Entrepreneurs find success brewing in the ‘ATIC’
Friday, September 7, 2007
MESA, Ariz. — Prior to releasing The Hand Mentor nationwide, Kinetic Muscles Inc. did what all successful companies do before a major product launch — test market the product. During testing, they found that the reliability of some of the mechanical components needed to be improved. The Hand Mentor is designed as a hand therapy device for use in therapy clinics to improve outcomes in stroke rehabilitation, so reliability of the entire device is crucial.
“Before launching the product nationwide, we went through an overhaul of the device and needed to make some pre-production mechanical parts to verify our design changes,” said Ed Koeneman, founder and COO of the neurological rehabilitation company based in Tempe.
Trying to find a commercial shop, willing to take on a small project like that, proved a bit challenging. Plus the cost involved was more than this start-up company could afford.
Just about that time Koeneman was looking for a shop, Arizona State University rolled out the Advanced Technology Innovation Collaboratory (ATIC), which takes entrepreneurs’ innovations from paper to an actual prototype.
Based at the Polytechnic campus, ATIC is a recent venture to help innovative entrepreneurs in the greater Phoenix area leverage ASU’s assets and ideally complements ASU Technopolis’ entrepreneurial education, coaching, and networking services to entrepreneurs in the Valley.
Working through ATIC, Kinetic Muscles Inc. was introduced to the Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering Technology unit, which proved to be a perfect fit for the dozen or so mechanical parts the company needed to produce.
“ATIC really filled a gap between the drawing board and full production for us,” said Koeneman. “Faculty and students at ASU were able to deliver top quality parts, at a decent price, and in the time frame that we needed.”
The company was able to verify that the changes made improved the reliability, and the product was re-named The Hand Mentor Pro before launching nationwide in June.
“We have only just recently filled the backlog from the initial rush of orders following the launch date,” said Koeneman.
Kinetic Muscles Inc. is not alone in finding success with ATIC. Small and large projects are under way, such as designing and creating a 3D building visualization tool, year-round holiday decoration mounting equipment, better flag fasteners, conducting research and analysis on the failure of NiCd cells in batteries, producing an image-guided surgical tool kit, and providing marketing assessment for a dentistry practice to name a few.
Another way that ATIC helps companies be successful is through a free colloquium series that is open to entrepreneurs and small- to medium-sized enterprises as well as the general public.
On Sept. 18, ASU will host Jonathan Harris, president of CMC Interconnect Technology, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Student Union Cooley Ballroom B, ASU’s Polytechnic campus. A light lunch will be provided free of charge to attendees.
Harris will discuss the evolution of electronic packaging technology, from initial laboratory investigation to full scale production in a start-up company. The technology of focus is an aluminum nitride ceramic material used for high power electronic devices in telecommunications, automotive, opto-electronic and military applications.
For information about the colloquium series or other ATIC services, contact Jane at (480) 727-1647 or atic@asu.edu.
MEDIA CONTACT(S): Christine Lambrakis, 480/727-1173, 602/316-5616, lambrakis@asu.edu
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