BOULDER - The innovation of Boulder Valley companies was on display at the Boulder County Business Report's 9th annual IQ (Innovation Quotient) Awards, with 10 area companies named as 2008 winners on Aug. 14.
A crowd of more than 350 turned out at the Stadium Club at Folsom Field on the University of Colorado campus in Boulder for the evening of networking and award presentations.
This year's theme, "The Innovation Party - Electing the Best Ideas," was election oriented and highlighted by a video written and produced by the Business Report's Brian Scott.
Event sponsors included Toyota, Western Disposal Services, Ehrhardt, Keefe, Steiner & Hottman PC, Clifton Gunderson LLP, VectraBank, Wells Fargo, FlatIrons Bank, Chase Bank, Holland & Hart, Avocet Communications, Executiveevents, Photocraft, Shift, Daylight Productions & Rentals, D&K Printing, Liquor Mart, w3w3, regonline and Cain Travel.
The winners and finalists of the 2008 IQ Awards in each category are:
Business
Winner
Envysion Inc., Louisville - Envysion Video is a Web-browser interface that combines the networking power of the Internet with the world of video surveillance, allowing users to access, view and share videos from any Web-enabled personal computer.
Finalists
AP Connections Inc., Lafayette - The Net equalizer is a plug-and-play product that controls bandwidth traffic on voice and data networks preventing congestion caused by large file downloads. Traffic is kept moving based on a predetermined fairness algorithm.
Zybek Advanced Products Inc., Boulder - Zybek has created and patented a process for manufacturing agglutinate, a material that makes up 40 percent of the moon's surface. The material can be used by NASA, university researchers and companies that manufacture equipment for use on the moon.
Communications
Winner
Tendril Networks Inc., Boulder - The Tendril Residential Energy Ecosystem is an open software and hardware system that gives energy companies and their consumers shared insight into and control over household devices that use energy use.
Finalists
mShopper, Boulder - The mShopper is a mobile platform that allows shoppers to use their cell phones via the Internet to browse products, compare prices and receive discounts from more than 100 specialty and name-brand merchants.
Structural Components LLC, Boulder - The Wing houses cellular or broadcast equipment behind a stealth airfoil that generates cellular energy. The rotation of the Wing generates the electricity needed to power the cellular and broadcast equipment.
Computer
Winner
StillSecure, Superior - A new suite of products: Safe Access, Strata Guard and VAM ? improves network security in the areas of intrusion detection and prevention, control of network access and managing network vulnerability.
Finalists
InfoPrint Solutions Co., Boulder - The InfoPrint 5000 is an eco-friendly, high-speed, full color printing system. Its drop-on-demand technology makes sure that ink and toner are not used in excess, but instead only when it is needed on the paper, meaning ink is never recycled or reconstituted.
OneButton, Boulder - OneButton is a wireless remote using technology that helps people control the elements of their digital lifestyle, such as home theaters and homewide audio systems.
Consumer
Winner
Quintess LLC, Broomfield - Quintess LRW, or Leading Residences of the World, takes the country-club model and applies it to luxury vacation homes. Members pay a one-time membership deposit and annual dues, and then have access to a large portfolio of multimillion-dollar residences located in vacation destinations.
Finalists
Boulder's Best Organics, Boulder - A variety of gift baskets that contain only 100 percent organic products produced by Boulder-based companies.
Infinitea Kombucha, Boulder - A brewed and fermented beverage packed with probiotics, enzymes, b-vitamins, amino acids and electrolytes. Infinitea Kombucha helps the digestive and immune systems, and general organ function.
Internet/Software: Business
Winner
HiveLive Inc., Boulder - Online community and social-networking platforms for businesses to communicate with their customers to improve products and services and develop brand awareness and customer loyalty.
Finalists
ClickBank, Broomfield - Business network linking buyers, sellers and promoters of digital products and services. ClickBank's software facilitates online interactions and transactions and provides tracking of sales, fraud protection, secure platform and guaranteed payments.
Eventvue, Boulder - Provides an online networking community for attendees of conferences prior, during and after the event. The online community provides real-time feedback to conference organizers from attendees of their event by gathering and posting videos, blogs and twittering.
Internet/Software: Consumer
Winner
Socialthing LLC, Boulder - The Digital Life Manager makes it easy to keep up with friends and conversations across the Internet. It integrates popular social networks and Web sites and brings friends content, conversation and your identity into one comprehensive interface allowing users to get their updates from a single site.
Finalists
FiltrBox, Boulder - Online media-monitoring service that eases information overload by searching the Internet for mainstream news, blogs and social media and delivering pertinent information to users.
Intense Debate Corp., Boulder - A richly featured online comment system that is applied to online content, such as bloggers' and publishers' Web sites. Designed to increase page views of these sites through being integrated with social networks and providing the ability for a comment to be made via e-mail.
Medical & Health
Winner
Tensegrity Prosthetics Inc., Louisville - A prosthetic foot that closely matches the function of the human foot and ankle. Design of the prosthetic relieves an amputee's metabolic stress associated with most other foot prosthetics, allowing them to be more efficient and subsequently more energetic.
Finalists
Array Biopharma Inc., Boulder - Developing ARRY-797, an orally active drug that inhibits proteins playing a detrimental role in inflammatory diseases and post-operative pain. The drug has successfully completed phase one and phase two clinical trials and is being tested in a second phase two trial.
Corgenix Medical Corp., Broomfield - The Aspirin Works urine test determines the clotting effect of aspirin on human blood platelets. This information allows physicians to individualize a patient's therapy.
Nonprofits
Winner
Crayons to Calculators, Boulder - This program founded by Impact Education has grown to include seven partner nonprofit organizations to provide backpacks of school supplies to students in need. By having eight agencies collaborate, the program has increased effectiveness, reduced duplication of effort, and established a wider reach to develop more community awareness and support.
Finalists
Imagine!, Lafayette - The SmartHomes project consists of building two houses that accommodate people with physical, cognitive and developmental disabilities. A SmartHome incorporates cutting-edge technologies to improve the quality and efficiency of service and supports for people with disabilities.
Women's Wilderness Institute, Boulder - A program geared specifically for women and teenage girls using wilderness excursions to build self-sufficiency, confidence and personal strength. The program model teaches specifically to the way women and girls like to learn.
Sports and Outdoor
Winner
Optibike LLC, Boulder - The design and manufacture of the Optibike, an electric bike that has a 50-mile range and can reach a speed of 30 miles per hour.
Finalist
Sea To Summit USA Inc., Boulder - Innovative designs for backpacking and adventure travel equipment creates reliable, versatile and durable gear in the smallest load possible.
Sustainable
Winner
Eco-Cycle Inc., Boulder - The Zero Waste Services program helps businesses go beyond recycling and move toward zero waste. The three-step program consisting of collection, education and promotion helps businesses prevent at least 80 percent of their discards from ending up in a landfill.
Finalists
Boundless Corp., Boulder - Technology to promote use of highly efficient batteries in laptops, cell phones and alternative-energy systems.
Hybrids Plus Inc., Boulder - Battery systems and bi-directional chargers for the partnership between the transportation industry, such as hybrid and electric cars, and electric utilities.
