Icehouse Running Hot

Media information: 6 November 2006

Icehouse Running Hot

Auckland-based incubator The ICEHOUSE is running hot with success with two of its 'incubated companies' co-jointly taking out the top Innovation award at the HiTech awards on Saturday night.

ICEHOUSE incubator manager Dave Wrathall says the nationally-contested award confirms the value of the incubation process which saw both Optima Corporation and Telemetry Research graduate from the ICEHOUSE recently.

Cory Williams, CEO of Optima Corporation says funding of more than $1m through ICE Angels was pivotal in the company's growth as it sought to commercialise its Siren product.

Siren software system developed specifically for emergency services, particularly ambulance services. Siren - Simulation for Improved Response for Emergency Networks - uses sophisticated mathematical algorithms to help organisations schedule staff and resources in the most efficient way possible

"We are about to sign a deal with all five regions in Denmark to use Siren. The deal will be worth more than a million dollars" says Williams. He adds that similar deals are currently being negotiated in Canada, the UK, Australia, with the company also in discussions with St John in NZ.

Optima is also exploring the possibility of moving into Hospital scheduling, an enormous market in which the company has specific knowledge and skills.

Joint winner, Telemetry Research is also in an allied medical field and has also received angel funding to fuel its growth through the incubator process.

The biomedical device company developed new technology allowing power to be "transmitted" to implanted biomedical devices without causing heating. It has application in heart and brain monitoring as well as foetal monitoring during childbirth. Many of Telemetry's customers are universities or drug companies/research institutions, for whom the wireless data system of gathering information from implanted devices enables them to get better quality data more quickly..

ENDS

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