For Release: November 10, 2005
Contact: Karen Goldner, adVenture Fund, (260) 469-4451
Mark Morrison, Valpo Orthopedic Technology, (574) 268-9544
Orthopedic Device Wins Technology Award
Fort Wayne, IN - The adVenture Fund, a project of FourthWave LLC, today announced that Valpo Orthopedic Technology (VOT) has won the Fund's Technology Competition and will receive a prize of $5,000. The competition was open to Northeast Indiana inventors and entrepreneurs with an innovative technology.
"Out of the dozen proposals we received, and of the five finalists we identified, our Technical Investment Committee selected VOT's arthroscopic knee implant as the winner," said Donald R. Willis, Chairman, FourthWave LLC. "We believe that his project demonstrates the great opportunities - both from a technical and a business point of view - in our region." Other proposals involved information technology, medical devices, energy, security, and consumer products.
"Our primary goal was to highlight the innovation happening in Northeast Indiana," Willis said. "We believe that the contest has helped us to do so."
"We want to thank adVenture Fund for recognizing the merits of our knee implant and for awarding us the Fund's Technology Competition prize," said Ron Clark, M.D., President, Valpo Orthopedic Technology. "The recognition and the monetary award encourage us to continue our efforts to develop and bring our innovative orthopedic products to market."
The adVenture Fund aims to help fill the gap of pre-seed investing. The Fund began investing in 2005 and has financed two technology companies in different fields: Bioduct, LLC, which is developing a solution to knee injuries, and, Gentec, which utilizes patented vacuum technology in high end ovens. Other projects under review are in the area of information technology, energy, and hydraulics.
For more information concerning the adVenture Fund or the competition contact Karen Goldner at (260) 469-4411. The company's website provides information at www.adventurefund.net .
