PHILADELPHIA, May 5, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Innovation Philadelphia announced today that Economic Stimulus Fund (ESF) Investments have been made in Philadelphia, PA-based Cira Discovery Sciences and Newtown, PA-based Aereon Solutions.
"We have proven over the past 18 months that ESF companies are the leaders among growing companies in bioscience, information technology, nanotechnology and chemicals," said Rich Bendis, president and CEO of Innovation Philadelphia. "We are positive that we will continue to foster technological leadership in the Greater Philadelphia Region with our new investments in Aereon and Cira."
Cira Discovery Sciences, incorporated in 2003 on the 50th anniversary of the publication of Watson and Crick's famous paper on the structure of DNA, is a growing biotechnology company dedicated to developing and applying methods that discover the interactions of high-dimensionality descriptors in complex systems so that they can be modeled and understood. The ESF investment was made along with an investment by BioAdvance, the Life Sciences Greenhouse of Southeastern Pennsylvania.
Aereon is an award winning developer of service automation solutions that leverage the Internet and wireless technology. In combination with 'best of breed' business management software, they enable service companies to improve productivity, reduce operating costs, increase revenue and enhance customer service by eliminating manual, paper based business processes. Innovation Philadelphia co-invested with Intel Capital, Robin Hood Ventures, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and others.
Innovation Philadelphia uses Economic Stimulus Fund investments to grow, attract and retain technology-based companies with experienced management teams, who need financing in order to expand their businesses.
"Both Cira and Aereon fit the ESF profile perfectly," said Chris Starr, Managing Director and Vice President of Investment for Innovation Philadelphia. "Each has a unique technology, has proven their ability to successfully take their technology to the marketplace, and is led by talented and experienced management teams. Each is representative of the type of investments we are looking to make in the bioscience and information technology fields."
The investments were made through Innovation Philadelphia's Economic Stimulus Fund (ESF), a fund that invests in technology and knowledge-based companies in the Region. ESF investments are used as a catalyst to stimulate co-investment with other strategic partners and funding sources. To date, Innovation Philadelphia has invested in nine regional companies through the ESF.
About Aereon Solutions
Aereon provides small and medium sized field service businesses with affordable enterprise class solutions which integrate web-based service management, wireless mobile applications and accounting functions to provide an out-of-the-box paperless business automation solution. They can be deployed in a few days without the need for an IT staff or extensive training. This award-winning service automation solution leverages the Internet and wireless technology to provide a compelling return on investment to its users in 20 states by improving productivity, reducing operating costs, increasing revenue and enhancing customer service by eliminating manual, paper-based business processes.
For more information, visit the web site at www.aereonsolutions.com.
About Cira Discovery Sciences, Inc.
Cira Discovery Sciences, Inc. creates new advanced algorithmic methods for analyzing biosequence, chemistry, proteomic, metabolomic and genomic data. They apply these methods: in close collaboration with scientists in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to facilitate the discovery of safe and potent new medicines, and in the development of more accurate and sensitive diagnostic tests for disease and drug response. For more information, visit the web site at www.ciradiscovery.com.
About Innovation Philadelphia
Innovation Philadelphia is a public/private partnership created to grow the wealth and the workforce of the Greater Philadelphia Region's Innovation Economy by growing, attracting, and retaining technology-based businesses to the Region.
Innovation Philadelphia accomplishes this mission by providing technology-based and early-stage businesses with traditional seed capital, access to alternative funding sources, commercialization assistance, entrepreneurial resources, and intellectual capital. Visit Innovation Philadelphia at www.IPphila.com.