MAR Systems, a privately owned startup, was founded by Claude Kennard in 2005. The company's trademarked Sorbster technology that removes mercury, arsenic and other heavy metals from water, launched in 2008. Sorbster was co-developed with the EPA, and is a granular media that removes heavy metals from any aqueous stream. As water percolates through the substance, mercury, arsenic and other metals chemically bond with the media, making conventional disposal safe. The company has demonstrated that the product, manufactured at the company's Solon lab, works 20,000 times faster than current technologies. MAR Systems was named one of America's Most Promising Startups by Business Week Magazine in March 2010. The company was also named one of the Top 50 Water Innovation Leaders at the BlueTech Innovation Forum by the Artemis Project competition in San Francisco California in June 2010. MAR Systems employs eight people, but that number is likely to jump to 15 by year's end. Company officials estimate that within a few years, the company will climb to 50 employees.