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 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

Electrikus COO Bill Crompton walked away with a $5,000 cash investment in his company.

The “American Idol”-style competition started with an afternoon “speed dating” session, in which 14 companies delivered multiple rounds of eight-minute presentations to nine panels of investors representing nine venture firms and 13 angels. Three finalists – Electrikus, EggZack.com and RantNetworks – then presented pitches to a final panel of investors, from whom they received critiques. An audience vote gave the prize to Electrikus.

Electrikus manufactures consumer products that address the dangers, losses and inconveniences associated with power outages. Its initial product, the Illumaguard, provides up to 10 hours of backup for residential lighting in the event of a power outage. Electrikus has patented its ElectroFlo technology, an innovative and energy-smart battery backup system for use with lighting and critical home appliances. Electrikus is currently developing refrigerator power backup units for the consumer market.

Venture Idol began with a keynote presentation by New Vantage Group managing partner John May. Investor panelists included Originate Ventures managing partner Mike Gausling, Lehigh Valley Angel Investors representative Gus Kamnitsis, Edison Venture Fund business development associate David Nevas and NextStage Capital managing partner Terry Williams.

BFTP/NEP’s goal is to help lead northeastern Pennsylvania into a better economic future by building partnerships that develop and apply technology for a competitive advantage.

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.

BFTP/NEP allocates a portion of its resources to project investments. Its Challenge Grant provided by Pennsylvania’s Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority makes this possible. All clients were competitively selected as having the greatest potential for creating or retaining highly paid, sustainable jobs, introducing novel products or processes, and filling a promising market niche.

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 Pennsylvania Ben Franklin Technology Partners network has returned $3.50 to the state treasury for every dollar invested in the program.

BFTP/NEP invested in the following companies from its Challenge Grant funding:

A Sound Strategy, Inc., East Stroudsburg, Monroe County
Ben Franklin Investment: $35,000
Design a national product expansion plan and assist the company in developing a more comprehensive business strategy that will help raise additional capital. A Sound Strategy, Inc. is a software development company that provides solutions that manage business processes more efficiently. The company’s flagship product, siteMaster®, helps clients utilize web-based platforms to increase customers’ bottom lines and improve internal operations. These custom proprietary applications will be expanded in existing vertical markets.

Appalachian Apps, LLC, Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County
Ben Franklin Investment: $35,000
Complete a financial model and develop investor documentation, including a revised business plan and investor presentation materials. Appalachian Apps seeks to become the industry leader in Appertainment™. Appertainment is smart phone applications for the entertainment industry that feature a more robust platform and greater social media interconnectivity than the competition.

Bazzini Holdings, Allentown, Lehigh County
University Partner: Lehigh University
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Complete an Enterprise Resource Planning implementation that supports the consolidation of Bazzini’s operations to a single facility in the Lehigh Valley. This producer of nuts, fruits, and confections will garner significant savings through the consolidation, which will allow it to compete more effectively and support the company’s anticipated growth.

BioSample Solutions LLC, Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $35,000
Complete development and begin commercializing the BioCookie™, a proprietary new sample preparation technique for application in DNA and RNA extraction technology. BioSample manufactures DNA and RNA extraction kits for laboratory tests on blood and saliva. These tests will allow for the development of increasingly sophisticated drugs and more personalized medicine regimens. Sample preparation will be greatly simplified and accomplished at twice the speed.

C.F. Martin & Company, Inc., Nazareth, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $7,483
University Partner: The Pennsylvania State University
Complete development of computer models to predict the sound quality of prospective top plates on new guitar models for this producer of acoustic stringed instruments. The new products will provide the optimum sound radiation and tone that is sought by the target demographic. This will help maintain Martin’s brand versus current and future competitors.

Demco Automation, Quakertown, Bucks County
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Ben Franklin Investment: $30,000
Select and implement a new Enterprise Resource Planning System for this developer and manufacturer of custom automation equipment and controls. Demco’s patented modular and reconfigurable automation platforms are used for assembling, testing, inspecting, and packaging small parts. The new system will enable Demco to double its sales by 2014.

EggZack, Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $20,000
Refine a strategy for assembling a strategic partner network to help EggZack market and sell its software as a service (SaaS) solution to a much larger base of customers. The patent-pending SaaS platform requires only a single entry to update a client’s website and other marketing functions, broadcasting the information immediately to more than 20 types of media, including social media such as the company website and blog, email, local media, and publications. Such tools are needed by small- to medium-sized retailers, restaurants, and other companies to promote themselves more effectively and profitably, and to also offer as a value-add to the members and clients of organizations, franchises, and creative marketing agencies.

Element ID, Inc., Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Support the increased sales and marketing effort and customer support for Element ID’s robust, proprietary, and affordable radio frequency identification (RFID) tag reader. These systems are used to help customers track assets and improve manufacturing accuracy and efficiency, to automatically manage clinical and environmental lab testing, and for fully automated, EPA-compliant chemical disposal. It is the first fully integrated hardware and software solution for RFID data capture. Systems have been deployed in North America, South America, and the Middle East.

LMC Software Solutions, Morgantown, Berks County
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Assist LMC Software Solutions with operations and marketing support for its Enterprise Technical Support Center product as well as its Development Operations initiative for software development. This will provide the company with new customers and increased sales. LMC’s new software platform supports information technology staff as they address IT problems within their companies. 24/7 monitoring and log trails are built in, providing complete audit and compliance functions. This new software platform improves productivity and service availability at a reduced cost.

Makefield Therapeutics, Inc., Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $100,000
Implement process controls and scale up production for a proprietary topical drug that will treat soft skin tissue infections. The treatment is based on an innovative nanoparticle drug delivery platform, Hybrid Nanoparticle, for which Makefield holds an exclusive license from the Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, New York. There is consensus among scientists that drug resistance is a critical and growing problem in both community and hospital settings. Infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria can be severe, rapidly spreading, and life-threatening, and currently represent a significant burden to worldwide healthcare systems.

Micro Interventional Devices, Inc., Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $100,000
Develop a new, minimally invasive structural heart repair product called Permaseal™, and begin commercializing it. This early-stage company designs, develops and commercializes proprietary technologies targeting unmet needs in the treatment of structural heart disease. The Permaseal closure device is intended to close myocardial punctures, incisions, and otomies in structural heart repair procedures. This product will serve the large market of surgical patients who are
currently unable to undergo high-risk procedures, particularly for the increasingly popular Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation procedure (TAVI).

Pivitec, LLC, Coplay, Lehigh County
Ben Franklin Investment: $70,000
Complete design and begin commercialization of five hardware products and one software control application for this developer of audio streaming and distribution products. Modern performances in theaters and houses of worship require a variety of approaches to provide performers the ability to hear their own performances as well as cues. Wired systems currently in use require extensive cabling, limiting perfomers’ movements, and have limited audio source reception. Pivitec uses wireless mobile devices and personal computers as interactive controllers for its network devices to address problems in live professional audio products.

PROVA Systems LLC, Carbondale, Lackawanna County
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Support the launch and commercial development of Fleet Genius™ Fleet Manager in a Box. PROVA manufactures a wireless OBD-2 diagnostic device and trip logger for use in passenger cars and light-duty trucks. This device allows proactive, real-time field management of vehicles using data derived from its usage patterns and collected from its on-board computers. The devices provide a unified set of data points for analysis from any vehicle, allowing for an efficiency comparison among a company’s entire fleet. The system can be used in fleet management applications and by dealers and outsourced fleet maintenance services. It also supports applications in usage-based insurance (UBI), drive-by emissions testing systems, and secure vehicle access control systems.

Strong Industries, Inc., Northumberland, Northumberland County
Ben Franklin Investment: $20,000
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Identify and implement operational improvement opportunities that developed during the company’s recent business transformation and accelerated growth. Strong Industries was originally a molder of various consumer goods, including a line of pet products. Since then, the company has grown significantly and has transformed itself to focus on the pool and spa market. The Lehigh team will generate specific recommendations to improve both the production operation and business processes.

SuccessTSM LLC, Tobyhanna, Monroe County
Ben Franklin Investment: $100,000
Successfully launch SuccessTSM’s proprietary new disaster recovery management software tool, called Maggie Bare Server Restore (MBSR), and establish procedures that will be used to implement a repeatable sales process. This software application supports Tivoli Storage Manager, IBM’s widely used enterprise-wide network storage management solution. The MBSR process requires only a 15-minute down time following an event or disaster, versus the current industry standard of at least four hours.

Ben Franklin invested in the following companies through its grant from the Alternative Energy Development Program (AEDP).

Pennsylvania’s 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.

Ateeco, Inc., doing business as Mrs. T’s, Shenandoah, Schuylkill County
Ben Franklin Investment: $41,174
University Partner: Lehigh University’s Enterprise Systems Center
Develop a backup production system at this producer of frozen pierogies and other frozen food products that will provide continuity in production in the event of a production line failure. The company will also assess more efficient production methods to reduce energy consumption and save costs through sustainability initiatives.

Cambridge-Lee Industries LLC, Reading, Berks County
Ben Franklin Investment: $40,500
College Partner: Northampton Community College’s Emerging Technologies Applications Center
Conduct an on-site assessment to analyze the company’s energy consumption and identify ways for the firm to lower energy usage, improve energy efficiencies, and minimize waste in order to reduce operating costs. Cambridge-Lee is a world leader in the manufacture of copper tubing.

Carpenter Technology Corporation, Reading, Berks County
Ben Franklin Investment: $5,000
Complete investigation of possible methods for recovering waste heat from high temperature exhaust streams at this manufacturer of specialty cast-wrought and powder metallurgy alloys and titanium alloys. Provide technical support for engineering analysis of the proposed cycle turbine for power generation.

CEWA Technologies, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $250,000
Complete prototype testing and finalization of the commercial design of a new kind of point-concentrated solar power dish that will deliver energy at a lower cost due its novel shape and construction. The dish, called a toroid solar collector, is capable of providing thermal power for HVAC, power generation, desalination, and process heat applications at a cost comparable to fossil fuel-based sources of energy without government subsidy. Such cost competitiveness is novel in solar power dishes, and critical to the growth of this alternative energy source.

ClydeTec Systems, Inc., Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $100,000
Complete development of a proprietary broadband laser diode that will be the principal component for an optical coherence tomography system-on-a-chip. This device will be utilized for high-throughput 3-D biomedical imaging of body tissues and in other biophotonic and biomedical applications. The image can be obtained non-invasively, in real-time, and with significant energy consumption savings in comparison with conventional technology.

Consolidated Storage Companies, Inc., Tatamy, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $28,050
University Partner: Emerging Technologies Applications Center at Northampton Community College
Complete a plant-wide, investment-grade energy assessment at this manufacturer of storage and shelving systems, and tool chests in order to identify areas and methods to greatly reduce energy consumption. Energy costs are significant cost drivers in this highly price-sensitive industry. The company produces primarily for the industrial supply and military sectors.

Odyssey Management Group LLC, Northampton, Northampton County
Ben Franklin Investment: $30,000
Complete development of a new strategic business plan for Odyssey and utilize student interns for the testing of a new energy-efficient photo reactor that recycles wastewater. The technology utilizes algae to consume carbon dioxide generated by the wastewater, and converts it into biofuel. This also reduces the need for chemicals to treat the wastewater. Odyssey is developing a number of concepts for green and renewable energy production and has advanced some to the prototype stage and enjoyed early sales.

Future Power of PA, Inc., Moosic, Lackawanna County
Ben Franklin Investment: $74,000
University Partner: Wilkes University
Analyze geological formations near the Good Spring IGCC facility to determine if it is a viable location for carbon dioxide utilization when gasifying coal. The project will assess the availability of brine water to combine with carbon dioxide to produce key raw materials. The project will also analyze the transportation of carbon dioxide to identified utilization sites. The 270-megawatt Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle power plant being proposed for Good Spring, PA, has the ability to capture or repurpose its carbon dioxide by-product.

Harvel Plastics, Inc., Easton, Northampton County
University Partner: Lehigh University
Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000
Complete a sustainability analysis at Harvel with the goal of reducing energy consumption by at least 15%. Harvel is an international leader in the field of thermoplastic extrusions, primarily manufacturing PVC and CPVC piping. Energy costs are one of the top drivers of manufacturing expenses in extruded plastic production. A cost savings in this area is significant.

K.C. Larson Industries, Inc., Williamsport, Lycoming County
University Partner: Bucknell University
Ben Franklin Investment: $21,582
Conduct translational research to determine the feasibility of manufacturing and marketing a new hybrid solar energy system that combines a solar photovoltaic panel and solar thermal heat transfer panel to generate both electricity and hot water. The company’s product provides retrofit capability, cost advantages, and energy efficiencies in generating both electricity and hot water. The system will serve the residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional markets.

Snake Creek Lasers, Hallstead, Susquehanna County
Ben Franklin Investment: $100,000
Commercialize a new opto-thermal laser resonator and advance current laser designs to improve output-power tunability and reproducibility over large ranges. Also, reduce power source requirements by 50 percent. Snake Creek Lasers is a premier supplier of miniaturized lasers and laser modules for defense and commercial applications. In addition to dramatically reducing the amount of energy needed to run Snake Creek’s Lasers, the new wavelengths and improved attributes identified will enable wavelength and performance improvements and cost reductions in scrap and labor time that allow for sustained company growth.

SolarPA, New Tripoli, Lehigh County
Ben Franklin Investment: $58,000
Complete development of a process for applying a new, proprietary coating, NanoCoat, that enhances photovoltaic effects and improves the efficiency of solar cells. SolarPA’s single-layer anti-reflective coating improves optical absorption, thermal transport and emission, light concentration, manipulation, emissivity, reflectivity, and scattering, thereby maximizing the solar energy available for conversion into electricity. This results in increases in solar module efficiency up to 10% and reduced manufacturing costs by up to 10% as compared with current silicon-based technology. The reduced manufacturing costs translate to reduced prices to the consumer, thereby enabling broader market adoption of solar energy.

Ward Manufacturing, Blossburg, Tioga County
Ben Franklin Investment: $25,000
University Partner: The Pennsylvania State University
Design and install a new type of core making machine at this producer of malleable and cast iron pipe and fittings. The machine will process low volatile organic compound (VOC) binders as those binders are optimized. The equipment will facilitate an immediate 29% reduction in the energy needed to make cores using conventional binders. Energy savings will grow to as much as 50% as the low-VOC binders are fully adapted for use by Ward.

The 47,000 square foot addition, owned and managed by the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP), which includes wet labs, office/meeting space and a parking deck, is designed to support and accelerate the success of early-stage technology firms. The facility is registered to be a certified Leadership Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) building, and has already won an array of accolades, including first-place national honors in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR Challenge, the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association Project of the Year award and the American Institute of Architects Eastern Pennsylvania Award of Merit.

But TechVentures² isn’t just about a building. It’s about creating jobs – sustainable, high-paying, technology-based jobs right here in Pennsylvania.

Twenty-nine early-stage firms, employing 158 people, are currently located in Ben Franklin TechVentures. Since 1983, Ben Franklin TechVentures and its predecessor, the Ben Franklin Business Incubator, have graduated 54 successful companies. Together, these incubator graduates grossed more than $408 million in annual revenue last year and created more than 5,200 jobs. The new facility is projected to create as many 200 quality jobs and retain 100 more at start-up companies in just its first three years.

Growing in Bethlehem

The original Ben Franklin Business Incubator, established in 1983 and located across the street from the current Ben Franklin TechVentures campus, had been at capacity for most of its quarter-century of operation. BFTP/NEP and its economic development colleagues had to turn away promising young companies due to a lack of incubator space, and the lack of availability of wet lab space was a problem for emerging companies in many technology sectors.

“Ben Franklin TechVentures² epitomizes our work at the Ben Franklin Technology Partners,” BFTP/NEP president and CEO R. Chadwick Paul, Jr. said. “Like its predecessors, Ben Franklin TechVentures² is a job creation factory.”

Lehigh University donated what is now TechVentures to BFTP/NEP in the mid 2000s, and Ben Franklin completely renovated the former Bethlehem Steel lab to meet the needs of high-tech companies. Early projections showed that TechVentures’ 35,000 square feet of rentable space and 11,000 square feet of wet lab space would meet the area’s needs for five years. But the facility was filled to near capacity just 18 months after its September 2007 opening.

BFTP/NEP began securing funding for an expansion in 2009, with eyes on improving TechVentures’ ability to generate jobs and provide resources, workspace and hands-on support to early-stage technology companies. After two years of construction, Ben Franklin TechVentures² was dedicated in October 2011, expanding the facility to 109,000 square feet with capacity for as many as 40 start-up companies.

“Ben Franklin TechVentures² epitomizes our work at the Ben Franklin Technology Partners,” BFTP/NEP president and CEO R. Chadwick Paul, Jr. said. “Like its predecessors, Ben Franklin TechVentures² is a job-creation factory.”

Success stories

Effectively demonstrating BFTP/NEP’s job-creation expertise at Ben Franklin TechVentures are post-incubator clients Saladax Biomedical, Inc., and Texas Instruments Lehigh Valley, formerly CICLON Semiconductor Device Corp. Both of these companies currently reside at TechVentures.

Saladax develops and commercializes MyCare™ diagnostic test kits, sophisticated blood tests that quickly, accurately and inexpensively determine the systemic chemotherapy drug levels that enable oncologists to personalize dosing for optimal results in cancer patients. BFTP/NEP has invested in multiple funding rounds of Saladax and advised the company principals. Saladax has 16 issued patents with additional applications pending, raised more than $22 million in equity funding and launched its first product (My5-FU™) in North America, Europe and Australia. The company has grown from two founders to 30 employees.

“We’re helping patients and doctors around the world every day,” Saladax COO Adrienne Choma, Esq., said. “Starting and growing our company at Ben Franklin TechVentures has provided us with tremendous support and resources at crucial points in our company’s development.”

In 2004, Texas Instruments Lehigh Valley began as CICLON Semiconductor in the Ben Franklin Business Incubator with three employees. The company’s product dramatically increases efficiency in power systems, delivering new levels of system compactness, cost, energy efficiency and performance. CICLON’s technology has been designed into products offered by world leaders in electronics, including Apple’s iPod, iPad, iPhone, iMac, and MacBook; Motorola cell phones; HP tablets and notebooks; Blackberry phones; and Kindle readers, among others. CICLON was acquired by Texas Instruments in February 2009, and all local jobs were retained. After investment and years of support and counsel from BFTP/NEP, it now employs 65.

“We’ve been a Ben Franklin company for as long as we’ve existed,” general manager Mark Granahan said. “We’re proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish, and we’re proud to provide a boost to the Lehigh Valley economy. Ben Franklin made that possible.”

And thanks to the resources available at the newly expanded TechVentures², even more companies will be able to say the same thing soon.