Issaquah innovators earn business honor
January 29, 2013
Innovation in Issaquah is exemplified by a leading apparel manufacturer, a revolutionary process to transform garbage into fertilizer and a theater renowned for fostering Broadway-bound musicals.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce and city leaders announced the Innovation in Issaquah honorees — apparel manufacturer SanMar, WISErg, a manufacturer of garbage-to-fertilizer harvesters, and the nonprofit Village Theatre — at a Jan. 24 ceremony and luncheon.
Leaders from the chamber and City Hall recognized the entrepreneurs’ accomplishments through the Innovation in Issaquah contest, a showcase for local businesses offering unique services. Honorees demonstrate innovation in product development, services, systems or strategies.
Virginia Mason Medical Center CEO touts innovation
January 29, 2013
Dr. Gary Kaplan sought to streamline health care and create a safer — and more inviting — environment for patients upon assuming the CEO post at Virginia Mason Medical Center in 2000.
“We said, ‘Should we just focus on being victims of this system? Can we just complain and go to Congress and say, “Give us more money,” or should we actually focus on our circle of concern and our circle of influence — things we can actually do something about?’” he recalled Jan. 24 at the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce’s Innovation in Issaquah luncheon.
So, Kaplan, a practicing internal medicine physician at the hospital, set out to apply the Toyota Production System, or Lean, to health care management with goals to rein in high costs and improve quality, safety and efficiency to deliver better and more affordable health care.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce honors business innovators
January 24, 2013
NEW — 1:40 p.m. Jan. 24, 2013
The most innovative businesses in Issaquah clothe people around the globe, transform garbage into fertilizer, and create productions for local and Broadway audiences.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce and city leaders announced the Innovation in Issaquah honorees — apparel manufacturer SanMar, WISErg, a manufacturer of fertilizer harvesters, and Village Theatre — at a ceremony and luncheon Thursday.
Leaders at the chamber and City Hall recognized the entrepreneurs’ accomplishments through the Innovation in Issaquah contest, a showcase for local businesses offering unique services.
Lakeside Center for Autism uses technology as treatment tool
March 20, 2012
Dan Stachelski, CEO, director and a speech-language pathologist at Lakeside Center for Autism, stands at a mosaic of jigsaw puzzle pieces made by some of the youngsters in art class who attend the school. By Greg Farrar
The hustle and bustle at Lakeside Center for Autism is intentional.
Tucked in rooms outfitted in technology both tried-and-true and cutting-edge, children and therapists spend hours each day to overcome the obstacles put in place by autism. The commotion and laughter emanating from behind the closed doors come as signs of success.
Lakeside Center for Autism uses the popular Microsoft Kinect system and other tools to treat the complicated neural development disorder.
“It’s all about participation,” company CEO, president and founder Dan Stachelski said. “Technology can do that.”
Marketing Masters ascends to aerospace stratosphere
March 13, 2012
Manufacturer supplies key components for Boeing, Airbus
Jacques Gauron sets out a pile of Clip Nuts on an aircraft floor panel sample at Marketing Masters in Issaquah. By Greg Farrar
The fasteners connecting pieces in each Boeing and Airbus jetliner — a component left unseen by passengers for the most part — originate at a small Issaquah manufacturer.
The manufacturer, Marketing Masters, creates inserts and fasteners from Torlon — a substance cheaper, lighter and more resistant to corrosion than the titanium used in earlier-generation aircraft fasteners.
The fasteners hold together pieces in the behemoth Airbus A380 — the largest passenger jetliner in service — and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a next-generation plane assembled mostly from composite materials.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce leaders spotlighted Marketing Masters as a business innovator in the Innovation in Issaquah contest late last month.
The chamber also honored Impact Studio Pro and Lakeside Center for Autism as innovators. The carbon-neutral community zHome also received a nod as the most innovative public-private partnership.
Issaquah resident Jacques Gauron, a Liberty High School graduate, and brother Andre operate the global Marketing Masters business from a modest building in Central Issaquah. Burger King obscures the facility from the traffic along bustling state Route 900.
Impact Studio Pro rolls innovation into video production
March 6, 2012
Impact Studio Pro staff includes (from left) software developer and CASTUS Vice President Jon Campbell, ISP Director and Editor Nathan Bosseler, Project Manager Elaine Bosseler, Bellevue College Web developer intern Alex Elsayed and 3-D artist Jahn Flaatrud. By Greg Farrar
Inside the video marketing agency Impact Studio Pro, a Mountain Dew-fueled operation creates TV commercials, promotional spots, public service announcements and music videos for more than 100 clients.
The tiny company operates from a converted Issaquah Highlands apartment, a space referred to as the “think tank” by founder Nathan Bosseler. The office overlooks rooftops and the Issaquah Alps. Bosseler uses a space designed for a bedroom as the executive suite.
Major clients include the Issaquah Schools Foundation, Gene Juarez Academy, Hyundai of Kirkland, and municipal governments in Sammamish and SeaTac.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce leaders spotlighted Impact Studio Pro as a business innovator in the Innovation in Issaquah contest late last month.
The chamber also honored Marketing Masters and Lakeside Center for Autism as innovators. The carbon-neutral community zHome also received a nod as the most innovative public-private partnership.
City, Issaquah Chamber of Commerce honor innovators
February 28, 2012
The most innovative businesses in Issaquah manufacture fasteners for airliners, use technology to treat autism, and rely on a tiny-but-talented staff to create slick productions.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce announced the Innovation in Issaquah honorees — Marketing Masters, Lakeside Center for Autism and Impact Studio Pro — at a Feb. 22 ceremony and luncheon.
The carbon-neutral community zHome also received a nod as the most innovative public-private partnership. The city spearheaded the 10-unit townhouse development from concept to completion.
Leaders from the chamber and City Hall recognized the entrepreneurs’ accomplishments through the Innovation in Issaquah contest, a showcase for local businesses offering unique services. Honorees demonstrate innovation in product development, services, systems or strategies.
Innovation in Issaquah honor is latest milestone for zHome
February 28, 2012
The accolades started to accumulate for the carbon-neutral community zHome before construction concluded.
The latest honor — recognition in the Innovation in Issaquah contest as the top public-private partnership — highlights the collaboration among academic, business and government interests to complete the 10-unit townhouse project.
The community in the Issaquah Highlands uses zero net energy and 70 percent less water than a traditional home. The community opened in September 2011 as the inaugural carbon-neutral and zero-energy multifamily community in the United States.
“We live in a really exceptional city,” zHome Project Manager Brad Liljequist said. “Projects like this cannot happen without a mayor and a City Council that also have vision. I’ve worked in a lot of different cities around the Northwest, and Issaquah is truly exceptional when it comes to our city’s leadership.”
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce honors business innovators
February 22, 2012
NEW — 12:45 p.m. Feb. 22, 2012
The most innovative businesses in Issaquah manufacture composite fasteners for airliners, educate and enrich autistic children, and rely on a tiny-but-talented staff to create slick productions.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce announced the Innovation in Issaquah honorees — Marketing Masters, Lakeside Center for Autism and Impact Studio Pro — Wednesday.
The carbon-neutral community zHome also received a nod as the most innovative public-private partnership. The city spearheaded the 10-unit townhouse development.
Marketing Masters creates fasteners for Boeing and Airbus planes at a small facility behind Burger King in the Issaquah business district.
Lakeside Center for Autism uses technology, such as the Microsoft Kinect, to educate autistic children.
Impact Studio Pro, established at a home office in the Issaquah Highlands, is a video production company.
Issaquah Chamber of Commerce seeks business, nonprofit innovators
January 31, 2012
Issaquah businesses and nonprofit organizations continue to innovate, despite a tough economy and other challenges.
In order to recognize local entrepreneurs’ accomplishments, the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce is seeking nominees for the Innovation in Issaquah contest, a showcase for local businesses offering unique services. Honorees demonstrate innovation in product development, services, systems or strategies.
The chamber launched the program last year. The initial honorees included Democracy Live, Restorix Health, Applied Precision and the nonprofit Eastside Baby Corner.
Nominate a business or nonprofit for the honor at www.issaquahchamber.com/form/innovation-in-issaquah by 5 p.m. Feb. 6.
Chamber leaders plan to recognize the 2012 honorees at a Feb. 22 luncheon.
