Tuesday, May 13, 2008

FloDesign wins Ignite Clean Energy business plan competition

FloDesign Wind Turbine Corp. was named winner of this year's Ignite Clean Energy business plan competition, put on by the MIT Enterprise Forum.

As the first place team, the Wilbraham-based company will receive $200,000 worth of prizes, including cash, public relations services from Bell Pottinger USA, legal services from Mintz Levin and office space from either Cummings Properties or the UMass Dartmouth Applied Technology and Manufacturing Center.

Other companies receiving awards included Cambridge-based Ethanol Boosting Systems LLC, MIT student team Husk Power System and Liverpool N.Y.-based Sequesco.

FloDesign has developed a new form factor in wind turbines that executives report can be easily mass produced at a lower price than traditional turbines. By using a design more like a jet engine than a wind mill, FloDesign's turbines would also present a lower aesthetic profile, an issue commonly raised when choosing a site for wind farms.

FloDesign also recently won a $500,000 convertible loan from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to help build a prototype.

Officials hope to have the first commercial products ready in the next two years, according to a recent interview with CEO Stanley Kowalski.