Technology based news from around the state - and the world!

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode features an interview with Bryan Renk, executive director of BioForward. Plus, we have the mid-August Wisconsin stock report and Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, talks about the first human clinical trial involving embryonic stem cells.  

Click here to see the show produced by Tweedee Productions.

Robert W. Baird & Co.'s private equity division and Brookfield-based Hammes Co., which develops health care facilities, are looking to invest together in young companies involved in health care information technology, medical billing and related areas, said Aaron R. Lillybridge, a principal with Baird Capital Partners, at Thursday's WIN-Milwaukee event in Wauwatosa.

Read more from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel here.

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode features an interview with Greg Piefer, president of Phoenix Nuclear. Plus, we have the early August Wisconsin stock report and Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, talks about the Tech Council’s recommendations for stimulating the Wisconsin economy.

Click here to watch the latest episode.

Romke de Haan, co-chair of the 2010 Wisconsin Technology Council was recently hired as president of Spreenkler Creative in Milwaukee. 

Spreenkler Creative is a creative marketing development firm that hires students to do client work, giving students real world experience.  Spreenkler was featured in the BizTimes.com article: "10 people who are changing Milwaukee."  Read the full article here.

MADISON – Eleven early stage companies from Wisconsin will make presentations and meet with key people from federal agencies on Aug. 11 at the fourth annual Resource Rendezvous.

Even in tough economic times, Wisconsin tech-based firms are attracting investors, finding partners and moving their products and services to market. Read on for a round-up of recent company news.

Please watch the late July edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode features an interview with Jeff Madden, construction executive for Mortenson Construction. Plus, we have the late July Wisconsin stock report and Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, talks about petaflops, teraflops and exaflops and why there’s a Wisconsin connection.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Click here to read a Business Journal story about the purchase of a western Wisconsin medical device company, Contour Plastics, by a Swedish firm. In a statement, the president of Nolato Group's medical business area said “this acquisition will give us a presence in the region from Minneapolis to Chicago, one of four key American medical technology clusters.”

MADISON – Companies and researchers in Wisconsin and beyond will learn how to tap into the technology portfolios of the U.S. Agricultural Research Service on Aug. 11 during the fourth annual “Resource Rendezvous.”

ASHLAND WI – The 2010 Lake Superior Business and Technology Conference, a regional event focusing on “Fostering Entrepreneurship in the Lake Superior Region” will be held from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm Thursday, August 5 at Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College, 2100 Beaser Avenue.

Early stage companies in Wisconsin and beyond will learn how to increase their chance of receiving federal grant dollars on Aug. 11 during the fourth annual “Resource Rendezvous.”

MADISON – Nelson Auner, who graduated in June from Madison East High School, is the Grand Prize winner in the second Dane County YES! youth business plan contest, producers announced Tuesday.

The latest on high-speed rail plans, from equipment to ridership to stations, was illustrated by two Wisconsin Department of Transportation experts during the Thursday, July 8 meeting of the Wisconsin Innovation Network in Wauwatosa.

Watch the presentation recorded by WisconsinEye here.

MADISON – Improving access to investment capital for entrepreneurs, building a more educated workforce, creating a stronger business climate and speeding technology from the lab to the marketplace are major themes of the Wisconsin Technology Council’s 2010-2011 “white papers” report. To read the full report, visit:  http://www.wisconsintechnologycouncil.com/publications/white_papers/

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode features an interview with Lee Edwards, CEO of Virent Energy Systems who talks about alternative energy sources and Virent’s recent investment round, plus the Wisconsin stock report with Liz Schrum and commentary about the business case for sustainability from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Even in tough economic times, Wisconsin tech-based firms are attracting investors, finding partners and moving their products and services to market. Here is a round-up of recent company news.

MADISON – Federal agencies that are among the biggest buyers of outside research and development will be represented at the fourth annual “Resource Rendezvous.”

The event, produced by the Wisconsin Security Research Consortium, the Wisconsin Technology Council and the UW-Madison College of Engineering, will be held 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 11 at the UW-Madison College of Engineering, 1415 Engineering Drive.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Please watch the mid June edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode features an interview with Jim Haney, who's retiring from his leadership position with Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce after more than a quarter century at the helm, plus the Wisconsin stock with Liz Schrum and commentary about entrepreneurs from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

MADISON – Wisconsin will be represented June 21-24 at TechConnect World, the world’s largest co-located nanotechnology and “cleantech” conference, through an exhibit produced by the Wisconsin Technology Council and Forward Wisconsin.

In its 13^th year, TechConnect World is hosted by the Nano Science and Technology Institute and is expected to attract more than 5,000 visitors. Wisconsin will be among 350 exhibitors at the conference, to be held at the Anaheim (Calif.) Convention Center.

Click on the links below to read and view news coverage and video of the 2010 Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference, which was held June 8-9 at The Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee.

On Tuesday, at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference, Bill Linton, founder of Promega, received the Ken Hendricks Memorial "Seize the Day" award for vision, courage and other attributes involved in building a biotechnology company that helped lay a foundation for many Wisconsin firms that followed.

Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

Scores of entrepreneurs submit ideas to business-plan competitions hoping to win cash and prizes. But plenty walk away from these contests as cash-strapped as they came, leaving the question of whether it was worth their time and energy. 

Read more from the Wall Street Journal here.

MILWAUKEE – LIVEyearbook, a start-up company that is turning a new page on an iconic institution – the school yearbook – is the Grand Prize winner in the 2010 Governor’s Business Plan Contest. The company has won $50,000 in cash and services.

Read more on LIVEyearbook and other place winners from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

Young Wisconsin companies pulled in less funding in 2009 than in the previous year, but angel investing networks and funds were more active, the Wisconsin Angel Network said Friday.

Early-stage investors overall put $73.2 million into state companies last year, down from the $99 million invested in 2008, said Joe Kremer, director of the network, a program of the Wisconsin Technology Council.  Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

Click here to watch the latest episode of "WisBusiness: The Show," a twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues.

This episode features an interview with Joe Kremer, director of the Wisconsin Angel Network. It also has the Wisconsin stock report for late May and commentary on animal research from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still.

Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still will join host Joy Cardin and guest Peg Lautenschlager, a former Wisconsin attorney general, 8 a.m. Friday, May 28 on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Week in Review." Still is a regular guest on the show, which airs on WPR's Ideas Network statewide. To learn more or listen to this or past shows:

http://www.wpr.org/webcasting/audioarchives_display.cfm?Code=jca

A talented line-up of entrepreneurs, investors and other start-up business experts will be featured in nearly 20 and panel discussions at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference, June 8-9, 2010, in Milwaukee.

The federal Internal Revenue Services has released additional guidance regarding the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Tax Credit. Here are key updates released May 19 by the IRS:

If an Appleton area start-up has its way, the yearbook, a time-bound high school tradition, will go digital.

Liveyearbook Inc., one of 25 finalists in the Governor's Business Plan Contest, plans to begin a pilot project in September where 20 to 30 schools will use the company's Web-based platform to produce more dynamic yearbooks for the Facebook generation.  Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

The Top 12 finalists in the Governor's Business Plan Contest will be announced in the coming weeks.  They will compete with live presentations June 8 at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference in Milwaukee for the contest's grand prize of $50,000.

The latest episode of "WisBusiness: The Show" features an interview with Charlie Hoslet, managing director of the Office of Corporate Relations at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The show also features the WisBusiness news "stock report" for mid-May and a commentary by Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still on the challenges -- and opportunities -- facing the nation's biotech industry.

Click here to view "The Show," produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

MILWAUKEE – Two serial entrepreneurs and a veteran investor who now advises angel capitalists as well as major tech transfer centers will speak during the 2010 Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference in Milwaukee.

Please watch the late April edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary about market forces and clean energy from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and Dr. Sang Kim, executive director of the Morgridge Institute for Research, describes how this unique institute will help push health-care innovations out of the lab and into action. 

Click here see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Follow the activities of Wisconsin’s delegation to the 2010 BIO International Convention in Chicago through the WisBusiness.com BIO Blog.  The May 3-6 BIO International Convention is the largest global event in the biotechnology industry, attracting up to 22,000 people from around the world.

The 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (commonly referred to as the Health Reform Bill) has created a program of tax credits and tax-free grants to qualifying biotech firms. The program is designed to offer significant and near-immediate benefits to firms who have recently undertaken, or are on the verge of, project-specific biotech investments. If approved, a company will receive a tax credit or grant in the amount of 50% of qualified investments. However, the total amount of money available is capped at $1 billion – meaning companies need to apply for credits, and those acting quickly are most likely to be rewarded.

Please click here to read more and view a full-text version of this article provided by Michael Best & Friedrich LLP.

Please watch the mid-April edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary about efforts to build the I-Q Corridor in the upper Midwest from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and Katina Kravik, CEO of Northwire, Inc., discusses the economy in Western Wisconsin and the need for an educated workforce.

Click here see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

In 2009, more than 600 high-tech companies earned $6 billion in annual sales/revenue and/or government awards that generated more than 30,500 jobs in the Madison area.

These findings, part of a survey conducted by Madison Gas and Electric, are found in the 2010 Greater Madison, Wisconsin Area Directory of High-Tech Companies.

The directory lists more than 600 firms (483 high-tech businesses profiled in the directory) with reported combined revenues of more than $6 billion and provides descriptions, operating statistics and more for hundreds of area high-tech firms.
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Inspired by his solution for one of the computer industry's biggest problems, University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Guri Sohi decided to pursue a strategy that's gaining popularity in Wisconsin's academic circles: starting a company.

It's not up and running yet, but Sohi says he's deep into the details of a developing a business plan for the firm.  Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

Sohi is one of 21 finalists competing in the Wisconsin Governor's Business Plan Contest. 

Please watch the early April edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary about Wisconsin’s “Race to the Top” for education excellence from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and Shawn Guse, CEO of Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation, talks with us about revolutions in radiation therapy and what it means to the medical work.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

MADISON – Twenty-one entries from 10 communities are competing in the finalist round of the seventh annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest.

The contestants have survived two rounds of judging in the contest organized through the Wisconsin Technology Council, which produces the contest in conjunction with the Wisconsin Innovation Network, the Wisconsin Angel Network and other statewide affiliates. The contest began in late January with 284 entries.

For as long as people can remember, traditional retail stores have connected consumers with manufacturers. However, if this hierarchy was intact today, perhaps Brian Wiegand, co-founder and CEO of Alice.com, would not have had a reason to create a web-based business which, in its first six months, has grown faster than Netflix or Amazon.

Please watch the mid-March edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary about the new math of job creation from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and serial entrepreneur Kelly Fitzsimmons rates the state’s start-up climate.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Milwaukee has an abundance of physical space, but not enough shared cyberspace to compete with tech-oriented areas such as California, China, Germany, Ireland and Singapore, according to organizers of a proposed data center in the Menomonee Valley. 

Click here to read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel about plans for a proposed Menomonee Valley data center discussed at Thursday's WIN-Milwaukee meeting in Brookfield.

Click here to read a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel story about the rise of technology parks in the Madison area and how the Milwaukee region has the potential for similar start-up launching pads.

Cellular Dynamics International has raised $40.6 million, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It had previously announced an $18 million round in late 2008. Click here to read a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel story.

Please watch the early February edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary about why high-speed rail is a fast track to economic development for the state from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and Bill Malkasian, president of the Wisconsin Realtors Association talks about the state of Wisconsin’s real estate market.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Upcoming guests include Commerce Secretary Dick Leinenkugel; Kelly Fitzsimmons, founder of Harqen; and Shawn Guse, CEO of

Compact Particle Acceleration Corporation, a spinout of TomoTherapy Inc.

Wisconsin will receive $810 million to build a high-speed rail line carrying passengers between Milwaukee and Madison, it was announced late Wednesday. The line, which will improve existing Milwaukee-Chicago service and extend it to Madison, could be up and running as early as 2013. Service could eventually extend from Madison to the Twin Cities.

The Wisconsin Technology Council has long endorsed the notion of high-speed rail in the I-Q Corridor. Click here to read a Wisconsin State Journal story.

Madison, Wisconsin-based Virent Energy Systems ranked #21 on the Biofuels Digest list of 50 hottest companies in bioenergy for 2009-2010. The list salutes innovation and achievement in bioenergy development. Virent's BioForming process is a recognized leader in advanced biofuels technologies. The company's technology converts abundant plant sugars from non-food and home grown sources into gasoline, jet fuel and diesel hydrocarbon molecules previously refined only from petroleum.

Commerce Secretary Richard Leinenkugel visited River Falls Jan. 28 to announce $108,000 in economic development tax credits awarded to NELA Ternes Register Group, a company that moved its U.S. headquarters in summer 2009 from Minnesota to the Whitetail Ridge Corporate Park in River Falls.

John Neis, managing director of Venture Investors LLC and a member of the Wisconsin Technology Council board of directors, was one of three people honored by Madison magazine through its 2010 "Best of Madison Business" awards. Neis won the Brian D. Howell Award for Excellence in Innovation, named for the magazine's late editor. As the magazine noted in its January edition, "Neis is widely respected for his skill, his knowledge and his style." Neis has been honored in the past by Forbes magazine as one of the world's top 100 dealmakers.

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, a report on Wisconsin's efforts to build the supply of venture capital from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and an interview with Rod Hise, president of the Luminis Group and one of the partners in the quarterly WisBusiness.com Tech Leaders Survey. Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Even in tough economic times, Wisconsin tech-based firms are attracting investors, finding partners and moving their products and services to market. Here is a round-up of recent company news.

Milwaukee-based ZBB Energy Corp. has appointed Eric Apfelbach as its president and chief executive officer and a member of its board of directors. Apfelbach is a member of the Wisconsin Technology Council board of directors.

ZBB Energy Corp. provides clean energy storage solutions based on proprietary zinc rechargeable energy storage technology that addresses requirements in multiple markets such as alternative energy applications, large electrical utilities and green residential and commercial architecture.

"I am very excited to have the opportunity to lead ZBB and to help the company achieve its plans for growth,” Apfelbach said. “The distributed renewable energy industry cannot scale without cost effective energy storage and power management solutions. I believe ZBB's products will address these needs."
 
Paul Koeppe, interim CEO of ZBB and chairman of the search committee of the company’s board of directors, added: "I believe that Eric's background is a perfect fit for ZBB. His past leadership of high tech companies has been a great proving ground for stepping into the CEO role at ZBB. I am delighted with his decision to join us."
 
Most recently, Apfelbach led Virent Energy Systems Inc., a catalytic biofuels company. Before Virent, Apfelbach co-founded Alfalight Inc.

To learn more about zinc bromide technologies, click here to read a story from Green Energy News.

Technology industry executives who responded to the fourth-quarter WisBusiness.com Tech Leaders Survey continued to temper how they rated the condition of the state’s economy – even as they ranked the prospects for their own companies as good.

The licensing director at one of the country's biggest academic technology transfer offices has left to become general counsel at Promega Corp. Craig Christianson's last day at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation was Friday, said Janet Kelly, a WARF spokeswoman.  Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

AquaMost LLC and a Pennsylvania environmental remediation company, Encotech Inc., said Tuesday they have received a $100,000 federal innovation grant to develop an advanced water purification device. Read more in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here. Aquamost was a finalist in the 2009 Wisconsin Governor's Business Plan Contest.  To learn more and enter the 2010 contest, click here.

Alice.com said Tuesday morning it is launching a new service that gives makers of toothpaste, toilet paper and other consumer packaged goods a way to create their own Internet storefront. The storefronts deliver a "learning lab of consumer data and insights" and allow consumers to make their purchases from multiple makers in a single transaction, Alice.com said in a news release. Read more from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel here.

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues. This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, a 2010 trends-to-watch commentary from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and an interview with Kurt Bauer, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Bankers Association. Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

By Tom Still
Good riddance to 2009, a bruising year for the Wisconsin and national economies; welcome to 2010, which can hardly be more punishing – and which may even bring renewed vigor to the innovation economy. Here are 10 trends to watch in 2010:

Please watch the latest edition of "WisBusiness: The Show,'' the twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues.

This episode includes the Wisconsin Stock Report with Liz Schrum, commentary from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still, and an interview with Teresa Esser, managing director of Silicon Pastures. Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Productions of Madison.

Here is a Dec. 14 news story in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on SB-409, the Connecting Opportunities, Research and Entrepreneurship bill.

By Kathleen Gallagher
Democratic legislators call it a $15 million economic growth package that will create jobs around the state.

Republicans such as Sen. Glenn Grothman (R-West Bend) call it an effort that might look good on campaign literature but doesn't address the magnitude of the state's problems.

Democratic state legislators plan to hold hearings, possibly as soon as next week, on a proposed $15 million economic growth package that would bulk up Wisconsin's angel investing tax credits, better connect businesses with university research, and include other measures to rebuild the state's economy. Click here to read a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel story.

Three very young companies, all from outside Wisconsin, won the fifth annual Elevator Pitch Olympics Wednesday at the Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium. Read more about this rapid-fire event here in a story by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, and here in the Wisconsin State Journal.

From fantasy sports software to advanced washroom technology, from drugs to treat alcohol addiction to high-tech running shoes. Those are among the products being pitched by young companies to potential investors at the Early Stage Symposium at Monona Terrace.  Read more from The State Journal here.

MADISON – The co-founder of Garage Technology Ventures will discuss the “Top 10 mistakes made in business plans” in a keynote speech at the Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium, to be held Nov. 10-11 at Madison’s Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center.

Welcome to the debut of ``WisBusiness: The Show,'' a new twice-a-month Web show covering state business news and issues.

Today's show features the WisBusiness.com stock report, a commentary from Wisconsin Technology Council President Tom Still on Minnesota's case of ``tech envy,'' and an interview with Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce President Jim Haney on the state's competitive future.

Click here to see the show, produced by Tweedee Media of Madison: http://wisbusiness.com/index.iml?Article=173847