November 2015 Issue 001
Pittsburgh Innovation and Technology Magazine
Aerial Mapping
Drones
Pittsburgh startup Identified Technologies uses custom drones to map landscapes.
Communication
for Modern
Business
It’s 2015 and there are better ways for your business to handle its phone systems.
Cleaning Up Pittsburgh’s Rivers Local Initiative receives grant to convert diesel tug boat to LNG.
Pittsburgh’s Focus on Innovation From top educational institutions like Carnegie Mellon University and corporations like Google. Pittsburgh is an innovative leader the digital age.
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CONTENTS 4 Aerial Mapping Drones Pittsburgh based start up Identified Technologies takes their selfpiloting Boomerang™ drone to the skies to collect mapping data and survey land in just 21 minutes.
7 Cleaning up Pittsburgh’s Rivers Western Pennsylvania coalition Clean Fuels Clean Rivers received the first-ever grant focused on rivers from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) to convert a diesel towboat to liquid natural gas with the goal of reducing emissions. »» p.4
8 Communication for Modern Business Don Hodor, owner of Western Pennsylvania telecommunications company Southpointe Telecom Technology, explains the ins and outs of phone systems and how to improve your work flow and increase your business opportunities.
11 Pittsburgh’s Focus on Innovation »» p.8
In Pittsburgh we’ve got top educational institutions like Carnegie Mellon University and have attracted corporations like Google. Our region is an innovative leader the digital age.
14 Pittsburgh Technology Expo & Conference The 2015 Pittsburgh Technology Expo and Conference (P-TEC) provides a venue for companies to profile their technology and innovative products and services as well as for business professionals, educators, and everyone alike to share ideas, network, and learn about new technology created in our region.
Letter from the editor Brad Herman P-TEC 2015 Executive Director
The Pittsburgh Innovation and Technology Magazine aims to bring you stories about the most exciting and innovative technologies, events, businesses, and more throughout Pittsburgh as well as the surrounding region. In this issue we feature stories related to some of the hottest present day topics; Drones and the energy industry. From Identified Technologies Aerial Mapping Drones to Clean Fuels Clean Rivers receiving a grant to convert diesel tugboats to liquid natural gas. If you have a story or idea you would like to see in future editions email us at info@pittsburghtradeshow.com
Premier Corporate Sponsors PittsburghTradeshow.com
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Identified Technologies Aerial Mapping Drones October 26th, 2015 There are many factors involved for a start up business to be succesful but it all starts with an idea that provides a solution. Identified Technologies CEO, Dick Zhang, came up with his idea while working with drones at the University of Pennsylvania’s GRASP LAB. Drone technology is rapidly changing and becoming more affordable in the private sector but Zhang and Identified Technology’s innovative ideas provide a solution for some of the biggest unmet industrial needs that drones could fulfill. After working with early partners and clients Zhang learned that everybody wanted the data off the drone but nobody wanted to learn how to fly, maintain, repair, or take responsibility for the drone. This revelation inspired him to build a turnkey system that would take care of itself and act as an automated data collection tool instead of as a traditional manual drone. Their fully autonomous self-piloting Boomerang™ drone takes off on it’s own, flies the area and captures the data, lands itself in the Launchpad™ dock, uploads its mapping data to the cloud for analysis, and swaps and charges its batteries - all by itself, living on the jobsite. Other systems require staff time and training to do these tasks manually. Identified Technologies offers the only mapping system that does not require human interaction to operate or maintain. This efficiently scalable solution
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allows for better decisions with more frequently updated job site information. The mapping and inspection work that they offer via drone, would otherwise have to be done manually by humans in a wide variety of dangerous situations. For example, they provide a practical and safe solution for inspecting leaking gas pipelines, garbage landfills, damaged electrical lines, mines which could cave in, toxic waste dumps, hazardous uneven ground littered with dangerous power machinery, and slag or aggregate piles at risk of land slide. Contour Lines
3D Volumetric Analysis
Identified Technologies delivers big insights for big jobs by automating energy, mining, and construction site monitoring with self-piloting mapping drone systems.
www.identifiedtech.com With their system, clients receive data 200x faster and 60x more frequently than with past alternatives. Businesses are now operating significantly more efficiently, equipped with continuous automated job site monitoring, mapping, and analysis. Identified Technologies was incorporated in 2013 and their staff brings together experience from Caterpillar, SAP, HewlettPackard, Bristol Meyers Squibb, the University of Pennsylvania, Tepper School of Business, and Carnegie Mellon Robotics. If you are interested in Identified Technolgy’s services contact their Senior Business Consultant Jeff Black at JBlack@identifiedtech. com or 724-288-7500.
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We create solutions to solve your communication challenges
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Cleaning Up Pittsburgh’s Rivers October 27, 2015:
Regions Clean Cities, received a $730,000 grant to convert a Pittsburgh has been known as diesel towboat to the more eco many things: the Steel City, the friendly liquid natural gas (LNG). City of Bridges, the Golden According to Dr. Lutitia Clipper Triangle, and countless other there are 261 towboats operating “yinzer” favorites. The common in the region. Dr. Clipper’s comdenominator in most of these is pany, Clipper Enterprises, is one the city’s three rivers which once of many collaborating to make were a driving force in the region’s this a reality. “This is a tremeneconomy. The steel industry in dous opportunity for the PittsPittsburgh has diminished but burgh Region and the entire Ohio the Monongahela, Allegheny, River community, heart of the and Ohio Rivers continue to be a Marcellus and Utica Shale Plays, viable method of transport - espe- to demonstrate this innovative cially for the coal industry. application for natural gas,” said Dr. Clipper. The project is in its Local coalition Clean Fuels Clean early stages and will require the Rivers, part of the Pittsburgh development of the technology
Clean Fuels Clean Rivers $730,000 grant from the Maritime Administration (MARAD) is the first ever to be focused on the rivers.
to support the conversion. West Virginia University’s Center for Alternative Fuels, Engines, and Emissions will lead a study to evaluate the emissions of the project. Learn more about this project at cleanfuelscleanrivers.com
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Communication for Modern Business: Choosing an Office Phone System October 28, 2015 Of all the decisions you are faced with, the most important is the office phone system. This is the ‘front door’ of your business. How the phones are handled when a customer calls can set the tone for an ongoing client relationship or it can come to an abrupt end. Surprisingly, this is the most ‘overlooked’ area of a business. Most owners and managers are listening from the inside and don’t really hear what the customer hears when calling for the first time. Here are some of the decisions you will need to make for an efficient working system that gives the caller a ‘comfortable feeling’ that he/she is being treated with the most importance in your company. Auto Attendant vs Live Answering Most companies are now using ‘automatic attendant’ to answer the phones. (It’s the typical ‘press one for accounting’ approach). Many elect to have a live person answer all calls, but they are too busy to handle calls when multiple callers ring in? I find the best solution is a hybrid approach. Use a live person to answer but during peak periods the auto attendant picks up to help after 4 rings. This is a good 8
compromise. After hours, the auto attendant sends callers to voice mail boxes. One trick is to have a ‘secret number’ your staff can use to call into the office that will go directly to auto attendant and voice mail, thereby freeing up your operator for new callers. Music on Hold Another overlooked area is the dead silence callers hear while waiting for a call to be transferred. Music on hold assures the caller, he was not hung up on (and that his cell phone did not disconnect). Another option is a special ‘Message on Hold’.This can be music with a special company message, an introduction for special sales, office hours, or even new products conveyed all while the caller is waiting. Script these messages to be informative and interesting. IP vs. Conventional Phones Here again, this decision can be tricky as it all depends on how your business is set up. If you have staff that is always in the office, conventional phones work best (This is multiple phone lines coming in with a ‘hunt group’ that selects the next line when busy). This is very reliable, costs less and is easier to fix if something goes wrong. It usually is less expensive because of the
market drop in pricing due to VoIP phone competition. VoIP phones (Voice Over Internet protocol phones) are best for multiple offices, employees on the road and working from home. Be cautious - many will tell you it saves money to use VoIP phones as you don’t need CO lines (Telephone Call Paths) from your local telephone company. The tradeoff is payment for larger bandwidth, cloud virtual line cost and the ever dreaded dropped calls. Yes, VoIP phones tend to drop calls more often than conventional – much like your cell phone drops calls - without warning. Make sure you get references from the installing company for similar businesses and call them as a follow-up. Who to select for your office phones I recommend a small to medium size company for installation and maintenance. Small enough to know who you are and quickly know your equipment setup. They should be large enough to have the resources and depth of manpower to solve difficult problems.
Jon Grant - Architect jgrant@gsxsolutions.com www.gsxsolutions.com 410-230-0003 GSX Solutions is a real estate development and consulting firm that specializes in the discovery and strategic repositioning of properties to support targeted real estate developments such as Student Apartment Complexes, Assisted Living Facilities and International Communities. We use our inhouse site selection, architectural design, site planning and rezoning expertise to monetize or increase the value of real estate assets throughout the country.
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4th, 925 Liberty Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 www.downtownpittsburgh.com (412) 566-4190 Formed by Downtown businesses, professionals, civic organizations, foundations and residents, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP) is a dynamic, nonprofit organization that develops and implements innovative programs and initiatives to enhance Downtown Pittsburgh. The PDP also promotes and markets this great urban center to millions of people as the region’s premier destination to do business, to call home, or to visit for the best in shopping, dining and entertainment. The PDP also stands as staunch advocates for all those who make Downtown part of their lives—from businesses to workers to residents.
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Pittsburgh’s Focus On Innovation October 29, 2015 It is a well known fact that Pittsburgh is a unique city in regard to innovative thinking and advancement of technology. Many believe that the educational corridor of Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh, and Duquesne University set a high standard for technology and innovation by drawing high achieving students from both domestic andforeign countries. UPMC’s leading medical teams have contributed to this focus as well. Google has been a part of the Pittsburgh community since January 2006, when they started as an office with two engineers in Downtown Pittsburgh. After five great years at the Collaborative Innovation Center on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University, they moved to Bakery Square in Larimer - a neighborhood in Pittsburgh’s East End. They now have over 200 employees working on dozens of engineering projects in areas as diverse
as product search, ads quality, and infrastructure. The office actively participates in community projects and events, and is an integral part of the city. According to the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership a Downtown Pittsburgh address means you’re in one of the nation’s top ten headquarters of Fortune 500 companies, including U.S. Steel Corp., H.J. Heinz, PNC Financial Services Group, PPG Industries, Allegheny Technologies and WESCO International are proud to call Pittsburgh their home. Simply put—being Downtown
means you’re on fertile soil for financial opportunity, now and for years to come. Not far from Pittsburgh is the Southpointe Industrial Park. This has been established as the focal point for the Marcellus Shale oil and gas energy with regional headquarters for Rice Energy, Consol Energy, Range Resources, Noble Energy and many more energy operations. Innovation and technical advancements in oil gas drilling, pipe distribution and software management are a big part of the energy play.
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Be seen in the new Pittsburgh Innovation and Technology Magazine as well as the 23 year old Southpointe Directory and Quarterly Report. The Southpointe Directory has over 31,000 readers in print and online throughout the region. Rates starting as low as $200/ad
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P-TEC 2015
Premier Corporate Sponsor
Call 24/7
724-873-7777
Your local Telecom EXPERTS for 20+ years
Local office communications
If you are a small office renter or a large developer, Southpointe Telecom can help.
Infrastructure Cabling
We install Cat-5 & Cat-6 cabling for offices, multi-family andae We product residential homes
Office Phones Southpointe Telecom is certified for IP phone technology with local telephone numbers using your internet access.
CCTV Cameras
We design and install CCTV cameras systems viewed from your smart phone or laptop
Authorized ICOM dealer offering intrinsically safe ‘well site’ two way radios. Encrypted IP based for security over satellite and land transmissions.
Well site communications Southpointe Telecom now offers satellite service for voice, internet, data and video to and from well sites. This is a great solution for isolated areas not having cellular or conventional communication service.
Internet Connectivity We design and install your internet system from the outside network to your desk. All wiring documented
Video Production
We produce, record, edit and post your ads, commercials and training. Ready for YouTube or your web site
We provide aerial photography and video production services Pictured Bill Griffin on camera & Don Hodor, Pilot
SOUTHPOINTETELECOMMUNICATIONTECHNOLOGY 125 Technology Drive, Southpointe, PA 15317 724-873-7777 www.southpointetelecom.com
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don@southpointe.net
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ABOUT THE PITTSBURGH TECHNOLOGY EXPO AND CONFERENCE (P-TEC) It’s no secret; the city of Pittsburgh has emerged as a center for technology based companies. A growing economy, an affordable cost of living, and some of the best tech schools in the world have helped technology based startups thrive- leading to advances in many industries like medicine, robotics, and much more. Our goal is to encourage this growth further by providing a venue for tech related companies, schools, and institutions to profile their products and services. P-TEC is a place for business professionals, educators, and everyone alike to share ideas, network, and learn about the technology coming out of our region.
Sheraton Station Square
The 2015 inaugural expo at the Sheraton Station Square brought together many facets of the technology industry including telecommunications, information technology, 3D printing, digital marketing, and many more. Our staff would like to thank all of those who participated this year and we look forward to coming back even larger in 2016.
2015 Corporate Sponsors
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2015 Participants
P-TEC 2016 Date TBA www.pittsburghtradeshow.com
Check back for news and updates on our 2016 events Sign up for our news letters by visiting PittsburghTradeshow.com or by emailing brad@pittsburghtradeshow.com with a request to be added to our list.
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