoration. The donated Tudor has benefited from
a number of organizations, including Washtenaw Community College's
construction program, the local plumbers union which roughed in $7,500
worth of kitchen plumbing and the generosity of the Next Generation
Philanthropy, which works out of the Ann Arbor-based Community
Foundation.
Source: Amanda
Maria Edmonds, executive director of Growing Hope
Writer: Jon Zemke
White Pine Systems preps for big expansion in 2010
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
White Pine Systems spent 2009 biding its
time, building its product and preparing for a big year. The Ann
Arbor-based firm's CEO thinks that year could be 2010, a year that could
enable his start-up to double its staff.
"We're starting to see
an increase [in business]," says Doug Dormer, president and CEO of White Pine Systems.
"We've seen one through the first quarter. We saw interest but
hesitation in late 2009."
The company gives its customers access
to their medical records, allowing them to become more knowledgeable
about their conditions so they can work with their doctors more
effectively. The idea is to help patients get a better picture of their
health, thus eliminating unnecessary medical procedures and ensuring
they get the right treatment.
This goes beyond people struggling
with chronic illnesses who regularly visit hospitals. White Pine Systems
works with all sorts of organizations, like long-distance race
organizers, who may need to provide first responders with important
medical information if a situation were to arise during a marathon.
The
medical records company is looking to capitalize on that bump in
business by releasing SPINNphr Basic, a low cost re-packaging of its
SPINN personal health record (PHR) solution intended for smaller
physician’s practices and clinics. American Specialty Health and its 15
million patients already use the standard version.
That has
allowed White
Pine Systems to maintain its staff of 10 employees and a couple of
independent contractors. The firm is looking at starting an internship
program this summer. It does hope to double its employee base within the
next year as it capitalizes on the expected increase in business.
"The
evidence it right in front of us," Dormer says.
Source: Doug
Dormer, president of White Pine Systems
Writer: Jon Zemke
U-M partners with Chinese university for research
Source: Concentrate, 3/31/2010
Research at the University of Michigan is
going global now that it has signed an agreement with a major Chinese
university to jointly fund renewable energy and biomedical research
projects.
U-M and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, based out of
Shanghai, have launched two programs that will receive $3 million from
each university over the next five years. That money will fund research
grants that can go as high as $200,000.
The two universities have been developing a relationship for 13 years,
allowing this deal to bear $6 million in research funding fruit. Stephen
Forrest, vice president for research, adds that U-M's global reach
makes future international partnerships possible, but he couldn't think
of anymore that might come to fruition soon.
"The world is big and the future is long," Forrest says. "Many things
can happen. I think this type of global research is a trend that will
continue."
Both universities have issued a call for proposals and
the first grants are expected to be awarded in June. Proposals must
have researchers from both U-M and SJTU.
The new partnership
hopes to develop new technologies that reduce global carbon emissions, a
primary cause of climate change, in the renewable energy end. Think:
Research in improving coal technology and creating cleaner vehicles. The
biomedical half will focus on technological advances that improve human
health, such as minimally and non-invasive therapy and
bio-nanotechnology.
This is not the first time a regional
university has reached across an ocean or two to form a partnership with
a foreign institution of higher learning. Lawrence Technological
University has formed partnerships with a number of Indian universities
in what is becoming a growing trend in higher education.
Source:
Stephen Forrest, vice president for research for the University of
Michigan
Writer: Jon Zemke
LLamasoft makes room for new hires in new Ann Arbor space
Source: Concentrate, 3/24/2010
Downtown Ann Arbor's First National
Building has the old timey look of a successful, starched-collar
business establishment. Its architectural flourishes, both inside and
out, scream old money. You can almost imagine fat cats making the
business world revolve around cigars and backroom deals.
But
that's not what's really inside. Especially if you visit the building's
fourth floor. That's where LLamasoft has made its new home, taking over
5,000 square feet of space, double the size of its old office.
LLamasoft, a software logistics firm, is the quintessential start-up,
filling its space with eye-catching art and young workers (whose attire
sometimes makes an artistic statement of its own)
The pairing of
the firm to the building is evidence that some of Ann Arbor's
up-and-coming start-ups are coming of age. As LLamasoft becomes more
established and fills its new space with more staff, it'll help reshape
Ann Arbor's entrepreneurial ecosystem.
"Obviously space matters, a
lot," says Don Hicks, president and CEO of LLamasoft. "Often times it impacts you
in subtle ways."
For instance, LLamasoft's old offices were so
small that one of its employees jokes that the new space means they're
not working on the lunch table anymore. Nevertheless, double duty at the
lunch table encouraged the staff to constantly bounce ideas off of one
another, creating motion, emotion and new ideas.
The new space is much more spread out with a couple of conference rooms
and plenty of elbow space. That meant LLamasoft's leadership had to
reinvent the company's internal communications.
LLamasoft
expects to return to those crowded days soon. It has expanded its staff
to 30 people with 25 at its Ann Arbor office. It expects to break the
50 employee mark within the next three years. The company is hiring two
more University of Michigan grads this month, adding yet more young
people. Generation X and Y pretty much run the show. The wise-cracking
employee mentioned above actually had to move out of his frat house when
he came to work for LLamasoft.
"We buck the trend when it comes
to this," Hicks says. "Supply chain logistics is known for being stodgy
and old."
Though LLamasoft is becoming more established and
moving into spaces once dominated by the old guard, it brings with it a
new perspective... which 50 years from now will probably seem similarly
stodgy.
Source: Don Hicks, president and CEO of LLamasoft and
Gary Bobalik, director of marketing for LLamasoft
Writer: Jon
Zemke
Google Fiber means 2 things to Ann Arbor: Choice, opportunity
Source: Concentrate, 3/24/2010
When Steve Pierce thinks about what
Google's Fiber community would mean for Ann Arbor or Saline/Pittsfield
Township he weighs the long-term impact. The co-founder of Wireless
Ypsi and expert of just about all things Internet sees the Google
pilot program providing two things most people aren't talking about:
Opportunity and choice.
Choice, as in competition between
Internet service providers, who will be forced to provide better service
at an even better price. Opportunity, as in the economic opportunities
this will provide for Washtenaw County.
"That connection provides
opportunity for entrepreneurs whether it’s a start-up or a big
company," says Pierce,
who lives in downtown Ypsilanti and runs his business from his laptop.
"Bandwidth is king. No matter how fast your connection is you could
always use more."
Google plans to build and test ultra-high speed
broadband networks in a small number of communities across the country.
These lines will stream data at 1 gigabit per second, about 100 times
faster than most Americans get through their current cable and DSL
providers.
Ann Arbor got on the bandwagon quickly, launching A2Fiber, a Facebook fan page,
a YouTube contest
and other online efforts to rally support for its application. The
University of Michigan and Ypsilanti are backing Ann Arbor's effort.
Saline and Pittsfield Township are filing a competing joint application.
As for the local media's talk of competition between the two applications, Pierce thinks its irrelevant.
"It doesn't
matter who the heck wins," Pierce says. "We just need to get this to
the county. We need to get past the first round so the Google people
will come here and check us out."
Pierce believes that Google is
looking for a community of about 250,000 people, meaning it wouldn't
just be Ann Arbor or Saline/Pittsfield Township alone. It would probably
be Ann Arbor and the surrounding area, such as the city, the adjacent
townships and probably some nearby towns.
That would actually
play to Washtenaw County's favor because the general Ann Arbor area
features both urban, suburban and rural settings for Google to test.
Local municipalities also have an educated population and business
community with an almost unquenchable demand for Internet. But even if
Google just choose to set up the project in downtown Ann Arbor, the
economic ripple affects would be felt for miles away.
"It's still
going to help Ypsilanti because it's going to attract more people to
the community," Pierce says. "Where are they going to live? Some are
going to live in Ypsilanti. Some are going to shop and eat in Ypsilanti.
It's going to be huge for the community if we can land these guys
here."
Source: Steve Pierce, co-founder of Wireless Ypsi.
Writer:
Jon Zemke
MedHub doubles revenue, plans to hire 3 in Ann Arbor
Source: Concentrate, 3/24/2010
MedHub has some big expectations for 2010.
The Ann Arbor-based firm recently signed two major new contracts and is
looking to hire three people right now. It also expects to announce the
signing of two other major teaching hospitals this spring.
"They're
big. They're Top 10 teaching hospitals you have heard of," says Peter
Orr, president of MedHub.
"One of them has a team playing in the NCAA tournament and the other is
overseas. And we have quite a few other things in the pipeline that
will make 2010 a big year."
The 7-year-old firm, a University of
Michigan spin-off, uses web-enabled enterprise residency management
solutions to improve communication, collaboration and residency
information management in teaching hospitals. Simply said, it provides a
system that tracks residents and fellows (advanced medical school
students who aren't quite full doctors). It makes hospitals get all of
the Medicare reimbursements they are entitled to, which means more than
$85 million for U-M Hospital.
MedHub
currently employs four people and is making plans to start an
internship program this year. It’s also looking at hiring even more
people later this year.
MedHub recently signed an agreement with
Kaiser
Permenente in northern California. That teaching hospital has more
than 200 in-house physician trainees and over 700 rotators training from
the likes of Stanford University, The University of California – Davis
and the University of California at San Francisco.
Recent
signings like this has allowed MedHub to double its revenue already this
year compared to 2009. Orr expects his company's revenue to continue to
multiply this year as he goes after bigger fish in the teaching
hospital pool.
Source: Peter Orr, president of MedHub
Writer:
Jon Zemke
Logic Solutions merges with Ann Arbor's Arachne Web Tech
Source: Concentrate, 3/24/2010
Ann Arbor's Logic Solutions has acquired
cross-town rival Arachne Web Technologies. The merger is part of Logic
Solutions plan to expand its company this year through organic growth
and acquisitions. It hopes to support those goals with more hiring, some
which has already happened.
"We hired several new staff at the
beginning of the year, and we are prepared to handle all the needs of
our new customers," Logic Solutiuons' COO Bruce
Richardson said in a statement. "Given the projections for company
growth, we anticipate additional hiring in late 2010."
Logic
Solutions has a staff to 27 people (between its Ann Arbor and Ford
offices). The 15-year-old software development firm specializes in
software and creating smart-phone applications. It has a significant
presence both here in Ann Arbor and also abroad in China. There it is
has offices in Nanjing, Beijing and Shanghai and employs nearly 100
people.
Source: Angela Kujava, marketing director for Logic
Solutions
Writer: Jon Zemke
New U-M mini generator utilizes ambient vibrations
Source: Concentrate, 3/24/2010
It looks like researchers at the
University of Michigan have come up with the 21st Century version of the
self-winding watch.
Khalil Najafi and Tzeno Galchev, chair of
U-M's Electrical and
Computer Engineering Dept and a doctoral student in that
department, have created a tiny generator that harnesses electricity
from random, ambient vibrations. It generates enough energy to power
smaller tech appliances, like a wristwatch or pacemaker.
"It will
become a sizeable segment of the battery market, but I don't think it
will replace batteries," Galchev says.
The Parametric Frequency
Increased Generators, created in U-M's Engineering
Research Center for Wireless Integrated Microsystems, can harness
kinetic energy that is usually wasted from people moving their limbs or
traffic driving over a bridge.
These new devices, which measure
about a centimeter tall, could be used to measure stress in bridges. The
idea is to warn them if cracks develop or other things that compromise
the bridges safety.
Source:
Tzeno Galchev, doctoral student at the University of Michigan
Writer: Jon Zemke
Adaptive Materials' military contracts lead to Ann Arbor job creation
Source: Concentrate, 3/17/2010
Military contracts are proving profitable
for growing Adaptive Materials, allowing the Ann Arbor-based start-up to
expand its capacity and staff.
The innovative fuel cell firm
just signed a $4.7 million contract with the U.S. Army to supply its
signature fuel cells. That contract could grow to be worth $5.6 million
and another significant multi-million dollar military contract is
expected to be announced this spring. So far the company has scored $44
million worth of defense contracts. That will equal about 70 percent of
its business in the first and second quarters of this year.
"Military
has always been a key piece of our business plan," says Michelle Crumm,
chief business officer for Adaptive Materials. "That
will continue for us. It's a key piece of the puzzle."
It's also
what's driving the Adaptive Materials' growth. It's staff has hit 57
people and an intern. The company has nine job openings and another two
internship opportunities. After those are filled, the company hopes to
add another 5-10 people later this year.
The 10-year-old
company creates a fuel cell that turns fuels like propane into
electricity instead of heat. That means its technology can convert a
small propane tank used for camping into a generator that can keep a
fridge going during a blackout. Think an emergency generator strong
enough to power appliances but small enough to carry in your pocket.
The
firm, the brain child of University of Michigan alum Aaron Crumm, plans
to put its products in every RV, boat, ambulance and, well, any place
that can use a highly efficient fuel cell.
Source: Michelle
Crumm, chief business officer for Adaptive Materials
Writer:
Jon Zemke
U-M students turn Green Silane into award-winning start-up
Source: Concentrate, 3/17/2010
The student entrepreneurs aren't building
an empire with Green Silane. They're building an acquisition.
It's
an idea that is commonly used in the advanced entrepreneurial
ecosystems on the coasts, where entrepreneurs build their start-ups with
the idea of hitting a big payday not from customers so much as
competitors.
"In 5-6 years we would like to see the potential
opportunity of acquisition by one of our competitors," says Matt Schaar,
vice president of product development at Green Silane.
Schaar,
an MBA student at the University of Michigan, and two other university
students started Green Silane in September. Since then they have taken
the Erb Award for Sustainability at U-M's Ross School of Business' Michigan
Business Competition and third place at the Clean Energy Prize, which
is sponsored by U-M and DTE Energy. It has led to the acquisition of
more than $10,000, which serves as both prize and seed money.
Green
Silane produces silane gas for customers on-site in a manner that is
flexible, low-cost, and environmentally benign. "It compartmentalizes
this so it only requires silicone and and hydrogen," Schaar says.
Source:
Matt Schaar, vice president of product development at Green Saline
Writer:
Jon Zemke
Gaming firm inDepthLearning expands to 7 in Ann Arbor
Source: Concentrate, 3/17/2010
The evolution of inDepthLearning has
been a bit of an, um... well, learning curve.
The Ann Arbor-based
firm got its start in 2001 as an Internet-based learning firm, creating
programs and applications that let students access and absorb more
information online. Today its has moved to video games, putting a new
game on the market and developing another.
"We realized we could
do a lot more with gaming," says Res Midgley, president of inDepthLearning.
The
switch in emphasis has let the company that started with two people,
grow to seven including an independent contractor. It recently hired two
people and has plans to continue to hire to keep up with its growth.
The company has doubled in size in the last 18 months and has high hopes
for 2010-11.
"We have great expectations for the next year and
half," Midgley says.
It's latest game is called "Drug Scene Investigators,"
a video game for kids in grades 7-10. The game works to incorporate
reading, library search, and decision-making by combining interest in
science, heath and mysteries. Users need to figure out which illegal
drugs were consumed by game characters, students search the library,
take notes, link discovered information with facts, and reason from the
evidence to form conclusions.
Source:
Res Midgley, president of in Depth Learning
Writer: Jon Zemke
Masco Cabinetry creates Ann Arbor HQ, 250 jobs
Source: Concentrate, 3/17/2010
Masco is combining its Builder and Retail
cabinetry groups to create Masco Cabinetry, which will move its
headquarters to Ann Arbor, relocating a total of 350 workers and
creating nearly 100 new jobs.
The Michigan Economic Development Corp has
negotiated a deal with the Michigan-based company, which will includes a
$204,588 tax abatement over six years to leverage a $20.6 million
investment. That deal will move 206 employees from the Adrian
headquarters of Masco
Corp (the parent company) to Ann Arbor and create another 250 jobs
over ten years.
Masco Cabinetry will manufacture and distribute
kitchen and bath cabinetry through big box retailers. The two old
subsidiaries that did this were based out of Adrian and Ohio.
The Buckeye state had made a similar tax incentive offer to land the
new cabinetry firm, specifically in the Toledo area.
Masco
Cabinetry's new headquarters will be located off Dixboro Road in Ann
Arbor Township. It will serve as the base for an expected payroll of 890
full-time people.
Source: Michigan Economic Development Corp
Writer:
Jon Zemke