In 2024, Dayton Inno recognizes companies and organizations who have been fantastic innovators in their local communities. After reviewing inbound nominations, the Dayton Inno team selected the honorees, grouped into categories. One winner per category is crowned “Blazer Winner.”
Some things we look for in selecting the Fire Award honorees are: new funding, adding headcount, social and community impact, product launches, company pivots, company growth, and amazing stories of innovators reshaping the ecosystem. Fire honorees can include later-stage tech pillars, growth-stage startups, accelerators, venture firms, meetup groups, nonprofits, etc.
Categories this year are health care; technology; retail and nonprofit.
Here are the honorees and Blazer Winners denoted:
Technology:
Accelevation (Springboro)
This vertically integrated group of manufacturing companies is making a name for itself in the data center construction sector. Their current place in the market enabled them to work with major corporate giants and increase revenue from a few million to $200 million in two years. CEO Michael Rubiera works with over 50 companies including billion-dollar giants and hyperscalers like Microsoft, Google, U.S. Department of Defense, Facebook and TikTok. Since founding in 2018, the company has acquired eight companies to its group.
A new office is now under construction for Accelevation in the First Flight Commerce Center near Austin landing.
"As Accelevation continues to expand in the Miami Valley area, our need for manufacturing and office space has grown rapidly,” Rubiera said. “We are thrilled to be the first tenant in the new First Flight Commerce Center. This investment will create over 100 new jobs locally.”
Since 2020, Accelevation has grown its manufacturing space from 20,000 square feet to 300,000 square feet. Their employment has climbed from 25 to 300 over a two-year period with intent to hire another 100 in 2024.
FireWatch Design Studio (Dayton)
This global experience design studio aims to create powerful and memorable experiences with media-first innovations, the company said. The startup builds immersive experiences for its clients. The company is led by CEO Joey DiFranco.
"With a mission to spread their clients' fire, FireWatch is blazing a bold trail in the world of experiential,” said Lexi Ball, creative director. “By inventing new immersive storytelling techniques, they're empowering museum and educational organizations to spark a reaction and make a difference.”
The studio recently completed a Series A raising of $2 million.
Also in the last year, FireWatch has debuted a new educational experience at COSI in Columbus, and is developing a Global Design Lab in Jiaxing, China
Along with China, FireWatch serves markets in Trotwood, Columbus, Cleveland, Traverse City, Michigan; Grand Forks, North Dakota; and Lincoln, Nebraska.
Smart Response Technologies (Dayton) – Blazer Winner
Another local technology firm is closing in on raising a total of $3 million for its product development. Smart Response Technologies (SRT) completed its seed-round fundraising earlier this year, raising a total of $1.55 million from strategic investors. This adds onto an additional $1 million that was already raised.
This small business works off the philosophy that every second matters, driving development of leading technology with instant response. It has created Delphini, an innovative solution designed to empower emergency-call-takers and -dispatchers with real-time voice-to-text transcriptions.
“Whether it’s wireless duress systems in courts, gunshot detection solutions in schools, industrial automation in manufacturing, or other unprecedented solutions – we view every customer challenge as an opportunity to grow,” the company said previously.
The company is led by President Tim Shaw and CEO Roger Mann.
Health Care:
Dayton VA Medical Center, MINT Clinic (Dayton)
A cancer care clinic at Dayton VA Medical Center is already making a major difference in patient’s lives in its first nine months of being opened.
The MINT Clinic has improved overall outcomes by applying multidisciplinary approaches in treating lung cancer, said Elizabeth Johnson, innovation specialist at Dayton VA. The clinic is led by Dr. Robert Short, a diagnostic radiologist.
“Our hope is that the MINT Clinic will enable the VA to become a frontrunner in lung cancer care,” Johnson said.
MINT stands for Minimally Invasive Nodule Therapy. The clinic optimizes patient-centered evaluation of early-stage lung cancers. The clinic promotes lung cancer screening, which improves clinical outcomes and decreases delays in care.
The MINT Clinic has reduced the average wait time for pulmonary function testing from 53.1 days to 14.7 days. This has reduced the actual time to treatment from 138 days to 41 days, Johnson said.
The clinic allows the opportunity to conduct pulmonary function tests, PET/CT scans and biopsy, as needed, during a single visit. Lung cancer disproportionally affects the veteran population.
“The MINT Clinic stands out above the rest because they are leading the way in early lung cancer detection and lung cancer is responsible for most cancer-related deaths in the U.S.,” Johnson said.
Kilele Health (Oakwood)
This health care technology startup is just shy of having raised $3 million to develop its products. Most recently, the National Science Foundation awarded Kilele Health with $1 million for its next phase of research and development.
Earlier this year, Kilele Health also got $1 million from a SBIR II award. These awards bring the startup's funding total to $2.8 million.
CEO Andy Cothrel says the technology being developed will be used to analyze biomarkers for heart failure. Called the SunVida Platform, the end-goal is to prevent hospital readmissions and medication monitoring.
The sensor, which once applied rests just below the skin, monitors biomarkers for heart failure. From there, the technology reports to a smart phone or dedicated reader, sending the information to a cloud where an algorithm analyzes it and sends information to a physician for monitoring and decision making.
Medical and Engineering Solutions Limited (Beavercreek)
A biomedical engineering professor at Wright State University is creating and introducing new technologies into Dayton’s health sector.
Medical and Engineering Solutions Limited is a technology company focused on creating and selling affordable solutions to healthcare. The startup also provides consulting services in medical development engineering and biomedical needs.
Founder and owner Tarun Goswami opened its first office this year in donated space at Russ Research Park in Beavercreek.
Goswami has commercialized products, as well as services of a body analyzer, skin analyzer, electrical muscle stimulation and shock therapies. He hopes to one day commercialize a material to make prosthetic sockets for amputees.
The body analyzer 3D scans and analyzes a person’s body composition, posture and shoulder function to understand human performance in sports, military and other physicals.
The company is working on potential partnerships with Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and VA Medical Center.
MedsEngine (Beavercreek) – Blazer Winner
A Dayton-area medical company is doing its part to tackle a trillion-dollar health care issue. MedsEngine LLC has created software to assist providers in prescribing medication for hypertension and other chronic ailments. Earlier this year, a group of key local investors acquired MedsEngine because of its successful results.
MedsEngine's software is not confined to local providers. Its innovative methodology has the potential to be embraced globally, revolutionizing healthcare outcomes on an international scale. This infusion of capital may prompt more local jobs and other local economic impacts.
The idea for MedsEngine began in 2004 by Dr. Doug Romer but has evolved over the years. The impetus stems from confusion doctors may have when it comes to prescriptions for patients dealing with chronic ailments such as heart disease.
The MedsEngine program already has end users. PriMed Physicians in Dayton and Premier Medical Associates in Pittsburgh have seen positive results.
Nonprofit:
National Aviation Hall of Fame (Dayton) – Blazer Winner
This Dayton-based museum is following in the Wright Brothers footsteps, in terms of innovation and inspiring the Dayton region.
"Over the past 12 months, the National Aviation Hall of Fame has been ablaze with innovation and accomplishment, making significant strides in its mission to honor aviation legends and inspire future generations from its home in the Birthplace of Aviation,” said Katie Main, development director.
As part of its mission, the National Aviation Hall of Fame involves aviation education for students to learn 21st-century skills like problem-solving and teamwork. It promotes diversity and inclusivity, ensuring all students have equal access to opportunities in aerospace fields.
In collaboration with ThinkTV/PBS, the museum has created an aviation-focused STEM curriculum. In just two years, the curriculum has reached 6,000 Ohio classrooms.
Within its own building, the museum has renovated and added interactive exhibits and an immersive theater.
Earlier this summer, the museum completed its Joe Clark Innovation Lab. The lab promotes visitors and students to design, experiment, and explore aviation and aerospace concepts.
“Planning is underway to install interactive digital displays and holograms, that will share the stories of our American aviation legends,” Main said. “The National Aviation Hall of Fame isn't just preserving history; we're actively shaping the future of aviation by igniting a passion for aviation and aerospace in the next generation.”
Retail:
Namesake Coffee (Kettering) – Blazer Winner
This small-batch coffee roasting company was launched in 2016 by owners Jessica and Michael Beans. The online roastery offers ethically-source coffee and 100% compostable and biodegradable bags.
“Since launching, we doubled our retail partnerships with businesses around Dayton carrying our retails bags for sale,” the Beans said.
Their bags can be found online or at Grist, Gem City Market, Shoppe Smitten, and Reduce, Reuse, Refillery. The bags are backyard friendly and can break down in about 180 days.
“We have dreamed for a long time about creating more sustainable packaging,” the Beans said. “We went through a two-year retail bag redesign process and launched our new product that is not only a beautiful design but it good for the planet in a new way.”
Another neat feature of Namesake’s coffee bags are they are made of seed paper so when they break down in the ground it grows wildflowers or herbs.
“With every sip, you contribute to a sustainable future,” the Beans said.
