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IN PROGRESS ONLINE |
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Office of Economic Development, |
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Vol. 8, No. 11 |
November 2007 |
Ÿ New Director Joins Northern California World Trade Center
Ÿ Growing Auburn Optics Company Serves Multiple Markets
Ÿ Sierra College Offers Technology Seminar
Ÿ ioSafe’s “Black Box” Lauded at Global Technology Exposition
Ÿ Mandarin Bounty Featured at Festival
Ÿ Wedding Bells Ring at Tahoe Vista Inn
Ÿ Spanish Influences Mark Vina Castellano’s Wine
Ÿ Fast-growing SOS Buys Loomis Office Building
Ÿ New Business Shakes Up Nutrition Scene
Ÿ Dog Bites Treats, Calls Them “Licious”
Ÿ Auburn Symphony Presents Messiah Sing-Along
Ÿ What’s in Your E-Mail Newsletter?
New Director Joins Northern California World Trade Center
Business veteran
Dion Dwyer joined the NCWTC as executive director in September. Dwyer brings
over 12 years of experience to the position, in private sector international
trade and business development. He previously worked at FedEx Express, FedEx
Corporate Services, and BAX Global. “Our immediate goal is to expand the global
connections of small to medium-sized businesses by utilizing our network,”
Dwyer said. “Our long-term goal is to further promote economic development
through international trade, helping to diversify our region’s economy, and
develop a global identity for Sacramento.” NCWTC can help local businesses
navigate the new Free Trade Agreements being signed and highlight new markets
emerging due to the value of the dollar declining, he said. “Many times
entrepreneurs do not realize the value of the connections, education, and
resources we have to offer.” For more, visit
Growing Auburn Optics Company Serves Multiple Markets
Sierra Precision Optics keeps its cutting edge by covering many market areas, said Jim Stimpson, sales and marketing manager. The Auburn company makes optics used in laser-based systems for commercial, military, and medical applications. It also specializes in high-precision optical elements for the telecom marketplace. “What sets us apart from our competitors is that our expertise covers a multitude of application/market areas,” Stimson said. “This helps to protect us from changes in the marketplace which could impact a particular application area.” Sierra Precision Optics was established in 2001 with four employees and now employs 30. The growing company hired six people this year because of an increase in its military business. For more, visit Sierra Precision Optics at http://www.sierraoptics.com/
Sierra College Offers Technology Seminar
Sierra College Center for Applied Competitive Technologies is offering a seminar on the Rapid Prototype 3D Printer and Rapid Prototype 3D Software. The Rapid Prototype technology enables manufacturers to produce prototype models of new parts and products quickly and cost effectively with a printer that lays down layers of plastic to make each part. Program presenter will be Chris Miller with Paton Group. The first session, Rapid Prototype 3D Printer Demo, will be held November 16, 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. A second session will be held on November 17, at 9 a.m. until noon. Both sessions will be held at Sierra College Rocklin campus. To register, contact Carol Pepper-Kittredge at cpepper-kittredge@sierracollege.edu or (916) 781-6288. For details, visit http://www.sierracollegetraining.com/press102507.php
ioSafe’s “Black Box” Lauded at Global Technology Exposition
Last spring, ioSafe, a disaster-proof hardware company located in Auburn, presented its first public viewing of its new technology at Interop Las Vegas, an annual global technology exposition. At that time, InformationWeek called ioSafe’s demonstration “the most interesting technology at the show.” For the demo, the ioSafe team took digital photos of attendees and loaded them onto an ioSafe R4, a disaster-proof disk Network Attached Storage (NAS) device. The R4 was then moved to a viewable fire chamber and torched to a temperature of 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit in a propane fireball. Afterward, the R4 was hosed down with water, the hard drives removed, and the digital data restored within minutes. Network Computing magazine wrote that the demo was “unbelievable.” ioSafe is a privately held company with six employees. For more visit ioSafe at http://www.iosafe.com/ or ThomasNet at http://news.thomasnet.com/companystory/522592 or Interop at http://www.interop.com/lasvegas/
Mandarin Bounty Featured at Festival
Orange is always the operative color at the annual Mountain Mandarin Festival, and the pervading scent is of sweet, tangy citrus. At this year’s festival at the Gold Country Fairgrounds in Auburn on November 17 & 18, twenty local Mandarin growers will offer the fruits of their harvests, mainly the seedless Owari Satsuma variety, and vendors will have on hand a bounty of foods enhanced with Mandarins -- sauces & salads, jams & jellies, dips & candies, marinades & syrups, nuts & shakes. Cooking demonstrations using Mandarins will feature regionally known chefs, and the Mandarin Recipe Contest will attract amateur cooks who bring their prepared dishes to be judged for cash prizes. Day-long activities include free crafts and contests for children and live entertainment on three stages. New this year, is a classic and custom car show. Festival hours are Saturday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Admission is free; parking is $5. For details visit http://www.mandarinfestival.com/
Wedding Bells Ring at Tahoe Vista Inn
When Marty and Barb Cohen
opened the Shore House at Lake Tahoe 13 years ago, they didn’t plan to get into
the wedding business. But more and more guests showed up at the bed and
breakfast inn asking about wedding chapels only to learn they couldn’t get
married on such short notice. Hating to see their customers disappointed, the
Cohen’s stepped up. Both became ministers in the Universal Life Church, and
Barb became a notary public and passed the necessary exam to issue Placer
County marriage licenses. Since then, the Cohen’s have performed 800 wedding
ceremonies at their Tahoe Vista inn, and they see many of those couples again
as they celebrate their anniversaries. The innkeepers added an event room to
accommodate weddings, but they still limit guests to no more than 25. Now they
offer a one-price package that includes lodging, the ceremony and various
extras, such as a wedding cake and champagne. For more, visit the Shore House at
Spanish Influences Mark Vina Castellano’s Wine
The family bloodlines that
extend back to
http://www.auburnjournal.com/articles/2007/01/10/news/food_and_wine/01vinacastellano.txt or Edible Sacramento at http://www.ediblesacramento.com/pages/articles/winter2007/pdfs/abuelita.pdf
Fast-growing SOS Buys Loomis Office Building
Telecommunications company SOS outgrew its leased 8,000 square feet in Rocklin and in October purchased a 9,500-square-foot office building in Loomis, a company spokeswoman said. The company (formerly Special Order Systems Inc.) has 40 employees, up from 35 a year ago and 23 in late 2005. Employees are expected to move into the new building as early as December. SOS executives expect to exceed the company’s revenue goal of $11.5 million this year, up from $9.5 million for 2006. SOS integrates voice and data systems, specializing in Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) telephone consulting and services for small and mid-size businesses. For details, visit SOS at http://team-sos.com/ or Sacramento Business Journal at http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2007/10/08/daily4.html?ana=from_rss
or Cisco Systems Inc. at http://www.cisco.com/pcgi-bin/search/search.pl?searchPhrase=SOS&accessLevel=Guest&language=en&country=US&Search+All+Cisco.com=cisco.com&x=13&y=8
New Business Shakes Up Nutrition Scene
Endurance Capital Daily Nutrition/The Daily Shake, a new Auburn business, offers a meal replacement concept: a low-sugar, low-calorie, smoothie-style shake that is high in protein and contains 19 vitamins and minerals; and a fat-burning and good energy source green tea. Owner Galen McCord says the concept is unique in the nutrition industry. “We provide an easy, proven solution for balanced daily nutrition and weight and health management,” he said. “Our science-based herbal products and supplements are a sustaining alternative to fast food and sugary and fatty snacks.” The Daily Shake opened in October in the Auburn Square Shopping Center, 175 Elm Ave. The company’s Web site will be online soon. For more information contact McCord at (530) 885-5090.
Dog Bites Treats, Calls Them “Licious”
Max, a charming six-year-old golden retriever, is the official quality assurance manager for the Bow Wow Licious Biscuit Company, based in Auburn. Max notes that all of Bow Wow’s treats, using all natural “human-grade” ingredients and no salt, sugar, or preservatives, are hand-cut and baked-fresh. Some of Max’s favorite Licious biscuit flavors are peanut butter, chicken, beef, molasses & oat, carrot, zucchini, and graham cracker. When he’s not holding three -- or even four! -- tennis balls in his mouth; he likes to chew on one of his signature treats, Max’s Jumbo Bones. For special occasions, Max recommends, when the timing is right, Jack-0-Lantern Cookies or Bow Wow’s Birthday Pawty Cake or Valentine Lollipawps. But for every day use, he barks, the Beef Liver Training Treats can’t be beat. Max and his owner -- and also owner of the company -- Peggy Green are on a mission to “provide wholesome quality treats for every K-9.” Now in its third year in business, Bow Wow has 13 Placer County outlets for its products. For details and outlets, visit Bow Wow Licious at http://www.bowwowlicious.com/default.asp or KOVR at http://cbs13.com/slideshows/local_slideshow_046173426/view?slide=15
Auburn Symphony Presents Messiah Sing-Along
Hallelujah! ’Tis the season for Auburn Symphony’s traditional Messiah Sing-Along concert, set for Tuesday, December 11, 7:30 p.m., at Placer High School Auditorium in Auburn. As the orchestra, chorus, and guest soloists perform, the audience is invited to join in singing the best-loved choruses from the oratorio, including its most familiar, the “Hallelujah” chorus. Conductor and music director Michael Goodwin promises an inspiring, rousing evening of music at the annual community event. Tickets are $15 each. For details and tickets, visit Auburn Symphony at http://www.auburnsymphony.com/
What’s in Your E-Mail Newsletter?
In Progress Online (IPOL), our monthly economic development e-mail newsletter covers the latest news on Placer County business and industry, agriculture, tourism, and the arts. It reports on new projects in our cities and towns and keeps readers up to date on the state of the region’s economy. IPOL posts news of state and local training, incentives, and loan programs that benefit business. It provides links to more information on each item. News about your business is always welcome. Please send items, questions, comments, or suggestions to the Office of Economic Development at econdev@placer.ca.gov or visit the OED Web site at
http://www.placer.ca.gov/CEO/EconDev.aspx
For past In Progress Online newsletters, go to Placer County Biz News at http://www.placer.ca.gov/CEO/Econdev/business%20news.aspx