CHICAGO - Twelve companies will compete for a chance to be named one of Illinois’ most innovative companies after advancing to the finals round of the Innovate Illinois competition. The companies are competing for a chance to win $80,000 in prize money, which will be used to help commercialize their product. Finalists will have seven minutes to present their innovations to a panel of judges followed by a three minute question and answer session.
The two top honorees at the finals will each receive a $30,000 cash prize, and the two runners-up will each receive a $10,000 second place prize. The finals will be held on Tuesday, November 10 from 1:30 pm - 7:30 pm at the University of Chicago’s Gleacher Center. The Innovate Illinois program is administered jointly by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center, an affiliate of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, which works to accelerate high-growth entrepreneurial companies. To learn more about the program, visit www.innovateillinois.org.
The 2009 Innovate Illinois finalists are:

Early Stage Companies	Location	Contact	Company Summary
Balanced IT Solutions	South Beloit	Kerry Frank 815-525-1100	Software development company that builds customized software solutions for various industries.
EcoMobil	Aurora	Prasad Keshava 630-891-2314	Manufactures, assembles and builds vehicles and products that deliver increased fuel savings, reduction in harmful emissions and run on alternative fuels or power sources.
Intellihot Green Technologies Inc.	Peoria	Sridhar Deivasigamani 309-868 6875	Green technology company developing and commercializing a gas fired tankless water heater for residential and light commercial application
J&J Solutions	Palatine	John Slump 847-421-1115	Medical device company that has developed innovative technology to optimize safety, increase efficiency, and reduce the cost of preparing and administering chemotherapy pharmaceuticals.
Mama Cucas Cosina	Sterling	Alfredo Cervantes 815-564-9061	Vending company that produces Hispanic pastries for individual resale.
SFM Technology, Inc.	Urbana	James Stori 217-344-8078	Software development and engineering services company focused on the development of novel technology for the modeling, maintenance, and distribution of computer-interpretable models of electronic components

Later Stage Companies	Location	Contact	Company Summary
Brianza Bella	Carlinville	Sherry Brianza 217-825-6476	Developer, manufacturer, wholesaler and retailer of a skin care treatment line for multi-cultural women
Cbana Labs	Champaign	Timothy Hoerr  217-840-9695	Develops micro-scale detection systems for the capture and analysis of pollutants, chemical warfare agents, drugs and other dangerous materials
Salare Security	Chicago	Paul Sand 312-994-2336	The company provides a security solution that stops data and executables such as trade secrets, product plans, and malware from flowing through a VoIP network.
Stone Medical Corporation	Moline	Ben Stone 319-325-3825	The Stone Medical Corporation provides the Clean Collect Blood Collection System to hospitals. Clean Collect is a patented system that prevents contamination of blood cultures
Tula Foods	Evanston	Daphne Mazarakis 888-902-TULA	Developed a line of science-based, functional foods under the Better Whey of Life® brand. Better Whey of Life® is the first brand to enhance everyday foods with Whey Protein, a nutrient with significant emerging science behind its ability to realize fat loss and lost inches around the waist.
Universal Die Cast, Inc.	Machesney Park	Harold Winebaugh 815-633-1702	The company zinc die cast small to medium sized flash free zinc die cast parts for all types of industries.

Across the state, over 130 companies applied to the 2009 Innovate Illinois program. From there, 30 companies were selected by the state’s Entrepreneurship Centers and participated in the semifinals on September 24. 

Semifinalist companies in the later stage were: Alerts Made Easy, Brianza Bella, Cbana Labs, Direct Logic Solutions, Health$hield, IM Lock Software, Load Locker Inc., MegAssist Solutions, Results Cryo, Inc, Salare Security, Seeds of Blessing, Shoehorn Furnishings, LLC, Stone Medical Corporation, Tula Foods, and Universal Die Cast, Inc.

Semifinalist companies in the early stage were:  Balanced IT Solutions, Eco-Brine, EcoMobil, Freedom Gates, Green Line Armor, LLC, Here to Help Products, Inc., InCharge Systems, Inc., Intellihot Green Technologies Inc., J&J Solutions, Municipal Solutions, Inc, PayPerWatt, PeopleStox, SFM Technology, Inc., Snack It Vending, and Tapease.

The Entrepreneurship Centers are part of the Illinois Entrepreneurship Network (IEN), administered by DCEO. The IEN was created to strengthen the state’s capacity to develop small businesses into market successes and help entrepreneurship act as a more dynamic engine of growth. IEN partners, which offer varying levels of expertise and access to services, include: Entrepreneurship Centers, Small Business Development Centers, Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, SBDC International Trade Centers, and Manufacturing Extension Centers. Entrepreneurs in need of assistance can visit the IEN Web site at www.ienconnect.com, or call the DCEO Business Hotline toll-free at 1-800-252-2923.