The Upper Hand Blog

Maker Faire Trivia Contest — Question 5

Michigan Advantage — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 19:28:31 +0000

Maker Faire is coming to the Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan on July 31 and August 1, 2010, and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation is giving away a pair of tickets good for either Friday or Saturday to the first person who emails the correct response to MIAdvantage@michigan.org for the following question:

Question #5: Clarence L. Johnson of Ishpeming, who was educated at the University of Michigan, created Lockheed’s “Skunk Works” – a team of engineers that are credited with designing some of the company’s most remarkable aviation technology. Johnson patented which important technology for turbo-jet engines?

UPDATE: CORRECT RESPONSE TO QUESTION #5

Clarence L. Johnson patented the afterburner for turbo-jet engines, seen here in this diagram from his original patent application in 1950. http://www.freepatentsonline.com/2771740.pdf

Congratulations to Jay Al-Qalyuby!

Watch the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s Upper Hand blog at http://blog.michiganadvantage.org/ for a daily trivia question about Michigan innovation and entrepreneurship starting on Thursday, July 15, 2010. Questions will be posted on Thursday (7/15), Friday (7/16), Monday (7/19), Tuesday (7/20), and Wednesday (7/21).

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for instant notification that the question has been posted.

Maker Faire Trivia Contest — Question 4

Michigan Advantage — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:30:06 +0000

Question #4: What “graduate” of Kettering University’s TechWorks Incubator was the first business from Flint to be named one of Michigan’s 50 Companies to Watch?

Hint: They also won first place in the new business category of the Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest annual business plan competition.

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for instant notification that the question has been posted.

CORRECT RESPONSE TO QUESTION #4

Global Energy Innovations, a “graduate” of Kettering University’s TechWorks Incubator, was the first business from Flint to be named one of Michigan’s 50 Companies to Watch.

They also won first place in the new business category of the Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest annual business plan competition.

Congratulations to today’s winner: Dominique Clemente.

Maker Faire Trivia Contest — Question 3

Michigan Advantage — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 18:28:45 +0000

Question #3: What is the name of the statewide network of business development service centers that the Michigan Economic Development Corporation partners with to provide assistance to small businesses and entrepreneurs?

Hint: The centers are managed by Grand Valley State University.

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for instant notification that the question has been posted.

UPDATE: CORRECT RESPONSE TO QUESTION #3

The Small Business & Technology Development Centers are supported by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and supply business development services to qualifying small businesses and entrepreneurs.

Our winner is Clark Adamczyk.

Keep watching today for two more chances to win.

Maker Faire Trivia Contest — Question Two

Michigan Advantage — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 14:54:01 +0000

Question #2: What automotive competition is currently taking place in Michigan, with the goal of achieving 100 miles per gallon equivalent? Where is it taking place?

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for instant notification that the question has been posted.

UPDATE: Our winner for Question #2 is Maggie Striz Calnin. The correct response to Question #2 is:

The Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE competition is currently taking place in Michigan, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, with the winners sharing in a $10 million prize. You can watch the competition live on the internet, or better yet at MIS for the Finals on Friday, July 23. For more information, visit the Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize Web page.

Watch here Monday for your next chance to win.

Obama: Manufacturing Plant Signals Rebound

Michigan Advantage — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 19:33:06 +0000

Today I joined President Barack Obama in Holland to celebrate the construction of Compact Power’s new lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing plant. The facility, expected to create approximately 440 direct jobs and more than 800 spin-off jobs in West Michigan by 2015, is part of the state’s long-term strategy to make Michigan a center for advanced battery research and production.

Compact Power, a subsidiary of LG Chem Ltd., won a $151.4 million U.S. Department of Energy grant last August to begin production of lithium-ion battery cells for electric vehicles – one of 13 Michigan-based projects awarded more than $1.35 billion in Recovery Act funding to support advanced battery and electric vehicle manufacturing and development.

We project 62,000 new jobs will be created in Michigan in the advanced battery industry in the next 10 years. We’re well on our way to becoming the advanced battery capital of the world. It’s the result of our aggressive state strategy combined with Recovery Act investments through our partnership with President Obama and his administration.

As Obama told the crowd gathered to hear him speak in Holland: “What this plant will prove is we are headed in the right direction, that the surest way out of the storms we’re in is to keep moving forward and not go backward.”

Maker Faire Trivia Contest — Question One

Michigan Advantage — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 17:28:41 +0000

Question #1: Who was the Lansing-born, Michigan State University-educated innovator who solved a problem that even Alexander Graham Bell could not – how to transmit voice signals along beams of light?

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for instant notification that the question has been posted.

UPDATE: Our winner for Question #1 is Susan Walsh. The correct response to Question #1 was:

Donald Keck, born in Lansing and educated at Michigan State University, solved a problem that even Alexander Graham Bell could not – how to transmit voice signals along beams of light.

Watch here Friday for your next chance to win.

Maker Faire – A Celebration of Innovators

Michigan Advantage — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:30:34 +0000

Maker Faire is coming to the Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan on July 31 and August 1, 2010 and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation is giving away five (5) pairs of tickets – worth nearly $60 a pair – good for a single day admission on either Saturday or Sunday.

Maker Faire http://makerfaire.com/detroit/2010/ is a “physical event” where “makers” offer hands-on displays of their inventions and do-it-yourself projects. The family-friendly event celebrates arts, crafts, engineering, food, music, science and technology projects and the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset. It’s for creative, resourceful people who like to tinker and love to make things. Experience it right in the birthplace and showplace of one of the world’s most famous tinkerers, Henry Ford.

Michigan has always been a great place for entrepreneurs. Names like Dow, Kellogg and Ford changed the world. Today, that spirit of entrepreneurship is alive and well. Michigan is proud to support the inventors, innovators, creative thinkers, and entrepreneurs of Maker Faire 2010 – Detroit.

For notification of the question posting, you can subscribe via RSS feed, or better yet, follow us on facebook http://www.facebook.com/MIAdvantage?ref=ts and twitter http://twitter.com/MIAdvantage for instant notification that the question has been posted.

View the contest’s terms and conditions here [ http://www.michiganadvantage.org/Events/Terms-and-Conditions/ ].

Michigan’s Economic Development Efforts Recognized with Silver Shovel Award

Michigan Advantage — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:16:25 +0000

Area Development magazine has awarded Michigan with a Silver Shovel, an award presented annually to states that have achieved significant success in terms of job creation and economic impact.

This award is further evidence that our aggressive economic diversification plan is working, enabling us to successfully compete against other states and countries for new jobs and new investment.

In its description of the winning states, Area Development said, “Long dependent on the auto industry for jobs and its tax base, Michigan’s list of top projects is refreshingly diversified, which reflects on the state’s recent emphasis on new industry categories, particularly alternative energy.”

In addition to this latest honor by Area Development magazine, Michigan has been recognized this year as the No. 3 state for corporate expansions by Site Selection magazine and was also honored with seven Trade & Industry Development magazine CiCi Awards, a competition that recognizes the top 30 projects in North America in two categories, corporate investment and community impact.

All of these awards underscore Michigan’s competitive business climate, innovative economic development toolbox and outstanding workforce. Companies are investing in Michigan because we’ve taken the steps necessary to be a top location in which to do business.

Biden: Michigan is leading the way toward U.S. oil independence

Michigan Advantage — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 19:55:01 +0000

Michigan hosted a very special VIP, er, make that VP, today as Vice President Joe Biden celebrated the groundbreaking of a new Dow Kokam advanced battery plant in Midland. He praised the plant as a solid step toward cutting back the country’s reliance on oil, and rebuilding Michigan’s manufacturing base.

The Dow Kokam story demonstrates what can be achieved when we have strong public-private partnerships and government can present a convincing business case to a particular company or even an entire industry such as advanced batteries.

Federal Department of Energy grants made possible by the Recovery Act, combined with Michigan’s first-in-the-nation battery tax credits, have generated an entire new industry in our state that didn’t exist a year ago.

Since last August, 16 companies representing the entire advanced battery and electric vehicle supply chain have begun operations in Michigan. And these 16 companies are projected to create 62,000 good-paying jobs here in our state in the next decade.

Over 10,800 New Jobs Planned for Michigan

Michigan Advantage — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 18:10:58 +0000

As we work aggressively to diversify Michigan’s economy, companies are choosing to invest in our state because of our competitive business climate, skilled workforce and strong public-private partnerships.

On Tuesday, Gov. Granholm announced that our efforts have resulted in 13 job-creating projects, generating 2,747 new jobs, retaining more than 8,000 jobs, and attracting more than $382 million in investment to communities across the state.

The companies planning expansions in Michigan represent a diverse cross section of traditional and high-tech sectors. What all of these projects have in common is that they demonstrate that companies are choosing Michigan for new growth opportunities despite intense competition from other states and other countries. Our diversification strategy is paying off.