Blue Spark Technologies Announces First Closing of $5.0 Million Series B Funding.CLEVELAND -- Blue Spark Technologies, Inc., the leading designer and manufacturer of thin, flexible, green printed batteries for industry, recently announced that the company has completed its first closing on a planned $5.0 million round of Series B funding. This initial investment will be used to support the ramp-up of Blue Spark's 1.5V carbon-zinc battery production for large volumes of battery assisted passive RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) A data collection technology that uses electronic tags for storing data. The tag, also known as an "electronic label," "transponder" or "code plate," is made up of an RFID chip attached to an antenna. implementations scheduled to ship starting in the fourth quarter of 2009. Funding sources include existing Blue Spark investors Early Stage Partners and SunBridge Partners, as well as several additional private investors. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Blue Spark President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Gary R. Johnson: "The development of a new integrated circuit integrated circuit (IC), electronic circuit built on a semiconductor substrate, usually one of single-crystal silicon. The circuit, often called a chip, is packaged in a hermetically sealed case or a nonhermetic plastic capsule, with leads extending from it for designed to support UHF (Ultra High Frequency) The range of electromagnetic frequencies from 300 MHz to 3 GHz. In the U.S., analog television has used UHF channels 52 to 69 in the 700 MHz band. Gen2 battery assisted passive RFID, from Swiss semiconductor manufacturer EM Microelectronic, is a game changer Changer The name given to a clearing member that is willing to assume the opposite position of a futures contract within a larger alternative exchange, of which it also is a clearing member. for RFID. Systems integrators and end users have now become aware of a number of high-value applications for which passive UHF did not provide adequate read range or reliability, and active RFID was simply too expensive. "With battery assisted operation, the performance of UHF RFID dramatically improves, while the cost remains a small fraction of active," Johnson continues. "We are confident that the new price/performance point for battery assisted RFID will lead to numerous high-volume users. We are especially pleased to see the demand for our batteries take off as initial battery assisted passive projects move from development into production later this year." Johnson was interviewed this week by CNBC's "The Tech Effect" for his comments on the impact of flexible batteries on various markets including RFID. To view a video of the interview, click on this link: http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?play=1&video=1188892272 Or visit www.cnbc.com and click on the Videos icon. According to Jim According to Jim is an American situation comedy television series originally broadcast by ABC. The show premiered with little publicity in October 2001, following the surprise hit comedy My Wife and Kids. Petras, Managing Director of Early Stage Partners: "We are excited to be able to continue to support Blue Spark by participating in this series B round of funding. Blue Spark is the leading provider of printed power solutions, and our support will enable them to meet their goal of ramping to high volume manufacturing in the 4th quarter of this year." John Gannon, General Partner at SunBridge Partners, adds: "As the lead investor in Blue Spark's series A round, we were confident in Blue Spark's ability to deliver world class technology through an effective management team. Our participation in this series B round underscores our assurance, and will enable them to expand their personnel in support of their build to revenue later this year." Blue Spark's has closed on $1.5 million in this $5 million round which will enable them to kick off their continued growth activities while providing working capital to support their sales ramp. Blue Spark is working with institutional investors Institutional Investor A non-bank person or organization that trades securities in large enough share quantities or dollar amounts that they qualify for preferential treatment and lower commissions. to close out the remaining $3.5 million in this round. About Blue Spark Technologies Blue Spark Technologies, Inc. is the leader in developing flexible, printed, "green," proprietary power source solutions for battery-powered printed electronic systems. The company was founded as Thin Battery Technologies in 2002 with patented technology and technical leadership from Energizer (Eveready Battery Company). Blue Spark customers include manufacturers, product designers, and integrators across multiple industries including: interactive packaging, RFID, pharmaceutical, powered smart cards Example of widely used contactless smart cards are Hong Kong's Octopus card, Paris' Calypso/Navigo card and Lisbon' LisboaViva card, which predate the ISO/IEC 14443 standard. The following tables list smart cards used for public transportation and other electronic purse applications. , and novelty items. Users of products powered by Blue Spark batteries enjoy increased efficiency, greater convenience and portability, improved safety, lower manufacturing and assembly costs, higher profit margins, and greater environmental responsibility. For more information, visit www.bluesparktechnologies.com or call +1 440 249 5400. About Early Stage Partners Early Stage Partners is an early stage venture capital firm based in Cleveland, Ohio "Cleveland" redirects here. For the Cleveland metropolitan area, see . For other uses, see Cleveland (disambiguation). Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. . The company invests in promising opportunities in instrumentation and control technology, life sciences, advanced materials Advanced Materials is a leading peer-reviewed materials science journal published every two weeks. Advanced Materials includes Communications, Reviews, and Feature Articles from the cutting edge of materials science, including topics in chemistry, physics, , energy, information technology, and electronics. The company's principals have over one hundred years combined experience in early stage company formation and development, with a significant network of relationships throughout the United State that can be used to attract management, develop strategic partnerships, and provide later stage funding. www.esplp.com. About SunBridge Partners SunBridge Partners is a US-based venture capital firm pursuing a targeted, research-based approach to identifying and investing in private US technology companies pioneering innovations based on advanced technologies in computing computing - computer , communications and manufacturing, including materials, semiconductors, components, equipment and software. SunBridge Partners' capacity for strategic guidance based on deep domain expertise, proven track record of assisting portfolio companies, and global network of contacts and partners providing international market insight and revenue opportunities make it a preferred and effective investment partner to the most promising of startup companies The creator of this article, or someone who has substantially contributed to it, may have a conflict of interest regarding its subject matter. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. . www.sunbridgepartners.com |
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