Tangent’s history with SPARK dates back to 2009, when they participated in Entrepreneur Boot Camp program. Tangent was named “Best of Boot Camp” the year they participated. Many graduates of Boot Camp take the knowledge they gained and go on to win business plan competitions or secure funding.  In this case, Tangent went on to receive funding through SPARK’s Pre-Seed Capital program in 2010 to help their innovative technology move beyond proof of concept. Funding for this program is provided by the Michigan Strategic Fund and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and is focused on moving companies forward to commercialization.

With the support of this 4.5 million venture capital investment, Tangent will be able to once again take the next step forward in growing their business.

“Companies that received support from the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund are currently employing 285 people throughout the state and have attracted outside investment.  Matching support from other funding sources totaled $16.4 million for these Michigan companies.

A combined $2.5 million in Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund investments in 2010 were awarded to:

• Advanced Battery Concepts
• Armune BioScience, Inc.
• Current Motor Company
• Downstream, LLC
• Intervention Insights
• Innovative Surgical Solutions
• InfoReady Corporation
• InPore Technologies
• Inventure Enterprises
• NextCAT, Inc.
• Tangent Medical Technologies

Akervall Technologies are based in Ann Arbor and have developed the Protech Dent™ mouth guard.  Blaze Medical Devices is also based in Ann Arbor and is developing a novel system for analyzing stored blood that allows clinicians to predict the effectiveness of transfusions by assessing the levels and rates of quality loss during storage for individual units.  Ellison Corporation is based in Detroit and creates safety devices for public roadways giving advanced warnings to drivers as emergency vehicles approach intersections.  Waste Water Heat Transfers Systems, LLC has developed a cost effective and energy conserving device that extracts heat from the waste stream and uses the energy to pre-heat potable water before it enters a facility’s boiler.

Inventure Enterprises is based in East Lansing and is a global provider of management consulting and technology services for businesses.  LED Optical Solutions is based in Washington, Michigan and is a based design, development and manufacture of solid state lighting devices.  Their light bulbs save up to 60% on energy costs.  RiserCam, LLC is based in Saline, Michigan and designs, manufactures and sells specialized video equipment for shooting sports and the outdoors industry.

The first loan was to RealBio in Kalamazoo.  They make a disposable cell bio reactor.  Advanced Battery Concepts of Midland, winner of the GLEQ business plan competion, received the second loan. FreeStride Therapeutics in Ann Arbor received the other loan. View the press release.

Here’s yet another tool to help accelerate high growth companies that will be the job creators in a diverse 21st century economy.

There are two significant changes affecting distribution of this new money.  One is the match for an investment is lowered to one-half to one.  In other words to ask for a $200,000 investment from the fund a company only needs $100,000 of matching investment from others. 

The other big change is that a portion of the fund will go toward a newly created micro loan program.  About $1 million will be available in loans ranging in size from $10,000 to $50,000 for companies not quite in the pre-seed stage.  No match is required. 

Details about the fund and the new loan program will be presented at a meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, May 5) at noon at SPARK Central (330 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor).  Skip Simms, Manager of the fund, and Tom Anderson with Automation Alley, one of two collaborators reviewing loan applications, will make the presentation.  Information about the fund is also available on-line at www.annarborusa.org/start-ups/pre-seed-fund/ .

Since this is 21CJF money it is limited to the four technology sectors in the legislation creating the 21CJF.  Those sectors are: Advanced Automotive, Manufacturing, and Materials; Alternative Energy; Life Sciences; and Homeland Security and Defense.

The fund was originally and still is a collaboration among the states SmartZones.  To apply for pre-seed investment a company must work with a SmartZone which will perform the initial due diligence and validate eligibility.  The SmartZone will also make sure the applicant is adequately prepared and in some cases help the company raise the required match from outside investors or non-state grants.

There is more news to come regarding this new funding, so stay tuned.