FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

HTDC AWARDS INNOVATION TECHNOLOGY FUNDING TO LOCAL COMPANIES
Grants will continue to be available for local tech companies if Senate Bill 323 passes through Legislature and is signed by the Governor

HONOLULU, HI -- High Technology Development Corporation (HTDC) has awarded six grants totaling $95,000 to four local technology companies – Navatek, North Star Scientific, Referentia Systems and Trex Hawaii – through its Hawaii Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Matching Grant Program.

SBIR is a three-phased Federal program that provides small businesses the opportunity to win federal research and development awards. Hawaii-based companies that receive Phase I feasibility study SBIR awards can apply for funds from HTDC’s Hawaii SBIR Matching Grant program. The matching grants provide up to $25,000 to assist companies with enhancing their Phase I project development, compete for the more lucrative Phase II awards to typically conduct prototype development, and ultimately reach successful commercialization.

Late last year, HTDC received an additional $200,000 in funds from the legislature to accommodate the increasing number of companies applying for SBIR matching grants, and to provide consulting assistance to companies wishing to participate in SBIR for the first time. These funds are also used as matching grants for the Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR) for research and development conducted through a partnership between small businesses and non-profit research institutions, such as the University of Hawaii. For fiscal year 2007, HTDC has awarded over half of its funds to date to nine local companies and will be awarding its remaining funds by June 30, 2007.

“The SBIR and STTR programs bridge the funding gap in the research and development phase for Hawaii’s innovation companies,” said Yuka Nagashima, executive director and CEO of HTDC. “Before companies can secure angel and venture investments, they must be able to produce prototypes of their innovations. With these additional funds, we’ve expanded our matching grant program to provide companies with up to $3,000 worth of mentoring and technical assistance support to help them submit a competitive SBIR Phase I proposal. Senate Bill 323, which appropriates funds for the HSBIR program and the Hawaii Small Business technology transfer program, is still alive at Legislature this year which keeps our funding level of $240,000 intact for the next two years. We are hopeful our legislators will continue to support this important program.”

Scott Weeker, president of Ambient Micro LLC from Maui, said, “HTDC’s SBIR Matching Grant and Assistance program has provided Ambient Micro with invaluable help in our efforts to win an initial $100,000 SBIR Phase I award and subsequent $750,000 Phase II award this month. Ambient Micro’s success in winning the Phase II award is directly tied to HTDC’s help with teaching us how to compete in the SBIR program and its follow-on grant funding to assist us in the Phase II proposal development. I urge any small Hawaii high technology company to contact HTDC to learn how it can take advantage of the SBIR program.”

Since 1989, 66 local companies have won 280 federal SBIR phase I and II awards worth over $63.5 million, received over $4 million in state matching grants and created hundreds of high quality, high paying jobs. More than $58 million in SBIR Phase III commercialization dollars in the form of contracts, private investment and sales have been attracted to Hawaii companies.

More information on other awardees and the SBIR/STTR program

HTDC’s latest Hawaii SBIR/STTR Matching Grant recipients include:

*Navatek, Ltd.: HTDC awarded Navatek two matching grant awards for $15,000 each. Navatek, an Oahu company, conducts research, development and testing of advanced marine vehicles for military and commercial use. Navatek won a $69,663 SBIR Phase I award from the Navy to develop a concept for a dynamic motion compensation system to mitigate the effects of pitch, roll and heavy wave motions on the Navy’s new Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV). Navatek, Ltd. also won a $69,951 Navy Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I award to demonstrate the feasibility of using fiber reinforced composite materials to significantly reduce the weight and cost of the hull structure of the Littoral Combat Ship Unmanned Surface Vehicle demonstrator while maintaining strength. Littoral is the shoreline between high and low watermarks. This was the first STTR matching grant awarded under HTDC’s expanded matching grant program.

“HTDC’s matching grants are very important to us,” said Navatek President Steven Loui. “The grants are not huge, but the impact can be big in terms of getting your technology to market. Our STTR matching grant award will allow us to do a redesign of our ship hull to reduce its weight, making the final product more commercially attractive and sellable. HTDC’s matching grant program tells us Hawaii believes in growing a high tech industry in the islands and will help to make this happen.”

*North Star Scientific Corporation. This Oahu-based company won a $79,234 SBIR Phase I award from the Navy to develop a high power, high efficiency power amplifier module to replace the bulky, heavy unit currently used aboard Hawkeye reconnaissance aircraft. This first-time HSBIR matching grant awardee received $20,000 from HTDC.

*Trex Hawaii LLC (Kahului). This Maui-based company won two HSBIR matching grant awards of $15,000 each from HTDC. Trex Hawaii Maui has been awarded four Phase I awards and matching HSBIR grants since receiving their first Phase I award in 2006. Trex Hawaii LLC received a $150,000 SBIR Phase I award from the Navy to build a power amplifier that can be used in various military applications, particular in high-power and wideband communication systems.

Trex also received an Army SBIR Phase I award of $120,000 to build a sensor capable of seeing through a dust cloud and displaying necessary real-time information on a monitor within a helicopter cockpit to help pilots make last minute maneuvers and adjustments for safer touchdowns. Trex Hawaii also won a SBIR Phase II award from the Department of Defense Missile Defense Agency worth $1 million for their project, “Chemical Vapor Composites Silicon Carbide for Radiation Hard Optics.” Winning a Phase II award is when economic benefits begin to become realized and is the primary goal of the matching grant program.

*Referentia Systems, Inc. This Oahu company won a $100,000 SBIR Phase I award from the Air Force to generate a “playbook” of potential enemy attacks on satellites and compare simulated data against real satellite information to determine if satellite situations are due to malfunction, environmental issues, anomalies, or actual enemy attacks. HTDC awarded Referentia a $15,000 matching grant award.

The Hawaii SBIR Matching Grant program was created in 1989 by Hawaii legislators to increase research and development activities in Hawaii by encouraging Hawaii companies to participate in the federal SBIR program. By law, the eleven largest federal agencies must provide a small percentage of their budget for SBIR grants and contracts, currently totaling about $2 billion annually.

High Technology Development Corporation (HTDC) is a State agency established by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1983and administratively attached to Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism to facilitate the development and growth of Hawaii’s commercial high technology industry. Visit HTDC’s websites at www.htdc.org, www.hitechhawaii.com, and www.techjobshawaii.org. For further information, contact Yuka Nagashima by emailing ceo@htdc.org or telephoning 539-3601.

2800 Woodlawn Drive, Suite 100
Honolulu, Hawaii 96822
High Technology Development Corporation

Direct line: (808) 539-3601
Fax: (808) 539-3611

Contact information: Yuka Nagashima, Executive Director and CEO
Email: ceo@htdc.org

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