| Maine CED - CEE Bulletin
Maine
Center for Enterprise Development
Greetings! This
monthly bulletin is published by the Maine Center for Enterprise
Development (Maine CED) and the Center for Environmental Enterprise.
Please share this bulletin with your colleagues.
-- John Ferland,
Executive Director
Contents:
- Reception on Mon., 10/25 for 3 Graduating Companies
- Four Firms join the MCED Family
- Learn About Technology Licensing from the National Renewable
Energy Lab on Wed., 11/10
- Alternative Transporation - E2Tech Council Breakfast on
Thurs., 10/28
- Commercialization Voyage Seminar on Fri., 11/5
- MCED Lunch & Learn on SBIR Grants, Fri., 11/19
CEE Reception for Graduating Companies October 25, 3:30 - 6:00 pm, USM Glickman Library, Portland
"Celebration of Entrepreneurship & Innovation" will be
held at 3:30 on Monday, October 25 to recognize the achievements of
three graduating firms
*** BioAnalyte, Inc.***
*** CAPE
Technologies, LLC ***
*** Dr. Alex Waldrop ***
Dr. Jack Trifts, Dean of the USM School of Business will lead the
graduation program. Dr. Janet Yancey- Wrona, Director of Innovation
at DECD and former Director of the Maine Technology Institute will
also speak. Other participants include Senator Lynn Bromley (a
member of the legislature's Business & Economic Development
Committee), South Portland City Manager Jeff Jordan, and Bill Vail
from the office of US Senator Susan Collins.
As part of the graduation program, the owners of the three firms
will speak about their experiences at the Center and their future
directions. Dr. Peter Leopold, of BioAnalyte, will discuss his
software, which is used by medical researchers and others to better
interpret mass spectrometry data. Dr. Bob Harrison's firm, CAPE
Technologies, has created a fast, low-cost, immunoassay-based test
kit for identifying dioxin and PCBs in soil and water. Dr. Alex
Waldrop produced a system that uses chemiluminescence for
determining the presence of compounds important for medical and
environmental purposes.
The graduation program is sponsored by Capricorn Products, Enzo
Biochem, Peoples Heritage Bank, Worthing & Going, CPAs, and the
USM School of Business. Refreshments will be provided. Please
pre-register by sending an email to John.Ferland@ceemaine.org.
Four Firms Join the MCED Family
Purist Energy, LLC, is moving into the Center in October as a
new tenant firm. Purist Energy of Kennebunkport received a MTI Seed
Grant earlier this year to finance R&D toward commercialization
of Solar Thermal Pumping Stations. Four prototype units will utilize
the latest technology in a uniquely all inclusive appliance,
simplifying the installation of solar thermal systems for
conventional trades and making an effective renewable energy product
affordable for consumers. The principals are Dana Fischer and Mike
Metcalfe.
Apple Acres Farm of South Hiram is joining our family as an off-
site MCED affiliate. Apple Acres was a traditional orchard, and
during the last five years it has diversified by manufacturing
value-added apple products. It has received MTI and SBIR funding to
support R&D on using Maine apples for manufacturing a nationally
marketed cider syrup. Representing Apple Acres with MCED are Johanna
Johnson-Corwin and Melissa Ann White.
COI Renewable Energy of South Portland has also joined as a MCED
affiliate. A member of the Environmental and Energy Technonolgy
Council of Maine, the firm is developing wind power applications for
industrial facilities. The principals are Mark Mayes and Bruce
McCracken.
CrossRate Technology was started at the Drexel University
business incubator in Pennsylvania, and it is becoming a MCED
affiliate. Zach Connover, the principal of the firm, is an Islesboro
native. In his last posting with the US Coast Guard, he ran
configuration management for the $256M North American Loran System,
including testing, fielding and supporting all equipment and
systems. The firm is developing an integrated GIS/LORAN reciever,
and it is relocating to Maine.
MCED tenants have office/lab space a the Center and receive a
variety of services through the Center, including one-on-one
professional consulting services from on-site and off-site experts.
For more information, please call John Ferland at 767- 4302.
Learn About Technology Licensing from the National Renewable
Energy Lab Workshop: 8:30-2:00 on November 10 at USM Glickman Library,
Portland
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is holding a
workshop on Wednesday November 10, on how Maine companies and
entrepreneurs can form licensing agreements with NREL in order to
commercialize NREL-created technology.
NREL, operated by the U.S. Department of Energy, leads the
nation's efforts to secure an environmentally and economically
sustainable future. Part of NREL's mission is to transfer
technologies developed at the lab into the marketplace, thereby
promoting entrepreneurial commercialization of clean, efficient and
sustainable energy options (see www.nrel.gov).
This is a great opportunity for entrepreneurs interested in
entering the renewable energy marketplace and for existing firms to
expand their product lines. The event will be from 8:30-2:00 in the
7th Floor Conference Center at the Glickman Library. For more
information, please click at the website link below.
The MCED Workshops are sponsored by:
- College of Engineering, Univ. of Maine-Orono
- Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer & Nelson
- Maine State Energy Program
- Corporate Finance Associates
- Maine Technology Institute
- USM, School of Business
Environmental & Energy Tech Council Breakfasts
Programs 7:30 to 9:00 am at the Gilsland Farm Audubon Center,
Falmouth
October 28 - "Alternative Transportation" This panel
format forum will include John Engler from the Northeast Passenger
Rail Authority and, Steven Linnell from Maine Clean Communities
(MC2). This panel will focus on alternative travel and
transportation issues as they impact Maine's changing commuter
dynamic.
November 18 - "Janet Yancey-Wrona and our Annual Meeting"
Dr. Yancey-Wrona was recently appointed as Maine's first Director of
Innovation, reporting to Commissioner Jack Cashman in the Department
of Economic and Community Development. Formerly the director of the
Maine Technology Institute, Dr. Yancey-Wrona will advise the
Baldacci Administration on policies relating to science, research
& development and innovation, and oversee the state's management
of MTI, the Applied Technology Development Centers, and partnerships
involving the university system and non- profit laboratories.
In
addition to a keynote address by Dr. Yancey- Wrona, we will have a
brief business meeting focusing on approval of a slate of directors,
delivery of an annual report and an outline of plans for 2005.
December 16 - "Steve Davis, director of the Maine DEP
Bureau of Remediation and Waste Management" This Bureau directs the
cleanup or mitigation of adverse effects associated with
uncontrolled hazardous substance sites; responds to discharges or
spills of oil products or hazardous matter; manages the generation,
transport, storage, treatment or disposal of hazardous wastes,
hazardous substances, petroleum products and biomedical waste;
administers the solid waste facility licensing program, the asbestos
abatement and lead abatement programs, and the sludge and residuals
landspreading program.
Please register early for these popular forums. If you
have not yet registered or paid as an E2Tech Council Member, the
event will cost $15. Admission for E2Tech Council Members is $5.
Payment can be made at the door the day of the event. To register
for the event, please email John Rooks at jrooks@rookscom.com. To
become a member or sponsor of the council, please contact John
Ferland at john.ferland@ceemaine.org
Commercialization Voyage Seminar Friday, November 5, 9:30-3:30 at USM, 68 High St, Portland
Imagine an innovation so powerful it will revolutionize human
travel, open new worlds, save thousands of lives and give dominion
to your country. Now imagine this innovation is yours. Is it worth
your life to bring it to market?
The MCED/CEE is sponsoring this seminar, which is a story of
human achievement and technology commercialization. Join us for the
interactive and entertaining instruction on the commercialization
process that conveys the passion and peril of getting innovations to
market. We use the real life story of John Harrison who created the
navigational clock as a back drop to the presentation.
Presented by Patrick Martin, a recognized expert in technology
commercialization and actively involved in bringing innovations to
market. He is currently a technology transfer and commercialization
project manager with the Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership.
Other sponsors for the program are the Maine Small Business
Technology Development Center, Maine Manufacturing Extension
Partnership, Maine Technology Institute, and Target Technology
Incubator. Funding for development of the Commercialization Voyage
workshop was provided by Coastal County Workforce Investment Board.
The cost is $25, which includes your lunch. Space is limited, so
please pre- register by contacting Sarah at 207-780-4420 or by
email: sarahp@maine.edu.
Lunch & Learn on November 19 - SBIR Grants
The Lunch & Learns are held at the Center, 3 Adams
Street, South Portland. About 20-30 business leaders attended the
September and October Lunch & Learns, and we look forward to
your participation. To register, please send an email with your name
and address to John.Ferland@ceemaine.org
November 19 - "How Do I Win A Federal SBIR/STTR Award?"
Lunch & learn with Karen West Morgan of C & P Management
Services.
In the last two years 29 Maine companies have received
over $3.2 million from the federal government for research and
development leading to commercialization of new products. Wouldn't
you like to be an award winner, too? Come learn the basics about the
federal government's Small Business Innovation Research and Small
Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) grant program. SBIR/STTR
funds the critical startup and development stages and it encourages
the commercialization of the technology, product, or service, which,
in turn, stimulates the U.S. economy.
December 17 - "Developing a Team for Your Success!" Lunch
& Learn with Meriby Sweet of the Maine SBTDC
You may have the
latest and greatest technology. You have identified strong market
potential. The key question is: Do you have the right people in
place to commercialize that technology successfully? The individual
who developed the technology is unlikely to be the individual who
can successfully get it to market. Investors, especially, say, "Bet
on the jockey, not on the horse." They like to see "jockeys" on
management teams with a track record of successful
commercialization. If you aren't that jockey what are your options?
This seminar discussed assessing the strengths and weaknesses of
your team, and developing solutions for building a team that will
lead your company across the finish line to commercial success!
Get Involved in MCED/CEE Programs We
are here to help you be more productive and profitable
Our job is help new and young firms commercialize
technologies by systematically assisting businesses with
intellectual property and business plan needs, R&D activities,
early stage financing and product commercialization.
Our off-site clients receive advice, contacts and other services,
and our on-site clients benefit from more intensive attention and
additional programs - including having work space outside of the
owner's home. Our incubator in South Portland currently has offices
and research labs available for rent, and more space will be
available this fall after additional graduations.
For information on renting space or becoming an affiliated firm,
please contact John Ferland at John.Ferland@ceemaine.org
or call him at 207- 767-4306 x102.
Onsite Incubator Tenants and Selected Maine CED Clients
Successful Incubator Graduates
Financial Partners: 2004
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