IMMEDIATE RELEASE                     

November 4, 2015

CONTACT

Fronda Cohen

410-887-8032 cell 410-967-6970

fcohen@baltimorecountymd.gov

Potomac Photonics and Dunbar Security Solutions Honored with New Directions Award

Towson, MD  Potomac Photonics in the bwtech@UMBC Research & Technology Park and Dunbar Security Solutions in Hunt Valley have been recognized with the 2015 Baltimore County New Directions Award.  The annual award is made to companies that exemplify the quality and future direction of the County’s business community. Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz will present the awards November 19 at the Baltimore County Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame ceremony.

“We are proud to recognize Potomac Photonics and Dunbar Security Solutions as leaders in Baltimore County’s technology community,” said Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz. “Both companies demonstrate the importance of seizing growth opportunities.”

Potomac Photonics is a manufacturer of micro machined parts used in medical, biotech and electronic devices. Located at the bwtech@UMBC Research and Technology Park, the entrepreneurial firm is growing its export business and adding new equipment with the assistance of a $150,000 High Technology loan from Baltimore County.

Dunbar Security Solutions, a subsidiary of Dunbar Armored that includes the parent company’s cyber, alarm system and central station monitoring services, is expected to expand its Hunt Valley workforce from 40 to 100 over the next four years. Dunbar Security Solutions is adding office space on Schilling Road to accommodate this anticipated growth.

Potomac Photonics and Dunbar Security Solutions join previous New Directions Award winners that include Social Solutions, Firaxis Games, Nations Photo Lab and Pharmaceutics International, Inc.

In addition to the New Directions award, the Community College of Baltimore County and Kenneally & Company, certified public accountants, will be inducted into the Baltimore County Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame at the November 19 ceremony at Hayfields Country Club.

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Why cyber firms are prime targets for mergers and acquisitions

Oct 29, 2015, 7:01am EDT

Sarah Gantz

Reporter- Baltimore Business Journal

Email  |  Twitter

Cybersecurity startups that want to attract an investor or buyer will have to show more than high growth potential.

Industry companies that come at security from a new perspective are prime targets for mergers or acquisitions by older security companies looking to advance their technology, or by investment firms that back high potential companies. But while investment in cyber is still on the rise, those with the cash are looking at investments more judiciously, said Maria Lewis Kussmaul, a co-founder and partner at the investment bank AGC Partners. Now, investors want to see profitability and cash flow, on top of steady growth.

Kussmal, an investment banker who leads the firm’s cyber business, spoke on Wednesday about mergers and acquisitions in cybersecurity at the CyberMaryland Conference taking place at the Baltimore Convention Center on Oct. 28 and Oct. 29.

Here are some takeaways from her talk:

·        Mergers and acquisitions are big in cyber because of a high demand for cyber services and a shift in leadership within the industry. The old approach to cybersecurity — an impenetrable perimeter — is outdated. Newer tactics focus on intel of potential threats, detection of attacks and rapid response. That means more well established companies, like Symantec, Cisco Systems and Microsoft Corp., must find a way to compete with newer companies. Their best bet to gain these capabilities is to acquire a smaller cyber firm that specializes in these services.

·        The cyber niches seeing the most attention include user behavior monitoring and analytics, next generation endpoint protection and threat intelligence. These are capabilities that the big players in cyber must have if they want to stay relevant.

·        Larger companies looking to get an edge on competition aren’t the only buyers. Large accounting and auditing firms, like KPMG and Ernst & Young have also shown an interest in acquiring cybersecurity companies as strong business investments.

After Kussmal’s talk, I ran into Ellen Hemmerly, who runs University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s business incubator, bwtech@UMBC Research & Technology Park, which leans heavily toward cyber.

Hemmerly said Kussmal’s comments confirmed what she already knew: Cyber is the place to be.

Companies based at UMBC are much smaller than the companies being acquired by the likes of Cisco or Microsoft, but knowing what investors are buyers value in smaller firms is helpful for the incubator’s fledgling companies, she said.

When NSA employees leave to start their own companies

September 2015

TEDCO Invests $1.6 Million in 16 Maryland Startups

COLUMBIA, Md. (September 16, 2015) – The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) announced today that 16 companies have received a total of $1.6 million in funding from the organization’s Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF). The funding will be used to advance the companies’ technology and product commercialization efforts. Funds were awarded to startups representing a wide-range of industries including medicine and disease treatment, health care, software and mobile app development. Admit Advantage, Inc.; Appian Medical, Inc.; Artichoke, LLC; Avhana, LLC; Cobrain Company; Cureveda, LLC; Grip Boost, LLC; Kinglet, Inc.; PeerAspect, LLC; Roadmap; Quantified Care, LLC; ShapeU, LLC; Sickweather, Inc.; Sparks Dynamics, LLC; Theraly Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Vixiar Medical, Inc. were each awarded $100,000. 

“TCF is one of our core funding programs supporting early-stage technology companies in Maryland,” said Rob Rosenbaum, president and executive director of TEDCO. “Each of these sixteen companies has tremendous potential to leverage these funds to attract support from future investors, which is vital to ensuring their continued growth.”

Earlier in May, Governor Larry Hogan announced enhanced funding opportunities for technology startups companies through TEDCO’s  TCF by providing up to $225,000  and eliminating certain eligibility requirements to support projects that advance a technology toward commercialization in Maryland.  Applications for TCF funding program are accepted monthly,

Since the TCF’s inception, 242 awards have been made. With an investment of almost $17 million these companies have gone on to receive more than $748 million in downstream funding from angel and venture investors, federal awards and other resources.

Companies that have been awarded TCF funding in the last ten months include:

• Admit Advantage, Inc., located in Silver Spring, is a tools-based admissions social network designed to assist applicants with the college planning and admissions process at no cost to the applicant.
• Appian Medical, Inc.,  located in Severna Park, created SnoreSounds that utilizes clinically proven algorithms to detect Obstructive Sleep Apnea through the analysis of sleep breathing sounds recorded with a smartphone.
• Artichoke, LLC,, located in Baltimore, launched a mobile app that helps freelancers get organized, booked, and paid. The app streamlines scheduling, payments, client, notes, notifications, and reporting so that freelancers can earn more and worry less.>
• Avhana, LLC, located in Baltimore, created a cloud-based decision support platform that integrates actionable patient-specific clinical content directly into the physician’s workflow.
• Cobrain Company,  located in Bethesda, is building the first cross-merchant personalization engine, a personalization ecosystem based on the pooled data of the largest US merchants including Macy’s and Nordstrom.
• Cureveda, LLC, located in Baltimore, has identified novel small molecule Nrf2 activators which are currently at the preclinical stage of development and have the potential to slow or reverse disease in various conditions including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF), Systemic Sclerosis and Multiple Sclerosis.
• Grip Boost, LLC, located in Halethorpe, has invented a quick-drying polymer-gel that can restore grip and extend the life of old football gloves.
• Kinglet, Inc. located in Baltimore, is the leading online marketplace for office space, connecting companies with amazing spaces. With hundreds of options, Kinglet allows companies to filter down to the perfect space that fits their needs.
• PeerAspect, LLC, located in Baltimore, created Sheets, software that allows organizations to easily collect, manage, validate and share all kinds of data.
• Quantified Care, LLC, located in Baltimore, leverages mobile platforms and mobile medical technologies, paired with the right clinical expertise, to eliminate gaps in patient care.
• Roadmap, located in Baltimore, is a SaaS-based resource forecasting and project intelligence platform and application.  The company makes it easy for enterprises to overcome the massive inefficiency associated with using 3-4 different (specialized) SaaS tools across every project workflow.
• ShapeU, LLC, located in Baltimore, is a web platform that matches users into small groups to work out with personal trainers for a fraction of the price.
• Sickweather., located in Baltimore, is the Doppler radar for sickness. Their patent-pending process distills reports of illness from social media for use in public health prediction and real-time mobile alerts, so parents, business travelers and healthcare professionals can stay one step ahead of the spread of illness.
• Sparks Dynamicslocated in Baltimore, provides a suite of services to the industrial customer that enhances business profitability through intelligent systems that monitor energy, security, and equipment status allowing for increased efficiencies, uptime and business continuity.
• Theraly Pharmaceuticals, Inc., located in Elkridge, is a pharmaceutical company with a goal to efficiently generate medically important, stable, and long-acting therapies. Theraly designs innovative biologic therapeutics using a breakthrough in half-life extension technology.
• Vixiar Medical, Inc.., located in Annapolis, develops unique technologies for the non-invasive monitoring of cardiopulmonary diseases; particularly those that can impact hospital readmissions. The first product technology, for the non-invasive monitoring of congestive heart failure (CHF) patients, a hand-held device that has been approved by clinical engineering at Johns Hopkins University, is currently in IRB approved human clinical evaluations.

The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) is the go-to source for entrepreneurial support and guidance for start-ups and early-stage companies engaged in bringing innovative ideas to market. For more than a decade, the organization has provided funding, mentoring and networking opportunities to support Maryland’s innovation ecosystem. While founded by the Maryland General Assembly, TEDCO is an independent entity that makes seed/early-stage investments and manages private capital for angel and venture capital funds. It is frequently ranked as one of the most active seed/early-stage investors in the nation. The organization plays a key role in bringing research created in Maryland’s educational institutions and federal laboratories into the commercial marketplace. For more information on TEDCO and its programs and resources, visitwww.TEDCO.md .

Perth-based security player, iWebGate (ASX:IWG), has growth in its vision for the next few years. iWebGate managing director, Mark Harrell, said its product set is tailored for the end customer’s needs in mind and focuses on security, productivity, and connectivity.

“With everything shifting to the Cloud, customers want deployment in minutes as compared to days or even weeks. iWebGate turned what was once a hard tech function into an admin function and we take enterprise-friendly solutions and make it enterprise-ready so armed with that, businesses can seamlessly move along with their operations,” he said.

And the channel is a key part of the company’s growth strategy. According to Harrell, its channel is made of small businesses so taking on a product with monthly revenues, no restriction on margins and minimal training is appealing to the partner.

“We don’t go direct to market. What we’re noticing now is that with the channel, customers are becoming more aware of what’s available and end-customers are demanding more from the business.

“The message is now what’s in it for the customer and partner- it’s not all about technology anymore. So we’re focusing on webinars, lunch and learns, workshops, and training with our partners because we’re signing up partners on a daily basis and they need that training.”

Harrell also indicated that its recent partnership with Telstra has opened up opportunities for the company in Europe, UK, and the US. He indicated iWebGate is close to launching a UK operations and signing up with major telco there, as well as a partnership with a telco in the US.

“The size of the Telstra opportunity is huge – they have global plans and we can piggyback on top of that. But we’re also in discussions with other telcos because a universal problem for telcos is to stop being a commodity and start offering value to the customer,” he claimed.

“Our footprint in these areas will be very ISP focused in the early days.”

The company has been active in verticals such as law firms and superannuation and accounting, as well as mining and resources but intends on extending its reach to other avenues, such as insurance companies, as well.

Harrell added that it also intends on getting its name out globally as a company with a big security play.

“With security, the focus should be more on the benefits it brings to a company instead of harping on scaring people with what will happen if they don’t get security. That’s the path we intend to take.

COLUMBIA Technologies launches Certified Mobile Laboratory Analysis Services

Mike Adelstein ’96, biochemistry and molecular biology, gets excited by the littlest things.

As president and CEO of Potomac Photonics Inc., he leads a company that uses advanced manufacturing technologies (high-tech lasers and 3-D printing) to create and manufacture essential and ultra-tiny parts used in products ranging from space satellites to espresso makers.

Nearly every prototype that Potomac Photonics produces can fit in Adelstein’s palm, or his shirt pocket, and he keeps plenty of examples on hand to share with visitors.

“Look at this!” he says, eyes shining, as he produces a thread-like sample for examination. It’s a surgical suture, which is impressive enough at that scale. But, wait. There’s more!

“Our client needed micro-wells laser-drilled into the suture, where they could insert radiation,” he explains. And Potomac Photonics engineers rose to the task, figuring out how to drill 25,000 holes, each just one micron thick, in each of the tiny sutures. Doctors at Walter Reed Army Hospital are now using this technology to deliver highly localized treatment for breast and prostate cancer.

Adelstein says that devising these micro products, and the potential they have to improve everyday lives in so many ways, make him eager to arrive at the company’s headquarters in the university’s bwtech@UMBC Research & Technology Park each day. “We’re involved in fabricating devices to diagnose concussions, develop new pharmaceutical drugs,” he says. “The things we are doing are actually making an impact on the world.”

Adelstein joined Potomac Photonics as a sales administrator in 1997, not long after graduating from UMBC with a major in biochemistry and molecular biology. “UMBC was really tough for me,” he recalls. “Learning never came easy to me, but I persevered and I got through.” The university’s supportive faculty and collaborative student environment, he says, helped reward his perseverance with a structure for success.

That resilience served him well over the next dozen years. As Adelstein focused on growing the contract-manufacturing unit at Potomac, he also earned an M.S. in technology management from University of Maryland, University College and became a CPA. In 2011, Adelstein was promoted to become Potomac’s president and CEO. A year later, he led a buyout of the company.

Among his first acts after the buyout was to move Potomac Photonics from Lanham to bwtech@UMBC. The company completed its move to the university’s research and technology park in March 2013.

Ellen Hemmerly, executive director of bwtech@UMBC, worked closely with Adelstein to make the move to the research park possible. “Mike wanted to move Potomac Photonics here for all of the right reasons,” she observes. “He wanted to grow his company. He wanted to be affiliated with UMBC. He wanted to collaborate with faculty. And he wanted to hire students.”

Indeed, since the move to bwtech@UMBC, Potomac has grown from 18 to 26 employees. Adelstein points with pride to the fact that six members of his staff have affiliations with UMBC – either as graduates or student interns. “And that’s only going to be growing,” he says.

The company’s director of research and development, Amir Harandi, Ph.D ’14, mechanical engineering, is one of those employees with UMBC connections. He began working at Potomac as a graduate student, and stepped into his current role after completing his degree.

“Mike is a great CEO,” says Harandi, “and this is a great environment for an engineer. Research and development really is the driver of the company.” That drive and growth is demonstrated by the company’s current build out of 2,000 square feet of additional R&D space at bwtech@UMBC.

Adelstein is committed to creating a work culture where employees feel respected and valued — and where opportunity abounds. High school graduates who start as technicians at the company can receive training to become engineers, for example. And Potomac Photonics does pro bono work for organizations including the Boy Scouts of America and the U.S. Marine Corps.

“Potomac’s culture very much parallels what [President Freeman A. Hrabowski, III] has brought to UMBC,” says Adelstein, who was named UMBC’s Alumnus of the Year in natural and mathematical sciences in 2014. “Our core values are based on lifelong education, opportunity, social responsibility, diversity, collaboration, and hard work.”

— Sue de Pasquale