OptiGrate Named Finalist for International Award

ATHENS, Ohio – OptiGrate, a graduate of the UCF Business Incubation Program of Orlando, has been named a finalist for the National Business Incubation Association’s 2014 Outstanding Incubator Graduate award in the technology category. The winner of the prestigious award will be announced May 20 at NBIA’s 28th International Conference on Business Incubation in New Orleans. OptiGrate pioneered and successfully brought to market a breakthrough method to produce unique volume Bragg grating based optical filters. Starting with the raw material of sand (silica), OptiGrate’s proprietary method produces a piece of glass in which the molecules are aligned to create a volume Bragg grating filter for a laser beam. The silica, with a mixture of additives formed in a special process, creates an image in the glass like a hologram which filters the laser light. The result is better optical filters, better beam direction and better lasers that perform with complete stability, pure frequency or color at any temperature and in any environment with absolute diffraction efficiency exceeding 99 percent. Established in 1999, OptiGrate entered the UCF Business Incubator in 2000. Incubator staff guided the founder - Dr. Leon Glebov, a UCF faculty member and Russian émigré, through the technology transfer and licensing process with the University and provided assistance with market analysis, identification and pursuit of funding opportunities, contract negotiation guidance and introduction to key industry experts. Resolution of ownership and management team issues, as well as other legal issues, were addressed through introductions to highly qualified intellectual property and corporate attorneys. Very importantly, the incubator provided non-university, dedicated space for R&D and early manufacturing that enabled OptiGrate staff to carry out their groundbreaking research and critical production. Business incubation programs like the UCF Business Incubation Program catalyze the process of starting and growing companies by providing entrepreneurs with the expertise, networks and tools they need to make their ventures successful. NBIA estimates that in 2011 alone, North American incubators assisted about 49,000 start-up companies that provided full-time employment for nearly 200,000 workers and generated annual revenue of almost $15 billion. Approximately 7,000 business incubators operate worldwide. The National Business Incubation Association is the world's leading organization advancing business incubation and entrepreneurship. Each year, the NBIA Incubation Awards honor the business incubation programs, graduates and client companies that exemplify the best of the industry.

Cuhaci & Peterson Architects names two veteran designers

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Cuhaci & Peterson Architects Engineers Planners, based in Orlando’s Baldwin Park, recently appointed two veteran architectural designers. Lonnie Peterson, chairman at Cuhaci & Peterson, appointed Paul Williams electrical designer. Williams, who attended St. Claire College in Windsor Ontario, Canada has more than 27 years of experience in the industry, according to Peterson. Cuhaci & Peterson also named Patrick Kreusch, senior mechanical engineering designer. Kreusch has more than 20 years of experience and his focus is on electronics technology. The Baldwin Park architectural firm also hired Jenny Szilagyi as a graduate architect. Szilagyi, who holds a Masters of Architecture from the University of Florida has three years of experience with a strong knowledge of REVIT, Peterson said.

Cuhaci & Peterson awarded contract for new Gordon Food Service store in West Palm Beach

ORLANDO, Fla. — Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, Engineers, Planners, based in Baldwin Park, was recently awarded a contract to design a new Gordon Food Service store in West Palm Beach. Lonnie Peterson, chairman at Cuhaci & Peterson said the facility will offer 20,000 square feet of space. Cuhaci & Peterson Architects is one of the nation’s leading designers of retail space with projects that total more than two million square feet annually. The firm designed two other Gordon Food Service facilities within the past year in Miami and Orlando.

M/I HOMES OPENS NEW MODEL AT MAGNOLIA PARK ESTATES IN APOPKA

APOPKA, Fla. – M/I Homes has a new model ready for viewing at Magnolia Park Estates its gated single-family home community in Apopka located off Ocoee-Apopka Rd. and Parkstone Blvd. David Byrnes, area president for M/I Homes in the Orlando region, said the new Sonoma model is a two-story design offering five bedrooms, three baths in 3,642 square feet of living space, priced from $307,000 with a three-car garage. Byrnes said M/I Homes has 35 home sites at Magnolia Park Estates for new four and five bedroom homes in eight distinctive floor plans that range from 2,311 square feet to 4,800 square feet of living area, priced from $248,000 to $450,000. Amenities at Magnolia Park Estates include a children’s playground, basketball court and pavilion. Visit www.MIHomes.com

Hold-Thyssen Negotiates New Long Term Lease with Cellular Store at Woodland Crossings in DeLand

DELAND, Fla. --- Hold-Thyssen Real Estate Services recently negotiated a five-year lease agreement for 1,750 square feet of retail space at Woodland Crossings, 1702 N. Woodland Blvd. in DeLand. Martin Forster CCIM, of Hold-Thyssen in Winter Park, negotiated the transaction representing the landlord of Woodland Crossings. The Tenant, AIO Wireless, leased Suite 100, the southern end cap of the highly visible retail strip shopping center, with Chili’s restaurant on an outparcel and other national tenants that include a UPS Store and Advance America, Forster said. The tenant was represented by Vincent Wolle of Results Realty. Hold-Thyssen provides commercial property brokerage, leasing and management services to institutional and private investor clients nationwide. The 40-year old firm’s current management portfolio includes more that 100 commercial properties throughout the United States.

HENIN HOMES NAMES LINDSAY WELLER EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

Winter Park, Fla. – Henin Homes has named Lindsay Weller executive administrative assistant. Jerome Henin, principal and president of Henin Homes, said Weller attended the University of Central Florida and has a background in real estate law.

Exam Plus FL wins 2013 Florida Excellence Award from U.S. Institute for Excellence in Commerce

Winter Springs, Fla. --- Exam Plus FL, which administers drug and alcohol testing programs for employers, sports, governmental and law enforcement agencies, was recently selected for the 2013 Florida Excellence Award by the U.S. Institute for Excellence in Commerce (USIEC). José Batista, president and chief executive officer of the Winter Springs-based company, said the USIEC conducts business surveys and industry research each year to identify companies that have achieved demonstrable success in their local business environment and industry category. “USIEC recognizes small businesses for their commitment to customers and contributions that enhance the consumer driven stature that Florida is renowned for,” Batista explained. “Recognition by USIEC marks a significant achievement for us as a strong sign that our effort to set benchmarks for the industry to follow is working,” Batista said. Exam Plus FL, a client company of the University of Central Florida Business Incubation Program located in Winter Springs, is a member of the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association and the Substance Abuse Program Administrators Association.

Demand for Industrial Space to Increase Thanks to E-commerce, New Distribution Intermodal Systems, Says Expert

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Demand for industrial space will increase by an estimated 250 million square feet in 2014 thanks largely to ecommerce expansion and new intermodal distribution systems, says an industrial development expert. There are and will be such new changes in this logistics sphere. George Livingston, longtime real estate investment developer and broker and chairman of NAI Realvest in Orlando also said third-party logistics is playing a greater role in ecommerce and the industry sector was more profitable last year than other logistics service providers. “Home Depot online sales increased fifty percent year over year for the past two quarters,” Livingston said. That points to the ways sticks-and-bricks stores are reaching out to consumers with online gateways. The key is faster, more efficient delivery, Livingston said. The cost of delivery is 50 percent of the cost of the logistics system. Experts estimate that ecommerce will create about 40 percent of the demand for new warehouse and distribution space in the region. “Domestic intermodal traffic is growing two to three times faster than America’s Gross Domestic Product, or GDP,” Livingston said. “That indicates significant planning and execution on the part of store retailers to tame the online beast,” he said. “Quick delivery really matters.” Intermodal deliveries offer a five to 20 percent price advantage over traditional long-haul trucking, Livingston said, and it will be used more and more to reduce costs, he explained. More rail intermodal facilities are likely to be built, given their cost advantage. Wide span cranes that increase intermodal efficiency are now part of the CSX Winter Haven facility and are examples of new technology being used to cut time and cost.

M/I HOMES NAMES VETERAN HOMEBUILDER KEVIN CLARK VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS

ORLANDO, Fla. – M/I Homes has named Kevin Clark, a seasoned home building executive with more than 25 years of experience in the industry, as vice president of operations. David Byrnes, area president of M/I Homes in the Orlando region, made the announcement about Clark who has served as division president of several homebuilding companies. Clark, a graduate of Purdue University and a certified building contractor, was most recently executive vice president of operations for Rausch Coleman Homes in Fayetteville, Ark. He formerly served as division president of Ashton Woods Homes, Colonial Homes and Beazer Homes in Orlando. Clark started his real estate career with Ryland Homes in the Tampa and Orlando divisions in the early 1980s. He was also project manager for Taylor Woodrow’s Alaqua Lakes – its first exclusive golf development in the Orlando area.

MERITAGE HOMES BREAKS GROUND AT BALDWIN COVE NEAR BALDWIN PARK

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Meritage Homes recently started site construction at its newest community Baldwin Cove located on Beach Blvd. overlooking Lake Baldwin near Baldwin Park. Brian Kittle, division vice president of Meritage Homes in the Orlando region, said the homebuilder plans to build new three, four and five-bedroom single-family homes priced from the $200s at Baldwin Cove. Sales of the new homes is expected to get underway in May.