Innovative Product Grants Will Help Create 54 New Jobs and Advance the Production of Groundbreaking New Technologies Developed in Illinois

CHICAGO – Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich today announced $516,000 in Opportunity Returns funding to five Chicagoland advanced electronic and equipment manufacturing companies to increase commercialization efforts and enhance homeland security product offerings, while helping to create 54 new jobs over the next two years.  This funding is being provided through the Innovative Product Grant (IPG) Program administered by Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s (DCEO) Homeland Security Market Development (HSMD) bureau.  IPG is the nation’s first state-funded grant program focused on developing products to meet homeland security needs.   

“It is vital for Illinois to be at the forefront of the homeland security industry and supporting the development of new and existing technologies that will create a safer, cleaner, healthier and more efficient world.  The investment in these five manufacturing companies makes it possible for Illinois companies to supply the nation with products that help protect our country, while putting even more people to work,” Gov. Blagojevich said.

The following companies are receiving grants:
 
Amitex Corporation, a video surveillance manufacturer based in Chicago, will use the $150,000 IPG award to develop an Amitex video enhancement plug-in module that will provide greater and more accurate image clarity at longer ranges for defense, homeland security and law enforcement purposes.  The technology Amitex has developed makes it easier to identify critical information by doubling the transmission range for unmanned aerial vehicles by sending streaming video data to ground stations with less power consumption and at lower cost than current methods.  Amitex is currently working with the US Army and US Navy on aerial surveillance from unmanned platforms.  Contact: Bill McSweeney at 773/714.4944.

GO! Products, an equipment manufacturer based in Elmhurst, will use the $126,000 IPG award to enhance production, assembly and product engineering capabilities and fully commercialize the Mbox ® product for homeland security and first responder users.  GO! Products will create seven different homeland security versions of the Mbox ®, an industrial metal container that can be affixed to a chassis to allow users to outfit their vehicles to respond to the needs of specific incidents, which include incident command, mobile power, confined space rescue, field crime scene investigations, incident lighting towers, video base search and rescue, and controlled burns.  Contact: Mark Dronen at 630/941.7900.

HC Materials, an advanced fabrication manufacturer located in Bolingbrook and Urbana, will use the $50,000 IPG award to expand its piezoelectric PMN-PT crystal manufacturing capacity through the purchase of a new electrode coating machine and a new ventilation system.  HC Materials’ crystals andrelated fabrication and manufacturing techniques were developed with grant support from the US Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Office of Naval Research.  The US Navy and Phillips Medical Systems are currently using the crystals in acoustic transduction devices, such as sonar transducers, actuators, sensor and ultrasonic transducers.  Contact: Pengdi Han at 630/226.9080.

MPC Containment Systems, an advanced systems manufacturer based in Chicago, will use the $140,000 IPG award to redesign its flexible storage tank to safely store both portable water and fuel with a compact secondary storage option.  The tank can be folded down to a fraction of its full size for storage, which will allow the tank to be deployed to disaster sites quickly while ensuring continuity of supply.  The tank can also be integrated into broader disaster recovery equipment to improve response time, particularly in the first three days after a major disaster.  A military version of the MPC tank is currently in use by the US Department of Defense, and the redesigned commercial version of the tank will expand its homeland security uses to include humanitarian aid and hurricane preparedness.  Contact Kevin Murdock at 312/515.7286.

Quickset, a high performance parts manufacturer based in Northbrook, will use this $50,000 IPG award to develop and manufacture the GeminEye pan/tilt unit and controller for expanded homeland security and military uses.  The GeminEye is designed to be less expensive and handle lighter loads (10 pounds or less) than the current models, which are currently being used by NASA, the US Military and Border patrol for homeland security related surveillance.  Pan/tilt/controllers have a variety of applications including use on military drones and border and port surveillance.  Contact: Donald Zeilenga at 847/498.7000 x 556.

DCEO’s Innovative Product Grant (IPG) Program was created to accelerate the commercialization, improvement, and production of goods and services with an application in homeland security and other sectors.  IPG funds are intended to help create jobs and increase economic activity in Illinois, while strengthening the state’s competitive position as a leader in science and technology innovation. 

“By investing in these emerging companies, we can successfully respond to the security needs of the nation, and continue to contribute to the region’s economic growth by creating the high-tech and high paying jobs of today and tomorrow,” said State Senator Terry Link (D-Lake Bluff).

“Gov. Blagojevich is providing the critical resources to these manufacturing companies that will help them accomplish the three most important goals – to reach new customers, create more jobs and help make our country safer,” said State Senator Antonio Munoz (D-Chicago).

"We must continue to look for innovative ways to expand our economy and put more people to work.  Gov. Blagojevich's commitment to expanding the local homeland security market is evidence of our state's ability to be proactive on an extremely important issue such as homeland security," said State Senator A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet).
 
“This funding represents an investment in our local economy that will create jobs and keep our communities safer.  It is also because of these types of innovative programs that Illinois has been positioned to spur even more technological innovation and homeland security product development,” said State Representative Susana Mendoza (D-Chicago). 

"In order to continue boosting the economy, we must help our growing companies identify new markets and opportunities for advancing ideas and technologies which create successful products in the market place.  I am pleased that the Governor is making investments like these that help make us secure and create more good jobs," said State Representative Naomi D. Jakobsson (D-Urbana).   

"Illinois continues to extend its leadership position in the homeland security industry, in large part because of Gov. Blagojevich's vision for companies to meet the ongoing challenges and opportunities within this growth sector.  Quickset is at the forefront of developing security technology, and this investment is another example of our efforts to support innovation that will result in more good jobs," said State Representative Kathleen Ryg (D-Vernon Hills).

“Gov. Blagojevich’s IPG Program has already made an immediate and lasting contribution to the homeland security industry by investing more than $4 million in working capital in businesses that are accelerating the commercialization of new and innovative technologies and bringing new homeland security products to market.  This is leveraging nearly $12 million in additional public and private capital, which will create more than 440 new jobs over the next 24 months,” DCEO Director Jack Lavin said.  “No other state in the country is better equipped than Illinois to be a leader in the homeland security industry.  From manufacturing and biotechnology to aerospace and finance, we have an unmatched level of diversity in our state’s economy.”
       
DCEO’s Homeland Security Market Development bureau is focused on supporting businesses engaged in the homeland security industry, and the bureau offers a variety of investment tools designed to help existing Illinois companies expand operations and utilize available state and federal programs and services.  For more information on HSMD, visit www.hsmd.illinois.gov. 

Illinois led the nation in monthly job growth this year in both April and July, which has never happened twice before in one year in recorded history.  The total number of new jobs created this year is 77,300, which is the best start to a year since 1999 and best in the Midwest.  Since January 2004, Illinois has gained more than 152,000 new jobs, which is also best in the Midwest.

In October, the Illinois unemployment rate dropped to 4.1 percent, which is its lowest level in recorded history.  It has remained at or below the national rate for six consecutive months, which is the first time this has happened in seven years.  The state has dropped below the national unemployment rate for the fourth time this year, which is the first time this has occurred in eight years.  The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Illinois Department of Employment Security compiled these statistics. 

Site Selection Magazine also ranked the Chicagoland area the top metro region for new and expanded corporate facilities in 2005, while Illinois was ranked third in the nation.  Business Facilities Magazine named Illinois the top state for biotech growth last year.