Toledo : Innovation + Job News

Two years ago, Michael Frankhauser was a burned out college student studying biology at the University of Toledo.

Today, he's having fun while standing the northwest Ohio tree industry on its head with sustainability practices he hopes will help his young company grow into a successful business.

Frankhauser says that when trees are trimmed or cut down, some of that wood is sold, but often it's given away just to get it off a tree-trimmers hands -- or, simply thrown away.

"The same thing with wood chips," Frankhauser says. "A lot of guys in Toledo dump them illegally. You go down a country road and there will be a big chip pile that goes completely wasted."

Now, some of those companies are giving Frankhauser their high-grade logs. He has friends cut the logs into lumber and then dries it in a solar kiln. At first, he was simply trying to re-sell the lumber, but notes that "there's already a lot of lumber out there."

More recently, he's been giving the wood away to craftsmen who turn it into fine furniture. They bring the furniture back to Frankhauser and he sells it, splitting the profits with the craftsmen 50-50.

But Frankhauser takes it one step further -- he requires those who make the furniture to bring him the scraps. Not only does that solve a disposal issue, but it's allowing Frankhauser to amass a volume of sawdust and scrap that he eventually hopes to sell to biomass plants as feedstock.

Frankauser says he's finally doing something he loves. He says he's helping the environment. And, with 35,000 board feet of kiln-dried lumber already in storage, he says he's poised for growth. He has one employee, but says he anticipates adding more next year.

"Every step I've taken, I've made money on. I absolutely see it growing."

Source: Michael Frankhauser, Woods to Woods
Writer: Gene Monteith

InSitu Foods has done well for itself since coming to market last summer. The artisan bread maker is baking 400 loaves a night, 363 days a year, and selling it to northwest Ohio groceries and to one of Toledo's most upscale restaurants.

But President Rick Anderson sees a bigger future for the company. His goal: to enable groceries to make and bake real artisan bread from scratch -- in front of their shoppers -- using his proprietary system.

Anderson is refining just such a system, the prototype of which was developed at Radco Industries after Anderson and his wife Mary purchased the automation equipment company in 2008.

"Essentially, the challenge with bread is consistent high quality and cost," Anderson says. "The people we're talking to, the retailers, are very interested as long as those two things are in place."

The company's current conveyer system, used at an off-site baking facility, faced hurdles in meeting regulations for in-grocery use. InSitu is now developing a machine without belts that can be used as Anderson envisions. He says interest from potential customers is growing, and he believes consumers will pay groceries the extra $2 a loaf for good, home-made artisan breads.

"Most of the artisan bread in the United States is par-baked frozen," he explains. "So, you're shipping frozen, par baked bread all over the country in trucks. In theory, you lock in the quality and -- to some extent that's true -- but the reality is in the supply chain it goes through freeze/ thaw because it's not always handled properly, and frankly the taste is just not there."

Besides that, retailers are intrigued by the entertainment value of making bread in front of shoppers, he says.

The Regional Growth Partnership's Rocket Ventures has assisted InSitu with a $50,000 Ignite! grant that the company used for R&D and market research.

Source: Rick Anderson, InSitu Foods
Writer: Gene Monteith

Ohio's status as a leader in photovoltaics could shine brighter should a $46 million US Department of Energy grant come through.

The $46 million grant, expected to be announced by early 2011, would be shared between the University of Toledo and Dow Corning Corp. Earlier this year, two paired to form the Solar Valley Research Enterprise (SVRE), which submitted the grant application to the DOE with wide support from the two states' governors, Congressional rosters and private industry.

The grant would be part of $125 million in funds available though the DOE's Photovoltaics Manufacturing Initiative, which seeks to establish three national centers of expertise in the field by 2015.

Split evenly between the SVRE partners, half of the funds would be used to establish the Photovoltaics Manufacturing Initiative Center on the Toledo campus, separate from the Wright Center for Photovoltaics Innovation and Commercialization based there, but working in conjunction with it.

The Wright Center was created in 2007 and supports research and test locations located at the University of Toledo, Ohio State University and Bowling Green State University.

"I tell people the SVRE would be like the Wright Center on steroids," says Rick Stansley, co-director of the Wright Center and chairman of the UT Board of Trustees.

He estimates a direct impact of 800 jobs added to the area, and an indirect impact six or seven times as large.

The partnership has already received grants from both Ohio and Michigan, including a $3.5 million grant from Ohio Third Frontier. Along with the Ohio "node" of the SVRE, Stansley said the grant money would be used to set up a similar center in Midland, Mich., near the corporate headquarters of Dow.

Both sites would work with a cluster of private companies, government labs and universities to further solar cell development, making it more competitive with traditional energy sources. The centers would also help guide new solar panel start-ups in the northwest Ohio-southern Michigan area.

Source: Rick Stansley, Wright Center for Photovoltaics
Writer: Dave Malaska

Entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, service providers, educators and others will converge on the Hilton Garden Inn in Perrysburg next week for Venture Tech -- a series of events designed to support Ohio startups.

Sponsored by the Toledo-based Regional Growth Partnership (RGP), three events -- Venture Fair, Tech Connect, and Business Acceleration Tracks -- are all aimed at connecting entrepreneurs and those hoping to launch new business ideas with resources that can help them.

The Venture Fair on Wednesday will include a full day of exhibitor tables, networking opportunities, and panels, according to the RGP. Question-and-answer sessions with venture capitalists and successful CEO entrepreneurs, sessions focused on venture capital for biosciences and alternative energy and discussions on Ohio's capital ecosystem are included.

That evening, the RGP will host Tech Connect, which it describes as "a casual networking event which offers attendees the chance to meet the 'right people' to help launch their business idea. "

On Thursday, Venture Tech will offer what it calls Business Acceleration Tracks, designed to provide information about taking innovative high-tech business ideas to the next level. The half-day session is designed to "help attendees learn how to identify critical issues regarding their business plan and discover keys to planning, launching, and operating a high-growth business."

Tracks will focus on attracting capital through a strong business plan, business plan execution, bootstrapping strategies, government funding opportunities, venture capital and angel funding basics and how to develop relationships and present to such investors.

For more information and to register, go to www.rocketventures.org

Source: Regional Growth Partnership
Writer: Gene Monteith

It's uncertain how many Americans are playing console games for money. But with nearly 70 such games hooked to the Internet in North America, Beyond Gaming hopes to tap into at least 30,000 players within its first month.

The concept is simple: provide a site through which members can play console game tournaments for fun � no membership fee � or for stakes � $7.95.

Because the Toledo company takes no cut of the winnings, and because console games are considered games of skill, the service is legal, says President and CEO Tony Legeza.

Legeza and co-founder Justin Yamek, himself a competitive console gamer, came up with the idea after Yamek qualified for a west coast tournament last year but couldn't scrape together the funds to fly to LA.

Instead, they asked, why not build a Web-based service that allows gamers to connect with others, organize tournaments, and build relationships through a robust social media component?

The service was launched earlier this year as a closed beta site with 500 players, but quickly picked up an additional 500 after going public a little more than two weeks ago, Legeza says.

"When you go on the site you create a profile, you've got your friends and your wall that you can communicate with," Legeza says. "We've got different chat rooms and video chat rooms where you can share video and let other people watch you play in a competition. People have a space to come to where they can start communicating about something they're passionate about, share their experiences, provide content, upload photos, share video content."

The company had early help from Rocket Ventures, which invested an initial $100,000, and angel funding of more than $100,000. The company is in the midst of a $500,000 venture capital round as well.

Beyond Gaming currently has four employees.

Source: Tony Legeza, Beyond Gaming
Writer: Gene Monteith

Founded in 1995, Dovetail Solar and Wind began modestly, installing solar systems for rural-Ohio residents seeking to go off-the-grid. Solar panels were incredibly expensive � but still a substantial savings for many who could not afford to have a utility company run power to their homes.

A little federal and state legislation changed everything. For the better.

"Prior to 2006, it was almost all residential," says Dovetail vice president Alan Frasz. "The (Energy Policy Act of 2005) offered a 30 percent tax credit. Businesses took notice."

Then, a second tremendous boost for the company, Frasz says, came from the renewable portfolio standard bill that Ohio approved in 2008, requiring 25 percent of the state's energy to be generated from alternative and renewable sources.

"We doubled our business," he adds. "We've been growing quite a bit in the last in few years."

A member of the University of Toledo Clean and Alternative Energy Incubator, Dovetail now provides energy systems for solar electric, solar thermal and wind � and has installed 175 systems such across Ohio and its neighboring states.

"We expect to finish the year between six and seven millions dollars in sales," Frasz says. "In a worldwide economy, the beauty of renewable energy is that the wind and sun are free. They don't put out any pollution � and renewable energy creates clean, green jobs in Ohio, as opposed to other places."

There are now offices in all corners of Ohio: Athens, Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati. In 2006, there were just a handful of people employed with the company. There are now 32 full time employees, but Frasz says that number could hit 50 by the end of 2011.

"Rather than having this money going out of the state and burning in a smoke-stack, let's take some of that and put it into renewable energy," Frasz says.

Source: Alan Frasz, Dovetail Solar
Writer: Colin McEwen

Chris Melkonian, the CEO and founder of Midwest MicroDevices, says if you don't know too much about micro-electro mechanical systems, that's OK. He thinks you will soon enough.

The downtown-Toledo-based company has continued to grow at a steady pace since its founding in 2004. Melkonian says Midwest's niche is a new and emerging MEMs market, focusing on unusual materials and incredibly tiny wafers � but the company can just about do it all.

There are a dozen employees at Midwest MicroDevices. Most of them suit up head-to-toe in a "bunny suit" in what's known as a clean room. These employees work on devices often smaller than a human hair (think miniscule sensor of a car's airbag).

"You won't find too many companies doing the kind of hi-tech work we're doing here in Northwest Ohio," Melkonian says. "I am very proud of that."

The company has received a healthy dose of support from area and state institutions. Melkonian and Co. are graduates of the Regional Growth Partnership, which offered support, marketing and financing. The Ohio Department of Development provided an Ohio Innovation Loan to the company. The University of Toledo's Science, Technology and Innovation Enterprises have also partnered with the startup. "We've gotten a lot of support from University of Toledo," he says. "We collaborate with professors, we select students for internships and we hire graduates."

Melkonian says he hopes to considerably ramp up business in the next couple of years, adding two more shifts and as many as 10 skilled positions.

"I started a startup company at possibly one of the worst times you can," he says. "If the economy can start to turn around, and as we add more business, we'll definitely have a real jump in employees."

Source: Chris Melkonian, Midwest MicroDevices 
Writer: Colin McEwen

A solar array gathers sunlight for electricity. But something has to convert that energy from direct current to alternating current before it can be fed into an electric power grid. Toledo-based Nextronex Power Systems says it has come up with a simpler and more efficient way of doing that..

Nextronex's target customers are utility-size solar installations. While competition is stiff, Peter Gerhardinger, the company's chief technology officer, says Nextronex has an advantage over suppliers that provide only inverters -- the box that converts DC to AC.
 
"They rely on the integrator to determine how he's going to wire it, how he's going to lay it out. And so there's spawned a whole lot of intermediate type products," he says. "We took a fresh approach and, based on customer feedback, decided there's a need for a wiring kit that is not only the inverter, but that combines all the switch gear, all the fusing, all the monitoring into an easy-to-assemble system."

The resulting cabinet is smaller than most in the industry, he says, and can be easily installed. Not just that, but rather than relying on only one big inverter, the Nextronex system uses multiple inverters that switch on and off as energy from the sun ebbs and flows during the day, resulting in less loss of power than typical one-box systems.

Nextronex's system is in use currently at the 180th Air National Guard base in Toledo and at a site in Roswell New Mexico, with another three projects nearing implementation. The company has received $1.4 million local investments, including those from the Science, Technology and Innovation Enterprises and Rocket Ventures, the venture capital arm of the Regional Growth Partnership.

The company was formed in 2008 and currently employs 10, says company founder James Olzak. But Olczak says Netronex expects to have "greater than several dozen people next year at this time."

Sources: James Olzak, Peter Gerhardinger and Scott Thompson, Nextronex
Writer: Gene Monteith

Muscles and money have joined forces in Toledo to create a success story with a company named Turning Point.

Turning Point's CEO, F. Alan Schultheis invented an exercise conditioning machine � the Core Trainer � and received important input from University of Toledo Engineering Professor Vijay K. Goel, Ph.D., in designing the final, working model.

That local help prompted Schulteheis to establish Turning Point in Toledo rather than in his home base of Connecticut.

Schultheis named his machine the Core Trainer because it conditions 28 muscles, as well as numerous tendons and ligaments. Turning Point recently received a $50,000 initial grant to design and refine the prototype, as well as an additional $450,000 to market and develop the equipment. The grants are from Rocket Ventures, the venture capital program of Toledo's Regional Growth Partnership.

Even though Schulteis will be returning to Connecticut, Turning Point now has an advisory board as well as a board of directors and will remain and grow in Toledo. According to Greg Knudson, vice president with Toledo's Regional Growth Partnership, the city's Lockery Manufacturing will manufacture the machine, and local Pinnacle Technologies is making its electronics parts.

Turning Point is gearing up to produce two models of the Core Trainer this fall � a professional model for approximately $1,000 and a consumer model for $600.

Goiel, PhD., is now the company's vice president of Research and Development.

Source: Turning Point and Greg Knudson, Regional Growth Partnership
Writer: Lynne Meyer

"Be prepared."

That's what Seavival tells its customers. And, in a tough economy, it's a lesson the Toledo-based emergency equipment company has learned for itself.

The company has developed a patented first-response kit that has attracted quite the attention. If a contract with the U.S. military is approved, it could mean an additional 100 jobs for Northwest Ohio.

It's been slow road to success, says Seavival CEO Brian Friedman. He has dedicated more than 40 years to emergency medical kits, starting while in high school as a hospital volunteer in Miami, Fla.

Today, the company is on the brink of massive growth. "(The military contract) could be a potentially big thing for us," he says.

There's good reason for Friedman's enthusiasm. The company's staple product, The Professional, can hold up to 1,800 cubic inches � and can be mounted on a vehicle (including a motorcycle) or used as a backpack. He says there's a big demand for such a product. The other portion of Seavival's business is selling the systems, or the contents of the emergency medical kits.

The five-year-old company currently employs only a few, but more positions may be added. Soon.

Seavival is now working with the Toledo Fire Department for testing and validation, Friedman says, adding that in addition to the military, customers might include marine and industrial organizations, as well as fire and rescue operations.

The company received some marketing and strategic assistance from the Regional Growth Partnership. Seavival has also recently partnered with the University of Toledo technology innovation group. The company also works with the international division of the Ohio Department of Development, seeking a customer base abroad.

"But we could use a lot more help," Friedman says. "Small companies like our ours are totally incapable of maintaining the cost of marketing for an international effort without help from the state."

Source: Brian Friedman
Writer: Colin McEwen

Imagine you have a chronic illness like diabetes (maybe you don't have to imagine). Now, imagine your next doctor's appointment. And imagine that instead of seeing the doctor first, you see an on-site pharmacist who evaluates the tests you've been given, asks you  questions and then walks with you to visit the doctor -- together.

Tim Schramko, president and CEO of Toledo-based Ceuticare, says that vision is exactly the kind of medical collaboration toward which his four-year-old company is working.

The Ceuticare scenario becomes possible under a set of proprietary algorithms developed by founders Allen Nichol and Kenneth Bachmann, Schramko says. Combined with a pharmacist's intimate knowledge of medications and access to a patient's complete medical profile, the data allow him or her to tell whether a chronically ill patient is following doctor's orders or fibbing. Few physicians are equipped with such tools and must base prescribing decisions on what the patient says -- which may or may not be accurate, Schramko says.

Ceuticare provides data for diabetes, blood lipids, hypertension, asthma, chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. While Schramko says "I haven't talked to one doctor yet who did not like it," he says a reluctance to change long-time business and office models has kept participation low.

He expects acceptance to rise with more education and as doctors become more attuned to the collaborative "medical home" concept promoted under the National Healthcare Reform Act. Schramko says one Ohio insurer has already perked up its ears based on the results of a small study that showed Ceuticare patients went to the hospital and the emergency room far less frequency than a control group -- whose costs rose 200 percent.

The five-employee company also has the attention of Rocket Ventures, which invested $175,000 in Ceuticare.

Source: Tim Schramko, Ceuticare
Writer: Gene Monteith

There's another solar player coming to Toledo. And it's making no secret of its big plans to shed additional light on the local economy.

California-based Sphere Renewable Energy Corp. has developed Buckeye Silicon at the University of Toledo with a blueprint to manufacture lots of polycrystalline-silicon production modules � poly-silicon is a critical ingredient in the production of solar panels.

BeSi's headquarters will be located on the UT campus, but the manufacturing facility will be situated on the UT Technology Corridor. Full-scale production is expected by the end of 2010 � and so is the addition of as many as 150 jobs within 18 months.

Mark Erickson, COO and senior vice president of Buckeye Silicon, says there are a few reasons the company decided to set up shop in Northwest Ohio. First he credits the solar industry already in place for making the area attractive and UT for being a leader in renewable energy research.

"Northwest Ohio was attractive because of our ability to tap into a skilled workforce," Erickson says. "Without too much training we're able to get skilled workers to operate our facility."

He also points to Toledo's geographic position -- a major interstate system, railway system and a deepwater port make the region attractive.

Erickson says cooperation between local businesses, higher education and the public sector in Ohio is unprecedented. The state has committed to giving BeSi $2.7 million in loans to get started. The Rocket Ventures client also received a $50,000 Rocket Ventures Ignite! grant.

Source: Mark Erickson, Buckeye Silicon
Writer: Colin McEwen

The prevention of tooth decay � rather than its treatment � is the drive behind Toledo-based Branam Oral Health Technologies. But it's the company's innovative line of products toward that goal that's getting all the attention.

Developed two years ago by Dr. Stephen R. Branam, a local dentist with a big idea and 30 years of experience, the company is poised to smile in the face of tooth decay nationwide.

"Treatment is of course reactive and impacts the healthcare system in a dramatic fashion � not to mention the health implications on the affected child," says Branam CEO Mick Janness.

By using Xylitol � a natural sweetener and a proven inhibitor of tooth decay � Branam has developed a suite of naturally formulated products giving children and their parents an alternative to the mass-marketed products currently on the shelves. Branam's line includes toothpaste, mouthwash, gum and mints � all free of detergents, artificial dyes, saccharin and fluoride.

Ortho-Gibby, Branam's orthodontic pacifier, is geared to cut out jaw deformities associated with traditional pacifiers. The Ortho-Gibby was designed to reduce pressure that causes ear infections while also promoting proper oral development.

The company shipped its first order of products in March and is expected to make millions in sales. Janness says the company's launch is now official.

With some financial backing from the Regional Growth Partnership, the company focused on research and development of the products. Branam received a $1million investment from the RGP and $250,000 grant from Rocket Ventures to launch the company.

Three people are currently employed with the company, but Janness says more people (in marketing, compliance and administration) will be hired within a year.

Source: Mick Janness, Branham Oral Health Technologies
Writer: Colin McEwen

Almost 2 million Americans suffer from pressure ulcers � also know as bed sores. And almost $1.3 billion is dedicated annually for that treatment. A new device capable of relieving chronic pain (with a lower price tag) is now a reality.

But it took a neighborhood of Ohio innovators in the state for the Valtronic Advanced Photobiotherapy Device to make it to the marketplace.

The Cleveland-based Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network (MAGNET) provided engineering expertise, patented the design and developed working prototypes; the University of Toledo's Department of Bioengineering developed the optical system; the UT College of Medicine conducted clinical trials. Valtronic Technologies USA , of Solon -- which specializes in medical industrial products -- handled commercialization, manufacture and distribution.

Greg Krizman, senior director of marketing for MAGNET, exudes pride while talking about the Valtronic Advanced Photobiotherapy Device.

He's also proud of MAGNET's role. "We're a one-stop shop for manufacturers who wish to grow their businesses," Krizman says. "Whatever people need to make their operations go faster, better and smarter, we have people to make that happen."

Krizman says one of the consequences of the recession is that companies have often been forced to lay off engineers. MAGNET serves companies with engineers on an "as-needed basis."

The partnership of organizations received some assistance from the Ohio Third Frontier initiative. About $1.3 million in assistance.

About 100 units have been sold to date. But those involved are optimistic about the product. Home care clinics and nursing homes are more likely to afford the portable device at $20,000 a unit � compared with the predecessor's $70,000 price tag.

Source: Greg Krizman, MAGNET
Writer: Colin McEwen

Arising from expertise within the glass industry and the abundance of cheap natural gas needed to melt silica for solar modules, the Toledo area has long been recognized for incubating advanced and alternative energy players.

In the thick of things has been the University of Toledo. So, it's only fitting that when it came time for the State of Ohio to establish a new Wright Center for Photovoltaics Innovation and Commercialization (PVIC), UT was a logical choice.

PVIC was founded in January 2007 with $18.6 million in Ohio Third Frontier funding and matching contributions of $30 million from federal agencies and university and industrial partners. The center -- which also has hubs Ohio State University, and Bowling Green State University -- has become a state of the art laboratory with three purposes, says Robert Collins, professor of physics and co-director of the PVIC: to help new companies commercialize their products, to help existing companies improve their products and expand product lines, and to build a large solar cluster in northwest Ohio.

The PVIC serves as both a testing ground for new applications and a resource for commercialization of those techniques. The center is now working with 30 companies from around the country -- including a start-up from Silicon Valley, Collins says.

The center has led the way in development of new thin-film technologies that can be produced more quickly and less expensively than traditional solar films. Meanwhile, UT is working on next-generation films using nanostructures, recently hiring two experts from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to lead the work.

Source: Robert Collins, University of Toledo
Writer: Gene Monteith