Automotive

More green buses, jobs for The Night Move

By Newsroom

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February 17, 2011

In The Night Move's little corner of the world, sustainability is king. It's also a profitable venture for the Ferndale-based shuttle service.The Night Move has grown to eight employees in its first two years of operating an express shuttle for party-goers between the downtowns of Royal Oak, Ferndale and Detroit. It also runs shuttles for special events, such as the recent Kid Rock concerts, and private functions. "Our niche is doing it environmentally, consciously," says Chris Ramos, owner of The Night Move. "We still run a bio-diesel bus." The company also runs an extensive program for internal recycling and carbon offsets.All of this new business has allowed The Night Move to expand its fleet to three buses and add a couple of drivers and a full-time sales person last year. It hopes to hire a few more people in 2011, along with adding a few more buses to its fleet."We really want to get some corporate services and some daily shuttle service with something like the DMC," Ramos says.Source: Chris Ramos, owner of The Night MoveWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

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Pundits and press from around the country weigh in on Chrysler Super Bowl ad

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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February 10, 2011

Nothing single handedly created more quality buzz about Detroit than Auburn Hills-based Chrysler's riveting Super Bowl ad, "Imported from Detroit." Local journos began writing about the longest and most expensive Super Bowl ad ever about as quickly as everyone began posting, tweeting and blogging about it on their favorite social media outlet. The rest of the world has become just as riveted and is talking about the ad, the city and the impact almost as quickly.The Wall Street Journal takes a hard look at the ad's honesty and why that made it successful. NPR points out the ad does exactly what its supposed to do, "generate a lot of attention, most of it good." Entertainment Weekly provides the behind-the-scene's aspect of the ad, including how the director who made the instant classic Super Bowl ad also directed "Smells Like Teen Spirit", arguably one of the greatest music videos ever. Buffalo Rising points out how the ad can be used as an example of rebranding the Rust Belt. Advertising Age points out how the commercial turns the region's malaise into a "gritty, fighting spirit" everyone can rally around. AOL gives the inside story on how the commercial came about, and nearly didn't make it. And not surprisingly, SmartPlanet takes a look at why spending $9 million on "Imported from Detroit" during the Super Bowl was a smart move for Chrysler.

Michigan International Speedway could become test track for auto smart systems

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Economic Development

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February 10, 2011

A few weekends a year, the Michigan International Speedway is a showcase for the latest and greatest in automotive racing technology. Now it's trying to become a hub for automotive technology development year-round.Excerpt:In August 2006, Roger Curtis was two months into his job as head of the Michigan International Speedway and sitting in a helicopter hovering over the racetrack's parking lot. Nascar fans trying to exit had created a five-hour traffic jam that snarled below him. Curtis worked with state transportation officials to add lanes and change the flow of traffic, ultimately cutting the delay to 1.5 hours in time for the following race season.Curtis, 44, now wants to turn the speedway into a test bed for transport innovation. The next generation of roads and automobiles will be more intelligent, talking to each other and wireless-data networks to help keep people safe and traffic flowing smoothly. A smart intersection, for instance, might be able to detect a vehicle about to run a red light and warn other cars, preventing collisions.Read the rest of the story here.

Software firm Plex Systems hires 54, to add 40 more jobs

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Arts and Culture

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February 10, 2011

Last year was a record one for Plex Systems, which notched 27 percent revenue growth on 37 new customers and the addition of 54 new employees at the manufacturing software firm."We have the right product at the right time," says Mark Symonds, CEO of Plex Systems. "And our pricing model is quite popular now."Plex Systems provides software for a number of manufacturing sectors, including food processing, medical devices, automotive, aerospace/defense, industrial and consumer products in Europe, Asia and North America. The Auburn Hills-based company is capitalizing the most on its new software as a service model for its services. Sales for its SaaS subscriptions are up 26 percent in the last year.The company has a staff of 175 employees and a few co-op students. All but about a dozen of them are based in Auburn Hills. It plans to hire another 40 people in 2011 as the company ramps up marketing efforts to produce more lead generation. Symonds sees a sizable opportunity for growth in the food-and-beverage industry because of the new federal food safety laws.Source: Mark Symonds, CEO of Plex SystemsWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Orders for Azure Dynamics’ electric/hybrid vans roll in, jobs follow

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Arts and Culture

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February 10, 2011

The people at Azure Dynamics take notice of all the hype about electric/hybrid vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf. Mostly because the Oak Park-based firm has had its own electric/hybrid vehicle, the Transit Connect, on the roads for months, while the major automakers are still in the talking stage."Electrification of the automobile is here," says Mike Elwood, vice president of marketing for Azure Dynamics. "It's in the early innovative stages but it's here."Azure Dynamics has the sales to show it. It recently inked a deal to sell and service its fuel-efficient electric/hybrid commercial van through 76 additional dealerships across North America. Sales of the Transit Connect are already heading to exceed this year's projections."The interest is even more overwhelming," Elwood says. "Our dealer website has more than 37,000 hits."The growth in popularity in the Transit Connect has allowed Azure Dynamics to steadily expand its staff since its release more than a year ago. Today the company has 150 employees and a number of independent contractors, mostly from its base of operations in Metro Detroit."Two years ago we were only at 100 people," Elwood says. "We have grown a lot in the last few years."Source: Mike Elwood, vice president of marketing for Azure DynamicsWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Israel-based InPhoDrive sets up shop in Metro Detroit

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Arts and Culture

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February 10, 2011

Metro Detroit's ties to Israel's burgeoning entrepreneurial culture recently grew a little stronger now that Israeli-based software firm InPhoDrive is sinking roots in southeast Michigan.InPhoDrive is creating a combination of smartphone applications and software as a service program called Synphony that allows drivers to consume Web content without taking their eyes off the road or their hands off the steering wheel. The app will allow people to operate their smartphones through voice-control software. The app will route itself through the car's speakers to perform a number of tasks, such as read emails or send tweets."It basically solves the enormous problem of driving your car and accessing the Internet," says Howard Brown, a serial entrepreneur from Franklin who is heading up InPhoDrive's North American operations. He says he was connected to the start-up through the Michigan Israel Business Bridge program, which works to connect businesses and entrepreneurs from the Great Lakes State to Israel, which is the country that produces the second largest number of start-ups behind the U.S.InPhoDrive has been developing Synphony since 2007 and has created an English-language version of the technology that is set to launch this spring. The company plans to offer the app for free to iPhone and Android users along with a 30-day free trial service followed by a small monthly subscription fee through its own website. "This isn't a 99-cent game," Brown says. "This is a service."InPhoDrive currently employs about half a dozen staffers in Israel and one person in Metro Detroit. Brown expects the Metro Detroit staff to grow to half a dozen this year, before the company is acquired.Source: Howard Brown, head of InPhoDrive's North American operationsWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Protean Electric wheels out new propulsion for cars, may triple staff

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Arts and Culture

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February 7, 2011

The electrification of the automobile is necessitating a remake of the internal-combustible engine, a largely unchanged staple of vehicles for the last century. One firm is moving reinvention out from under the hood and into a car's wheels as the latest innovation in automotive green technology.Protean Electric, which has a test facility in Troy, is working on an automotive retrofit that would help propel a car with electricity from its wheels. These electric motor packages could be retrofitted or built into vehicles via their wheels, cutting down on energy lost in drive trains and other aspects of traditional vehicles. Protean Electric is reinventing an idea that the founder of Porsche used at the turn of the 20th Century. "It's simply rediscovering a more efficient way of propelling a vehicle that had been invented a decade before the Model T," says Andrew Vallance, a business development executive for Protean Electric.The company is under the leadership of Bob Purcell, the man responsible for commercializing the world's first modern electric vehicle, General Motors' EV-1. The company is halfway through the testing and approval process for its technology. It hopes to begin production within the next 18-24 months and eventually sell or license the technology to a major auto supplier or automaker.Protean Electric employs 90 people in the United Kingdom, Germany and the U.S., including 10 people in Troy. It expects to "at least double, if not triple its staff in Troy over the next few months," Vallance says. Source: Andrew Vallance, business development executive for Protean ElectricWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

State of the County 2011: Patterson announces 8 new initiatives

By Prosper

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Arts and Culture

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February 7, 2011

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson announced eight new initiatives Tuesday night at his 2011 State of the County address. He also highlighted the successes of well-established programs such as Automation Alley, Emerging Sectors, and Medical Main Street before an audience at the Marriott at Centerpoint in Pontiac. "We still have the ability to launch new programs that are basically cost neutral to you, or better yet, they actually have the potential of generating badly needed revenue without raising taxes," said Patterson.

Google Birmingham office to grow staff

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Arts and Culture

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February 3, 2011

Google has some big plans for growth this year and the search engine's Birmingham office stands to benefit significantly.Google recently recorded one of its best quarters ever and has watched some of its smaller businesses, such as its Chrome web browser and Android platform, experience huge growth. The company plans to hire people at its AdWords headquarters in Ann Arbor and its automotive office in downtown Birmingham."We're looking for people who know the automotive game and want to change the world," says Jake Parrillo, spokesman for Google. Check out the job openings here. Parrillo declines to talk specific job numbers, nor would he indicate how many people Google employs in Birmingham beyond saying it has "well over 250 in Michigan." Google currently has two job openings it is currently trying to fill in Birmingham, however, Parrillo adds that the company plans to hire multiple employees for each position. "I can't give specifics but it's not 1-2 jobs," Parrillo says, adding this is part of an effort to grow the operation in a "significant way."Google is looking for people with diverse backgrounds and skill sets who have entrepreneurial aspirations. The idea is to help get the established global tech player back to its start-up roots by attracting people who want to start their own business but feel they can have a bigger impact by working through Google."We're starting to become a big company but we still have the mindset of a small company," Parrillo says.Source: Jake Parrillo, spokesman for GoogleWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Visual Components prepares for North American push this year

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Arts and Culture

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January 27, 2011

Visual Components was founded by a combination of Europeans and Americans, and the manufacturing software provider has been taking on those markets in that order.The Finland-based company, with North American operations in Orion, provides digital manufacturing software solutions for manufacturers in everything from the aerospace to automotive segments. It spent the first few years of its life penetrating the European and Asian markets, holding off on North America when its manufacturing base was shrinking. Now the company is taking aim at the U.S. markets as they recover this year."There will be an opening once an awareness is established in the Big 5," says Robert Axtman, executive director of North American business development for Visual Components. "I am including Toyota and Honda there."Visual Components technology allows manufacturers to handle large, complex data files when creating simulations of how line work should progress. Traditional software often shows just one line of a factory floor. Visual Components software allows a manufacturer to simulate what goes on in an entire factory."This is a way to prevent as many errors as possible, producing up-front cost savings," says Axtman, who is running the Orion office with Scott Walter. The office currently employs three of the company's 20 staffers, but hopes to hire another 5-10 people this year as it enters the North American market.Source: Robert Axtman, executive director of North American business development for Visual ComponentsWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.