The National Business Incubation Association (NBIA) named Ben Franklin TechVentures®the 2012 Randall M. Whaley National Incubator of the Year on May 8 at NBIA’s International Conference on Business Incubation in Atlanta. Ben Franklin TechVentures also won the Dinah Adkins Incubator of the Year, Technology Focus at the NBIA event. Ben Franklin TechVentures is owned and managed by the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) on Lehigh University’s Mountaintop Campus in Bethlehem, PA. 

Ben Franklin TechVentures provides a high-energy and professional environment in which to facilitate connections between early-stage technology firms and the funding, people, technology, colleges and universities, and other resources they need to prosper. Since 1983, the program has been fueling economic growth throughout northeastern Pennsylvania and has graduated 55 successful companies. 

Beginning in 1983 with 10,000 square feet of incubator space in a former photography lab on the research campus of Bethlehem Steel, BFTP/NEP converted photo processing rooms into wet labs and offices, becoming one of only a handful of technology incubators in the U.S. at the time. When the final Bethlehem Steel operation, a coatings research facility, closed in 2005 and became part of Lehigh’s campus, BFTP/NEP purchased the 45-year-old facility and converted it into Ben Franklin TechVentures, with 35,000 square feet of rentable space for incubator clients. The $8 million renovation project was completed in 2007, opening with 13 clients. 

Just 18 months later, with the facility nearing its 29-client capacity, the need for an expansion was clear. In October 2011, Ben Franklin TechVentures² was completed, adding 47,000 square feet of space and providing the incubator with room to house up to 40 clients.

Business incubation programs like Ben Franklin TechVentures catalyze the process of starting and growing companies by providing entrepreneurs with the expertise, networks and tools they need to make their ventures successful. NBIA estimates that in 2005 alone, North American incubators assisted more than 27,000 start-up companies that provided full-time employment for more than 100,000 workers and generated annual revenue of more than $17 billion. Approximately 7,000 business incubators operate worldwide. 

The National Business Incubation Association is the world’s leading organization advancing business incubation and entrepreneurship. Each year, the NBIA Incubation Awards honor the business incubation programs, graduates and client companies that exemplify the best of the industry. 

“The judges for NBIA’s Incubation Awards program were unanimous in their selection of Ben Franklin TechVentures for their highest honor, the Randall M. Whaley Incubator of the Year Award,” said Tim King, NBIA International Programs Operations Manager. “Our judges feel that Ben Franklin TechVentures best exemplifies the qualities of an outstanding business incubation program, and serves as a model that other incubators will follow when striving to best serve their client companies.”  

The 2012 Whaley award represents a noteworthy repeat honor. In 2001, the Ben Franklin Business Incubator, predecessor to Ben Franklin TechVentures, won this same top worldwide incubator award.  

The awards were announced locally for the first time at the Ben Franklin i xchange event on Tuesday evening, May 8. 

About the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) links companies with business and technical experts, universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation. The organization is a non-profit corporation that is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative. The Ben Franklin program was created by the Commonwealth in 1983 to play a leadership role in strengthening regional economies, building the state’s technology economy, and creating and retaining high-wage, high-skilled jobs.

BFTP/NEP’s strategy encompasses three key areas:

1. Developing early-stage, technology-oriented companies;
2. Helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technology and business practices; and
3. Promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that fosters a favorable business environment for high-growth companies. 

Since 1983, the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania has achieved the following results:

• Created 15,479 new jobs
• Retained 21,459 existing jobs
• Started 429 new companies
• Developed 1,127 new products and processes 

The northeastern center is headquartered on the campus of Lehigh University, and also operates, an award-winning incubator/post-incubator facility, on Lehigh’s campus.

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On Tuesday, May 8^th, the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) hosted its annual i xchange at the Zoellner Arts Center on the campus of Lehigh University in Bethlehem. More than 500 technology entrepreneurs, business people, venture capitalists, economic developers, political leaders, and regional influencers from Ben Franklin’s 21-county service area attended. 

The event began with a video describing the early-stage company support and job creation accomplishments of Ben Franklin TechVentures®, an incubator/post-incubator facility owned and managed by BFTP/NEP. Ben Franklin TechVentures was expanded late last year because of burgeoning market need. Host R. Chadwick Paul, Jr., President and CEO of BFTP/NEP, announced that just hours ago at the National Business Incubation Association’s International Conference in Atlanta, Ben Franklin TechVentures was named the winner of the prestigious Randall M. Whaley National Incubator of the Year Award.   

The i xchange combined the presentation of Ben Franklin’s eighteenth annual Innovation Awards and executive networking sessions with a keynote address by Leonard Brody. Brody is a highly respected entrepreneur, venture capitalist, best-selling author, and two-time Emmy-nominated media visionary. He has helped raise millions of dollars for start-up companies, played a role in one of the largest Internet IPOs in history, and has participated in the building, financing, and/or sale of five companies. 

Brody’s presentation, entitled This Monumental Shift – Exploring the Future of Behavior, Technology, and Innovation, addressed how major technological and behavioral changes over the last 15 years have brought us to what is arguably the most reformative time in human history. Human beings have changed monumentally. Brody examined the evolution and division between our virtual and physical selves and how most businesses completely miss the virtual side. This is critical because we spend so much time interacting through our virtual selves, and people are frequently speaking the wrong language to the wrong people. The result: major and costly failures in marketing, human resources, and sales. 

The 2012 Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania Innovation Awards winners are: 

Entrepreneurial Achievement

Individuals who best exemplify the quintessential entrepreneurial spirit: a combination of ingenuity, hard work, and innovation that has resulted in the creation of a successful and growing business venture.
Patrick Clasen, Justin Lawyer, and Timothy Marks, Founders and Principals
EcoTech Marine, LLC, Bethlehem
Reef aquarium ownership is a sizeable and growing hobby. To properly care for expensive fish and corals within an aquarium ecosystem, adequate water circulation is required. Conventional pumps located within the tank are large and generate considerable heat, which can harm or kill sensitive aquarium inhabitants. EcoTech’s patented VorTech propeller pump provides a gentle, controlled flow, which enhances the aquarium ecosystem. EcoTech also adapted the pump for use in the spa/pedicure market. EcoTech’s new Radion LED lighting unit features 34 energy-efficient LEDs with a five-color spectrum for improving aquarium growth, wider coverage, better energy efficiency, and a customizable spectral output.

 EcoTech’s principals founded the company while still undergraduate students, and built it into a multi-million dollar enterprise with the help of several regional economic development partners. In addition to Ben Franklin, the company received support from the City of Bethlehem; Lehigh University through its Integrated Product Development Program, Small Business Development Center, and Enterprise Systems Center; Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation through its Southside Bethlehem Keystone Innovation Zone; the Manufacturers’ Resource Center; and Northampton County. EcoTech has grown substantially over the past three years and is on track for more than 12 million in revenue for 2012, almost doubling its 2011 sales. Beginning with three founders, the company now employs 30, plans to add 10 more full-time team members this year, and is seeking new space that quadruples its current area. 

Incubator Graduate

The company that has best demonstrated successful Ben Franklin business incubation.  The business has been operated skillfully and confidently, meeting all challenges from the development of the product concept, execution of the business and technical plan, successful start-up and operation, to graduation from the incubator.
Net Driven, Scranton
Elizabeth Clauss, Chief Operating Officer
Seventy eight percent of consumers in the U.S. and Canada have access to the Internet. Yet three years ago, when Net Driven began marketing its service, most tire dealers and auto repair shops had nothing more than a static website, if they had any online presence at all. Despite the growing necessity for Internet marketing in this sector, developing an effective website and internet marketing solution was too costly for most companies and outside of their skill set and expertise. 

A graduate of the Scranton Enterprise Center, Net Driven has become the leading provider of websites and Internet marketing solutions to the automotive industry. In 2007, founders recognized that a growing number of consumers were shopping online for automotive repair, body work, parts, used cars, and tires, but the dealers did not have an effective way to market their products and services on the Internet. Net Driven responds to this niche market need by providing an effective yet economical website and Internet marketing solution to independent automotive dealers. In just three years, this profitable company has increased revenue 800% and added 25 new employees. 

Product Innovation

The company that best demonstrates the commercialization of a unique, innovative product that creatively and effectively meets a market need.
RantNetwork, Inc., Bloomsburg
Kenneth Volet, Chief Executive Officer and Elisa Grandizio, Chief Administrative Officer
RantNetwork’s Communilator™ is the most advanced mobile phone language translation application in the world. It is capable of recognizing and translating foreign text, including books, newspapers, and menus in 44 languages and dialects captured with the host’s mobile phone camera. The application also delivers translations to the host’s mobile phone in 3,000 language pairs, provides high-quality (HQ) voice for translations in 21 foreign languages, offers voice recognition for translation of text input, and seamlessly integrates with the mobile phone’s SMS and email systems. 

Ben Franklin has invested three times in RantNetwork and introduced the company to follow-on funding opportunities. Despite considerable initial setbacks, RantNetwork’s tenacity has paid off with a contract with Etihad-Etisalat (Mobily), the second largest telecom carrier in Saudi Arabia, to launch an Arabic version of the Communilator. The company recently launched its iPhone/iPad, Android, and Blackberry app versions of the product. Communilator combines state-of-the-art technology into a single comprehensive system that is not offered by any current competitor. 

Innovative Application of Technology
The company that best demonstrates a “break the mold” approach to integrating new or existing technology into a manufacturing environment.
AMETEK Specialty Metal Products – Reading Alloys, Robesonia
Dr. Colin McCracken, Director of Product and Market Development
AMETEK Special Metal Products – Reading Alloys produces master and specialty alloys and high-purity powders used in the aerospace and medical industries. Recently, the company has focused on applications in metal powders for the medical industry. Its products can be spray coated onto implants, which are ultimately used in the human body to provide an ideal surface for bone ingrowth. This application will substantially enhance the recovery of patients receiving medical implants.  

AMETEK Special Metal Products – Reading Alloys recently opened a new manufacturing facility to support the growth in the metal powder market. Ben Franklin, with Lehigh University, supported the firm with plant layout studies, materials reviews, and productivity improvements, as well as an introduction to a key resource to manage the new operation. With 140 current employees, up 12% from last year, this company is a significant Greater Reading employer that is well-positioned for growth. 

Manufacturing Achievement

The company that best exemplifies achievement in the manufacturing arena, showing a proven track record of success and an unbending commitment to achieving and maintaining excellence in manufacturing.
Appeeling Fruit, Inc., Reading, PA
Steve Cygan, President and Owner
Tripling revenue and increasing staff from 10 to 100 people over the last two years would be a notable accomplishment at any time, and is even more impressive during an economic recession. Appeeling Fruit is a producer of fresh-sliced apple products for both food service and retail clients. Ben Franklin invested in the company four times to improve production efficiency, support facility planning, and manage manufacturing capacity for sustained growth. Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center and the Greater Berks Development Fund partnered with Ben Franklin to support Appeeling’s improvements. 

Appeeling employs a number of people from the City of Reading, which is particularly impactful because the City has experienced greater than average unemployment difficulties. The new facility adheres to Good Manufacturing Practices and FDA requirements, and is a showcase plant for food processing. Appeeling Fruit is a tremendously successful manufacturer and a valuable business asset to Greater Reading. 

Partnership

An individual whose strong vision, dedication, and commitment have helped the Ben Franklin Technology Partners accomplish its goals. This support demonstrates a sincere desire to see the region thrive.
Tom Garrity, Managing Partner
Compass Point Consulting, LLC, Bethlehem
As Managing Partner of Compass Point Consulting, Tom Garrity provides strategy, execution, and ownership transition services to middle-market family and closely held businesses. Compass Point’s mission is simple:  build high-performance companies that can run without the owner.  Serving meritoriously on the Ben Franklin Solutions Network, Garrity has been a supporter of Ben Franklin clients for many years. He has provided pro bono business plan reviews since 2004, and recently completed his eleventh review. He participated in three company “Tiger Sessions,” also pro bono, during which clients are reviewed comprehensively and constructively criticized to their long-term benefit. He worked with seven Ben Franklin clients to develop their business plans. He taught two classes on strategy and sales for Ben Franklin clients, and followed up with individual client sales coaching. 

Ben Franklin engages Garrity frequently and often without remuneration to provide feedback to in-house staff, assistance to clients, and support to entrepreneurs and businesspeople throughout the region. In addition, Garrity has served on Originate Ventures’ Open Court, critiquing early-stage firms and as a judge for Lehigh University students’ Integrated Business and Engineering program presentations. Garrity’s continuous worthwhile contributions model selfless service and demonstrate his heartfelt desire to give back to the regional economy. 

About the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) links companies with business and technical experts, universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation. The organization is a non-profit corporation that is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative. The Ben Franklin program was created by the Commonwealth in 1983 to play a leadership role in strengthening regional economies, building the state’s technology economy, and creating and retaining high-wage, high-skilled jobs.

BFTP/NEP’s strategy encompasses three key areas:

1. Developing early-stage, technology-oriented companies;
2. Helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technology and business practices; and
3. Promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that fosters a favorable business environment for high-growth companies.

Since 1983, the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania has achieved the following results:

• Created 15,479 new jobs
• Retained 21,459 existing jobs
• Started 429 new companies
• Developed 1,127 new products and processes 

The northeastern center is headquartered on the campus of Lehigh University, and also operates Ben Franklin TechVentures®, an award-winning incubator/post-incubator facility, on Lehigh’s campus.

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Impact results are a summation of the accomplishments of Ben Franklin work as reported by client companies. Clients credit the impact figures as having been a direct result of Ben Franklin funding and support. Results are reported by Ben Franklin to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, which funds the Ben Franklin program. 

“Creating high-paying, sustainable jobs in growing technology sectors is a proven way to build a region’s economy,” said R.Chadwick Paul, Jr., President and CEO of BFTP/NEP.  “Now more than ever, our work will hasten our economic recovery and position northeastern Pennsylvania for future success.” 

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania links Pennsylvania companies with universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper in today’s technology-based economy through innovation. BFTP/NEP’s strategy encompasses three key areas: developing early-stage, technology-oriented companies; helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technology and business practices; and promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that supports a favorable business environment for high-growth companies. 

The northeastern center is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative. BFTP/NEP is headquartered in, owns, and manages Ben Franklin TechVentures®, an award-winning technology business incubator/post-incubator facility on Lehigh University’s Mountaintop Campus in Bethlehem. 

In 2011, the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania reported the following results:

Created 557 New Jobs
Retained 101 Existing Jobs
Started 9 New Companies
Developed 110 New Products and Processes           

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania was established in 1983, and has achieved the following cumulative results:

Created 15,479 New Jobs
Retained 21,459 Existing Jobs
Started 429 New Companies
Developed 1,127 New Products and Processes           

An independent study released by the Pennsylvania Economy League shows that Pennsylvania’s investment in Ben Franklin Technology Partners statewide from 2002 to 2006 returned $3.50 in new tax revenue for each $1 spent and created thousands of new high-wage jobs. The economic impact study shows that technology companies funded by the Ben Franklin Technology Partners boosted the state economy (gross state product) by $9.3 billion in that time period. Jobs created by Ben Franklin’s clients pay 33% more than the average Pennsylvania salary.

Winners to be Honored at May 8^th i xchange Event

 The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania has announced the winners of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Innovation Awards. Winners will be honored at the Ben Franklin i xchange event, scheduled for 5:30 PM on Tuesday, May 8^th at the Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University.

 Awards will be presented in six categories, to companies or individuals who have achieved business success through Ben Franklin funding and assistance, have helped others to achieve success, or have improved their businesses through innovation. Each award recipient represents a company or person that exemplifies achievement in that particular category.

 The purposes of the innovation awards are to congratulate winners on their success and achievement, to highlight the effectiveness of the Ben Franklin program, and to inform entrepreneurs and established manufacturers about the resources that are available to them in northeastern Pennsylvania.

 The 2012 Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania Innovation Awards winners are:

 Entrepreneurial Achievement

Individuals who best exemplify the quintessential entrepreneurial spirit: a combination of ingenuity, hard work, and innovation that has resulted in the creation of a successful and growing business venture.

Patrick Clasen, Justin Lawyer, and Timothy Marks, Founders and Principals
EcoTech Marine, LLC, Bethlehem
Reef aquarium ownership is a sizeable and growing hobby. To properly care for expensive fish and corals within an aquarium ecosystem, adequate water circulation is required. Conventional pumps located within the tank are large and generate considerable heat, which can harm or kill sensitive aquarium inhabitants. EcoTech’s patented VorTech propeller pump provides a gentle, controlled flow, which enhances the aquarium ecosystem. EcoTech’s new Radion LED lighting unit features 34 energy-efficient LEDs with a five-color spectrum for improving aquarium growth, wider coverage, better energy efficiency, and a customizable spectral output. EcoTech also adapted the pump for use in the spa/pedicure market.

EcoTech’s principals founded the company while still undergraduate students, and built it into a multi-million dollar enterprise with the help of several regional economic development partners. In addition to Ben Franklin, the company received support from the City of Bethlehem; Lehigh University through its Integrated Product Development Program, Small Business Development Center, and Enterprise Systems Center; Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation through its Southside Bethlehem Keystone Innovation Zone; the Manufacturers’ Resource Center; and Northampton County. EcoTech has grown substantially over the past three years and is on track for more than 12 million in revenue for 2012, almost doubling its 2011 sales. Beginning with three founders, the company now employs 30, plans to add 10 more full-time team members this year, and is seeking new space that quadruples its current area.

 Incubator Graduate

The company that has best demonstrated successful Ben Franklin business incubation.  The business has been operated skillfully and confidently, meeting all challenges from the development of the product concept, execution of the business and technical plan, successful start-up and operation, to graduation from the incubator.  
Net Driven, Scranton
Patrick Sandone, Founder and President
Seventy eight percent of consumers in the U.S. and Canada have access to the Internet. Yet three years ago, when Net Driven began marketing its service, most tire dealers and auto repair shops had nothing more than a static website, if they had any online presence at all. Despite the growing necessity for Internet marketing in this sector, developing an effective website and internet marketing solution was too costly for most companies and outside of their skill set and expertise.

 A graduate of the Scranton Enterprise Center, Net Driven has become the leading provider of websites and Internet marketing solutions to the automotive industry. In 2007, founders recognized that a growing number of consumers were shopping online for automotive repair, body work, parts, used cars, and tires, but the dealers did not have an effective way to market their products and services on the Internet. Net Driven responds to this niche market need by providing an effective yet economical website and Internet marketing solution to independent automotive dealers. In just three years, this profitable company has increased revenue 800% and added 25 new employees.

 Product Innovation

The company that best demonstrates the commercialization of a unique, innovative product that creatively and effectively meets a market need.

RantNetwork, Inc., Bloomsburg
Kenneth Volet, Chief Executive Officer and Elisa Grandizio, Chief Administrative OfficerRantNetwork’s Communilator™ is the most advanced mobile phone language translation application in the world. It is capable of recognizing and translating foreign text, including books, newspapers, and menus in 44 languages and dialects captured with the host’s mobile phone camera. The application also delivers translations to the host’s mobile phone in 3,000 language pairs, provides high-quality (HQ) voice for translations in 21 foreign languages, offers voice recognition for translation of text input, and seamlessly integrates with the mobile phone’s SMS and email systems.

 Ben Franklin has invested three times in RantNetwork and introduced the company to follow-on funding opportunities. Despite considerable initial setbacks, RantNetwork’s tenacity has paid off with a contract with Etihad-Etisalat (Mobily), the second largest telecom carrier in Saudi Arabia, to launch an Arabic version of the Communilator. The company recently launched its iPhone/iPad, Android, and Blackberry app versions of the product. Communilator combines state-of-the-art technology into a single comprehensive system that is not offered by any current competitor.

 Innovative Application of Technology
The company that best demonstrates a “break the mold” approach to integrating new or existing technology into a manufacturing environment.
AMETEK Specialty Metal Products – Reading Alloys, Robesonia
Dr. Colin McCracken, Director of Product and Market Development
AMETEK Special Metal Products – Reading Alloys produces master and specialty alloys and high-purity powders used in the aerospace and medical industries. Recently, the company has focused on applications in metal powders for the medical industry. Its products can be spray coated onto implants, which are ultimately used in the human body to provide an ideal surface for bone ingrowth. This application will substantially enhance the recovery of patients receiving medical implants.

AMETEK Special Metal Products – Reading Alloys recently opened a new manufacturing facility to support the growth in the metal powder market. Ben Franklin, with Lehigh University, supported the firm with plant layout studies, materials reviews, and productivity improvements, as well as an introduction to a key resource to manage the new operation. With 140 current employees, up 12% from last year, this company is a significant Greater Reading employer that is well-positioned for growth.

Manufacturing Achievement

The company that best exemplifies achievement in the manufacturing arena, showing a proven track record of success and an unbending commitment to achieving and maintaining excellence in manufacturing.
Appeeling Fruit, Inc., Reading, PA
Steve Cygan, President and Owner
Tripling revenue and increasing staff from 10 to 100 people over the last two years would be a notable accomplishment at any time, and is even more impressive during an economic recession. Appeeling Fruit is a producer of fresh-sliced apple products for both food service and retail clients. Ben Franklin invested in the company four times to improve production efficiency, support facility planning, and manage manufacturing capacity for sustained growth. Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center and the Greater Berks Development Fund partnered with Ben Franklin to support Appeeling’s improvements.

 Appeeling employs a number of people from the City of Reading, which is particularly impactful because the City has experienced greater than average unemployment difficulties. The new facility adheres to Good Manufacturing Practices and FDA requirements, and is a showcase plant for food processing. Appeeling Fruit is a tremendously successful manufacturer and a valuable business asset to Greater Reading.

 Partnership

An individual whose strong vision, dedication, and commitment have helped the Ben Franklin Technology Partners accomplish its goals. This support demonstrates a sincere desire to see the region thrive.

Tom Garrity, Managing Partner
Compass Point Consulting, LLC, Bethlehem
As Managing Partner of Compass Point Consulting, Tom Garrity provides strategy, execution, and ownership transition services to middle-market family and closely held businesses. Compass Point’s mission is simple:  build high-performance companies that can run without the owner.  Serving meritoriously on the Ben Franklin Solutions Network, Garrity has been a supporter of Ben Franklin clients for many years. He has provided pro bono business plan reviews since 2004, and recently completed his eleventh review. He participated in three company “Tiger Sessions,” also pro bono, during which clients are reviewed comprehensively and constructively criticized to their long-term benefit. He worked with seven Ben Franklin clients to develop their business plans. He taught two classes on strategy and sales for Ben Franklin clients, and followed up with individual client sales coaching.

 Ben Franklin engages Garrity frequently and often without remuneration to provide feedback to in-house staff, assistance to clients, and support to entrepreneurs and businesspeople throughout the region. In addition, Garrity has served on Originate Ventures’ Open Court, critiquing early-stage firms and as a judge for Lehigh University students’ Integrated Business and Engineering program presentations. Garrity’s continuous worthwhile contributions model selfless service and demonstrate his heartfelt desire to give back to the regional economy.

 The i xchange is the premier business technology networking event in northeastern Pennsylvania. Last year, more than 500 technology entrepreneurs, business people, economic developers, venture capitalists, political leaders, educators, students, bankers, lawyers, and accountants from Ben Franklin’s 21-county service area attended, and even more are expected this year.

 The i xchange will combine the presentation of Ben Franklin’s seventeenth annual Innovation Awards with a keynote address by Leonard Brody. Brody is a highly respected entrepreneur, venture capitalist, best-selling author, and a two-time Emmy-nominated media visionary. He has helped raise millions of dollars for start-up companies, played a role in one of the largest Internet IPOs in history, and has participated in the building, financing, and/or sale of five companies. His keynote presentation, This Monumental Shift – Exploring the Future of Behavior, Technology, and Innovation, will address how major technological and behavioral changes over the last 15 years have brought us to what is arguably the most reformative time in history.

 The entrance fee for the i xchange is $65 in advance or $75 the day of the event. To learn more or to register, go to nep.benfranklin.org, e-mail ixchange@nep.benfranklin.org, or call 610-758-5200.

About the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania:

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania links companies with experts, universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation.  The Center strategy encompasses three key areas: developing early-stage, technology-based companies; helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technologies and business practices; and promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that fosters a favorable business environment for high-growth companies. The northeastern center is headquartered at Ben Franklin TechVentures® on the campus of Lehigh University in Bethlehem and is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative.

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s (BFTP/NEP) Board of Directors approved the investment of $330,873 in support of regional economic development. BFTP/NEP’s goal is to help lead northeastern Pennsylvania to a better economic future by building partnerships that develop and apply technology for competitive advantage. To achieve this goal, Ben Franklin staff concentrate their efforts on three key areas:

1. developing  and growing early-stage technology-oriented companies,
2. helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technology and business practices to achieve industry leadership, and
3. promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that fosters a favorable business environment for high-growth companies. 

Since beginning operation, BFTP/NEP has helped to create 14,922 new jobs for Pennsylvania workers and to retain 21,358 existing jobs, to start 420 new companies, and to develop 1,017 new products and processes. The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania owns and manages Ben Franklin TechVentures®, an award-winning business incubator/post-incubator facility on Lehigh University’s campus in Bethlehem at which it is headquartered. BFTP/NEP also owns and manages the Bloomsburg Regional Technology Center in Bloomsburg. The Pennsylvania Ben Franklin Technology Partners network has returned $3.50 to the state treasury for every $1.00 invested in the program.  

Ben Franklin announces the following early-stage company investments from its Challenge Grant funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

 Cernostics, Inc., Danville, Montour County
Ben Franklin Investment: $55,000
Validate a diagnostic and prognostic test that predicts the risk of developing esophageal cancer in patients with Barrett’s Esophagus. The test employs a “spatial systems biology approach” to anatomic pathological testing, in contrast with the current pathology testing that is a largely manual and subjective process. Cernostics will continue further development of this molecular diagnostic test with biopsy specimens and clinical data from Geisinger Health System, Danville, in order to select and refine biomarkers and complete software development. Additional clinical validation studies will lead to commercialization of the test via Cernostics’ clinical reference laboratory.

 Taylored Building Solutions, LLC, Taylor, Lackawanna County
Ben Franklin Investment: $60,000
Complete a computer program to manage the financial function of this manufacturer of high-end modular homes and components for traditional stick-built homes. With this investment, the company will also implement novel marketing and sales strategies. 

XiGo Nanotools, Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Organize manufacturing policies and procedures to prepare for expanded sales at this manufacturer of Acorn Area™. The Acorn Area is a patented, shoebox-size device that rapidly measures the wetted surface area of nano-particles using magnetic resonance imaging technology. Nano-particles are minute; they typically have diameters that are 1/1,000^th the diameter of a human hair. Measuring the wetted surface area of nano-particle directly relates to product performance in many industrial applications including energy, electronics, ceramics, and pharmaceuticals. Nanoparticle properties are key predictors of material performance, and currently there are no efficient methods to measure wetted nano-particle surface area. 

Ben Franklin announces the following established manufacturer company investment from its Challenge Grant funding.

 Palace Foods, Inc., Reading, Berks County
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $11,881
Optimize and upgrade the current company facility to increase capacity and efficiency to meet increasing demand. Palace Foods manufactures Indian cuisine and ethnic specialty foods.

Pennsylvania’s Alternative Energy Development Program (AEDP) was created in July 2008 to incent collaboration to save energy costs, reduce dependence on foreign fuels, expand clean energy production, and create energy-related jobs in the state. Under the AEDP, BFTP/NEP receives funding to invest in the development and growth of energy-related companies in its 21-county area. There is a diversity of industrial activity related to energy throughout northeastern Pennsylvania, including several Ben Franklin clients in sectors such as advanced energy storage, renewable energy, energy efficiency, and alternative/clean fuels.

 Ben Franklin will invest in the following established manufacturers through its AEDP grant.

 Bemis Polyethylene Packaging Division, West Hazleton, Luzerne County
University Partner: The Pennsylvania State University Hazleton
Ben Franklin Investment: $7,454
Identify solutions which utilize waste heat streams to offset existing energy consumption at this manufacturer of flexible packaging for the bakery industry. The bakery packaging market is highly competitive. This investment will help Bemis to identify opportunities to reduce manufacturing costs.

 Carpenter Technology Corporation, Reading, Berks County
College Partner: Northampton Community College’s Emerging Technology Applications Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Complete investigation of methods to recover waste heat from high-temperature exhaust streams at this producer of specialty cast-wrought and powder metallurgy and titanium alloys. Carpenter manufactures for niche applications in the automotive, aerospace, consumer products, energy, defense, industrial, and medical markets.

 Hitachi Metals Automotive Components USA, Blossburg, Tioga County
University Partner: The Pennsylvania State University
Ben Franklin Investment: $36,750
Continue the development of a collagen-based core binder system that can displace the phenolic urethane and resin binders now used at this foundry. This binder system will reduce emissions and energy consumption, allowing this ductile iron caster to double production. Hitachi produces primarily for the automotive industry, and competes internationally.

 Quadrant EPP, Scranton, Lackawanna County
College Partner: Northampton Community College’s Emerging Technology Applications Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $12,288
Complete assessment of a geothermal application that utilizes mine water as a method to reduce energy costs in Quadrant’s manufacturing process. Quadrant produces engineered polymer products in sheets, rods, and tubes. The investment will allow the company to assess the feasibility of displacing the need for chilled process water using mechanical refrigeration with mine water as a coolant. Implementing this environmentally friendly process will enhance the company’s profitability and competitiveness in its cost-sensitive market.

Simplex Homes, Inc., Scranton, Lackawanna County
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $17,500
Increase productivity and decrease production costs in order to enable sales growth in Simplex’s line of energy-efficient modular homes. The company is a regional leader in high quality modular construction, and is positioning itself as an industry-leading builder of energy efficient homes. Simplex is involved in building a prototype Net Zero home that is both environmentally conscientious and economically prudent for homeowners.

 Tobyhanna Army Depot, Tobyhanna, Monroe County
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $30,000
Tobyhanna repairs circuit card assembly (CCA) of various older technologies including through-hole and surface-mount. With this investment, Tobyhanna will develop a new capability to test and repair all CCA technologies including fine-pitch surface-mount and ball grid array CCA within a new centralized CCA test and repair facility. This will significantly reduce energy costs on the base and allow Tobyhanna to greatly expand its capacity and workload. Tobyhanna is the U.S. Defense Department’s recognized leader in the areas of automated test equipment, systems integration, and downsizing of electronic systems. With almost 5,500 employees, Tobyhanna is the largest employer in Monroe County.  

Leonard Brody

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania has announced that technology forecaster Leonard Brody will be the keynote presenter at the Ben Franklin ixchange 2012. The i xchange will be held beginning at 5:30 pm on the evening of Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at the Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem. 

The i xchange is the premier business networking opportunity in northeastern Pennsylvania. Last year, more than 500 technology entrepreneurs, business people, economic developers, venture capitalists, political leaders, educators, students, bankers, lawyers, and accountants from Ben Franklin’s 21-county service area attended. 

The i xchange will combine executive networking sessions, the keynote address by Mr. Brody, and the presentation of Ben Franklin’s annual Innovation Awards. These six awards recognize and salute outstanding individual and company accomplishment in business and technology. 

Keynote presenter Leonard Brody is a highly respected entrepreneur, venture capitalist, best-selling author, and two-time Emmy-nominated media visionary. He has helped raise millions of dollars for start-up companies, played a role in one of the largest Internet IPOs in history, and has participated in the building, financing, and/or sale of five companies. A highly sought-after speaker on business leadership, innovation, and competitiveness, Brody combines a powerful delivery, razor-sharp wit, and cutting-edge content in his presentations. 

Brody is one of Canada’s leading technology forecasters and business strategists. He acts as an advisor to venture capital funds worldwide, and has counseled several companies including the Associated Press, Alliance Atlantis, and MTV Enterprises. He is currently the President of Clarity Digital Group, one of the largest online news conglomerates in the world. 

Brody’s presentation, entitled This Monumental Shift – Exploring the Future of Behavior, Technology, and Innovation, will address how major technological and behavioral changes over the last 15 years have brought us to what is arguably the most reformative time in human history. Human beings have changed monumentally. Brody will examine the evolution and division between our virtual and physical selves and how most businesses completely miss the virtual side. This is critical because we spend so much time interacting through our virtual selves, and people are frequently speaking the wrong language to the wrong people. The result: major and costly failures in marketing, human resources, and sales. 

Admission to the Ben Franklin i xchange is $65 in advance and $75 the day of the event. Hot hors d’oeuvres and dessert will be served; a cash bar will be available. Register on-line at http://ennect.com/e1838, or contact the Ben Franklin Technology Partners at 610-758-5200 or ixchange@nep.benfranklin.org.

About the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania:

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania links companies with experts, universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation. The Center strategy encompasses three key areas: developing early-stage, technology-oriented companies; helping established manufacturers creatively apply new technologies and business practices; and promoting an innovative community-wide infrastructure that fosters a favorable business environment for high-growth companies. The northeastern center is part of a four-center, state-funded economic development initiative.

Join us on Tuesday, May 8, 2012 at the Ben Franklin
i xchange, recognized as the premier business and technology networking event for entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, educators, and business and community leaders. 

Keynote speaker Leonard Brody is a highly respected entrepreneur, venture capitalist, best-selling author, and a two-time Emmy-nominated media visionary. Brody’s presentation, This Monumental Shift – Exploring the Future of Behavior, Technology, and Innovation, will address how major technological and behavioral changes over the last 15 years have brought us to what is arguably the most reformative time in history. A highly sought-after speaker, Brody combines a powerful delivery, razor-sharp wit, and cutting-edge content in his presentations to audiences worldwide. 

In addition to executive networking and the keynote presentation, Ben Franklin will present innovation awards to EcoTech Marine, LLC, Bethlehem; Net Driven, Scranton; RantNetwork, Inc., Bloomsburg; Ametek – Reading Alloys, Robesonia; Appeeling Fruit, Inc., Reading; and Tom Garrity, Compass Point Business Consulting, Allentown. Register now!

 Ben Franklin’s quote very aptly describes this year at the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

 Passion is what makes our work happen. We seek passion in the management teams of prospective clients. We exhibited passion in responding to pressing regional economic development needs by finding a way to expand the Ben Franklin TechVentures business incubator despite severe cuts to our budget. But the key to harnessing the incredible power of passion is to temper it. A modicum of real-world prudence provides balance and must be integrated into planning and implementation. All of us must “let reason hold the reins.”

Click the image above to download a PDF of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA 2011 Annual Report

The Ben Franklin Technology Partners significantly increases the success rate of the highest-potential early-stage technology companies. We provide start-ups with access to seed capital, business and technical expertise, and a proven network of expert resources. We also help develop and implement productivity improvement strategies for established manufacturers through technological innovation and process improvement that allow the companies to be more globally competitive. Our job is to identify and evaluate opportunities, to select the most promising ones, and to provide client companies with crucial resources as they wage the war to prosper in today’s markets.

Recognized and modeled internationally as one of the best technology-based economic development organizations in the world, Ben Franklin Technology Partners is eminently successful by every measure. A long-range independent study by the Pennsylvania Economy League showed that Ben Franklin statewide boosted the gross state product by $9.3 billion from 2002 through 2006 and provided more than $517 million in additional tax revenues as a direct result of its work. From 1989 through 2008, Ben Franklin created or retained more than 50,000 highly paid, sustainable Pennsylvania jobs, as well as developed hundreds of new companies and new technology-based products and processes. Ben Franklin delivers $3.50 of incremental tax revenue to Pennsylvania for every dollar of state investment in our program.

Despite this stellar history of producing economic benefit for the Commonwealth, in the face of overwhelming state budget challenges, Ben Franklin’s funding was cut in excess of 50% since 2009. These devastating blows to our resources have curtailed Ben Franklin’s ability to deliver the tremendous results we have produced in the past and bode poorly for Pennsylvania’s future technology-based economic growth.

The Ben Franklin appropriation must be restored to its original level and then increased incrementally in subsequent years. This will enable an expansion of critical seed financing and business and technical support for early-stage technology-driven enterprises. It will allow Ben Franklin to help established manufacturers utilize innovation to be more competitive in the global marketplace.

Projecting historical performance, Pennsylvania’s investment in our program will provide a direct financial return of 350% in additional state tax revenue. It will allow technological innovation to be leveraged as a tool to economic prosperity. And it will help companies create the high-paying, sustainable jobs that will be the cornerstone of the economic recovery.

 R. Chadwick Paul, Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA