East Liberty : Pittsburgh Innovates

The Pittsburgh Technology Council’s 5^th Annual Design, Art and Technology (DATA) Awards celebrated, as it does each year, the intersection of art and technology design with a lineup of the region’s most creative startups.
 
This year's event gave off a surreal glow, although maybe it was the fog machine and the light filtering through the stained glass windows into The Priory’s Grand Hall on the Northside.
 
“It’s a great event for showcasing innovations with an art twist and sharing it with a wider audience,” said Paul Fireman of Fireman Creative whose firm took away a DATA in the Media Arts category.

“There were a lot of companies this year that I hadn’t heard of and that's a good thing because it means the group of participating companies is growing.” 
 
New this year was an interactive element that allowed the public to vote and determine the winners, along with a jury of experts.
 
The public voting was an important piece, said Audrey Russo, president of PTC, giving the artistic and creative communities a voice in the process.
 
“We are continually pleased with the breadth and number of individuals, and organizations, that actively participated,” said Russo. "I believe this space serves as the preamble to an imminent, seismic change in skill development and education.  Plus, we always have a ton of fun supporting those who build and execute big ideas.” 

The 2013 winners were:
 
i-CON: Apps & Information Architecture Award – Highmark + United Concordia: Chomper Chums

Next Generation: Kids & Creative Technology Award – The Center for Creativity: TransformED

Maker: Design & Art Award – Teletrix: Radiation Training Simulators

Media Arts: Interactive + Multimedia Award – Fireman Creative: Ricky’s Dream Trip
 
Joystick: Gaming Award – Schell Games + Yale University: PlayForward

Student Award – Carnegie Mellon University: Floria

People’s Choice Award – WQED Multimedia + SLB Radio Productions: iQ Kids Radio

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: PTC

Each week Pop City reports on the latest in company hiring news.

Phipps Conservatory in Oakland is hiring for four full-time positions: finance administrative assistant, retail/ guest services management, building maintenance technician and a heavy custodial laborer. In addition, two part-time jobs and two internships are available: event assistant, guest service associate and a studio intern and pest-management intern.

Kelly Strayhorn Theatre is hiring a production assistant, a part-time position (25 hours a week) to assist the production manager in coordinating and executing a number of live events. The theatre provides provocative theatre that attracts local, national and international productions.
 
Expedient Data Centers in Pittsburgh is looking for an application engineer to join Pittsburgh’s team of four developers to work with the latest open-source projects that help companies manage everything from their energy usage to their operating system.
 
The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium is seeking a foundation & grants coordinator. This full time position involves research and successful funding of foundation and government proposals for both capital and programmatic projects as well as corporate sponsorships for various exhibits and projects throughout the Zoo. 

Monroeville-based Chorus Call, working in the audio and video conferencing space, is hiring a software engineer with relevant IT experience.
 
Bayer Material Science, a leading producer of polymers and high-performance plastics, is hiring a marketing communications manager. A B.S. in a technical or business related field and 7-10 years of experience is required.
 
MarketSpace Communications in Cranberry is hiring a PR & Social Media Intern. The ideal candidate will have 3-5 years of experience and a degree in communications.
 
Attention all those seeking an entry-level job or internship with a computer science or engineering background. Network with area companies at Tech Connect, an informal recruiting event at Pitt’s William Pitt Union in the ballroom on the main floor from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 28^th.

In other job related news, a Neighborhood Employment Center has opened to help Northside residents write and polish resumes and find jobs. The center is open 5 days a week, from 12-4:30 p.m. on Mondays and 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, and offers many free job-seeking services.

Have hiring news? Email Pop City and include a job description and career link.
 
Writer: Deb Smit

PittsburghTODAY released its 2013 Today & Tomorrow report and the news across many sectors is enlightening.
 
With the economic recovery still underway in much of the country, Pittsburgh is the only benchmark region out of 15 that has experienced job growth and housing price appreciation. In addition, the labor force is at an all-time high and young people are returning and staying in the region.
 
Southwestern Pennsylvania continues to be one of the most affordable places for moderate-income families to live. A Brookings Institution study says so too, listing Pittsburgh as one of three cities in the U.S. to have recovered from the deep recession that began in 2007.
 
The region, however, has work to do in several areas, including transportation, the environment and issues pertaining to diversity, particularly in helping African Americans in the region to achieve the same quality of life as whites.
 
Among the highlights:
 
Population: It has been official but bares repeating: the region is attaining and attracting young talent. The region’s population of 20- to 34- year-olds grew by 7% over the last five years and is expected to grow another 8% in 2020. Three decades earlier the region was losing more than 50,000 people than it was attracting, mostly young adults.
 
Jobs: Jobs grew by a non-seasonably adjusted 1.7 percent in the seven-county Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) from November 2007 to November 2012. Certainly not robust, but it was better than any of the Pittsburgh TODAY benchmark regions. Pittsburgh was the only region to post job growth over that period.
 
Tourism: Visitors to Southwestern Pennsylvania pumped $8.1 billion into the local economy in lodging, recreation, retail, food and beverage, transportation and other spending during 2011,the latest year the full data was reported. This is a 9.6% increase over 2010.

Housing: Pittsburgh was the only region in which the 5-year housing prices rose from 2007-2012.
 
Environment: While fine particle pollution is slowly decreasing, and met federal air quality standards for the first time in 2011 since the Clean Air Act was passed in 1970, smog and sewage spills and the health of our rivers remains an issue.
 
Fracking: Across the region, a survey shows that far more residents are convinced of the economic potential of the Marcellus Shale gas industry than are against drilling for it. More than 70% of those surveyed believe that gas drilling is boosting the local economy.
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: PittsburghTODAY

If the smell of sawdust and the hum of a milling machine are calling your inner entrepreneur, TechShop may be in your future.
 
The Menlo Park company is opening its seventh workshop studio in the country in early March in Bakery Square, across from Google’s office.
 
The 16,000 square-foot space is shaping up to be a lively and inviting one, splashed with color and tall windows that give curious shoppers a peek within. TechShop is a membership studio, offering sophisticated tools and machinery to make products and prototypes, everything from 3D printers to laser cutters and machines for textiles and quilt making.
 
“We have all the tools you need to make just about anything on the planet,” says Mark Hatch, CEO, who was in town last week giving tours of the emerging studio. “We want to make sure any maker has access to a facility like ours.” 
 
The idea for the creation of nationwide workshops that encourage budding master crafters emerged from Richard Florida’s theory of creative class cities, says Hatch.
 
“We do a complete analysis of where creatives in the city live and lay it against the city’s grid, looking for retail locations with a flexible landlord,” he says. “Most of our neighborhoods (where TechShops are located) have a technology bent.”
 
In addition to gaining access to equipment for a monthly fee ($100 a month), TechShop will offer classes and training (such as how to launch a kickstarter campaign) and opportunities to nonprofits.
 
The studio already has its success stories. Hatch recounts how Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter, designed and made his first Square at the Oakland TechShop, the small, plastic piece that allows smartphone users to swipe credit cards.
 
The Pittsburgh TechShop was supported through an investment partnership with DARPA and the Dept. of Veteran Affairs. The collaboration gives veterans across the country a free one-year membership to the nearest Tech Shop.
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Mark Hatch, TechShop

Image: Mark Hatch, CEO of TechShop in Pittsburgh

The 2013 Carnegie Science Awards were announced this week, an illustrious list of educators, researchers and business leaders working to improve the lives of others. The awards celebrate the accomplishments of individuals working in the fields of science, technology and education in Western Pennsylvania.
 
The winners include:   
 
The ExOne Company’s David Burns, Advanced Manufacturing Award 
Burns was recognized for positioning this promising North Huntingdon company as a leader in additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing. ExOne recently announced a public offering.
 
Edward Argetsinger, Jonathan Stinson, Paul Turner, Paul Jablonski, National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Advanced Materials Award NETL assisted in the design of a new alloy for coronary stents used by physicians to open blocked or restricted arteries.

Nancy Minshew, University of Pittsburgh, Catalyst Award
As the head of the Center for Excellence in Autism Research, Minshew has extensively studied autism and applied the findings to practice and public policy. Her work has led to the region’s recognition as a world-class center for autism research.

Tracy Cui, Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering, Emerging Female Scientist Award Cui is researching smart biomaterials for neural implants and neural tissue engineering.

Raul Valdes-Perez, Jerome Pesenti, Vivisimo, Entrepreneur Award
The Squirrel Hill-based company, recently acquired by IBM, has taken an untraditional and creative approach in helping companies and governments discover, analyze and navigate large volumes of data.

Bob Enick, Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering, Environmental Award
Working in collaboration with a GE Global Research Team, Enick has developed a unique method of capturing carbon dioxide from the stack of coal-fired power plants, a technique that may cost far less than current technologies.

Patrick Daly, Cohera Medical, Start-Up Entrepreneur Award
As president and CEO of this promising Pittsburgh startup that grew out of research conducted at Pitt, Daly is helping to move the company’s first product, TissuGlu, into the market. The adhesive is designed to reduce the need for surgical drains in plastic surgery procedures and speed healing time.
 
David Vorp, Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering and NETL-RU, Life Sciences Award Dr. Vorp's work on aortic aneurysms has changed the way clinicians view this disease and research on vein graft modification may one day change arterial bypass surgeries.
 
Peter Lucas, Joe Ballay, Mickey McManus of MAYA Design, Science Communicator
MAYA is helping the world to think more scientifically about design through informational films and interactive websites as well as the book, "Trillions: Thriving in the Emerging Information Ecology."
 
Check out the complete list of 2013 Carnegie Science Award winners.
 
Writer: Deb Smit

Award recipients Dr. Robert Enick and Dr. Tracy Cui, courtesy of Carnegie Science Center 

Venture capital investment across the region continued to climb steadily in 2012 with 79 deals that totaled $168.97 million, a 7.9% increase over 2011 when $156.53 million was raised and spread over 55 deals. 

The news in Pittsburgh was a bright spot; nationally VC figures declined by 10 percent from the prior year. All figures are from the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), based on data from Thomson Reuters.

“We’re bucking a trend here in Pittsburgh which is very positive,” noted Gary Glausser who joined Innovation Works this month as Chief Investment Officer.

A longtime venture capitalist in the local community, Glausser was with South Side-based Birchmere Ventures for 13 years. He most recently handled alternative investments for the Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System, a total portfolio of $7 billion. He is also a member of the IW Board of Directors.

Among the highlights of the MoneyTree report for 2012:

The strongest showing in Pittsburgh was the life sciences and software sectors. More than 23 companies received funding in life sciences, predominantly medical device companies, and 19 software and IT services companies were funded. The number of software company deals last year is a sign of the region’s strength in this sector since software companies generally don’t require large infusions of cash, noted Terri Glueck of Innovation Works.

Innovation Works and The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse (PLSG) were the largest overall investors, IW with 12 deals and PLSG with six according to the MoneyTree report.

The companies that raised the largest rounds included: Avere Systems ($20 million), Thorley Industries ($20 million), TriStar Investors ($15 million) Duolingo ($15 million) Knopp Biosciences ($14.94 million) and BodyMedia ($11.89 million). 

Other local investors included: Birchmere Ventures, Draper Triangle Ventures, Adams Capital Management, BlueTree Allied Angels, Eagle Ventures and Pittsburgh Equity Partners.

“I personally think the next few years will be exciting,” Glausser adds. “We’re looking at a pipeline of opportunities here. Our mission is going to be to get the capital to put into these companies.”

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: NVCA and MoneyTree 

Pittsburgh's Deeplocal is riding aboard yet another unique media campaign, this time on a roller coaster.

The East Liberty tech+engineering+art firm is working with Japanese automaker Toyota on its "Ideas for Good" campaign. Toyota is asking Deeplocal to do what it does best--take apart its Toyota Prius technology and create something completely unique. 

Toyota launched the campaign last November, asking the public to submit creative ideas on how to repurpose the Prius technology for non-driving uses. All the winning designs will be built by DeepLocal.

So far Deeplocal has constructed a solar-powered medical relief tent ventilation system, which captures solar energy that turns the blower fans inside the tent, keeping it cool in hot climates like Haiti. 

The second project involves the creation of a roller coaster, which uses the Prius Hybrid Synergy Drive system to generate energy and brake the coaster. The roller coaster is being built on a 70-foot track in a warehouse on Penn Avenue near Children's Hospital; Kennywood has donated the vintage lights and carnival atmosphere.

"It is a very efficient use of kinetic energy," explains Nathan Martin, CEO, who was tapped for the project by Satchi & Satchi of LA. "This is really just an inspiration concept to inspire excitement about the campaign and get people thinking about new ways to use this regenerative breaking system. It may inspire a new generation of engineers."

The campaign is part of Toyota's 10 year anniversary celebration. The soon-to-be-announced winners will receive a car and possibly work with a team of engineers from CMU to build the technologies.

Deeplocal and Pittsburgh are featured prominently in the awesome Ideas for Good video by Toyota, filmed by a Los Angeles company. Check it out!

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Nathan Martin, Deeplocal

Image and video courtesy of Deeplocal and Toyota

The shift, that timeless A-line that wears well anytime, has gone high-tech for a perfect fit.

Megan Dietz, a software developer, and Kelly Metzler, a graphic designer, met two years ago on a website for crafters. It didn't take them long to figure that they had something in common; neither could tolerance poorly fitting clothing that lacked in style and sustainability.

WearTheShift.com was born, a startup that partners vintage materials with an algorithm for sizing that ensures a custom dress with a perfect fit. Finally, style for plus- and petite-sized women, the "criminally underserved," says Dietz.

Creating dresses that skim the body comfortably, whether the wearer is curved like a delicious apple, pear or string bean, is the secret. Customers are encouraged to enlist the help of a friend in taking horizontal and vertical measurements (as illustrated by a video) for the best result. 

"We pump the measurements into a program and it churns out a pattern. It's pretty automated," says Dietz, a plus-sized gal herself who came back to Pittsburgh following a stint as a magazine publisher in NYC.

It's also great for the geek who likes the idea of computer-generated attire, she adds. "I love that they're comfortable and easy to wear. It's an anchor piece that expresses your style."

The duo works out of a studio in East Liberty with two seamstresses. The company got off to a strong start with the help of Kickstarter, the online creative funding platform that helps entrepreneurs to raise funds and conduct beta tests. Wear the Shift sold out of beta spots (for discounted dresses) in two days.

"When you think about our company, two things set us apart," Dietz says. "One is custom fit, the other is our tiny carbon footprint. We want to use our company as an engine for good. We'd like to make money, but we want to make people happy with our dresses and try to reflect that in the way we run our business."

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Megan Dietz, Wear The Shift

Image courtesy of Wear the Shift

From the pool table to vegan bar to netting draped across the ceiling like a giant hammock, Google's new office might be the coolest place to work in Pittsburgh. If only we all were computer scientists.

Long known for work spaces that inspire mental gymnastics, Google Pittsburgh has raised the bar with a 45,000 square-foot office in the old Nabisco factory on Penn Avenue.  More than 150 employees (those lucky ducks) are bouncing around the bright, industrial-sized space, with open work stations and a candy bar and cafeteria serving a healthy buffet. You can even get a free breakfast, take a yoga class or get a massage for a small fee.

There's hiring too, lots of it, specifically for software engineers, statisticians, research scientists and Internet technicians. The company also recently added a two-person sales staff.

"We expect people to think big so space is very important," said  Andrew Moore, director, during an invitation-only open house last week. "Pittsburgh is a world center of computer science. It's one of the places in the world you go if you are really interested in advanced systems."

And if you are going to do extreme mental labor, you might need a place to recline, added Moore, who prefers doing math lying down.

The region's universities, particularly Carnegie Mellon's stature in the world of computer science, played into Google's decision to establish a major presence in Pittsburgh. Pet projects include work on Google Sky, an app for Google Earth, and Recaptcha, the Carnegie Mellon startup that was acquired by Google in 2009.

Many of the employees at Google Pittsburgh are boomerangers, Moore noted. "Please tell your kids if they left Pittsburgh, to come back," said Moore. "Call them up." 

The $131 million Bakery Square redevelopment project, by Walnut Capital with design by Strada Architects, also includes tenants Anthropologie, Coffee Tree, Springhill Suites and Urban Active.

Check out the Google slideshow in Pop City!

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Andrew Moore, Google Pittsburgh

Inside Google image copyright Brian Cohen

Good news for the region's biodiversity and life sciences industry.

PLSG received $500,000 in funding that will help to establish a life sciences campus on the South Side at the River Park Commons Business Center.

The funding comes from a Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant from the state. The new campus will provide space for four to six wet-labs in addition to the existing 9,000 square feet of life sciences labs. PLSG will also move its office to the campus.

"The demand for this campus is significant as an increasing number of new biotechnology companies are being launched throughout the nation, and geographic clusters to house these new, start-up companies are highly competitive," said John W. Manzetti, President and CEO.

In other news, 20 biodiversity projects received $190,000 this week as part of a new initiative to support the stewardship of Southwestern Pennsylvania's natural resources.

The Sprout Fund and The Pittsburgh Foundation hope to jumpstart community-based biodiversity projects in the region through the Spring Program. The funded projects were selected from among 75 applications, says Dustin Stiver of The Sprout Fund.

"These projects offer an exciting array of innovative solutions to the many environmental challenges we face," says Stiver. "With diverse objectives and creative approaches, they give promise that the biodiversity of our resource-rich region can be preserved and enhanced for generations to come."

Six biodiversity projects received $20,000 awards including:

BioShelter and Food Systems Center at the Garfield Community Farm, where a permanent bioshelter will extend the farm's growing season and offer educational opportunities to the nearby elementary school;

Green Roofs for Bus Shelters in East Liberty, introducing flora and fauna into the urban environment through a living green roof on Penn Avenue;

Heritage Seed Bank and Nursery for seed banks and educational opportunities in the preservation of native heritage or heirloom edible plants;

Native Appalachian Garden, part of Pittsburgh Botanical Garden, cultivating woodland species of the region;

And Take a Hike: Backyard Biodiversity for a traveling presentation that will lead elementary school children on an exploration of the Earth's biomes at the Carnegie Science Center.

The other 14 recipients receiving $5,000 awards are include outdoor classrooms for children, ecological gardens, artificial chimney habitats for neotropical migrant birds, rain gardens in schoolyards with the help of Nine Mile Run Watershed Assoc. and native plant restoration projects.

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: PLSG, Dustin Stiver, The Sprout Fund

The e-democracy race is on and if Councilman Bill Peduto has his way, Pittsburgh will blow the door of city government wide open and leave cities like Boston in the dust.

Peduto invited several Pittsburgh-based tech companies to City Hall this month to discuss using a mix of homegrown technologies to promote a unique blend of tools that would help constituents to better track goings on.

Among those who came to the table were online social political network MyGov365, searchable video data company Panopto Inc, web-based broadcaster Vivo and the Carnegie Mellon developer of YinzCam technology, which allows mobile phone users to watch replays of Penguins action inside the arena.

This is just the beginning, says Peduto. The discussion won’t be limited to these companies.

“Pittsburgh can be a model of e-democracy for the world. We want Pittsburgh (government) to not only be on the forefront, but to offer leverage to our own Pittsburgh-based companies to use the city as a test market to sell their products worldwide.”

Pittsburgh has $52,000 to webcast council meetings, which should be enough to cover the webcast and more, Peduto says. The city plans to award a contract to begin providing webcasts and searchable video by the end of this month.

Other proposed initiatives include an iPhone application for city government, a searchable database of all council votes and records offered by MyGov365 and offering online access to community meetings.

Writer: Debra Diamond Smit
Source: Councilman Bill Peduto, City of Pittsburgh

Image courtesy Councilman Bill Peduto

In the midst of the Tour de France, a Pittsburgh robot is roving the streets, paving the raceway with messages of hope and inspiration for riders and survivors of cancer.

Nike LIVESRONG has launched an integrated media campaign, “It’s About You,” to inspire a greater global awareness in the fight against cancer. Lance Armstrong, a slew of celebrities, TV commercials and a deeplocal creation called Chalkbot are stepping up for the cause.

In the tradition of displaying written messages for riders along the route, Chalkbot receives text messages from people all over the world and paints them in yellow on the raceway, explains Nike spokeswoman Carmen Velasquez. The messages are documented on the Nike Web site with a digital Google map that invites supporters to create public profiles and upload inspirational stories, photos or video.

Chalkbot was receiving about 200 text messages a day at last count.

“We built Chalkbot so people from everywhere can spread messages of hope and cancer survival to the entire world at the Tour de France on the streets,” says Nathan Martin of DeepLocal in a video created about the campaign by LegionMedia of Pittsburgh. To view the video, click here.

 “It’s About You” will also surface through similar “chalking” events in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago. Each event will tie to a celebration happening in that city and feature a local artist who will create a yellow chalk art installation on the streets that people will be encouraged to expand upon with their messages.

To receive Pop City weekly, click here.

Writer: Debra Diamond Smit
Source: Carmen Velasquez, Nike

Image courtesy of Nike LIVESTRONG