Release date: May 16, 2005
PNNL technologies put two firms on Fortune Magazine's breakout list
Intellifit takes #1 spot; Bacterin #23
RICHLAND, Wash. – Two companies that use technologies developed by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are on Fortune Magazine's annual 25 Breakout Companies list. Fortune's May 16 issue features the top 25 companies described as "upstarts who are changing the game." The list is intended to give U.S. venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and other business leaders a heads up on companies that are stepping into the commercial spotlight.
Topping the list at number one is Intellifit, a Horsham, Penn.-based company, which licensed PNNL's holographic imaging technology for use in retail clothing stores. Originally designed to detect weapons in airports, Intellifit's body scanners allow shoppers to bypass traditional dressing rooms. Standing in a scanner, a person's form is measured in about ten seconds. More than 200,000 data points are generated using harmless, low-power radio waves. The output is used to tailor clothing lines, assuring consumers of a more consistent and desirable fit.
Among the retailers who have already employed Intellifit in their stores are Lane Bryant, Macy's, Levi's, and Lands' End. Early adopter David's Bridal has already revamped its plus-sized dresses to boost their total sales of that line by 7 percent, demonstrating the technology's fiscal attractiveness to business owners. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.intellifit.com.
Another PNNL licensee holds the #23 spot on Fortune's Breakout Companies list for its innovations in bacteria containment. Bacterin, a biotech firm based in Belgrade, Mont., applies PNNL's patented technology to coat medical devices like catheters or orthopedic implants with anti-bacterial material to prevent the spread of infection.
The biocompatible coatings allow the body to recognize a device—such as a knee implant—not as a foreign chunk of metal but rather as a bone. The coatings also incorporate a biologically active substance that inhibits infection. Medical-device makers have lined up to use the coatings on their products, expecting that medical professionals will recognize the benefits of healthier patients and measurably reduced costs associated with reduction of infections caused by medical devices. For more information, visit Bacterin online at www.bacterin.com.