Reading : Innovation & Job News

Two-hundred-and-six undeveloped acres hard by the Morgantown exit of the Pennsylvania Turnpike are ripe for development as a brand-new Keystone Opportunity Zone.
 
The KOZ designation is one of the state's major economic development tools and is credited with creating or retaining more than 43,000 jobs since its inception in 1999. Companies inside zones are eligible for tax reductions or abatements affecting an array of state, county and local taxes.
 
These include the PA corporate net income tax, capital stock and foreign franchise tax, personal income tax, sales and use tax for purchases consumed and used by zone businesses, mutual and thrift institution tax, bank and trust company shares tax and insurance premium tax. On the county and local side of the ledger, potential tax breaks include earned income and net profits and property taxes. Projects located in a KOZ are also given priority consideration for assistance under state community and economic development programs as well as community building initiatives.
 
The new KOZ at the New Morgan Business Center in tiny New Morgan Borough offers 10 years of tax breaks and is part of a much larger planned mixed-use development that will eventually include residential and commercial uses. The site is known locally as Grace Mines and is part of the old Bethlehem Steel mining operation, says Pamela Shupp, vice president at the Greater Reading Economic Partnership, which is charged with marketing the new KOZ. The Partnership is at work on electronic and print marketing materials and informing its network of site selectors and industrial real estate interests about "this brand new piece of inventory with all these incentives attached to it," Shupp says.
 
The most likely prospects, she adds, are advanced manufacturers with needs for heavy infrastructure and highway access or corporate headquarters, who can benefit from the site's high visibility from the Turnpike.
 
 
Source: Pamela Shupp, Greater Reading Economic Partnership
Writer: Elise Vider

We may not mess with Texas, but Pennsylvania ranks third in new facilities and expansions – and first in the Northeast – according to the prestigious annual rankings published last week in Site Selection magazine. 
 
The 2012 Governor's Cup went to the Lone Star State, which led the nation with 761 projects in 2012. (The publication counts private-sector projects that meet one or more of these criteria: a minimum $1 million investment, creation of 50 or more new jobs or construction of new space of at least 20,000 square feet. Equipment upgrades, additions and construction jobs don't count.)
 
Ohio was second with 491 projects and Pennsylvania was next with 430 in the national rankings. Ranked by region, the Keystone State's 430 easily beat the number-two state, New York, which came in at 119. In new manufacturing, Pennsylvania had 130 projects, compared to New York's 26; in manufacturing expansion, the Commonwealth's 97 beat the Empire State by 49.
 
Site Selection was also upbeat about Pennsylvania in a January profile assessing the impact of the energy sector on the state's economy. 
 
With such fertile ground for new and expanded commercial ventures, new features on Team PA's SiteSearch website are well timed. The site now includes heat maps that provide a visual representation of demographic statistics. The new business search allows for queries of businesses statewide by geography, type, number of employees and annual revenue.
 
"The enhanced functionalities of PA SiteSearch puts more information at the fingertips of site selectors or company officials looking to locate to, or expand their operations, in PA," says Matt Zeigner of Team PA. 
 
The race is on for 2013.
 
Source: Site Selection magazine
Writer: Elise Vider
 

RPA Engineering rang in the New Year at a new Wyomissing headquarters after outgrowing its old building nearby. The new quarters, a 12,000-square-foot, converted carpet showroom and warehouse, offer the growing firm more functional space and a convenient location, says CEO Richard Aulenbach.
 
RPA covers all of the major engineering disciplines and is experiencing increased demand in the pharmaceutical, industrial, energy and health care sectors that it serves.  "We've been on a track of continued growth," says Aulenbach, who founded the firm in 1989. RPA employs more than 100 and Aulenbach anticipates adding 10 or more new positions in the next six to nine months.
 
Much of the growth potential comes from health care, a relatively new market for the firm. Aulenbach sees tremendous opportunities with clients such as The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. RPA is also expanding with national clients based outside Pennsylvania, such as a current prospect in Houston. "This is a new level we are rising to," Aulenbach says.
 
The company is also growing its portfolio of services. It is developing a management tool for health care facilities that would optimize decision-making by incorporating certain facility investments into business operations. And RPA recently launched a major initiative to expand its commissioning and qualification (C&Q) services. C&Q services are tools used by companies to ensure project success and regulatory compliance during the building design and construction phase.
 
"We are deepening our knowledge and honing the skills necessary to ensure that our engineers are equipped to deliver buildings and building systems that meet today’s commissioning and qualification requirements, while expanding our range of commissioning and qualification services,” Aulenbach explained in a July statement.
 
Source: Richard Aulenbach, RPA Engineering
Writer: Elise Vider
 

Like the young tech companies it serves, the Innovation Partnership (IPart)  did some creative problem solving earlier this year when its state funding evaporated. With a new membership funding model and a recently acquired $80,000 federal grant, IPart now says it "can assure Pennsylvania's small technology companies that its programs will continue to assist them in generating winning, fundable federal SBIR and STTR proposals."
 
To the uninitiated, the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs make highly coveted federal grants to small businesses to conduct research and development and to commercialize their innovations. IPart's role is to assist Pennsylvania's emerging, technology-based companies in the Commonwealth in making their submissions. Since its founding in 2003 by the PA Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), IPart has provided 489 technical reviews to Pennsylvania companies; 90 companies have been awarded over $25 million in federal grants.
 
Among IPart's success stories are ChromaTan in State College, RE2 in Pittsburgh and Y-Carbon in Bristol. 
 
Director Kelly Wylam credits increased support from IPart's members around the state -- Ben Franklin Technology Partners, University City Science Center, Life Sciences Greenhouse of Central PA, Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center, Pennsylvania State University, Drexel University and Temple University – for keeping IPart up and running and able to further leverage federal funds like the $80,000 Federal State and Technology Partnership grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
 
Pennsylvania, she adds, consistently ranks as a top-10 state for SBIR and STTR funds: "We're a contender."
 
Source: Kelly Wylam, IPart
Writer: Elise Vider
 
 
 
 
 
 

The drive to the new economy accelerated last week, when Pennsylvania became the 12th state to officially incentivize corporate activism with the creation of legally sanctioned benefit corporations or "B Corps. "
 
"B Corp certification is to sustainable business what LEED certification is to green building or Fair Trade certification is to coffee," says B Lab, the Berwyn-based nonprofit behind the global B Corps movement.
 
Under the new Pennsylvania measure, passed unanimously by both houses in Harrisburg and signed immediately into law by Gov. Corbett, directors of B Corps can take non-financial interests into consideration without fear of legal repercussion. Until now, those directors were legally mandated to make decisions based solely on maximizing profits. So a B Corp can, for example, lose money on a charitable or socially conscious venture without fear of getting sued by its shareholders.
 
Even without official sanction, there are already 51 voluntary B Corps in the Commonwealth, according to B Lab, including Azavea, a software firm in Philadelphia, Dansko, the footwear maker in West Grove and One Village Coffee in Souderton. Worldwide, says B Lab, there are 643 B Corps including big names like Ben & Jerry's , King Arthur Flour , Seventh Generation and Method  household products.
 
Writer: Elise Vider

Steve Cygan is something of a modern-day Johnny Appleseed, roaming Pennsylvania and other mid-Atlantic states buying apples for his fast-growing company, Appeeling Fruit.
 
Cygan founded Appeeling in 1991 as a supplier of fresh, peeled apple slices to bakeries. In 1998, a USDA/pharmaceutical research team tested a new technology for extending the freshness and shelf life of sliced apples at Cygan's company using a bath of ingredients including calcium ascorbate.  "When it was commercially released, we were in the driver's seat," says Cygan. 
 
Still, in 2009 when Cygan moved his plant to Dauberville in Berks County, there were only about 15 on the payroll. But shortly afterwards, Appeeling was approached by a huge West Coast company interested in private-label retailing of fresh-sliced apples that don't brown and stay crisp and flavorful for 14 days.
 
Since then, Appeeling has tripled its revenue and grown its workforce to about 100 year-round employees, plus some seasonal help. Its products -- some private label, some branded -- can be found at Giant and Wegmans supermarkets, Target, Sam's Club and convenience stores
 
Cygan says that private-label packing has been the company's single biggest driver of growth, aided by a strong consumer demand for fresh, convenient, pre-cut produce. Other strong growth areas, he adds, are food service and school lunches.
 
Now, Cygan is experimenting with different packages to best capture the "grab and go" market, new cuts (think apple chunks for Waldorf salads) and even new fruits such as fresh-sliced peaches.
 
Source: Steve Cygan, Appeeling Fruit
Writer: Elise Vider

An array of firms across the commonwealth, mostly startups, are beneficiaries of investments made in the last week by The Ben Franklin Technology Partners, Pennsylvania's venerable technology-based economic development programs.
 
BFTP of Central and Northern PA (BFTP/CNP) announced investments totaling $1.8 million in 11 firms. In Northeastern Pennsylvania, BFTP/NEP announced nearly $560,000 in investments in six early-stage companies and six established firms working with academic partners on technology-based manufacturing innovation. And BFTP of Southeastern PA is making $1.375 in new investments.
 
The companies funded by BFTP/CNP are:

• AgIntegrated Inc.,  State College, a tech consultant to the agriculture industry;
• BRL Solutions, Kane, for a new lubricant for use on boats;
• Conduit Marketing, Girard, software for purchase of in-home medical equipment;
• Dataforma Inc.,  York, web-based business management software;
• ECKey, Lancaster, turning Bluetooth-enabled cellphones into access keys;
• Eduplanet21,  Mechanicsburg, a social learning platform;
• Flashpoint Informatics, Bellefonte, cloud-based computing services;
• Lewis Designs LLC, Waterford, innovative brake designs;
• Strategic Polymer Sciences,  State College, animation for mobile devices and smart phones;
• TM Filtration,  Erie, systems to serve the shale gas industry;
• USIC LLC,  York, a web-based marketplace for artists/entrepreneurs.

The early-stage companies funded by BFTP/NEP are:

• A Sound Strategy,  East Stroudsburg ($30,000), to roll out a national sales effort on software-as-a-service products;
• Cernostics, Danville ($100,000) to validate tests for risk of esophageal cancer in certain patients;
• Micro Interventional Devices, Bethlehem ($100,000) to develop a new, minimally invasive heart repair product;
• OPTiMO Information Technology,  Bloomsburg ($25,000) for sales and marketing of IT products and services;
• Pivitec, Bethlehem ($70,000) design and commercialization of hardware and software products for audio streaming;
• Walton Motivation,  Allentown, ($20,000) sales and marketing of cloud-based employee recognition system.

BFT/NEP is also investing in these established manufacturer/academic partnerships:

• Crispin Valve,  Berwick and Bloomsburg University ($18,302) for an enterprise resource planning system at this maker of valves for the municipal water industry;
• Fidelity Technologies Corporation,  Reading and Northampton Community College's Emerging Technology Applications Center ($50,000)  power systems for military field applications;
• Georg Fischer Havel, Easton and Lehigh University, ($50,000) to cut energy use in manufacture of PVC piping;
• Longo's Bakery, Hazleton and Lehigh University's Enterprise Systems Center,  ($25,000) for an enterprise resource planning system;
• Medico Industries, Wilkes-Barre and Northampton Community College's Emerging Technology Applications Center, ($26,500) to cut energy use in manufacture of machined metal components;
• Sharp Corporation,    Allentown and Lehigh University's Enterprise Systems Center, ($45,000) to cut energy use in packaging for pharmaceutical companies.

In Southeastern PA, the recipients are:
 
• ARB Geowell, West Conshohocken ($125,000): The company uses a unique design to promote heat transfer for its geothermal heating/cooling platform, which offers higher energy efficiency and eliminates significant construction costs for commercial buildings, schools and developments.
 
• Brad’s Raw Chips, Pipersville ($100,000): Founder Brad Gruno wants others to discover the benefits of eating raw food like he did. He uses an advanced dehydration system to keep raw chips crunchy and tasty.
 
• Drakontas, Glenside ($250,000): The company provides mobile collaboration software solutions for police, military, fire, emergency response and public service teams. Its flagship DragonFroce product utilizes geo-tracking and shared media and files to help those teams act faster and enhance public safety.
 
• Kerathin, Chester ($200,000): The company previously received $150,000 from Ben Franklin for its PodiaPro nail debridement system for the diabetic population.
 
• OneTwoSee, Devon ($150,000): Formerly Mobile Reactor, the company targets television broadcasters and producers to help them deliver interactive TV experiences through connected devices.
 
• S4 Worldwide, Doylestown ($250,000): The company provides a variety of safety, security and regulatory solutions for drilling companies working in the Marcellus Shale.
 
• Tangent Energy Solutions, Kennett Square ($300,000): Commercial and industrial companies can save up to 20 percent on energy costs thanks to Tangent’s grid optimization technologies.

Source: Ben Franklin Technology Partners
Writer: Elise Vider

There are thousands of Marcellus Shale wells in Pennsylvania  -- 9,848 to be exact according to a new study.  And each uses an estimated 20,000 pounds of plaster liner material, almost all of which goes into the dump.
 
So a new venture to collect and recycle plastic well pad liners from Marcellus gas drilling sites has big implications for the state's environment and economy.
 
The two Pennsylvania-based partners, WellSpring Environmental Services  in Orwigsburg  and Ultra-Poly Corporation in Portland are expected annually to remove at least 20 million pounds of plastic from the waste stream for re-use as marketable products such as composite railroad ties and building components.
 
Ultra-Poly, a large plastics recycler, has designed a proprietary process for processing the liner material and has built a plant specifically for that purpose in Berwick. "The market is potentially huge," says David LaFiura of Ultra-Poly.
 
For its part, Wellspring has developed special equipment for separating well pad liners on site to truck them away in a single trailer load; in the past it took eight to 10 trips with roll-off containers to take large sections of the liners from a single site to a landfill for disposal.
 
"There's not one well pad in Pennsylvania where this new approach doesn't make sense," says Jonas Kreitzer of WellSpring. "We can do liner removal more efficiently, at less cost, while cutting down truck traffic, protecting the environment and generating commercially usable material."
 
The new partnership will generate 80 or more jobs for Ultra-Poly; WellSpring will add another dozen employees.
 
Source: Natonia Samchuck, PPO&S
Writer: Elise Vider

Since its founding in 1953, Reading Alloys in Robesonia has been a leader in research, development and manufacture of master alloys for the aerospace industry.
 
But a strategic decision a decade ago to diversify using existing equipment and technology has opened up a vast new market, says Dr. Colin McCracken, director of product and market development. The answer: producing titanium powder for the medical industry.
 
Titanium powder, explains McCracken, is used to coat the outside of orthopedic implants, allowing bone to grow and promoting a permanent bond. The material is widely used in replacement hips, knees, elbows and shoulders and in dental implants.
 
With an aging population, demand for the product has grown so much that Reading more than doubled its Berks County manufacturing facility last year, to 20,000 square feet, and grew its workforce by 12 percent to 150, McCracken says. Today, the plant is running at full capacity.
 
Reading recently launched a new titanium powder product that, unlike other such powders, is comprised of spherical particles, allowing for different applications and opening further new markets. Reading is using a unique manufacturing process to produce the spherical titanium powder, McCracken says. The company's R&D division, he adds, continues to work on new products with the medical industry as a key market focus.
 
The diversification "best demonstrates a 'break the mold' approach to integrating new or existing technology into a manufacturing environment," says Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania, which handed Reading (acquired in 2008 by Ametek, a global  maker of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices), a 2012 Innovation Award earlier this year.
 
Source: Dr. Colin McCracken, Reading Alloys
Writer: Elise Vider