Oakland County

Paramount Technologies increases profitability and staff

By Newsroom

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September 25, 2008

The people behind Paramount Technologies fancy themselves a lean, yet growing company.Over 13 years they have expanded to 20 people, adding 2-3 in the last year. This year, they expect to add yet more."I see us continuing to add people as we grow," says Brinton Baker, vice president of marketing and business development for Paramount Technologies. "We run very efficiently and that is one of the keys to our success."The firm sells software to the likes of the Weather Channel, BET and Dip&Dots. Those web-enabled software solutions help companies finish projects. This year Paramount Technologies is making major push to create more fully-integrated solutions, especially platform independent solutions. The firm is based out of Walled Lake, but also has offices in Atlanta and Jacksonville.Source: Brinton Baker, vice president of marketing and business development for Paramount TechnologiesWriter: Jon Zemke

Latest in Oakland County

Burial grounds going green in Oakland County

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

Going green from the grave. No, that's not the title of a new scary movie being filmed in Michigan, though it is almost Halloween. It's a push toward environmentally friendly, green burial grounds. Oakland County's Addison Township received a grant to turn a huge plot of land into a sustainable cemetery. Excerpt: The new cemetery likely will feature native prairie grasses instead of mowed lawns, engraved rocks instead of headstones and biodegradable wood or wicker coffins that cost $1,000 or less instead of more expensive wood or metal ones that can cost as much as $35,000, experts said. Environmentally conscious Michiganders also are beginning to explore green funeral options including not using formaldehyde to embalm bodies, using a biodegradable coffin and skipping the traditional concrete burial vaults.Michigan has 24 funeral homes offering green funeral services -- more than any other state, according to Joe Sehee, director of the New Mexico-based Green Burial Council. Read the entire article here.

Scate Technologies headed for mind-blowing growth, plans to double staff

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

Scate Technologies, a software development firm in Orion Township, is gearing up for, well, a heckuva lot of growth within the next year or so.The company is behind the Ignite 4 program, software that allows users to mash up different computer media, such as images, text and audio files. It is planning to release new versions of the software that will make it compatible with popular products, such as YouTube, iPods and Facebook. That should mean big growth for the firm."Next year should be relatively mind blowing," Jeff Holth, chief technology officer for Scate Technologies.Right now the 7-year-old firm has grown to 11 employees and another 10-15 contractors and partners. It expects its revenue to grow 175-200 percent this year and another 300-400 percent next year. That will mean at least a doubling of the current staff.And all of those people will be at its home base just north of Pontiac."We don't do any development outside of Orion Township," Holth says. "We don't outsource anything. Anything you see was made in north Oakland County. Period. We are very proud of that."Source: Jeff Holth, chief technology officer for Scate TechnologiesWriter: Jon Zemke

Oakland County Bid & Brunch Matchmaking event coming up

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

Come out for the Seventh Annual Oakland County & Southern Oakland County Chapter NAACP Bid & Brunch Matchmaking Event on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008, between 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Shenandoah Country Club, 5600 Walnut Lake Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48323. Excerpt: Identify sourcing opportunities through a matchmaking process where participants can meet one-on-one with representatives from a variety of corporate, federal, state, county, municipal and institutional purchasing departments. This is a Must Event for Small- to Mid-Sized Minority and Women Business Owners. Identify the decision makers who purchase your products/services; uncover the products/services various corporate, government and non-profit procurement departments put out to bid; meet and establish connections with corporate, government and non-profit purchasing departments; discover future bid opportunities; diversify your client base and recession proof your business. Get more information here.

FaciliNet sees 40 percent growth, plans to add 3-4 people

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

Firms in the midst of moving or expanding their space usually don't want their business to suffer while they transition.Gordon Sommerville and Robert Nagle recognized this a little more than three years ago and started FaciliNet Services. Today the Troy-based firm takes the lead for companies looking for new space so they can focus on their core business.It serves companies both near (Metro Detroit) and far (Victoria, British Colombia) and has watched it business grow to mirror it. Its revenue averages about 40 percent growth each year. The four-person firm (which also has another 2-3 sub contractors) expects to double its staff within the next year to keep up with its work."We're finally starting to see some growth in Michigan," Sommerville says.The credit unions and life sciences industries are the two biggest in need of new space. It's a trend Sommerville expects to continue for the foreseeable future."We see these two areas consistently growing," Sommerville says.Source: Gordon Sommerville, principal of FaciliNet ServicesWriter: Jon Zemke

Local communities make it easier for moviemakers

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

It hasn't all been soda pop and cotton candy for the film industry here. Michigan wasn't exactly set up for the film production tsunami of '08. Still, the incentive is less than a year old and some growing pains are expected. Luckily, local governments have been greasing the wheels for projects, making it easier to get things done. The hope is that the area will then become more enticing to a yet more moviemakers.Excerpt: Cities like Rochester Hills, Royal Oak and Ferndale have simplified or created new processes for getting permits to close streets, erect temporary structures and move forward with filmmaking. In some cases, officials estimate these changes could shave up to a month off the time it takes to get certain permits by allowing administrators to issue them instead of making movie companies first go before a city council or commission. Ferndale, Rochester and Rochester Hills are building Web sites to help market their communities to movie moguls while Redford Township is creating a promotional packet.Read the entire article here.

CareTech Solutions adds 250 people, aims to hire another 125

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

See something electronic in the right hospital and the chances are CareTech Solutions has something to do with it. The Troy-based IT firm runs many of the computer systems in a large number of hospitals. And all of that business has allowed the firm to grow from 45 people to just under 1,000 in the last decade."We run the computer networks, the data networks and the websites," says Jim Giordano, president and CEO of CareTech Solutions. "Pretty much anything that has an electron running through it we are probably working on it."CareTech Solutions has had to bring in a whole lot of people to handle the deluge of work. The firm added 250 people in the last two years, including 149 since January. It expects to add another 125 people this year. "This is a fairly people intense business," Giordano says.Those additions have come as the company's bottom line has grown, too. The firm's revenue has grown 15 percent in each of the last two years. It expects to repeat that type of growth next year, too.Source: Jim Giordano, president and CEO of CareTech SolutionsWriter: Jon Zemke

North American Toner grows to 4 people with green products, looks to expand

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September 25, 2008

North American Toner prides itself on taking advantage of two of the biggest buzzwords in Metro Detroit right now: Green and Michigan-made.The West Bloomfield-based firm is an environmentally friendly distributor of Michigan-made laser toner cartridges, used for everything from laser printers to desktop copiers.North American Toner recycles old cartridges (made in Portage, Mich.), reprocessing the plastic and metal parts and disposing of any toxic materials, keeping them out of landfills."Everything we send out we have a plan to get it back and bring it back into the cycle," David Parker, president of North American Toner. "We want everything back that we send out so we can deal with it. We take responsibility for it."The 2-year-old firm has found it easy to capitalize on this, growing from one to four employees so far. It plans to add another 3-4 people within the next year.The company's business has tripled within the last year. It has almost zero overhead expenses and its products, normally sold to businesses, are 30-40 percent cheaper than name brands. Such savings have made it easier for North American Toner to pick up new clients in a tough economy."There is lots of opportunity for us and we are constantly picking up new accounts," Parker says.Source: David Parker, president of North American TonerWriter: Jon Zemke

Reel Insight

By Dennis Archambault

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Arts & Culture

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September 25, 2008

Did Shirley Temple have an oral fixation? Did Luke Skywalker want to sleep with his mother? The Reel Deal is a local film discussion group lead by psychotherapists and psychoanalysts. Along with the audience they examine the unconscious inspiration behind our favorite flicks. Think of it as group therapy with explosions and movie stars.

Lighthouse Pontiac rentals nearly full, prices on Ferndale houses cut

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September 25, 2008

Lighthouse of Oakland County is planning to sell and lease out most of its remaining projects.The Pontiac-based non-profit specializes in creating affordable housing. It does this mostly through renovating existing structures, mainly in its own backyard. The organization is close to have two of its refurbished apartment buildings completely leased and is cutting prices on three houses in Ferndale.Lighthouse spent $7.7 million earlier this year renovating the Beacon Square Apartments and the Beacon Town Homes. The apartment building on 101 Mechanic St. went from 50 dilapidated units harboring drug activity to 28 new apartments. The 12 town homes on 449 Whitemore now each feature three bedrooms, two bathrooms, an attached garage and a full basement.Both projects are in Pontiac's Unity Park neighborhood where Lighthouse built 98 new owner-occupied homes and renovated another 180 existing houses over the last decade. Both projects are expected to be fully leased by the end of the month.Lighthouse has also cut the price of the three homes it renovated last year on the east side of Ferndale between 8 and 9 mile roads. The prices now range between $89,900 and $110,000."We have had a lot more interest since we have lowered the price," says Karen Staley, spokeswoman for Lighthouse of Oakland County. She adds that her organization has noticed more activity in the lower-price-range of the housing market recently.Source: Karen Staley, spokeswoman for Lighthouse of Oakland CountyWriter: Jon Zemke