Tri-Cities Tech Business Update

October 2012 Issue

• Washington Policy Center small business forum
  Join Washington Policy Center (WPC) and business owners from around the state to vote on recommendations that may affect the future of Washington's small business climate. more...
• Washington State announces small business credit initiative
  The Washington State Department of Commerce has announced a new Small Business Credit Initiative using more than $19 million in federal funding to create three new state programs. more...
• New warehouses near the TCRD
  The first of four planned 20,000-square-foot high-bay warehouses with loading docks is under construction near the Tri-Cities Research District with completion scheduled for October 2012. more...
• New Human Resource consulting firm
  HR Works, LLC, has opened in Richland, offering independent human resource management consulting services to businesses throughout southeast Washington. more...
• Danger: America is Losing its Edge in Innovation
  In an article on Forbes.com, former Lockheed Martin chairman and CEO Norm Augustine discusses the importance of science and engineering to the path of success. more...
• PTAC Counselor Achieves Nationally-Recognized Certification
  Ashley Bennington-Coronado with the Washington Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) has reached the nationally-recognized Certification Level 1 with the Association of PTAC. more...

• SBA launches new market research web tool
  A free web tool from the Small Business Administration called SizeUp allows small business owners and startups across the country to search industries by location in order to map competitors, suppliers, and promising advertising spots. more...
• Solar energy system prize competition
  As part of the Energy Department's SunShot Initiative, which is working to make solar energy competitive with other forms of energy without subsidy by the end of the decade, the Energy Department announced the start of a new competition to make it faster, easier, and less costly to install rooftop solar energy systems. more...
• Impact Washington launches new "Made in Washington" program
  Seattle Business Magazine: Impact Washington, a state-supported program that offers educational and consulting services to Washington manufacturers, has launched a program to encourage and support companies that manufacture locally. more...
• 13 ways to nail your pitch to angel investment groups
  An article on Geekwire.com discusses things the author wishes he had known when he started pitching his startup company to angel groups. more...

• Technology Showcase
  October 5. The Innovation Showcase helps bridge the gap between research and commercialization by highlighting the most promising discoveries and new technologies ready for commercialization in Washington. more...
• Workshop: How to Start a Business
  October 8. The "How to Start a Business" workshop (known as Start Smart) continues to be a big success. more...
• Workshop: Understanding Government Contracting Solicitations
  October 9. The state and federal governments purchase millions of dollars worth of products and services from small businesses each year. more...
• Career Fair
  October 11. WSU Tri-Cities is hosting a Career Fair, open to the public, from noon to 4 p.m.  No pre-registration is required for attendees. more...

• Cooperation, collaboration good for the soul
  With the pace of life at a ludicrous speed and the increasingly commonality of people working independently, we're becoming a bit more isolated from one and another. more...
• Fisher elected president of the Health Physics Society
  Darrell Fisher, a radiation scientist with the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been elected president of the Health Physics Society, a 5,000-member, internationally recognized scientific organization of professionals who specialize in radiation safety. more...
• Twin PNNL houses prove efficiency of insulated windows
  Tri-City Herald: PNNL has collected its first energy efficiency research data from a pair of new houses sitting on the Richland campus. more...

We invite your contributions! We will consider items that fit the mission of this publication, including your tech-related news, awards, and notices of upcoming events. Please send text and photos to Diane Kahler or call (509) 372-4133.

Tri-Cities Tech Business Update is published by the Economic Development Office at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Each month, we send you an e-mail message, giving you the link of news, tips, awards, upcoming events, and other information about local technology-based businesses and organizations that support them. With business and community partners, our goal is to build and diversify the Tri-Cities economy—adding skilled jobs in primary-sector industries that bring in outside dollars. Currently, more than 1,100 tech-related businesses, investors, and economic development stakeholders subscribe to the newsletter, mostly in the Mid-Columbia area and the rest of the Pacific Northwest. This newsletter (RL-P00-009) supports PNSO's vision for the future of the Hanford Site and surrounding area through the creation of research opportunities, new industries, and new business clusters.