Innovasan participating in 2015 “Cleantech Open” accelerator
By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, Pershing Yoakley & Associates, P.C.
More good news for the team at Innovasan.
The Knoxville-based start-up has been accepted into the “Cleantech Open” Southeast Regional competition, according to Jeff Hubrig Jr., the company’s Director of Business Development. He heads to Boston on Friday for the East Coast Academy, one of two events the “Cleantech Open” organization hosts for participating companies ahead of the regional and national competitions.
“We’re extremely excited to have been selected as semifinalists in the ‘Cleantech Open’s’ 2015 Accelerator,” Hubrig said. “Participation in the program provides us with unparalleled opportunities to network with mentors, entrepreneurs, and investors from around the nation.”
He added that selection as a semifinalist provides $45,000 worth of training, mentoring, services and visibility to the firm co-founded by his parents.
“We will be in Boston this week for the East Coast Academy and anticipate pitching at the regional level competition in September,” Hubrig said. “Should we win at the regional level, we will move on to the ‘Global Forum’ to pitch in California.”
That event is the finale for each year’s competitors and will be held November 17, 18 and 19.
“In addition to pitching to captive audiences of investors with dry powder, the prizes also include cash and professional services up to $20,000 at the regional level and $200,000 at the national finals,” Hubrig noted.
Two years ago, another Knoxville start-up named Fiveworx made it all the way to the “Cleantech Open” finale in California.
Innovasan is developing Med-San®, a four-step modular process to treat biological and pharmaceutical wastes for safe and immediate disposal into municipal sewer systems.
The company has been on a roll since it won last fall’s Life Science Tennessee’s Venture Forum, later winning CO.LAB’s “Will This Float?” competition in November, and being one of 50 start-ups competing in the “New England Venture Summit” in December.
