Technology well represented in business plan finalists

Technology well represented in business plan finalists

Madison, Wis. – Having survived two rounds of judging, 20 entries from 15 communities are competing in the final round of the annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest, and technology companies are well represented.
The contest, which began in late January with 250 entries, will culminate in June when the winning business plan is announced at the annual Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference.
“The business plans in the final round reflect some of Wisconsin’s core technology strengths, as well as the fact that entrepreneurs can be found in all corners of the state,” said Mark Bugher, chairman of the Wisconsin Technology Council.
The 20 plans in the final round will be joined by selected plans from two university-based contests and one regional contest.
Entries were submitted in four categories: advanced manufacturing, business services, information technology, and life sciences. Among the technology-based companies are ideas for energy generation or conservation, “green” building, medical devices, nanotechnology processing, drug research and production, and even solar-powered camping gear.
Remaining contestants will submit a 20-page business plan for review by a panel of 57 judges established by the Wisconsin Technology Council, a non-partisan science and technology adviser to the governor and the Legislature.
More than $175,000 in cash and in-kind prizes have been pledged for the 2008 contest, with the top prize worth about $50,000 in cash and services.
Finalists, their companies and locations include:
Daniel Kunkel, ESAN (mailbox monitoring), Eau Claire; William Schwan, Mycophyte Discovery (cystic fibrosis drug), La Crosse; Jingxi Sun, Semiconductor Lighting (street lights), Madison; Matthew Barbian, Helios America (camping gear), Madison; Scott Daigger, Sandbox International (innovation process), Madison.
Chao Xie, GeoNet (location-oriented mobile social network), Madison; Jeffrey Williams, Portable Asthma Monitor, Madison; David Zethmayr, high-speed data transfer, Mauston; Barbara Israel, Echometrix (ultrasound diagnosis), Mt. Horeb; Peter Petit, V-Glass (energy-saving glass), Pewaukee.
James Hamilton, Graphene Solutions (nanotechnology), Platteville; Kimberly Trygar, Semi-Automatic Pill/Liquid Dispenser, Pleasant Prairie; Sheila Milbrath, 2DX2 Geothermal Systems, Inc., Racine; Ann Hippensteel, Solar Flair (photovoltaic sculpture), Sturgeon Bay; Van Krzywicki, Pea Pod Homes, LLC, Sturgeon Bay.
Timothy Lohman, AfibAlert (medical device), Sussex; Daniel van der Weide, Optametra (complex signal analysis), Verona; James Schroeder, Personalized Orthopaedic Implants, Waukesha; Michael Miller, NxtMile (over-40 running shoe), Waunakee; Pat James, DEMET (reclaiming metals from water), West Allis.
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