Megawatt Ventures Ten Finalist Teams Announced To Compete For $100,000 Grand Prize!

ORLANDO, FL, June 15, 2013 (Press-News.org) Ten promising cleantech companies from throughout the Southeastern US have been selected for MegaWatt Ventures—an annual clean technology business plan competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. These teams will compete for $100,000 and other opportunities in front of a panel of renowned venture capitalists and Fortune 1000 company technology scouts.

The preliminary competition was competitive, receiving nearly 70 applications in variant technology fields from eligible states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina and Tennessee. Finalist companies were selected by a judging panel consisting of seasoned venture capitalists, industry veterans, and technical experts representing a wide array of clean technology backgrounds. The competition supports companies working on intellectual property-protected products, processes or production plants spanning renewable energy, clean air/water systems, building efficiency technologies, recycled materials and other products in the energy and environment industry.

Many of the companies are spin-outs from Southeastern university research labs and every competing company must currently employ students from Southeast universities. While some of these companies have been in production or research prior to the Megawatt Ventures competition, several were created as a result of the funding provided from becoming a finalist in this competition. Other finalist companies have been in business for at least one year and have already won prestigious cleantech and business plan competitions. For instance, Research Triangle Park, NC-based Base Trace was named the Best Clean Energy winner in the Duke University Start-Up Challenge and is a Class of 2012 Cherokee Challenge winner. To finalists like Base Trace from throughout the Southeast US, MegaWatt Ventures will bring these companies to a national level of attention.

Judges founded decisions upon the realities of the current markets, the companies' employment experience, and how thought-out the business plans would afford overall company success. Each of the top ten finalists receive $10,000 in funding to develop and produce a prototype and strategic business plan that will be presented at the 2013 MegaWatt Ventures Showcase. The companies will also be provided with top notch mentors, entrepreneurship workshops, market research and other coaching resources to inevitably compete for the $100,000 prize.
Before finalists can attend the showcase, finalists are required to attend a mandatory two-day MegaWatt Boot Camp, developed by Todd Smith, a seasoned technology executive and Kauffman Foundation facilitator. Additionally, the MegaWatt program provides other workshops in cleantech sales cycles and Small Business Innovation Research grant writing, as well as tours of Fortune 1000 company LEED-certified facilities.

Another form of support the MegaWatt Ventures team provides during the duration of the competition includes strategically assigned mentors to aid the finalists in both challenging business and technology matters. MegaWatt will turn to the newly launched UCF Mentor Network for Entrepreneurs (www. ucfmentornetwork.chronus.com) to find the finalists' perfect match.

Finalist companies for this year's competition, which will be held September 24 - 25, 2013 at the Museum of Science and Industry, include:

3F, LLC (http://www.3fllc.com/) — this Raleigh, NC, company modifies natural fibers such as hemp and flax to replace fiberglass in reinforced plastics for cars, boats, bathtubs, and buildings. Student participants are from NC State University and the company is a participant of the Technology Incubator at NC State.

Advanced Technologies and Testing Laboratories (http://www.attlab.com/) —this Tampa, FL, company created a product line of filter technologies - TransformairTM - that destroy major indoor air contaminants such as bacteria, viruses, mold, and volatile organic compounds like formaldehyde, toluene. It is truly innovative patented technology that disinfects air and effectively solves the indoor air quality problems in buildings, transportation and health care facilities. It especially provides effective defense against bio-terrorism. The technology originates from the University of Florid and the company is a participant in the Tampa Bay Technology Incubator.

AZERAcrete (http://azeragroup.com) - Affiliate from Ruston, LA, AZERAcrete produces an environmentally friendly geopolymer concrete using recycled fly ash. The GeoCrete is chemical resistant, high-heat resistant, highly-durable, and high-strength. AZERA's GeoCrete provides specialty solutions for a variety of industries. GeoCrete is also used to produce indestructible GeoConstruction Panels made from 90% recycled waste products and exceeds ENERGY STAR requirements to replace wood-frame and typical concrete construction. Student participants and the technology originate from Louisiana Tech University.

BaseTrace (http://basetrace.com/) - this Research Triangle Park, NC and 2012 Cherokee Challenge winning company developed a DNA-based tracer for oil and gas producing wells, which gives hydraulic fracturing fluid a unique fingerprint, enabling easy detection of nearby water contamination. The founders are all recent graduate alumni from Duke University. Cherokee Challenge Director and Investor JT Vaughn had this to say about the company: "'Base Trace has developed an interesting technology that could have tremendous impact in the natural gas industry by providing an opportunity to definitively determine whether or not any given well is contaminating groundwater. Moreover, the Base Trace team is a group of bright and innovative entrepreneurs who are more than enjoyable to work with."

BioAdhesive Alliance (http://biobindergroup.webs.com/) - from Greensboro, NC, BioAdhesive Alliance utilizes swine waste to create a durable construction adhesive that enhances pavement performance. The technology and student participants hail from North Carolina Agriculture and Technology State University.

General Capacitor (http://generalcapacitor.com/) - from Tallahassee, FL, is a clean-tech company developing novel supercapacitors that offer high energy density storage at a rapid rate for a wide variety of markets. The technology and student participants are from Florida State University.

HySense Technology, LLC — a Rockledge, FL, company, HySense Technology, LLC produces specialty chemochromic pigments that detect environmentally-harmful hydrogen leaks. The technology and student participants come from the University of Central Florida.

NanoFex (http://nanofexllc.com/) —this New Orleans, LA, company develops natural powders from shrimp and crab shells, to coat "smart" particles that destroy toxins in contaminated soil and groundwater. The technology and student participants are from Tulane University and the company is a member of the New Orleans BioInnovation Center. "NanoFex is developing a safe, effective, economical solution to a serious environmental concern. We are excited that Tulane's technology has found a collaborator that is experienced to take this to the market," said John Christie, Executive Director of the Office of Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Development at Tulane University. "I am confident that once the mentors, judges and audience at the MegaWatt Ventures competition hear what NanoFex is developing they will be as excited about this technology as we are at Tulane and eager to help NanoFex move forward to the market."

NuEnergy Technologies Corp (http://www.nuenergytech.com/) — NuEnergy Tech Corp designs low cost, high efficient thermal electric TEG generators that have more applications than the traditional photovoltaic products currently on the market. This is a sustainable energy system which will produce electricity generated from the sun's heat. This product and system is being called 'Heat Seeker.' It will also produce electricity from other sources besides the sun's heat, e.g., furnaces & boiler rooms, power generating stations, tail end exhaust systems, etc.

Talawah Technologies (http://www.talawahtechnologies.com/) - 'Talawah' is a Jamaican adage that means 'strong and powerful.' This Orlando, Florida company develops wireless sensors and a proven communication system that all consume little battery power for detecting physical characteristics in complex environments. The technology and founders are from the University of Central Florida.

MegaWatt Ventures
MegaWatt Ventures is an annual clean energy business plan competition that is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the University of Central Florida. The competition has an over-riding mission of encouraging the commercialization of innovative clean technologies from the lab bench into the marketplace. Innovations submitted through the competition are vetted by industry experts and customers with high energy/water demands throughout the entire process. Southeastern university students/faculty or seed to early stage companies headquartered in the region are eligible to participate in this exciting annual program that brings innovation, entrepreneurship and the cleantech industry together. For more information, please visit http://www.megawattventures.com or call 407-823-0136.