SEEING INFRARED Ardmore-based Amethyst Research Inc. creates better low-light imaging technology for military, Homeland Security applications.

THE PEER NETWORK Oklahoma’s young business owners find support from shared experiences in the Entrepreneurs’ Organization

Innovators & Entrepreneurs

O K L A H O M A’ S A D V A N C E D T E C H N O L O G Y M A G A Z I N E F A L L 2 0 1 0

Amethyst Research Inc. co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Dr. Terry Golding

Helping Oklahoma innovators take their ideas to market every day.

(866) 265-2215 www.ocast.ok.gov

Small Business>>Agriculture>>Health>>Manufacturing>>Energy>>Environment>>Technology>>Internships

InnovationA Proven Investment in Oklahoma

Dr. Singh, University of Tulsa

i&E ProfilesInnovative Equine Technologies 4

LandMasters Energy Management Systems 6

Crossroads LED 8

Otologic Pharmaceutics 10

12Cover Story

Amethyst Research Inc. has brought federal funding, high tech research and top

scientists to Southern Oklahoma

18Special Recognition

Seal of Excellence and National Honor Roll into Oklahoma

20Peer to Peer

Entrepreneurs’ Organization provides support and shared experiences for young business

owners

24 Partners

innovators & Entrepreneurs is produced by i2E, Inc., manager of the Oklahoma Technology Commercialization Center. For more information on any content contained herein, please contact i2E at 800-337-6822. © Copyright 2010 i2E, Inc. All rights reserved.

CONTENTS

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22

64

8

ABOUT i2Ei2E TEAM

The i2E management and staff is com-posed of professionals with extensive experience in technology commercial-ization, business development, venture investing, finance, organizational.

Tom Walker President and CEO

David Thomison Vice President, Investments

Rex Smitherman Vice President, Operations

Wayne Embree Vice President, Entrepreneur Services

Sarah Seagraves Vice President, Marketing

Tom Francis Director, Investment Funds

David Daviee Director, Finance

Richard Gajan Executive Advisor

Richard Rainey Executive Advisor

Casey Harness Business Analyst

Kenneth Knoll Manager, Concept Funds

Scott Thomas IT Manager

Grady Epperly Marketing Manager

Michael Kindrat-Pratt Coordinator, SeedStep Angels

Jim Stafford Communications Specialist

Cindy Williams Investment Assistant

Jennifer Buettner Executive Assistant

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Roy Williams Chairman, Greater Oklahoma City Chamber

Michael LaBrie Secretary, McAfee & Taft

Howard Barnett, Jr. Oklahoma State University - Tulsa

Leslie Batchelor The Center for Economic Development Law

James Bode Bank of Oklahoma, N.A.

Mike Carolina OCAST

Bob Craine TSF Capital, LLC

Steve Cropper

Phil Eller Eller Detrich, P.C.

Suzette Hatfield Crawley Ventures

David Hogan Hogan Taylor, LLP

Phil Kurtz Benefit Informatics

Hershel Lamirand, III Oklahoma Health Center Foundation

Merl Lindstrom ConocoPhilips, Inc.

Dan Luton OCAST

Scott Meacham Crowe & Dunlevy

Fred Morgan The State Chamber

Mike Neal Tulsa Metro Chamber

David Pitts Stillwater National Bank

Mark Poole Summit Bank

Stephen Prescott OMRF

Darryl Schmidt BancFirst

Sheri Stickley OKBio

Wes Stucky Ardmore Industrial Development Authority

Dick Williamson TD Williamson, Inc.

Duane Wilson LDW Services, LLC

Don Wood Norman Economic Development Coalition

i2E’s award winning suite of business and advisory services, access to capital and entre-preneurial development programs are all designed to help us accomplish our mission: home grown economic development by nurtur-ing the growth of advanced technology compa-nies in Oklahoma. In the past year we have enhanced the services we provide by adding new employees to carry out our mission and tapping new sourc-es of funding that will allow us to deepen our positive impact upon Oklahoma’s economy. With a $1 million grant from the Fed-eral Economic Development Administration and matching funds from five local partners – the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, the city of Oklahoma City, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, the Oklahoma Business Roundtable, and Presbyterian Health Founda-tion – i2E is creating a “Quick Launch” program that will provide additional services at key stag-es of companies’ development. i2E continues to maintain a large role in providing access to capital for Oklahoma’s technology-based entrepreneurs. The impact of our investment programs is demonstrated by the fact that over the past decade i2E clients received 90% of all venture capital invested in Oklahoma technology companies. We manage two state-appropriated funds and a private angel investment group that was organized in the spring of 2009. Together, i2E funding sources – the Tech-nology Business Finance Program, the Okla-homa Seed Capital Fund and the SeedStep Angels group – provide critical proof of con-cept funding, seed and start-up equity financ-ing and private equity funding for Oklahoma’s high growth companies. i2E’s role in developing new entrepreneur-ial talent for Oklahoma also is evolving. We are preparing to manage the seventh annual Don-ald W. Reynolds’ Governor’s Cup business plan competition, while expanding the number of i2E Fellows we will name in 2011. Our efforts to build Oklahoma’s innova-tion economy have won national and interna-tional acclaim. In the past two years, we have been recognized with awards from both the International Economic Development Council and the State Science and Technology Institute. We continue to turn Innovation to Enter-prise for Oklahoma – i2E.

www.i2E.org facebook.com/OKGOVCUPtwitter.com/i2E_Inc

Fall 2010 i&E 3

A Letter From the PresidentIt might surprise you to know that some of the most advanced research and development into the produc-tion and performance of infrared sensors critical to U.S. military, law enforcement and Homeland Security agen-cies is being done right here in Oklahoma. Ardmore-based Amethyst Research, Inc., has developed a high-tech hydrogenation process that dramatically improves the performance of silicon wafers used to create low-light optical and imaging equipment. ARI’s R&D has been backed by $7 million in contracts from federal agencies that have a vital interest in reducing cost and boosting production of the imaging equipment. In this issue of i&E magazine, we profi le ARI, its contribution to military and Homeland Defense eff orts, as well as the unique story of how such a high tech R&D company became an Oklahoma-based operation. Our business advisors work with a diverse roster of companies across Oklahoma that are developing new technologies that solve big problems for the markets they serve. One of those is Innovative Equine Technologies that has created a rapid diagnostic test and medical device for an often-fatal horse disease called Laminitis. Our profi le of Norman-based Innovative Equine Tech-nologies in this issue reveals just how prevalent this disease is and how its technologies halt the progression of Laminitis before it reaches a critical state. Another i2E client that is carving a out niche in a large market is LandMasters Energy Management Systems, LLC. Th e Tulsa-based company has devel-oped software that reduces the time required and frequent mistakes made in determining mineral royalty ownership on lands leased for oil and gas production. For Oklahoma City-based Otologic Pharmaceutics, the market it serves is that of human health and the devastating toll on people worldwide from the loss of

hearing. Th erapeutics developed by Otologic Pharma-ceutics will reduce the instance and severity of noise-induced hearing loss, which is good news for hundreds of thousands of U.S. military veterans. At Collinsville’s Crossroads LED, the challenge was to create large arrays of computer controlled LED lighting for amusement parks, race tracks and other entertainment venues. Demand for the Crossroads LED technology was so great that orders began pouring in before the papers of incorporation were even fi led. Elsewhere in this issue of i&E magazine, we are proud to showcase recent honors and certifi cations that i2E has received. In September, the State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI) honored us for our economic development eff orts with the 2010 Excellence in Technology-based Economic Development award. In early November, we became one of the first companies to receive the Seal of Excellence from the Standards for Excellence Institute for successfully completing its certification program for non-profit organizations. Finally, we profi le the Entrepreneurs’ Organization, a new – and growing – group of business leaders here in Oklahoma. I hope you fi nd the time you spend with this edition of i&E magazine both rewarding and encouraging about the high-tech developments ongoing in our state.

Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010 i&E 3Fall 2010

4 i&E Fall 2010

THREE DEGREES OF SEPARATION

FROM A KILLER DISEASE

Profiles Innovative Equine Technologies

Innovative Equine Technologies was founded in 2008 to prevent the loss of another Barbaro,

winner of the 2006 Kentucky Derby who died of a hoof disease called Laminitis. Two weeks after Barbaro won the Kentucky Derby he shattered a bone in his right hind leg in the Preakness Stakes and had to be put down nine months later. “People don’t realize that it wasn’t the injury that killed Barbaro,” said Mark Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Innovative Equine Tech-nologies. “His fractured leg was healing, but he developed Laminitis in his front legs and had to be put down. It was a heartbreaking loss to the equine industry.” The Norman-based company has developed new technologies to diagnose and treat Lamini-tis, which afflicts up to 2 million horses world-wide annually.

“When Laminitis infects the foot of a horse, the inside wall of the hoof starts to separate from the outside wall, and it hits the main bone of the hoof capsule,” Williams said. “There is signifi-cant structural change in that hoof and it becomes incredibly painful to the horse. It is irreversible and the prognosis is usually euthanasia.” Timely diagnosis and treatment are critical to the survival of a horse. If the infected hoof can be cooled to near freezing and kept in that state for 72 hours, progression of Laminitis usually can be halted. Innovative Equine Technologies has created a patented equine cryotherapy device called the EQ3, which cools a horse’s hoof to approximately 3 degrees Celsius. It also has developed a rapid field diagnostic test that allows veterinarians to quickly diagnose Laminitis so that cryotherapy can be applied before the disease has progressed.

Fall 2010 i&E 5

Mark Williams, CEOYear started: 2008 Location: Norman Employees: 3

Product or technology: The company has designed and manufactured a veterinary medical device as well as a diagnostic blood test for the equine industry.

Market: Equine veterinarian industry that includes 6,000 equine veterinarians in the United States alone.

Future plans: Innovative Equine Technolo-gies plans to create another device that would use breath analysis to test the health of animals crossing state and national borders. It also is looking at development of additional rapid diagnostic blood tests.

Funding: Awarded proof-of-concept fund-ing from i2E and is working to obtain matching funds for the TBFP award financ-ing. Original funding at the company’s launch included $500,000 from an angel investor.

Successes: Launching and commercializa-tion of its cryotherapy device known as the EQ3, as well as being awarded proof of concept financing from i2E.

innovativeequinetechnologies.com

Together, the diagnostic test and cryotherapy device should eff ectively stop Laminitis. It took about a year for the company to develop the EQ3, which it sells to equine veterinary clinics for $28,000 each. Th e treatment protocol calls for three days of cryotherapy, which generates $500 in revenue per day for each clinic using the device. Th e company projects sales of 200 to 250 of the devices within fi ve years, plus $15 million in annual recurring reve-nue from its diagnostic fi eld test. Th e EQ3 is being manufac-tured entirely in Oklahoma, with companies in Perry and Oklahoma City contributing to the device. Innovative Equine Technologies co-founders are Williams, Dynah Korhummel, vice president of sales, and Edmond equine veterinarian Dr. Brook Mayberry. Th e company was launched with $500,000 in fi nancial backing from an angel investor and has since been awarded $100,000 in proof-of-concept fi nancing by i2E through the OCAST Technology Business Finance Program. i2E has played a pivotal role in the development of the company’s business plan and processes as it seeks investment capital to fully develop its business, Williams said. Th e equine industry is a big market in Oklahoma, which in 2009 boasted a horse population of 326,000. Th at ranked fourth nationally, trailing only Texas, California and Florida, according to the American Horse Council. Th e economic impact is large, as well. Th e American Horse Council Horse estimates that the equine industry adds $766 million annually to the state’s economy. Nationally, the equine population is estimated at more than 9 million, which means there are millions of animals as important to their owners as was Barbaro. “If you can identify your horse’s problem sooner than later, it can be the diff erence between an uneventful recovery and the untimely loss of your horse,” Williams said. “Th at’s our mission at Innovative Equine Technologies.”

Th e EQ3 cryotherapy device cools a horse’s hoof to approximately 3 degrees Celsius.

6 i&E Fall 2010

Before the first drill bit bites into the sur-face at a new oil or gas well site, mineral

owners must be determined through meticu-lous courthouse title searches and drilling leases signed. It’s an expensive, time consuming, labor-intensive process that can hold up plans to drill on property for months or even years. Land acquisition costs can run to the millions of dollars for a single drilling project. “Hundreds of mineral owners can own rights in one project, making this a complex and challenging task to be completed accu-rately,” said Nancy Curtis, founder and Chief Executive of Tulsa-based LandMasters Ener-gy Management Systems, LLCS. Curtis has created a Web-based software solution to the problem that confronts oil and gas exploration companies and the landmen, attorneys and others employed to determine land ownership and negotiate drilling leases. She is an attorney and former landman who grew weary of the whole process after a par-ticularly vexing project. “I worked nights, weekends and through the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays to com-

plete four division order title opinions,” Curtis said. “Subsequently, I knew there must be a bet-ter way to compile the vast amount of informa-tion necessary to complete these opinions.” So, she decided to do something about it by creating collaborative, Web-based software to improve the process. “I was told by several people that ‘it can’t be done,’” Curtis said. “They were wrong.” LandMasters was founded in 2009 to develop and market the software. Curtis spent 10 months developing soft-ware that provides a collaborative environ-ment in which multiple users can input data and comments simultaneously. It can track team players and create a historical record for management review, providing a new level of oversight and accountability in the land acquisition process. The software can also help landmen and the companies for which they work meet regulations in some states that require that they work under the supervision of an attor-ney. Companies can include attorneys as project team members and allow their input and oversight into the process.

Profiles LandMasters Energy Management Systems

SOFTWARE ROYALTY

Fall 2010 i&E 7

i2E’s Richard Gajan worked with Curtis to review the LandMasters business plan and help identify indus-try competitors. No similar applications have yet to be deployed, despite the obvious pent-up demand for the type of software LandMasters has developed. “Recently, I discussed LandMasters with the VP of Land for an Oklahoma-based oil and gas company,” Curtis said. “Th ey recently spent $1.5 billion in lease acquisitions, which include a $450 per diem for each of the 350 landmen on the project. Th e company is seeking a software applica-tion like LandMasters to manage costs and operations. “I was informed that those who wish to work for the oil company will be required to purchase the software program.” LandMasters will sell its application as a subscription-based software-as-a-service product, which means that companies won’t be required to buy and install software on their computers. All team members will have immedi-ate access to fi eld project notes and data, including scanned leases, deeds, assignments and other documents. “Real time management reduces errors that contribute to drilling delays, thereby exponentially increasing produc-tivity and cash revenues,” Curtis said. “With the major oil and gas companies requesting software similar to Land-Masters, I believe industry acceptance will be easier for this type of product than other newly introduced software products. “LandMasters hopes to be the fi rst to market.”

Nancy Curtis, Chief Executive MemberYear started:  2009Location: TulsaEmployees: 1

Product or technology: A fully integrated database that offers management tools for well operators and other land profession-als, utilizing cloud computer technology.

Market: Companies involved in the explo-ration and production of oil and gas.

Future plans: LandMasters is focused on marketing its software product to oil and gas operating companies, but plans to expand its market to include landmen, brokerage houses, royalty owners, mineral managers and bank trust departments. It also plans to add a module to assist land-men and others with the complex issues surrounding the heirship and distribution of Native American Lands.

Funding: The company has two confi rmed investors and one pending.

Successes: LandMasters won $2,500 as third-place winner in the 2010 Tulsa Entre-preneurial Spirit Awards. Curtis anticipat-ed a full deployment of the software in November.

landmastersonline.com

“I was told by several people that ‘it can’t be done,’” Curtis

said. “� ey were wrong.”

8 i&E Fall 2010

Orders for LED lighting products began pouring in to Crossroads LED even

before the papers of incorporation were com-pleted in February – and business continues to flourish for the electronic engineering and manufacturing company based just outside of Owasso in Collinsville. “We had not even advertised, we had not even finished our website when we had the first order from an amusement park ride manufacturer in Ohio,” said Dana Stefanoff, Crossroads LED president and co-founder with her husband, Buddy. “I had to do a mad dash to Oklahoma City to make sure we had everything in order.” Crossroads LED designs and manufactures high output LED lighting displays that are used by the automobile aftermarket industry, amusement parks, race tracks and other enter-tainment venues. LEDs are solid state elec-tronic devices that emit light when electricity is passed through them.

In its first year of existence, Crossroads LED won contracts to produce long-lasting LED displays for amusement parks from Ohio to New Mexico as well as the massive Texas Motor Speedway outside of Fort Worth. The project for the Texas speedway used 5,540 amber LEDs separated into 8-foot and 3-foot arrays. When completed in time for a NASCAR race in the spring, the LED system turned into flashing caution lighting along the entire spectator fence that lines the speedway. “It was our first large contract and brought us recognition both locally and nationally,” Dana Stefanoff said. “It was the first-of-its-kind project and is one of the longest con-trolled LED arrays in operation. It is one of the designs in our patent-pending portfolio.” With the success of the Texas Motor Speed-way project, Crossroads LED is seeking con-tracts for other racing venues, as well as amusement park ride manufacturers. It has secured contracts to provide lighting for two

A BRIGHTER FUTURE

Profiles Crossroads LED

Crossroads LED produces single and multicolor LED arrays such

as this that are designed for high output amusement park

lighting and exterior and interior entertainment venue accent

illumination. The multicolor LED system can generate seven vibrant

colors and six special effects that chase, scan and fade the LEDs.

Fall 2010 i&E 9

of the three largest original equipment manufacturers of amusement rides in the industry. All this has been accomplished by a husband-and-wife team operating out of their Collinsville home. Th e business has taken over their garage and two bedrooms, where they will operate until capital is secured to expand into a free-standing building and add new employees. Buddy Stefanoff is an electrical engineer and long-time LED industry veteran who designs the colored light displays and circuit boards that power them. He previously operated a company that focused on the automotive industry, but saw a niche in amusement parks and entertainment venues and co-founded Crossroads LED with Dana. Th e Stefanoff ’s sought i2E’s assistance in developing their business soon after launching it, and describe the assistance they have received from executive advisor Richard Gajan as “invaluable.” “We have received input and guidance that have allowed us to avoid some of the pitfalls into which some new start-up companies stumble,” Dana Stefanoff said. “i2E has been an advocate for our company and has made itself available to assist in aiding us in multiple ways. We would not be at this stage in our company were it not for the assistance of i2E.” Th e Stefanoff s emphasize the quality of their products and their dependability in delivering them on time to their customers. Th ey are establishing manufacturing processes while working out of their home in anticipation of future demand and a bigger location. “We have worked out many of the manufacturing issues on the small scale, which will leap-frog us when we have the funding available for the large scale,” Dana Ste-fanoff said. “We wholeheartedly believe that we are lim-ited only by our imaginations.”

Dana D. Stefanoff, PresidentYear started: 2010Location: CollinsvilleEmployees: 2

Product or technology: LED lighting arrays designed by Buddy Stefanoff, vice presi-dent and senior design engineer. The LED arrays consist of thousands of LED lights, circuit boards and controllers.

Market: Amusement and entertainment venue lighting

Future plans: New markets include interior design (curio, bar and under-cabinet light-ing) and gun range (security/safety light-ing). As soon as growth capital is secured, the company plans to add four additional employees immediately and additional employees as company growth dictates.

Funding: The company has been entirely self-funded and has not secured investment capital to date. As second place winner in the 2010 Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Awards, Crossroads won $5,000.

Successes: Crossroads LED has secured the business of two of the three largest origi-nal equipment manufacturers of amusement rides in the United States; a major project for the Texas Motor Speedway project was successfully completed June 4.

crossroadsled.com

Th e yellow caution lighting system shown here at Texas Motor Speedway was created by Crossroads LED using 5,540 amber LEDs separated into 8-foot and 3-foot arrays.

 

10 i&E Fall 2010

The global cost of hearing loss is staggering, with more than half a billion people worldwide suffer-

ing from mild to moderate hearing loss, says David Karlman, CEO of Oklahoma City-based Otologic Pharmaceutics, Inc. (OPI). In the United States, nearly 50 million people age 20 to 69 have experienced hearing loss. Among the U.S. military personnel and veterans, the statistics are even more disheartening. By the end of basic training, an estimated 10 percent of Marines experience some level of noise induced hearing loss. Fully 25 percent of soldiers who leave Iraq because of combat injury return with a disabling hearing loss. Financial costs of hearing loss are huge, as well. The Office of Naval Research reports that the U.S. military spends $1.5 billion annually in compensation, retraining and equipment replacement costs due to hearing and balance disorders. “The Veterans Administration spends nearly $100,000 an hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, treating hearing loss among military veterans,” Karlman said. The lifetime cost for one person with hearing loss is estimated to be more than half a million dollars, accord-ing to the Department of Health and Human Services. Otologic Pharmaceutics was created to help reverse those disturbing numbers.

COMBATING HEARING LOSS

Profiles Otologic Pharmaceutics, Inc.

Fall 2010 i&E 11

David Karlman, Chief Executive Offi cer Location: Oklahoma City Year Started: 2009 Offi ce location: Oklahoma City

Individuals working on technology: 10

Product or technology: Using technologies created and tested by founding entities Okla-homa Medical Research Foundation, Hough Ear Institute and American BioHealth Group, Otologic Pharmaceutics has created therapeu-tic solutions that treat hearing disorders.

Market: The 600 million individuals that suf-fer from mild to moderate hearing loss; mili-tary and the 30 million Americans who work in noise insulting environments.

Future plans: The company’s goal is prov-ing clinical effi cacy of technologies that both prevent and treat hearing loss. OPI strategic technology plan is built on three platforms that include a pill that prevents and treats acute noise induced hearing loss; sensory cell replacement through regeneration; and sen-sory cell replacement using adult stem cells.

Funding: Otologic Pharmaceutics has been awarded $412,000 through i2E’s proof-of-concept program, along with matching funds from founders.

Successes: The company has identifi ed two promising drug candidates that results from a pilot study suggest that when combined can prevent and treat hearing loss caused by acoustic trauma.

otologicpharmaceutics.com

Founded three years ago as a collaboration between the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF), the Hough Ear Institute and the American BioHealth Group, OPI is developing new technologies that will im-prove the lives of those suff ering from hearing loss. “We have promising technology that, in pilot studies, suggests that it can help prevent and treat acute noise induced hearing loss,” Karlman said. “We have an excit-ing future and a worthy calling to cure one of the most debilitating diseases known to mankind.” Th e Otologic Pharmaceutics story began with a con-versation between Dr. Richard Kopke, CEO at the Hough Ear Institute, and Karlman, who has founded and oper-ated multiple startups, including three health care re-lated companies. “Dr. Kopke told me a compelling story about this very promising technology that needed a business leader,” Karlman said. “I saw the opportunity to take these sci-ence-based assets that have great potential and provide a strong business focus needed to take them to market.” Kopke serves as OPI’s Chief Medical Offi cer, and Dr. Robert Floyd, a longtime scientifi c researcher at OMRF, serves as its Chief Science Offi cer. Th e company owns 19 patents in its portfolio of intellectual property. OPI’s fi rst technology it is attempting to commercial-ize combines two proven compounds in pill form, which should shorten the time required for FDA approval. “We’re excited about the potential for people suf-fering from hearing loss,” Karlman said. “We’ve got a world class team and promising technology that offers hope to them. We are building for the long-term, and our long-term goal is to cure hearing loss.” Led by Executive Advisor Rick Rainey, i2E has pro-vided OPI with business planning, networking oppor-tunities and relationship building, Karlman said. OPI also was awarded $200,000 in proof-of-concept fi nanc-ing through the OCAST Technology Business Finance program that is managed by i2E. Th e company also is seeking investment from the i2E-managed Oklahoma Seed Capital Fund, and pursu-ing SBIR, STTR and U.S. Army grants.

12 i&E Fall 2010

Fall 2010 i&E 13

Visitors to the infrared materials laboratory on the campus of Amethyst Research Inc. in Ard-

more behold a futuristic sight when entering the room: a giant particle accelerator dominates half of the lab, directly across from a transparent “clean room.” ARI has developed high-tech processes that improve the performance of infrared sensors used by the military, law enforcement and Homeland Security agencies. It uses both the clean room and the particle accelerator to enhance silicon wafers for use in low-light optical and imaging equipment. “This is where we do all our processing of mate-rials,” said Dr. Terry Golding, motioning toward the clean room that was occupied by four people in white laboratory coats.

14 i&E Fall 2010

A group of 11 aides from the Oklahoma Congressional delegation stood just outside the clean room and peered through the plastic curtain as Dr. Golding, ARI’s co-found-er and Chief Technology Officer, described what they were watching. The presence of almost a dozen Congressional aides on a guided tour of ARI’s campus on this morning in late August was a testament to the importance to federal interests of the sensor-related technology developed by the company. Infra-red sensors are vital to the nation’s defense because they are used in night-vision goggles, missile guidance systems and other low-light imaging equipment. “We help provide a value-add to these sensors,” Dr. Gold-ing said. “The processes we use allow the yield rates to be improved, the performance to be improved. The technology is unique to ARI, with multiple patents pending and in-house know-how.” ARI uses a process it calls “hydrogenation” to improve the performance of infrared sensors without damaging the material. The highly skilled workers in the clean room were performing the hydrogenation process as Dr. Golding and his entourage looked on through clear plastic walls.

“The most conspicuous characterization tool is the elephant sitting over there. It’s a 2-mega-

electron volt particle accelerator.”

Scientist prepares a wafer sample for analysis using Fourier Transform InfraRed (FT-IR) spectroscopy.

An Amethyst technician aligns a sample for ion-beam analysis.

Fall 2010 i&E 15

“After the hydrogenation process, we take it over to our characterization tools,” Dr. Golding continued, turning to face the opposite wall in the build-ing. “The most conspicuous characterization tool is the elephant sitting over there. It’s a 2-megaelectron volt particle accelerator.” To the untrained eye, the particle accelerator looks remarkably similar to the machine that reduced a pair of siblings to the size of ants in the movie “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.” ARI’s technicians use the particle accelerator to analyze individual wafers to determine their composition and check for impurities and defects. The U.S. government has enthusiastically invested in promise of ARI’s hydrogenation process via contracts that have fueled development and refinement of the process. The company is funded by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Army, the Air Force and Navy, as well as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, better known as DARPA. ARI also has state funding in the form of a $1.5 million EDGE grant awarded last year in collaboration with Oklahoma State University and the University Multi-spectral Laboratory to begin manufacturing wafers for use by the sensor industry. And with $500,000 in OCAST and ONAP programs that are also in partnership with the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University. The manufacturing of large array wafers for sensor use is a failure-prone endeavor, with a success rate of only 5 to 10 percent, said Dr. Wayne Hol-

land, Senior Research Scientist for ARI who addressed the Congressional group on specif-ics of the company’s hydrogenation process. “If you were able to manufacture wafers with a 99 percent yield, what would that do to the price?” he asked before answering his own question. “It would go down from about $500,000 to $50,000. That’s the government’s motivation in pursuing this process.” ARI’s Congressional show-and-tell day came about six months after it opened a sec-ond, 6,000 square foot facility on its campus that will expand its capabilities into wafer manufacturing. Amethyst’s wafer manufacturing process that it expects to begin in 2011 will use mate-rials created entirely in the United States, a key point for federal agencies and contractors. Currently, some materials used to create the silicon wafers are available only from foreign suppliers, Dr. Golding said. “What we will be doing next year is grow-ing our own infrared materials on silicon with a much larger usable area and getting rid of foreign dependence,” Dr. Golding said. “That’s a critical national security problem. If the foreign source, which is Japan, decides to restrict supply of the substrates, then our entire Department of Defense platform is in jeopardy. The problem is not just Japan. We just recently saw China stopping supply of semiconductor materials to Japan, that again would shut down our national capability. In just five years, ARI has grown from a startup housed in an Ardmore business incu-bator to a bustling company with 22 employ-ees. It expects to grow that workforce to 40 within two years, Dr. Golding said. “We’ve put together a very, very special team of experts on infrared sensors,” he said. The ARI story begins in 1994 when Golding worked as a research scientist at the U.S. Army Center for Night Vision at Fort Belvoir, Va. A native of Watford, England, Dr. Gold-ing had earned his Ph.D. from the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge University, writing a thesis related to electronic and optical proper-ties of materials that also were of interest to the U.S. Army for infrared sensors. While working at the Army’s Night Vision

Infrared picture of Airman watching night helicopter operations

16 i&E Fall 2010 16 i&E Fall 2010

laboratory, he saw an opportunity to develop several process that would improve the performance of infrared sensors. In 2004, Dr. Golding began searching for an investor to back the startup and a location to host a new company. He found both when he met Sallie Reddy, a Tisho-mingo native and angel investor. “She was a Native American and suggested that she would provide start-up funds if I located the company in southern Oklahoma,” he said. “I also had been looking at southern Oklahoma due to its close proximity to the high-tech north Dallas region and its proximity to Oklahoma City, and the signifi cant assets in Oklahoma of both University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University. Reddy eventually provided the seed funds for the company – and more. In 2006, she and Dr. Golding, ARI’s co-founders were married. “It looks like I managed to sell her the business idea – and myself,” he said with a laugh. Gary Schmidt soon joined the company as chief operating offi cer, and Ardmore was selected as headquarters. “We engaged the Ardmore Development Authority almost as soon as we had shaken hands on launching ARI,” Dr. Golding said. “We engaged with Wes Stucky, Brien Th orstenberg and their terrifi c team. I cannot say enough about the incred-ible support, assistance, advice and opportunities Ardmore and Oklahoma have provided us.” Th e Ardmore economic development agency provided incubator space for the new company in the Southern Oklahoma Technology Center, as well as assistance

“I believe that we can create a major economic

engine with the associated creation of high tech

jobs for the State if we can provide the correct

platform and coordinate our resources. Th ere are

great possibilities.”

– Dr. Terry Golding

Dr. Khalid Hossain performs material analysis using atomic force microscopy (AFM).

Fall 2010 i&E 17

Not only has Amethyst Research Inc. attracted the attention of fed-

eral agencies with its process to improve sensors used in low-light

imaging equipment, it is also a signifi cant hub for efforts to launch

an Oklahoma Sensor Alliance.

On the same day in late August that ARI co-founder and Chief

Technology Offi cer Dr. Terry Golding guided 11 Oklahoma con-

gressional aides on a walking tour of the company’s campus in

Ardmore, the third organizational meeting was held of what he

hopes will become a formal entity.

Seated around the ARI conference table were representatives

from Oklahoma State University, OSU’s University Multispectral Lab-

oratory, the University of Oklahoma, the Ardmore Development Au-

thority and federal contractors Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems.

“The state has major users of increasing volumes of sensors in

health care/biomedical research, aerospace and energy,” Dr. Gold-

ing said. “The Oklahoma Sensor Alliance can provide missing links

between sensor users and sensor developers.”

Dr. Golding envisions a state sensor alliance that would con-

nect all facets of Oklahoma’s private industry, institutions and uni-

versities with each other, conducting trade shows and educational

events for entrepreneurs and interns, even developing courses on

how to start new sensor companies.

The alliance most likely would be organized as a not-for-profi t

501(c )3 and require about $120,000 annually to provide salaries

for a dedicated staff.

“We are working to identify the best structure for the alli-

ance,” Dr. Golding said. “We are actively looking to obtain seed

funds and operational funds from the Economic Development

Administration, the state and other sources.”

Partners in the organizational meetings with ARI have been

OSU and its University Multispectral Laboratory, the Ardmore De-

velopment Authority and OCAST, Dr. Golding said.

The Oklahoma Sensor Alliance would be complementary to the

Oklahoma Nanotechnology Initiative, working hand in hand, he said.

Some sensor work involves nanotechnology and advanced materials

that are the focus of the nanotechnology organization.

“ONI and the Oklahoma Sensor Alliance, along with the uni-

versities, could help create a center such as a shared user facility,”

Dr. Golding said. “This center would provide entrepreneurs ac-

cess to equipment needed to develop prototypes of new nano

and MEMS sensors while maintaining ownership of their intellec-

tual property.”

“We’re looking to put some teeth into this effort. I believe that

we can create a major economic engine with the associated creation

of high tech jobs for the State if we can provide the correct platform

and coordinate our resources. There are great possibilities.”

The Oklahoma Sensor Alliancein capturing federal funds to fuel operations. Th orstenberg said the company’s presence in Ardmore provided the catalyst for the Develop-ment Authority to construct a 47-acre technol-ogy park that will feature a 5,000 square-foot business incubator and clean room. “While ARI won’t move into the incubator, it plans to use the clean room,” Th orstenburg said. “And there is the possibility that several of their strategic partners will be located in the incubator or in the technology park.” Amethyst Research Inc. also became a cli-ent of i2E, which helped in drafting and honing its business plan and provided proof-of-concept funding in the form of an OCAST Technology Business Finance Program award. Rob Kuester, ARI’s Manager of Facilities, competed in the 2006 Governor’s Cup busi-ness plan competition with a business plan developed around ARI’s concept. He worked part-time for the company and was hired as a full-time employee after graduating from the University of Central Oklahoma. “i2E was instrumental in our early days,” Dr. Golding said. “It helped us with our busi-ness plan and the relationship has continued on from there. i2E is one of the most respected innovation accelerator support organizations in the country.” Dr. Golding also cited OCAST, the Okla-homa Manufacturing Alliance, the UML, the University of Oklahoma, OSU and the Okla-homa Nanotechnologies Applications Project for contributions to the company’s growth. “We are very pleased with how this has grown,” he said. After watching an animated demonstration of how the particle accelerator determines the purity of silicon wafers, the congressional aides were ushered to waiting vehicles for the return trip to their offi ces. “Our congressional delegation has been very supportive of establishing this wafer pro-duction capability in Oklahoma,” Golding said after the group departed the ARI campus. “Th e parties in Washington have provided Amethyst support to initiate this project and get it to critical mass where we are creating jobs here in Oklahoma and ensuring we are seated here and will remain here.”

18 i&E Fall 2010

Recently, i2E received national recognition for their economic development efforts and also became one of the first organizations in Oklahoma to earn a Seal of Excellence certification.

In its annual meeting in September, the State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI) named i2E winner of its 2010 Excellence in Technology-based Economic Development award in the Increasing Access to Capital category for their state-appropriated proof-of-concept fund.

SSTI is a national nonprofit organization that leads, supports and strengthens efforts to improve state and regional economies through science, technology and innovation.

SSTI’s Excellence in TBED Award honors exceptional achievement in addressing key elements critical to building successful technology-based economies, plus improving the competitiveness of existing industries and an integrated strategy toward technology-based economic development.

The Technology Business Finance Program, funded through the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, provides critical proof-of-concept funding to local startup companies.

In November, i2E was awarded the Seal of Excellence by the Standards for Excellence® Institute. The year-long certification process means that a jury of its peers found i2E in compliance with the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector®, established by the Standards for Excellence Institute, a program of the Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations. In earning the Seal of Excellence certification, i2E’s programs and services, management, fundraising and financial practices were examined in depth by the Standards for Excellence Institute. i2E is one of the first Oklahoma organizations to be certified under the national Standards accreditation program that began in 2006. “This seal shows we have taken every step to ensure we’re serving the community and operating according to the highest standards of accountability in the most upright way and we’re proud to display it,” said i2E President and CEO Tom Walker. “We undertook this rigorous process voluntarily and we are especially proud of our board and staff that helped us accomplish this national recognition.” These honors come a year after i2E received an award of excellence by the International Economic Development Council. i2E was recognized with the IEDC’s Best Practices Award for Technology-based Economic Development in recognition of its comprehensive commercialization services.

Signed, Sealed and We Delivered

“This seal shows we have taken every step to ensure we’re serving the community and operating according to the highest standards of accountability in the most upright way and we’re proud to display it.”

– Tom Walker

Fall 2010 i&E 19

The Michael S. Morgan Business Accelerator Building at the Oklahoma Technology and Research Park

has opened for business.

The Michael S. Morgan Business Accelerator Building is a certified business incubator with 25,000 square feet of furnished offices, buildable lab space and common space. It is located on the campus of the Oklahoma Technology and Research Park in Stillwater, Oklahoma. As a business incubator, the Morgan Building offers not only space but also access to a myraid of business support services that greatly improve the chances of success for start-up and young companies.

A joint venture of Oklahoma State University, Meridian Technology Center and the City of Stillwater, the Oklahoma Technology and Research Park is designed to provide customized facilities for technology-based or knowledge-driven firms in all stages of development.

Site-ready spaces are available for long-term land leases and relocation incentives also exist.

For more information visit www.oktechpark.com or call Ron Duggins at 405-377-2220.

Business Accelerator Opens for Business In Stillwater

OSU_OTRP ad 5.indd 16 6/8/10 1:35 PM

20 i&E Fall 2010

Peering into SuccessPiyush Patel describes the Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) as the ultimate peer network for young business own-ers, who share successes and challenges along diverse en-trepreneurial paths that have something in common. “It can be a lonely job running a company,” said Patel, founder and CEO at Oklahoma City-based PL Studios, which provides digital animation software tutorials to the film and video gaming industries. “Networking with other people who also know it’s a lonely job makes it a little less scary.” EO is a worldwide organization of 7,500 young busi-ness owners who meet on a regular basis in local chapters to learn and grow from each other’s experiences. The in-vitation-only group limits membership to business owners under the age of 50 whose business have annual revenue of at least $1 million. The Oklahoma chapter claims 21 members in Oklaho-ma City and Tulsa. A founding member, Patel is the 2010-2011 Oklahoma chapter President and extols the value of the organization with the fervor of an evangelist. “Some of these people are my closest friends,” Patel said of the Oklahoma EO group. “Years of sharing your highs and lows; what an incredible support they are.” The EO concept was exported to Oklahoma from Dal-las about three years ago by David Matthews, an Oklaho-ma City native who built and sold an audio-visual services company and now manages a venture capital fund. “I joined the Dallas chapter of EO in 1994,” Matthews said. “The death of a friend in that chapter – a fellow Okla-homan named Bobby Blanchard – prompted me to launch the Oklahoma chapter as a legacy to him.” The Oklahoma chapter now has 14 Oklahoma City mem-bers and seven in Tulsa. Typical monthly meetings last three hours with a scheduled member presentation and time bud-geted in for unscheduled discussion on any business or per-sonal challenge faced by a particular member. “The issue could be, ‘I want to buy a new house, how should I structure this deal?’ Or, ‘I have a sick parent and what’s the best way to deal with that?’” Patel said. “Or it could be ‘my business partner just left,’ and we will al-locate an hour for you to give us that story and for every-body to tell you how they dealt with a partner leaving.” Added Matthews: “The No. 1 value of EO is the op-portunity to learn from other entrepreneurs in a structured setting as a means of helping members enlarge their en-trepreneurial capacity.” When Patel was considering switching the business model at PL Studios from selling tutorial software on opti-

cal disks to a subscription-based online approach, input from a fellow EO member who had successfully imple-mented a similar change in his own business provided the needed motivation.

“That was the catalyst,” Patel said. “I don’t know if I ever would have done that if it had not been for hearing his success story and him saying ‘I made the plunge and it worked.’ The EO has been my personal MBA program.”

Beyond local meetings and peer support, the EO group is known for offering “once in a lifetime” experi-ences for members. At the 2009 EO annual meeting in Dallas, the keynote speaker was former President George W. Bush, who made EO his first public speaking engage-ment after leaving office.

EO networking opportunities opened the door for Pa-tel and 20 PL Studio employees recently to learn improvi-sation techniques at the famous Second City comedy club in Chicago.

“A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Patel said. “It never would have happened had it not been for one EO friend calling another EO guy who got us in.”

The worldwide networking reach of the EO group was powerfully demonstrated to Patel last summer when his wife, Lisa, traveled to Russia to visit Tanya Golubeva, a key PL Studios employee who lives and works out of Moscow.

In advance of Lisa’s trip, Piyush discovered that the En-trepreneurs’ Organization had chapters in St. Petersburg and Moscow, two cities to which Lisa would be visiting. Introductions were made in advance by an EO officer in Washington, D.C.

David Matthews, left, brought the EO to Oklahoma, and current chapter president Piyush Patel has embraced the peer network concept.

Fall 2010 i&E 21

“My wife ended up having lunch with the EO guy in St. Petersburg, and then the chapter president in Moscow picked her up at the hotel, took her out all day long, took her to lunch and took her to dinner,” Patel said. “All we had in common was that we were all entrepreneurs and part of the same group.” Both Patel and incoming chapter president Roy Geor-gia, co-founder of Oklahoma City-based MediaQuake, are i2E clients. i2E is a founding sponsor of the Okla-homa EO chapter, for which annual dues are $3,000 for individual members. “That’s a small price to pay to have what I call a pri-vate board,” Patel said. “You can bring up issues with fel-low EO members you would never bring up to your board of directors.” Bottom line: EO is all about professional and personal growth, he said. “The culture of the organization is that it is for people who really are life-long learners,” Patel said. “Everybody wants to do better; everybody wants to have a better company. At the end of the day, when you are working on becoming a better person, the by-product of that is you end up making more money.”

Total members worldwide: 7,500

Total sales of all members worldwide: More than $124 billion.

Total number of workers that EO members employ worldwide: More than 1.3 million

Total number of chapters worldwide: 118

Number of countries represented: 38

Average member age: 40

Average member sales: $18.4 million annually

Average member employees: 191

“Once in a lifetime” experiences such as a trip to Los Angeles as a group provide networking and educational opportunities for EO members.

Entrepreneurs’ Organization

22 i&E Fall 2010

Working and living in communities across Oklahoma.Supporting the manufacturers that support our technology growth.

Company-Wide Assessments

Lean Manufacturing

Engineering and Technical Assistance

Problem-Solving Resources

Business-to-Business Collaborations

New Products Development

State Incentives Applications

Export Assistance and New Markets

Succession and Strategic Planning

OKLAHOMAMANUFACTURINGALLIANCE

www.okalliance.com

Through our statewide network of manufacturing

extension agents and applications engineers, we

provide a full range of services to companies. The

Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance is the go-to

source for assessing needs and finding solutions

available through public and private resources.

We offer free technical assistance and business advice,

helping manufacturers become progressively more

successful. Services focus on improving the bottom line,

while growing the entire company.

We live and work in communities across Oklahoma,

taking our support to your workplace on your schedule.

The shaft and gear

production cells at

Muncie Power Products

in Tulsa utilize three

robots that deliver product

from machine to machine—

from raw material to a

finished part.

oklahoma-manufacturing-alliance @OKAlliance

Fall 2010 i&E 23

24 i&E Fall 2010

i2E: Turning Innovation into Enterprisewww.i2E.org

Our programs and services are possible because of the financial and in-kind support of our partners. These valued organizations are dedicated to the advancement of science and technology in our state and are strongly commit ted to Oklahoma’s prosperous economic future.

i2E servicesOur services are designed to assist researchers and entrepre-neurs in turning their innovations into exceptional home-grown business opportunities.

We do this by: • Providing hands-on product, market and business expertise

designed to accelerate commercialization activities.

• Attracting and investing risk capital in advanced technology-based businesses.

• Promoting an innovation based economy and home-grown economic development.

i2E delivers services statewide through operations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. In 10 years of serving Oklahoma, 25% of the companies have been from rural Oklahoma and nearly 45% have been from areas outside of Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

City of Oklahoma Citywww.okc.gov

The City of Oklahoma City’s mission is to provide the leader-ship, commitment and resources to achieve our vision by:

• Offering a clean, safe and affordable City.

• Providing well managed and maintained infrastructure through proactive and reactive services, excellent stewardship of public assets and a variety of cultural, recreational and entertainment opportunities that enhance the quality of life.

• Creating and maintaining effective partnerships to promote employment opportunities and individual and business success.

• Advancing a model of professionalism that ensures the delivery of high quality products and services continu-ously improves efficiency and removes barriers for future development.

Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology www.ocast.state.ok.us

As the state’s only agency whose sole focus is technology, OCAST is a small, high-impact agency funded by state appropriations and governed by a board of directors with members from both the private and public sector. OCAST works in partnership with the private sector, higher education, CareerTech and the Oklahoma Depart ment of Commerce.

Mission: To foster innovation in existing and developing busi-nesses by supporting basic and applied research and facili-tating technology transfer between research laboratories and firms and farms, as well as providing seed capital for new inno-vative firms and their products and fostering enhanced compet-itiveness in the national and international markets by small and medium-sized manufacturing firms in Oklahoma by stimulating productivity and modernization of such firms.

OCAST Programs:

Oklahoma Applied Research Support (OARS)

Oklahoma Health Research Program

Oklahoma Nanotechnology Applications Project (ONAP)

Plant Science Research Program

R&D Intern Partnership Program

Small Business Research Assistance Program (SBIR/STTR)

OCAST Inventors Assistance Service (IAS)

OCAST Technology Business Finance Program (TBFP)

Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance

Oklahoma Technology Commercialization Center (OTCC)

Oklahoma Seed Capital Fund (OSCF)

PARTNERS

Fall 2010 i&E 25

Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance www.okalliance.com

The Alliance is a not-for-profit organization providing a variety of support to Oklahoma industry. Through a net work of Manu-facturing Extension Agents and Applications Engineers, they provide hands-on resources for improv ing productivity, increas-ing sales, and reducing costs.

Mission: To provide strategic assistance to Oklahoma manufac-turers to help them become successful innovators in the global marketplace.

The Donald W. Reynolds Foundationwww.dwreynolds.org

The Foundation is a national philanthropic organization founded in 1954 by the late media entrepreneur for whom it is named. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, it is one of the 50 largest private foundations in the United States.

Mission: The Foundation seeks to honor the memory of its benefactor by filling unmet needs and attempting to gain an immediate, transformational impact of communities in Arkan-sas, Nevada and Oklahoma. In pursuing its goals, the Founda-tion is committed to the support of nonprofit organizations and institutions that demonstrate sound financial management, effi-cient operation, program integrity and an entrepreneurial spirit. In accordance with its articles of incorporation, the Foundation will cease to exist on or before June 30, 2044.

The Oklahoma Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research www.okepscor.org

Oklahoma EPSCoR’s central goal is to increase the state’s research competitiveness through strategic support of research instruments and facilities, research collaborations, and inte-grated education and research programs. They are funded through a three-year (FY2005-2008) $6M national Science Foun-dation Research Infra-Structure Improvement Grant matched by an additional $3M from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.

Mission: To contribute to sustainable research infrastructure with the purpose of preparing the state to compete nation-ally for large research center grants and form partnerships with business and industry.

Greater Oklahoma City Chamber www.okcchamber.com

The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber works to create value-added membership opportunities and a business climate that attracts new businesses and enhances growth and expansion opportunities for existing business.

Mission: The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber is the voice of Business and the visionary organization in Oklahoma City. Their goals are (1) To create a business climate that attracts new busi-nesses and enhances growth and expansion opportunities for existing businesses, (2) To create a community with an irresist-ible quality of life and (3) To create value-added membership opportunities and benefits.

Oklahoma Business Roundtablewww.okbusinessroundtable.com

The Oklahoma Business Roundtable, formed in 1991, is a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization. The Roundtable’s mission is to encourage and promote Oklahoma’s economic development. The Roundtable accomplishes this by providing critical private funding in support of the economic development efforts of the Governor and Oklahoma Department of Commerce by encour-aging business investment and jobs in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma Medical Research Foundationwww.omrf.org

Founded in 1946, the Oklahoma Medical Research Founda-tion is one of the nation’s oldest and most respected nonprofit biomedical research institutes. Located in Oklahoma City, OMRF fosters a worldwide reputation for excellence by following an innovative cross-disciplinary approach to medical research.

Presbyterian Health Foundation www.phf.com

The Presbyterian Health Foundation is a major contributor to medical research and education in Oklahoma. In 1996, they began the PHF Research Park, in Oklahoma City, believing that a science based company with patented products discovered in the medi-cal research laboratory of the University of Oklahoma ought to be launched here in Oklahoma City.

26 i&E Fall 2010 405-297-8900 | www.greateroklahomacity.com

OKLAHOMA CITY:Fortune Small Business Magazine’s

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