TEXTUREO R L A N D O ’ S T E C H N O L O G Y L A N D S C A P E

WE’VE GOTGAMEElectronic Arts & University of Central Florida team up for gaming academy

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A T E L L I N G

S T O R YTalent from Disney’sanimation legacy create tales of their own

A D V A N C I N GT R AV E LTransportation tech takes off fromCentral Florida

DepartmentsFROM THE EDITOR 4

INTERFACE 5

TECH TRENDS 6

OFF THE WIRE 9

PEAK PERFORMER 10

NEW COs 12

INNOVATION ALLEY 15

TALENT POOL 18

SPECIAL FX 22

INTELLIGENT FORMS OF LIFESTYLE 36

Features

WE’VE GOT GAME 24EA Sports and University of Central Floridateam up for gaming academy.

A TELLING STORY 28Talent from Disney’s animation legacy create tales of their own.

ADVANCING TRAVEL 32Transportation technology takes off in Central Florida.

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Metro Orlando EconomicDevelopment Commission

President & CEOTexture Executive Publisher

Raymond Gilley

Vice President, MarketingTexture Executive Editor

Maureen Brockman

Vice President, Tech Industry DevelopmentTexture EditorJohn Fremstad

Director, Public RelationsTexture Project Support

Trent Flood

Director, CFTPTexture Project Support

Amy Edge

Director, Creative ProductionTexture Project Support

Judy Ladney

Orlando/Orange County Convention& Visitors Bureau, Inc.

PresidentTexture PublisherWilliam C. Peeper

Vice President of PublicationsTexture Associate Publisher

Deborah Kicklighter Henrichs

Managing EditorConnie Sue White

Publication ArtistsLaura Bluhm, Ranae Ledebuhr,

Michele Trimble, Frank J. Quinones

Senior Production CoordinatorElaine Hébert

Director of Advertising SalesSheryl Taylor 407.354.5568

Contributing WritersMichael Candelaria, Brian Courtney, Amy Edge,

Rafaela Ellis, Denise Enos, Trent Flood, Pierce Hoover, Jackie Kelvington, Tracey C. Velt

and C.S. White

Contributing Photographer & IllustratorCharles Hodges, Frank J. Quinones

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TEXTUREO R L A N D O ’ S T E C H N O L O G Y L A N D S C A P E

This publication is sponsored in part by the Orange CountyGovernment’s Economic Stimulus Package 2.0. Texturemagazine is produced by everything ink, a division of theOrlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau,Inc.® (Orlando CVB), for the Metro Orlando EconomicDevelopment Commission. Orlando CVB: 6700 ForumDrive, Suite 100, Orlando, FL 32821, Phone 407.363.5841,Fax 407.370.5021. Texture magazine assumes no responsi-bility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, negatives or transparencies. Metro OrlandoEconomic Development Commission 301 East Pine Street,Suite 900 Orlando, Fla 32801. Phone: 407.422.7159 or888.TOP.CITY. Fax: 407.425.6428. E-mail: info@orlan-doedc.com. Advertising information: 407.354.5512.Copyright 2004 Metro Orlando EDC. All rights reserved.Any reproduction in whole or in part without the expresswritten consent of Orlando CVB, on behalf of the EDC, isprohibited. Printed in the U.S.A.

TEXTURE JANUARY 2005 VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1

On the Cover: Electronic Arts’ (EA)newest game, NFL Street 2. Images courtesy of EA.

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Every city and every region is lookingto define its economic growth. Wherehave they been? Where are theygoing? Is it positive? Metro Orlando isno different. We continue to grow oureconomy. We continue to look for ourunique niche. We may have found it.

Driven for decades by tourism andconventions, Metro Orlando is beginning to showoff on new fronts — entertainment ... technology ... culture.

We’re beginning to look more like aroadrunner than a mouse.

Texture is a guide to our new characters and economies. It’s also anopening into a conversation ... a conver-sation I hope you will join. An ongoing,organic exchange of opinions among peo-ple with differing views and experiences.

We are not offering a definitiveanswer, but a starting point: made upof provocative ideas, observations andpredictions that will get you thinkingdifferently about your business, yourplace and your future in MetroOrlando.

So, most important, Texture is aninvitation. It’s an invitation to help usshow the world Metro Orlando’s manydimensions.

Many people don’t recognize thesignificant advantages Metro Orlandowill have in the coming decade and inthe future blending of industries. Thereis nowhere else on the planet with thesame kind of strength in entertainment,technology, f i lm production and interactive media.

For conversation’s sake, imagine aplace where ...

... thousands of people are mastersat telling stories, sparking imagination,and providing people with virtual experiences;

... the military’s simulation procure-ment commands support the largestconcentration of modeling and simulation companies in the world;

.. . a mature, local production industry supports a nearly $600 millionfilm market;

... and, a critical mass of companiesare involved in creating tomorrow’sinteractive entertainment.

There is only one place in the worldthat can make this kind of claim —Metro Orlando.

Examine our region’s Texture,engage in this conversation and enjoythe experience.

We’re a roadrunner baby ... catch usif you can!

John S. FremstadMetro Orlando EDC

vice president, Tech Industry Development & Texture editor

P.S. Orlando is a place with unique creative advantages, and uniquely productive partnerships. Texture ismade possible through a start-up grantprovided through Orange County Government’s Economic StimulusPackage 2.0. Our thanks to OrangeCounty Mayor Richard T. Crotty and theOrange County Commission for theircommitment to building this region’sreputation as a thriving business andtechnology hub.

Moving atHIGH SPEEDWell I’m a roadrunner, honeyI bet you can’t keep up with meWell I’m a roadrunner, manI bet you can’t keep up with meAh, you’re never gonna catch me babyBaby, baby, you will see

— Mick Jagger/Keith Richards, “Roadrunner”

>>

What is your priority in selectingemployees?

It is important to find the most talented people possible with the exactskills I need for any job. I have no trouble finding them here. QMN has afull-time team of five professionals withaverage annual salaries of $65,000.

What does the future hold?Most significant is the introduction

of new products, including enclosuresfor portable generators used duringpower outages. Companies have toinnovate and grow. I am constantly talk-ing with others about partnerships andalliances that create business for all of us.

What about quality of life?I treasure living and working near

the coast. Great weather is a must andvariety in recreation and entertainmentis important.

What would you say to decision-makers weighing a move to Orlando?

You cannot beat this area for quality of life and as an excellent placeto do business — worldwide. And, theairport is one of the best.

Beeson, as a woman with 17 years ofexperience in designing energy andpower systems, is a rarity as an acousti-cal engineer. Her team travels the worldto master challenging projects, includ-ing the study of corrosion rates of oiland gas pipelines in Saudi Arabia, anddesign consulting on fluids and controlsystems for Westinghouse Power Corp.From a base within a few miles of oneof America’s premier research parks,and a high tech incubator and univer-sity, QMN designs, develops and mar-kets new products and services inacoustics and noise control for residen-tial, commercial and industrial markets.Products include Shut-Eye™ AcousticalShutters and Blinds that cut noise bymore than 25 decibels. Annual revenuehas doubled each year since QMN wasfounded in 2002.

Texture: What’s the attraction toMetro Orlando?

Lisa Beeson: Business and oppor-tunities are booming. I began with aglobal network of clients and have beensurprised to find tons of opportunitiesand clients in my own backyard. As people worldwide are living closer toeach other and to commercial/industrialareas, there is more noise pollution andstress. QMN is ahead of the curve insolving some universal problems.

Is it important that Metro Orlandonurtures techno industries?

The more high tech companies,the more business opportunities forQMN. Everyone has a noise problem.As our high tech community grows,our workforce improves and is morehighly qualified.

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Metro Orlando entrepreneur Lisa Beeson, witha musician mother and a father who is almost

deaf, appreciates both sound and silence. Thus, herprofessional passion came naturally — her ownmechanical, structural and acoustical engineeringfirm, Quietly Making Noise (QMN).

>>

KEEPING IT QUIETQMN’S LISA BEESONBy Susan Loden

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PHOTO COURTESY OF FLORIDA HIGH TECH CORRIDOR COUNCIL

By Jackie Kelvington

AGROTECH IS THRIVING IN FLORIDA, METRO ORLANDOTECHNOLOGYGrowing

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Florida’s climate, excellent soil, nativeplants and extra crop-growing seasonhave provided the right mix for variousindustries for decades — from citrusgrowing to cattle raising and now agro-technology, an industry that combinescrop-growing with high tech processesfor use in everything from industrialfood ingredients, cosmetics, pharma-ceuticals and plant reproduction.

METRO ORLANDO’SAGROTECH ROOTSWithin the state, Metro Orlando hasemerged as a hot spot for this burgeoning industry, attracting leadingagrotech companies. Three of thenation’s powerhouses are located inLake County, just northwest of Orlando.Combined, these companies are generating revenues in excess of $25million per year — revenues that haveincreased nearly 10 percent each yearfor the past few years. Considering thatcompanies in the agrotech industry aregenerally small in size, these figures areeven more impressive.

>> U.S. Nutra is the world’s largestextraction processor of saw palmetto,which is used in vitamin supplements and has been proven to decreaseprostate enlargement. The MetroOrlando company’s production site inLake County provides a natural homefor the growing company as saw pal-metto is native to Florida.

U.S. Nutra extracts oils from plants(or turns plants into oils) for medical andbotanical applications using a superhigh pressurization process. Thanks totwo significant societal factors — agrowing number of health-consciousconsumers who are looking more atlabels for natural ingredients and a risein the number of doctors recommend-ing herbals over medicines — businesshas steadily mounted for U.S. Nutra,whose clients include top dietary sup-plement companies.

>> Florida Food Products extractswater from vegetables for use in foodcolors, flavors and neutraceuticals. This50-plus-year-old family owned com-pany has evolved from a local citrus processor to a top internationalsupplier of food and cosmetic ingredi-ents. FFP, which pioneered the aloevera and carrot juice concentrate business and contributed to the V8Splash formula, utilizes a high techprocess involving liquid solid separa-tion, microfiltration, proprietary coldevaporation and vacuum freeze-dryingtechniques. The company deliversproducts in powders and concentratesto clients that include Heinz, Camp-bells and Con Agra.

Naturally, FFP engages in significant

Crushing plants and vegetables in a hightech extraction process for their juices,and cloning soil-less plants in a cleanroom environment have become hot sectors in a growing industry dubbedagrotechnology. Out of the three primarystates in the United States that are majoragrotech industry contenders (Florida,Texas and California), Florida is emergingas the place to be.

>>

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research & development. The companyhas worked on color-tweaking thesweet potato, developing a naturalmeat reddener (which replaces nitrates)and creating a watermelon concentratefor farmers to spray on corn crop to killcrop-laden rootworm. With the latter,the company directly helped decreasethe amount of pesticides used in cropgrowing. The two brothers who run thebusiness — Jerry and Tom Brown — arecommitted to fostering more agrotechgrowth in the region and have developed an industrial park in LakeCounty to do just that.

>> AgriStarts III clones hard-to-growplants. A leader in tissue culturing (forplant production), the company is theworld’s largest cloner of plants andvegetables that go to nurseries andgreenhouses. In addition to traditionalplant production processes (splicingplants and re-growing them in soil),AgriStarts III grows ultra-sterile, soil-less plants in a cleanroom-like environment. Because the plants aresoil-less, they meet international cus-toms regulations and can be shippedworldwide. The company, which is theworld’s largest grower and supplier ofVenus Fly Traps, can get hard-to-growplants to produce seeds and can makeone plant into 100 using its DNA.

“We’re much like Mother Naturetelling plants what to do,” says SteveHensley, director of operations atAgriStarts III, who states that the ornamental or landscape market is oneof the fastest growing in the country.

Out of a l l plant product ionprocesses (seed, tissue culture andvegetative), tissue culture is the mostclean and germ-free. AgriStarts III,which has the capability of producingnine mil l ion plants per year, reproduces fruit-bearing plants forDole and Chiquita.

AGROTECHINFRASTRUCTURE,RELATED INDUSTRIES& SUPPORTIn addition to the clustering of some ofthe nation’s top agrotech companies inMetro Orlando, there are a host of

other related projects, activities andcritical infrastructure that support thisindustry.

>> In 2004, Scripps Research Institute(one of the top non-profit biomedresearch organizations in the world)announced plans to relocate to Florida,bringing more industry resources, critical mass and attention to the state,which already ranks 11th in the nationfor biotechnology according to Ernst &Young’s Biotechnology Report.

>> The University of Florida’s Instituteof Food and Agricultural Sciences islocated in Lake County, providingessential research and developmentsupport. In fact, in 2004 the Institutesuccessfully created a genetically engineered tomato plant resistant to aserious virus that has spread rapidlyaround the globe, devastating cropsand forcing growers to increase use ofharmful pesticides.

>> Renowned scientists are working ontobacco research at the University ofCentral Florida in Orlando — researchthat could aid in anthrax and otherhealth-related solutions.

>> The largest freshwater researchfacility in Florida is located in LakeCounty. Researchers there are currentlyworking on solutions for a virus affecting largemouth bass.

>> A recent local government studyexamined the potential for developing a research park dedi-cated to agrotechnology. This wouldfurther enhance clustering activityalready happening across the region.

>> In addition to essential support fromarea universities, the region offers theindustry one of the nation’s largestairports for shipping product world-wide; a young, skilled workforce; a burgeoning high tech industry; strongentrepreneurial growth; and adynamic, diverse and growing economy. The Department of Com-merce cites these factors as essentialsfor biotech-related growth. x

Agrotechnology (referred to

by some as agricultural

engineering or biosystems

engineering) is a member of

the biotechnology family.

Because agrotech combines

multiple industries and

processes, there are no

specific SIC code identifiers

or industry data. However,

below are some interesting

facts and figures released by

the U.S. Department of

Commerce and the Univer-

sity of Florida.

>> Industrial agricultural-

derived processing and

biotech agricultural applica-

tions combined make up a

sector of more than 260 com-

panies in the United States,

with net sales of $260 million

and 40,000 direct biotech-

related jobs. *

>> Florida’s agricultural and

natural resources industries

(which would capture

agrotech-related sectors)

generate $35 billion in net

sales and employ more than

336,000 people. Metro

Orlando is the state’s largest

region for this industry. **

*U.S. Department of Commerce 2003

report: Survey of the Use of Biotechnology

in U.S. Industry

**University of Florida 2003 report:

Regional Economic Impacts of Florida’s

Agricultural and Natural Resources

Industries

ABOUT THEAGROTECH INDUSTRY

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The program is named in honor of thelate Will iam C. Schwartz, an avid Central Florida community leader andpioneer within the field of optics andphotonics.

“The William C. Schwartz Awardsgive us the chance to honor companiesthat exemplify innovation and the truespirit of Schwartz himself,” says RayGilley, president and CEO of the EDC.“These companies embody that spiritand are vital assets to our communityand the Metro Orlando region.”

The 2004 recipients come from theCity of Orlando and each of the fourcounties served (Orange, Seminole,Lake and Osceola) by the EDC, thelargest private, not-for-profit, regionaleconomic development organization inFlorida. Winners include:

Each year, the Metro Orlando EconomicDevelopment Commission (EDC) honors

companies that have made extraordinaryachievements, devel-oped innovative prac-tices and exemplifythe entrepreneurialspirit with the WilliamC. Schwartz IndustryInnovation Award.Five local companieswere chosen in 2004for their excellence ininnovation.

>>

>> Cnow, Inc. (www.cnowinc.com) iscreating the nation’s first remote network dedicated to persons withdevelopmental disabilities. Cnow’sproduct allows human service profes-sionals to remotely work with personswith special needs through the use ofinteractive video technologies. Theproduct is affordable and easily blendsinto the natural home or office setting.

>> Ocean Optics, Inc. (www.oceanop-tics.com) is a leading supplier of opticalsensing systems used to determine thechemical, color, radiant and metrologi-cal properties of samples by measuringtheir interaction with light. This com-pany has developed the world’s firstminiature fiber optic spectrometer,which is a thousand times smaller than

prior solutions and one-tenth of thecost. The result has been more reliableand better products.

>> Channel Intell igence, Inc.(www.channelintelligence.com) has created a first-of-its-kind database, or“metabase,” that allows diverse informa-tion to be combined and reconciled intoa single common standard. This technol-ogy has resulted in billions of dollarsworth of sales for companies such asPanasonic, Microsoft and Lexmark atretailers such as Best Buy, Circuit City andCompUSA. Using CI technology, Webbrowsers searching for product informa-tion on manufacturers’ sites are instantlyconnected to both online and brick-and-mortar retail outlets that sell that product.

>> Kinetics Inc. (www.kineticsusa.com)developed the technology that is drivingtoday’s airline self-service check-in busi-ness. The company developed a kioskand Web-based system that has savedairline customers an average of 15 min-utes per check-in or a total of 15 millionhours this year alone. Today, Kinetics’self-service technologies are used by 14North American airlines and servedmore than 45 million passengers in 2003.

>> Planet Digital, Inc. (www.planetdig-ital.com) not only produces high-impact, interactive media, it also advises companies on its use and offerstraining on how to master these digitaltechnologies. By making this technol-ogy easier to use, create and under-stand, Planet Digital has become theauthoritative resource for creators andconsumers of digital materials.

INNOVATION

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gets customers with little marketing —including corporate giants like Philips,Siemens and GE — turning a businessthat he started from the ground up tenyears ago into one making upward of$15 million a year and more.

“Because I have a reputation forgetting things done, they come to us.It’s a sort of reverse marketing.”

It’s no wonder. Chai’s company specializes in manufacturing optical

crystal for use in a variety of applica-tions, many of which have monumentalimpact on our daily lives. CPI providesthe “eye” for PET Scanners used in cancer detection, special optical filtersfor the missile early warning systemused in Apache helicopters and equip-ment operating in Iraq, and crystal substrate used in LEDs, to name a few.

THE BIG PICTUREThe down-to-earth scientist’s sixthsense for business fundamentals andhow they apply to the big picture playsa role in his company’s success, too.

Chai says that although there areonly a few U.S. companies similar to his,

It is so competitive, in fact, there’s noteven a Web site about his company,Crystal Photonics, Inc. (CPI). Unusual ina day and age when Web sites havebecome a business marketing staple.

“Everyone wants to know what we’rethinking, then they copy us,” says Chaiquietly. “A Web site doesn’t help usbecause it would create competitors ina business that has a limited clientele.”

And, he’s not modest about why he

The Chai of

>>When one first meets Bruce Chai, it is likely heor she is struck by his overwhelming sense of calm and purpose. The soft-spoken gentleman’s almost Zen-like sense of wellbeing may seem unusual for a scientist-turned-entrepreneur making inroads in a competitivefield requiring tireless invention and innovation.

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1995 in a rented lab at University ofCentral Florida (UCF) — with three refur-bished furnaces for a quarter of the costof one new one — is now housed in amassive 76,000-square-foot facility with90 furnaces (bought new) and 30employees. In 2003, CPI was named theErnst &Young Entrepreneur of the Year®.

Succeeding despite the challenges,Chai sees a certain grace, even faitaccompli, at work.

“It’s hard for me to believe I’mwhere I’m at today,” he says, believingthat if he hadn’t started CPI where andwhen he did, it wouldn’t have worked.

“We started with $150,000 dollars,but starting a business in Central Floridamade it easier to accomplish somethingwith nothing. Land is reasonable andcost of living is comfortable. If I had triedthis in California, the cost of the buildingalone would have been ten times more.”

JACK OF ALL TRADESThe scientist’s diverse interests have ahand in his success, as well. Who wouldhave thought a rock jock-turned-engi-neer-then-scientist would end up also theCEO of a multi-million-dollar company?

“Sometimes your interests are outof your control,” says Chai sagely.

Born in Shanghai, Chai was raisedand educated in Taiwan before goingto Yale University for his PhD in geology, a subject that wasn’t his “truelove,” but one in which he excelled.

Ironically, upon receiving his doctorate, he still wasn’t sure what hewanted to do. When Allied Chemicalin Harristown, NJ, offered him a job tosupervise the material research center,he took it. It was there he learned to

grow crystals, earning him a buddingreputation as a leader in the field.

It was precisely his reputation thatled UCF’s Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers (CREOL)to Chai’s door in search of an optical materials specialist. He joined the teamin 1989 as a tenured professor teachingoptics, engineering and physics. Happyin his job, starting a business was nottop of mind. Until, that is, new inroadswere being made in using crystals toproduce the promising blue laser light.

The scientist launched CPI with thegoal of commercially growing crystalsfor blue lasers, an uncertain propositionat best. Unfortunately, no one, includ-ing Chai, has yet been able to grow theblue crystal large enough for commer-cial use. Determined, he adapted onceagain to the situation set before him,making CPI what it is today.

Chai, who came from Taiwan toAmerica in 1970 with only two suitcasesin hand, attributes his work ethic to the attitude of a first generation immigrant:work hard and never take anything forgranted. Thirty-four years later hisentrepreneurial spirit is alive and well.

CEO Chai looks at running the multi-million-dollar business with theobjectivism of a scientist: His talents asa businessman, engineer and scientistall play a role in his achieving whatmany try to their entire lives — a certainstate of happiness. A nirvana, if you will.

“We help fight cancer, protect our sol-diers and save energy,” he says. “I thinkit works because I put all my heart into thecompany — making money happened tobe a result of my desire to contribute tosociety through my talents.”

U R B R U C E C H A IONICS

it’s the international ones, located in faroff places like China and the formerSoviet Union bloc, that give CPI a runfor its money.

Most significantly, these companiesare able to pay their employees anabsurdly low salary by U.S. standards.

“Here, salaries start at fifty thousandwhile overseas they can pay only fivethousand [in China] and ten thousand[in Russia]. As a result, to compete globally CPI must be highly automatedwith as few people as possible.”

Plus, the equipment alone is costly.New furnaces required to make thecrystals are $200,000 each.

The company, which Chai started in x

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The Florida High Tech Corridor — a loosely defined regionof high tech companies stretching from Daytona Beach toTampa Bay — has become a fecund region for software andtech startups. The following is the story of three such home-grown high tech firms. All three had their genesis in theOrlando area, and all are now poised to move from localsuccess to national prominence.

>>

HIGH TECHA TRIO OF NEW CENTRAL FLORIDA TECH FIRMS ARE POISED FOR NATIONAL SUCCESS

MYDEA TECHNOLOGIESMore than a decade after earning a B.S.in aerospace engineering and an M.S.in mechanical engineering from theUniversity of Central Florida, MichaelSiemer is at his alma mater. Only thistime, it’s business.

After graduation, Siemer joined theWalt Disney Corporation as a projectengineer and was involved in a numberof exciting developments, includingthe design of the $100 million MissionSpace attraction. Along the way, hegained expertise in the evolving fieldof rapid prototyping, and developed avision for the new opportunities thistechnology could provide.

In 2002, he left Disney to formMydea Technologies.

“Basically, [Mydea] is a 3-D Kinkos,”he explains. “We convert concepts and3-D files to physical products usinglayer-based manufacturing.”

As compared to traditional prototyping methods, this providesboth cost and time advantages to thecustomer, he says. “The best

PHOTO COURTESY OF MYDEA TECHNOLOGIES

By PierceHoover

Home-Grown

RIPTIDE SOFTWAREIn the early ‘90s, Central Florida’s hightech talent pool received a major infusion when 35 top programmerswere recruited from around the nationto form a software development teamfor the Iridium satellite system. Theirchallenge was to create a ground control software package that couldmanage a worldwide network of 66low-earth-orbit satellites in real time.

The successful completion of thisproject, and the lack of new complexsoftware challenges that followed, lefta lot of talent looking for opportunitiesthat would allow them to remain in thearea — and to the creation of severalboutique software development firms.The most successful of these startupswas Riptide Software, which wasfounded in late 1995 to create configurable enterprise software prod-ucts, meaning software that can bematched to any company’s needs andapplied across the entire organization.

For the past several years, Riptidehas been involved in the developmentof military training software for the U.S.Army and the U.S. Marine Corps.Recently, the company designed,developed and deployed a MobileAutomated Instrumentation Suite to Ft. Hood, Texas, which provides large-scale command, control and com-munications capabilities for real-timesimulation and control over war gameexercises for up to 2,000 concurrentplayers. Also in development is the Dig-ital Multipurpose Range Complex, acommand and communications systemfor testing military tank engagementson live fire test ranges.

“One reason for our success was our

ability to take the long view on wheretechnology would be in five years,”recalls Riptide co-founder and CEOPhillip Loeffel. “We were attracted toJava at a time when most people considered it to be a small Web tech-nology. We became an early adopter,and by the time everyone else camearound, we were established as thenumber one provider in Florida.”

Loeffel feels that the relatively smallsize of Riptide also gave them anadvantage as it allows for innovationand rapid product development. Thecompany has been recognized threeyears in a row (2001-2003) in theDeloitte & Touche North American Fast500, a listing of the fastest growing hightech companies.

“The Orlando area is a vibrant environment for smaller companies,”he says. “A lot of area customers arewilling to utilize small niche players whocan innovate and provide rapid product development. This attitudeallows smaller startup companies tothrive, and these are also the type ofcompanies that attract the most creative minds, because they feel theyhave the freedom to innovate.”

There is ample room for continuedgrowth in the Central Florida softwarecluster, Loeffel says, and ample localopportunities for his products in areasranging from military simulation to thehospitality industry.

“Increasingly, we find some of ourbest markets in our own backyard,” hesays. “We have national and interna-tional customers, but with software,which is not a product that can betouched or felt, many customers feelmore comfortable dealing face to face.”

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application is for small-to medium-sizecomponents, and our clients’ needsrange from architecture modeling, gen-eral mechanical and military projects tomedical and entertainment industrysupport. Our largest customer base issmall companies hoping to bring newproducts to market, cost effectively.”

A specific example of rapid prototyping for medical projects includesthe constructing of accurate models ofboth hard and soft tissues using sourcesthat include X-rays, photos and MRIscans, says Siemer. For example, Mydeacould create a model of a damaged skull,a joint or even a heart valve to be usedfor surgical planning, practice or as amodel for surgical reconstruction.

Key to Siemer’s initial success hasbeen a partnership with the UCF Tech-nology Incubator. Located in the CentralFlorida Research Park, adjacent to theUniversity, the Incubator was created tonurture start-up high tech ventures.

“Acceptance into this program hasbeen critical to our success, it’s a lotmore than just cheap rent,” he says.“[The incubator] provides sharedresources; we are surrounded by techcompanies and like-minded persons,which is good for moral support. It’s awhole lot better than sitting home inyour loft, trying to start a technologybusiness in a vacuum.”

In addition to physical facilities, theIncubator provides access to advisorsand the University’s human resources.For example, the Mydea Web site wasdeveloped by interns from UCF and theFull Sail media arts college, he says.

“A big part of the incubator processis having guidance from the staff onthings like business plans,” he says,“and also networking for services andcustomers. The system allows us togrow at our own pace — we’re aboutto move into a third office within thefacility — and when the time comes, wewill eventually outgrow the incubatorand move out.”

One of Siemer’s long-term goals forMydea is to expand from prototypinginto custom manufacturing, where thecustomer could use the additive manufacturing processes to create theirown parts or products on demand.

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MASTERLINK CORPORATIONKent Weisner fell in love with CentralFlorida when he was transferred here inthe early ‘70s by Ohio-based AnchorHocking Glass. So much so that whenthe company requested his return toOhio, he instead chose to resign,remain in Orlando and go into businessfor himself manufacturing skylights.

Success and a subsequent sale of thebusiness provided a hiatus for sailing andtraveling, followed by a second entrepreneurial stint creating a technicalstaffing and predictive engineering firm.His interest in increasing workplace efficiency brought him in contact with theInstitute for Simulation and Training (IST)at the University of Central Florida (UCF).The Institute has earned national recog-nition for its work on modeling and simulation technology in the fields of edu-cation and training. Collaboration with IST— coupled with the leadership of Mas-terLink co-founder Garry Fenimore, soft-ware architect Ken Levine, software exec-

utive/ investor Ralph Reichard (now Chair-man), plus advisory board participationand investment by Philip Crosby, the late Quality Management guru — provided the genesis and financial sup-port needed to form MasterLink.

The company provides innovativesoftware solutions such as the Intelli-gent Work Management® (IWM) Sys-tem. This Web-enabled, mobile-com-puting application maximizes manage-ment and worker resources while alsoimproving customer service and reduc-ing maintenance and operating costs.

“At the two venues where we firstapplied IWM, we doubled productivecapacity in two years,” Weisner says.“The clients were thrilled.”

Having achieved success on a localscale, MasterLink sought out largernational clients, including the Office ofNaval Research. MasterLink’s outlookfor growth and expansion is strong,Weisner says.

“After last summer’s round of hurri-canes, we rebounded fantastically,” he x

A TERRITORY IDEAL FOR GROWTH. AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM READY TO NURTURE IT.

To grow your business in the Carolinas and Florida, call our Economic Development Team

at 1.800.622.7562 or visit us at progress-energy.com/economic.

©20

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Our service area in the Carolinas and Florida is

one of the most vibrant areas of the country. One

of thriving communities, diverse industries and a

skilled, motivated workforce. It’s no surprise

that so many companies locate here. And why

they increasingly turn to Progress Energy’s

award-winning economic development team to

assist them. We offer full-service support, from

site selection to government contacts to energy

expertise. The relentless pursuit of excellence.

It’s what we’re all about.

says. “The software we are developing canactually improve response times and effec-tiveness for emergency managementorganizations supported by FEMA [Fed-eral Emergency Management Agency].”

Attracting good talent has not beenan issue, Weisner says, as there is astrong local talent base, and recruitmentfrom outside the region is not difficult.

“The cost of living is very attractiveand selling someone on moving [here]isn’t hard.”

In addition, he says the business cli-mate is favorable for such ventures.

“We received initial funding from theTRDA [Technological Research andDevelopment Authority, a Florida entitycreated to promote high tech businessdevelopment statewide] and despitethe tech bubble burst, we were able toraise $3.5 million from angel investorsand management. Central Florida is anarea where, if you have a good idea,plus experienced and dedicated peo-ple that are both persistent and tena-cious, you can make it fly.”

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i n n o v a t i o n a l l e y

Some patients do a double take whenthey pull up to Florida Hospital Celebra-tion Health. They see the facility’s stylizedfaçade and lush landscaping and thinkthey’ve stumbled upon one of DisneyWorld’s numerous resorts. Located justsouth of Orlando in Celebration, Fla., thehospital prides itself on breaking stereotypes and exceeding expectations.

“We came into existence to be different,” says Dr. Gary Onik, a physicianwho specializes in radiology.

Opened in January 1998, this innovativehospital has services and equipment thataren’t available anywhere else in the world.Adventist Health System, the parent company of the Florida Hospital system,has its corporate headquarters in Central

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Inside and out, one of Central Florida’s leading hospitalsoffers a fresh approach to healthcare and is paving the wayfor innovative medicine.

>>By JessicaChapman

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Florida and operates its largest, flagshipfacility here. All these things factored intothe development of Celebration Healthand its ground-breaking environment.

“It’s a vision to serve the CentralFlorida community,” says Terry Uhran,the hospital’s assistant administrator.

From its 60,000-square-foot fitnesscenter and homey private rooms to itsunique seaside-themed radiology cen-ter and staff of world-renowned spe-cialists, Celebration Health is breakingevery mold in medical care.

A major feature that sets this hospital apart is its Surgical LearningInstitute. The first of its kind in Orlando,the Institute offers hands-on surgicalinstruction in operating rooms and oncadavers, as well as classes about cut-ting-edge techniques, telesurgery andtelementoring. It is also at the center ofa new concept that focuses on the hos-pital as a “living laboratory,” or a placewhere healthcare professionals can fur-ther their training — whether it’s in anursing unit or an operating room.

“That’s the entire platform that wehave here at Celebration Health. We havecutting-edge equipment and a research-minded staff — and offer new, improvedways to provide care,” says Uhran.

Onik adds, “As a leader of health-care, we have companies calling us allthe time wanting to use our facility.”

ONE-OF-A-KINDTECHNOLOGYPROVIDES HOPEOne of the improved techniques pioneered here is in the field of minimally invasive surgery. Through apartnership with Philips Medical, the

hospital recently acquired the onlyintraoperative CT scanner in existence.Two of CH’s top doctors, Onik and JayRedan, a renowned minimally invasivesurgeon, have collaborated on a dozensurgeries using this machine, which isalready revolutionizing common procedures. By adding both of their talents to the capabilit ies of the

intraoperative CT, patients get a levelof care that is unrivaled by that of anyother facility in the world. The machineis housed in an OR where the doctors

operate right on the CT table, allowingthem to scan patients before, duringand after surgery, without having totransfer them. This cutting-edge imag-ing affects every aspect of the surgery,from pre-op to post-op. Through its 16scanners — most CT machines haveonly four — the intraoperative CT pin-

points the problem and provides a 3-Dimage of the patient, as well as laserguiding, which helps the surgeons oper-ate to exacting standards. By being ableto put patients through the scanner atthe end of the procedure, the doctorscan be sure that they’ve completed theprocedure effectively.

Many of the patients who have experienced this new technology hadbeen diagnosed with various cancers,and were formerly inoperable. But withthe intraoperative CT scanner, Onikand Redan have successfully treatedthese people.

Onik says, “Patients we would havesent away, we can do something fornow. We are giving people hope whowouldn’t normally have it.”

Like everything else at Celebration

Health, this new machine and the tech-niques performed by Onik and Redanare part of the hospital’s hands-on learn-ing environment. The specialized CT

room is equipped with three flat screenTVs, four boom cameras and T1 lines, sothat doctors who can’t travel to Orlandofor an on-site lesson can monitor anoperation from anywhere in the world.

“This really is a major resource formedical technology in Central Florida,”says Onik.

Redan, who moved to Orlando fromManhattan and has seen facilities aroundthe world as a consultant for Johnsonand Johnson, says, “You’re not going tosee an OR like this anywhere else.”

One of the reasons Philips agreedto bring the intraoperative CT to Celebration Health is because of its living laboratory and the fact that thefacility was already embracing similarmedical advances.

“The main reason the CT is here isDr. Onik, who is renowned in surgicalimagery. He had a vision, a passion, andwas relentless in pressing Philips untilthey saw and embraced our vision,”says Uhran.

For more information, visit www.celebrationhealth.com or call 407-303-4000.

“YOU’RE NOT GOING TO SEEAN O.R. LIKE THIS ANYWHEREELSE.” — DR. JAY REDAN

“PATIENTS WE WOULD HAVE SENT AWAY, WE CAN DO SOMETHINGFOR NOW. ... WE ARE GIVING PEOPLE HOPE WHO WOULDN’T NORMALLY HAVE IT.” — DR. GARY ONIK

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Have you ever heard of an 11-year-old managing a 25-million-dollar corporate relocation for a technology company? Or of a student traveling toAlaska, Egypt or Belize for a class project—withoutleaving the classroom?

Clearly, you may never take chalk,blackboards and flash cards out of theclassroom, but there is plenty of evidence that technology is alreadyplaying a significant role in education’s

future at all levels. Much of the workmaking this happen is coming fromcompanies within Florida’s High TechCorridor. Working side-by-side withteachers, schools and colleges through-

out the region, the Florida High TechCorridor is earning straight A’s for newand exciting technologies in education.

COMMITTED TO TECH EDInterested in architectural and mechan-ical drafting, computer animation andengineering technology? OrangeCounty’s Edgewater High School hasthe answer, offering advanced classesin its engineering, science and technology magnet program. Creating

CENTRAL FLORIDA TECH EDUCATION MAKES THE HONOR ROLL

MAKING THE

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cutting-edge programs and providingstudents with real-life experiencethrough internships, Edgewater’s partners include high tech industryleaders such as Lockheed Martin Corporation, NASA/Kennedy SpaceCenter and the Naval Air Warfare Center-Training Systems Division.

In neighboring Seminole County, theCrooms Academy of InformationTechnology allows magnet students tomake information technology a way oflife with innovative learning methods ina technology-enriched environment.Crooms has also partnered with a num-ber of companies, including Oracle,Cisco, Microsoft and Adobe, to createits programs and provide IT certificationafter classes are completed. These certifications allow students to gradu-ate from high school and immediatelyenter the workforce, if they desire.

Besides the many high-school technology programs offered through-out Central Florida, the High Tech Corridor’s community colleges and thetwo major universities, the Universityof Central Florida (UCF) and the University of South Florida (USF), havealso taken the lead in technology education and provide a solid founda-tion in numerous high tech fields.

Recognizing the need to help students develop their high tech skills,while having a seamless transitionbetween community college and uni-versity studies, the Florida High TechCorridor Council has developed 2 + 2degrees. In these groundbreakingassociate degree programs — devel-oped in partnership with UCF, USF andthe 12 community colleges in the High

Tech Corridor — a community collegepartners with one or both of the uni-versities to ensure that after a two-yearprogram there is a path for the studentto follow toward a bachelor’s degree.

OUTSIDE THECLASSROOMMost of us dreaded homework as a kid.But with technology advancementsbeing made by companies on theFlorida High TechCorridor, kids canactually receive partor all of their educa-tion without everstepping foot in aclassroom. Now,that’s homework!

Orlando-basedMath Matters, Inc.offers complete mathcourses online. Theycan be used as eithera supplement to tra-ditional math teach-ing methods, or as astand-alone coursefor home schooling.This online comput-erized program (alsoavailable as an inter-active CD) wasdesigned by morethan 25 teachers forthird, fourth and fifthgraders, and givesstudents a new format for compre-hending math skills.

Imagine being on a quest to findburied treasure on a deserted island, andlearning how to mathematically chart its

coordinates on a map in the process.That’s just one way Math Matters makesits lessons interesting. All lessons aredesigned using everyday examples withcolor graphics, photographs, movinganimation and sound clips.

Like Math Matters, Orlando-basedChalk Dust Company provides mathprograms for supplemental instructionand home-schooled students, but itdoes it via TV. Chalk Dust host and

guide Dana Mosely, a former ValenciaCommunity College professor, not onlyinstructs each and every DVD or VHSlesson, he produces all programs in his local digital production studio.

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Recognizing that technology is only onetool in the educator’s toolkit, he also provides help to students when neededvia Internet or telephone.

READING, WRITINGAND... SIMULATION?

Central Florida, one of the fastestgrowing high tech regions in the UnitedStates, is known as a national center ofexcellence for modeling, simulationand training. Simulation technologycreated in the Corridor has introducedstudents to things and places they maynot otherwise experience, such as high-

way driving or visiting far-away lands.Kids no longer have to wait for the

big “sweet 16” to take to the road. Daytona Beach’s Raydon has devel-oped the first fully interactive drivingsimulator system — the Raydon VirtualDriver — that puts students behind thewheel before hitting the road. Theirhardware, software and curricula areused nationwide in driver education,improvement and testing.

One of Raydon’s simulation curricula,Street Smart, was developed with theAmerican Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association and is the only

simulator to feature National Driver Edu-cation Curriculum recommended by theNational Highway Traffic Safety Admin-istration. In fact, this software is not onlybeing used in schools across the country, but right here in our own back-yard in Orange County Public Schools.

Speaking of our own backyard, askFlorida second graders what a “ranch”is, and many will respond “salad dress-ing.” Rather than a sign of intelligence,this signals a lack of the real-worldexperiences necessary to label a“ranch” as a farm.

As a result, second-grade teachersoften find that students struggle tounderstand reading content. To accom-modate these students, researchers atthe University of Central Florida havedeveloped a “virtual field trip” designedto acquaint second graders with unfamiliar places, things, people andexperiences that appear in their books.

UCF researchers’ first test program— a nature walk — will soon be testedin Orange County, Fla., Public Schools.The program uses vocabulary wordsand nature theme stories from second-grade reading books. The virtual reality software provides cubic virtualenvironments, which allow students toview all 360 degrees around them, aswell as up and down. The programbuilds the real-world knowledge thatstudents need to comprehend theirreading lessons. In other words, it’s away to get the kids to the ranch without taking them to Texas!

PREPARING THEFUTURE WORKFORCE When you think of creating high techjobs, you probably don’t think aboutthe role of elementary- or middle-school teachers. But, these classroomteachers are the ones who spark theinterest in science and technology inour youth, which is the foundation ofbuilding our future workforce.

One effort to attract a future hightech workforce to the region partnersthe Florida High Tech Corridor Council with Junior Achievement topique fifth graders’ interest in hightech industry and economic develop-ment through a game, “TechTown

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Challenge.” Students are enticed withan interactive card game that empowers them with $25 million tofinance efforts and assets designed toattract a technology company to theirhometown. Assets include a multi-cultural community, hospitals, aresearch university and a well-trainedworkforce.

Students learn the role and impor-tance of “place” in developing aregion, make decisions about the valueof regional aspects to attract businesses, and negotiate or bid withother students. All of these aspects arenecessary to attract high tech industry.Although the activity is still being testedin the Florida High Tech Corridor, so far,the results have been exceptional.

Fun field trips for teachers exist , too!techPATH, an educational initiative ofthe Florida High Tech Corridor Council,offers workshops to middle- and high-school math and science teachers.The workshops provide insight into various aspects of science and technol-ogy industries and open the door forteachers to pass new and exciting careerinformation on to their students. AttechPATH, teachers experience hands-on demonstrations of technology tools,such as virtual reality hardware and simulated races at Daytona USA.

CONTINUING ED:REAL-WORLD TECHEDUCATIONEducation through technology doesnot stop at graduation. Technology created throughout the High Tech Corridor carries through to real-worldeducation for adults.

In the restaurant industry, for exam-ple, Orlando-based Get Thinking, Inc.,a nationwide supplier of highly creativeonline corporate training solutions, creates programs for industry giantsincluding Olive Garden, Red Lobsterand Smokey Bones restaurants.

Central Florida leads the nation inthe production of one of the most significant real-world education tools —military simulation. Companies with alocal presence, such as Indra SystemsInc. , have produced a number of simulators to train our troops. Indra’s

flight simulators replicate the cockpitand handling qualities of the aircraft,complete with weapons effects, forbasic and advanced training missions.

Medical applications are also signif-icant. Have you ever wondered how doctors and nurses practice insertingintravenous (IV) needles into a patientor perform surgery for the very firsttime? Medical students at more than700 organizations worldwide practiceon Sarasota’s Medical Education Tech-nologies, Inc. (METI) human patientsimulators. These virtual patients,known as Stan (short for Stan D. Ardman or Standard Man), are capable

of simulating nearly any possible humanmedical emergency, including allergicreactions, the effects of weapons ofmass destruction, drug overdoses orsevered limbs. Through METI’s technology, Stan becomes a real “life”placed in the hands of students whomust diagnose and administer the correct treatment.

Education is crucial to ensuring a society on the cutting-edge of innovation. You’ll find a lot to learn inFlorida’s High Tech Corridor

For more information about theFlorida High Tech Corridor, visitwww.floridahightech.com. x

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TECHNOLOGYda Vinci, Say Hello to Next-Generation

THE DIGITAL ART MOVEMENT FINDS ORLANDO

>> In the sixteenth century, Leonardo da Vinci completedwhat has become one of the most admired and discussedpaintings ever created. So, what happens when thisbeloved piece, the Mona Lisa, meets the digital age?

By Trent Flood

LEONARDO - THE BRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY

UCF, the NextArt program includedexhibitions and a two-day academicconference focused on digital art.

Great things have come from thatbeginning. Today, NextArt has givenbirth to an organization representing 14of the 18 universities that participated inthe inaugural program. Called the International Digital Media and ArtsAssociation, this new organization allowsacademic departments of Digital Mediaand Digital Arts throughout the countryto exchange information on curriculum,conduct joint planning on research projects, and cooperatively develop corporate and governmental alliances.

Aside from these academic benefits,NextArt has also featured perfor-mances and displays including:

>> Provocations: Digital Art Takes onthe World was an installation curatedby Marc N. Weiss and Suzanne Seggerman of WebLab.org. Provoca-tions included projects encompassingrobotics, historical virtual tours andvideo game modifications. The eventalso featured Trailer A-Go-Go, a teamof four filmmakers (including The BlairWitch Project producer, Michael Mon-ello) that used the latest “off-the-shelf”digital video technology to create 10movie trailers in 10 days, a feat neverbefore accomplished at a film festival.

>> The ILL Clan is an independent animation studio based in New York thatuses 3-D computer game technology tocreate animated shorts. Known asMachinima, the process involves creating 3-D animation within a real-timecomputer game environment. The ILLClan program featured live 3-D showsthat were animated, performed and shotwhile simultaneously being projected ona large screen in front of the audience.

>> In Toy Symphony, Tod Machover,and his team from the MIT Media Lab,bridged the gap between professionalmusicians and children, as well asbetween audience and performers.

Through the use of innovative technolo-gies, the team created musical instru-ments and compositional tools thatallowed children to compose musicwhile playing with toys. The programfeatured a weeklong workshop that cul-minated in an integrated performancewith children and professional musicians.

The 2005 edition of NextArt is currently under construction andpromises to be even more exciting thanprevious years. On the drawing boardis a video game competition and exhibition/performances by the mostinnovative artists exploring the fusionof digital media and entertainment.Look for final result at the 2005 FloridaFilm Festival, April 8-17.

More information is available atfloridafilmfestival.com.

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Welcome to digital art, a new artisticmedium introduced in the mid 1950swhen programmers began using ana-log computers to make art animation and images. Since that time,digital art has permeated everythingfrom the Internet to mainstream popmusic to big screen feature films.

As a hub of digital media, MetroOrlando has a growing number of digital artists that have emerged fromcompanies with a local presence, suchas Electronic Arts (EA), and educationalinstitutions, including the University ofCentral Florida (UCF), Full Sail RealWorld Education and Rollins College.

The trick has been introducing thiscutting-edge art form to the world. Tohelp address this challenge, severalcommunity organizations recently cametogether to showcase the work of somelocal artists working at EA’s Orlando-based Tiburon studios.

Running throughout the month ofDecember 2004 at Orlando’s Downtown Media Arts Center, this one-of-a-kind display was titled, EA Artists—Offline. The show will remain in town,allowing Central Florida art lovers tocontinue experiencing the work of EAgame developers.

“There is so much talent within thewalls of EA. In addition to the unrivaledwork these artists do day-to-day in theirjobs, they have incredible offl ine talent,” says Steven Chiang, generalmanager of Electronic Arts Tiburon.

WHAT’S NEXTWhile the EA exhibit was a great step,it certainly wasn’t the first time thatOrlando got to “download” some ofthe exciting things happening in theworld of digital art. In 2003, the FloridaFilm Festival added a new program toits award-winning line-up called NextArt: Dynamic Media and NewForms of Entertainment.

From the outset, this new programfeatured installations, performancesand panel discussions aimed at nurtur-ing visionary artists by providing themwith a unique venue and access to like-minded creators. In collaborationwith, and support of, Orange Countyand the Dynamic Media program at

AS A HUB OF DIGITAL MEDIA, METRO ORLANDO HAS A GROWINGNUMBER OF DIGITAL ARTISTS THAT HAVE EMERGED FROM COMPANIES WITH A LOCAL PRESENCE...

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Orlando's Downtown Media

Arts Center (DMAC) offers a

unique film-going experience.

The 80-seat digital cinema

upstairs, combined with the art

gallery and cafe downstairs, is

an ideal setting for those who

are interested in film and art.

The cinema screens indepen-

dent/art house films from all

over the world, as well as from

local filmmakers. The future of

DMAC also includes film-relat-

ed workshops, lectures and

discussions, equipment rental

and editing facilities. DMAC

looks to educate, encourage

and entertain everybody who

walks through its doors.

www.dmacorlando.com

DIGITALCINEMA

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500 here in Orlando. As the industry’slargest, we have to resist the urge torecruit from within, because that’s justrobbing Peter to pay Paul. To grow, weneed new talent.

“We can’t create talent, but withalliances such as this one with UCF, wecan nurture talent, help to direct its careand feeding, so to speak. That will yieldskilled people ready to hit the groundrunning. The students, the school, thedigital industry — we all benefit.”

The new school was primarily fundedby a $4.2 million grant in the state budget, which was signed by Gov. JebBush in May 2004 after the company andthe university joined forces to lay thegroundwork and establish credible evi-dence of the module’s viability. In late Fall2004, the Orlando City Council agreedto lease its vacant Expo Centre to UCFfor the fledgling program. UCF will paythe city $1 a year on a 40-year lease. Thesides can agree to renew the lease fortwo additional 10-year terms, and theuniversity’s foundation will have an optionto buy the Expo Centre after March 2007.

The city wil l contribute up to $4.4 million for building renovations;UCF will fund nearly $2 million. TheSchool of Film and Digital Media willmigrate most of its programs and 1,200undergraduate students from UCF’smain campus to the new downtownfacility over a period of years.

The Florida Interactive Entertain-ment Academy (FIEA), part of the Dig-ital Media Division in UCF’s recentlyopened School of Film and DigitalMedia, will debut in the fall as the cor-nerstone of the school’s new downtowncampus thanks to a unique collabora-tion with video gaming giant ElectronicArts (EA). The EA Tiburon Studio, whichis based in the Orlando suburb of Mait-

land, produces Madden NFL Football,NASCAR Thunder and several otherbest-selling video game titles.

“This is an investment for the longterm,” says Ben Noel, vice presidentand studio chief operating officer atEA Tiburon. “The gaming industry isexpanding exponentially and so is theneed for quality people. EA employs5,000 people worldwide and about

Ted Wilson was the first University of CentralFlorida football player drafted into the NFL.

But the collegiate standout played only as a replacement player in the strike-shortened 1987season. His real contribution to the league wasestablishing UCF with NFL scouts who, 10 yearslater, flocked to Orlando to watch a kid namedDaunte Culpepper. A first-round draft choice in1999, Culpepper today is a superstar. While he’s notyet enshrined in Canton, he is immortalized in theMadden NFL Football video game series, the best-selling sports game of all time. Now, thanks toa partnership between Culpepper’s alma mater andMadden game producer EA Sports-Tiburon, UCF isagain hoping to establish itself as a provider ofstandout talent — grads headed to the big leaguesof digital animation.

>>By Brian Courtney

GAMEWE’VE GOT

EA SPORTS AND UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA TEAM UP ANDBAM!, THE REGION’S TECH SECTOR HAS A GAME PLAN FOR SUCCESS

From concept to final product,EA Sports-Tiburon's latest videogame, NFL Street 2.

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“Having a downtown location ismore than just a nicety, it’s key topreparing these students for the reali-ties they will face when they enter theworkforce,” says Noel. “EA and most ofthe other gaming companies — as well as the movie and technologyindustries — we all employ people inmajor urban areas. Allowing these kidsto train in an environment similar tothose in which they will work gives thema head start. There won’t be as much cul-ture shock and that will reduce turnover.UCF has already proven this formula byputting its Rosen School of Hospitalityon International Drive, smack in themiddle of Orlando’s tourist center.”

GAME ONLike new video games and softwarepackages, new schools start with the

basics andgradually build,adding new fea-tures and userbenefits. FIEAwill initially func-tion like a Mas-ter’s program.Students withundergraduatedegrees in com-puter science,

art, digital media and such will be eligible to enroll. Attending full time,students should complete the programin about 16 months and will receive agraduate certificate. The school isalready working on expanding the standards and curriculum into a state-recognized graduate degree.

UCF expects 50 first-semesterenrollees and will launch with about 20faculty and staff, mostly software engineers, artists, programmers anddesigners — including EA employees.UCF expects the program to grow toabout 300 students and will graduateabout 100 people each year.

According to Mike Moshell, head ofthe Digital Media Division of the Schoolof Film and Digital Media, students willwork in production teams during anaverage 60-hour week. About 40 hoursof that time will be lab work. The curricula, which EA helped to develop,

“Just like a few California com-puter companies grew into theSilicon Valley, I can see [FIEA’s]downtown campus becomingthe center of a ‘digital mediavillage’ that is a hub for inter-active media.” — Ben Noel, EA Tiburon

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will teach design, programming andtesting for interactive media. EA alsoplans to offer internships to studentsand faculty.

“We think EA is a superb partnerbecause of its deep commitment totraining a workforce to create the nextgeneration of interactive entertain-ment,” says Sterling Van Wagenen,graduate program coordinator of theUCF School of Film and Digital Media.“It’s certainly going to elevate the quality of what we do in the school, andit’s going to be a terrific opportunity forour students.”

The school plans to set up a careerplacement office to help students findjobs after they graduate.

Noel and EA believe that this program will have significant impactwell beyond the walls of its classrooms.

“Its very presence will build awareness of the interactive mediaindustry among college advisors andeven high-school guidance counselors,and help them to see this business as alegitimate career path for certain typesof kids. And that path will only widen asdigital media expands into other applications and industries.”

He also sees the potential for eventually spinning off courses for useat the high-school level.

“Sixty percent of all Americans playvideo games and interactive media isnow ingrained into our lifestyle. Kids willbe interested in it earlier and earlier.”

IT’S SO LIFELIKEAccording to Noel, the school will help EA simplify one aspect of theirrecruiting.

“Hiring new graduates means wedon’t have to do any ‘untraining.’ Ifthey’ve already done an internship herethey’re going to be familiar with the environment and the process, so theycan jump right in. And for the others,they will have lived in this area for at leasttwo years while they’re going throughthe Academy. They’ll be comfortable inCentral Florida, established. It makesstarting a new job that much easier.”

Not that EA has ever had any prob-lem convincing potential employees tocome to Orlando. Tiburon was founded

by a few people who were working asthird-party developers for EA in California. They decided to relocate toCentral Florida in the early ‘90s becauseit offered a great quality of life at anaffordable price. Those same pointsallow the company to attract qualifiedpeople today. EA acquired TiburonEntertainment in 1998. One of thegroup’s founders, Steve Chiang,remains with the company in Orlandoas the operation’s general manager.

“We’re a content provider,” saysNoel, “not a manufacturer or fabricator.Our people — their creativity, ingenuityand vision — are our main corporateasset and our largest investment. We’vefound over the years that Central Floridais highly conducive to growing those

Deep End of the PoolUniversity of Central Florida’s alliance with EA is a great example of industry and

education pairing up for the common good, and the outcome will no doubt cause

a ripple effect through Central Florida’s interactive digital media trade. But UCF

is by no means the only institution producing talent.

Orlando’s long history as a center for animation, television and movie

production, which originated with Disney’s arrival in 1971, established the city as

the third-largest media center in the United States, behind only New York and Los

Angeles. Digital media is a multi-billion-dollar-a-year business in Central Florida.

The region’s demand drew educators to feed the need for a specialized talent pool

and today there are nearly 8,000 students enrolled in digital media programs in

the Metro Orlando region.

Full Sail: Originally focused on recording arts, Full Sail now offers degree

programs in game design & development, digital media and computer animation.

DAVE School: The Digital Animation and Visual Effects school, which is based

at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, opened in 2000. It provides practical dig-

ital animation skills.

Ringling School of Art & Design: Based in nearby Sarasota, RSAD offers

specialized four-year Computer Animation and Graphic & Interactive

Communication degree programs.

International Academy of Design & Technology: With facilities in Tampa and

Orlando, IADT provides courses in digital media, including computer animation,

digital movie making and digital production.

Valencia Community College: Students graduate with Associate’s degrees in

Digital Media Technology. Courses include multimedia authoring and digital

videography.

Seminole Community College: SCC offers an associate’s degree in Multimedia

Technology, with a specialization in Graphic Design and Web Design.

Daytona Beach Community College: Working with the region’s military and

business sectors, DBCC now offers an associate’s degree program in Simulation

Technology that teaches the basics of modeling and simulation.

assets. It doesn’t matter if we relocatethem here or if they’re local graduates.”

The people at EA predict that theprocess will get even easier with thematuration of the UCF program. Noelbelieves that the “clustering effect” willlaunch the region into prominencewithin the digital interactive industry.

“Just like a few California computercompanies grew into the Silicon Valley, Ican see UCF’s downtown campus becom-ing the center of a ‘digital media village’that is a hub for interactive media.”

Perhaps one day soon, when a graduate of UCF’s FIEA is hired to workon the next Madden NFL Footballgame, he’ll add Ted Wilson as anEaster egg on the Washington Redskin’s roster. x

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ATELLINGSTORYLOCAL TALENT FROM DISNEY’S ANIMATIONLEGACY CREATE TALES OFTHEIROWN

By Rafaela Ellis

TIC Productions, Inc.’s The Ask Grandpa Show, an animated series being pitched (at the time of this printing) to Discovery Channel.

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What these three companies have incommon are their founders, all of whomhoned their craft within Disney’srenowned Florida Feature AnimationStudio. They alsoshare a passion for,and commitment to,the community theycall home.

“The family envi-ronment of Floridawas really importantto us,” explains JohnWebber, co-founderof Project FireflyAnimation Studios,a full-service studio providing 2-D and 3-D animation and artwork for theatricaland video releases, television series,commercials, children’s books and edu-cational films. “We really grew uptogether as artists and knew each other’sfamilies, and we wanted to stay here.”

As a result, when Disney announcedplans to consolidate animation opera-tions back to California in late 2002,Webber and several friends employedby the studio decided to stay in CentralFlorida, putting their considerableexperience gained from the worldleader in animation to work in a newventure that played on their strengths.

The aptly named company hasquickly taken flight. Project Firefly hasgrown from the original five partners tomore than 25 staff members, withexpectations for the company to morethan double in 2005.

“We are dedicated to the growth ofthe animation industry in Florida,” saysWebber. “By providing creative, qualitywork for our clients, we plan to be a major

part of that growth and create stability forour employees and their families.”

The founders of Project Firefly are notalone. A second group of former Disney

employees foundedthe animation com-pany TIC Produc-tions, Inc., while oth-ers went to work for

Cecropia, Inc., a Boston-based firm thatrecently opened an office in Orlando.

The new companies have more inmind than simply bolstering CentralFlorida’s animation heritage. They alsowant to save traditional, two-dimen-sional animation, those hand-drawncartoons that defined the genre in thepre-computer days. Despite predictions

that computers would replace cartoonartists, local animators claim the form isalive and well — and they intend tokeep it that way by combining time-tested techniques with state-of-the-artcomputer technology and anemployee-centered management style.

TALENT MEETS TECHProject Firefly embraces this philosophywholeheartedly — while using the latesttools in computer animation, the teambelieves its decade-plus of traditionalhand drawn experience gives their 3-Dcreations that “special spark of life”.

“We feel very fortunate that westarted off in traditional animation,”says Dominic Carola, president of Pro-ject Firefly. “It gives us the fundamen-tal skills we need to be pulled off intocomputer animation.”

Using Opus Animation technology forits traditional work and Maya 6 software

on the digital side, Project Firefly is focus-ing on creating family-friendly projects.

“It’s safe programming,” says Webber. “We all have young families,and we’ve turned down content that we didn’t think the companyshould be involved with. We want tostay on target.”

That shouldn’t be hard for a group

Three new animation studios launched in Central Florida bring together the professional

talents and entrepreneurial dreams of several teamsof highly skilled animation industry colleagues. Spurred by a passion for the art form and a faith in the Central Florida business environment, these world-class feature animators opted to combine their experience with hopes of creating their own studios — and a new paradigm for Orlando’s production business.

>>

Two scenes of Edgar and Sylvia, the main characters of Cecropia'snew interactive film (unnamed at the time of this printing).

t e x t u r e J a n u a r y 2 0 0 530

of animators (Carola and principlesPaolo Alavarado, Gregg Azzopardi, andJohn Webber) whose collective creditsinclude child-centered projects such asThe Lion King , Lilo and Stitch , and Poc-ahontas, among others.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime oppor-tunity to have all this incredible talentthat wanted to say in Orlando,” Carolasays. “This is a great place in terms ofup-and-coming talent, veteran talentand the technology we need.

“We want to continue to build thedigital side of the com-pany, and we [are get-ting] a tremendousresponse from youngtalent that we didn’tknow was here.”

Carola points to theUniversity of CentralFlorida and Full SailReal World Education,both on Orlando’s eastside, as “pumping outthis tremendous digitaltalent.”

“We do think Floridais growing in terms of technology,”Webber says.

And Central Florida companies arealso growing an entrepreneurial mind-set that gives them an edge in attract-ing and retaining a highly skilled, cre-ative workforce.

“We allow the artists to multi-task,so you may have people who are doingtraditional animation on Monday andcomputer animation on Friday,”

Webber says. “We [also] try to geteven the management folks involved inproduction,” so no one feels hemmedin or bored by a rigid job description.

Apparently, that laid-back manage-ment style is working.

“We’ve only been open for eightmonths and we’ve worked on severalfeature-length projects for large stu-dios,” Carola says, although confiden-tiality agreements prevent him fromnaming names.

Says Webber, “On a recent trip toLos Angeles, I was pleased to see how many people know about us andwhat we’re doing. Word has really gotten out.”

MORE FOR LESSWhile Project Firefly has gained a lotof press attention for i ts efforts,another young company of talentedanimators is quietly making its owninroads in the industry. TIC Produc-tions, Inc. was founded in 2002 by a group of young graduates from University of Central Florida and theUniversity of Florida who had previously worked together at Disney.

“We’re fairly young, and that’s part ofour vibe,” says Dan Picard, a 29-year-old

partner at TIC. “We’re a bunch of youngdudes. We’re very hungry, [and] we likeworking hard, but we also like hangingout together. It’s a pretty cool crew.”

Picard’s relaxed persona aside, TICis deadly serious about carving out itsniche in the animation biz. He and part-ners Neil Leiba and Dave Artura draftedAshish Kapadia, a former healthcaremanagement executive, to serve as thefirm’s CFO and have managed to nab

some big-name clients in just two yearsof operation. The company has com-pleted projects for Universal Studios,VH1, AT&T, the Orlando Magic and yes,the Walt Disney Company. Now, thegroup is embarking on a project for theDiscovery Channel.

Picard says the key to satisfying suchhigh-profile clients is cutting costs andtightening production time.

“The innovative process we use tomake our animation streamlines it abit, so it makes it less expensive forthem,” he explains. “Instead of thempaying money for a bunch of [in-house]

animators, we do it for themfor less.”

Although Picard and hispartners have backgrounds intraditional animation, he defi-nitely sees computer anima-tion as the wave of the future.

“Those were really time-consuming processes,” hesays of 2-D animation. “Withthe advent of computers, youcan draw right into the com-puter instead of on paper, andthen you can use it on the Webor for print and it’s all there.”

Computers also make it easier for aclient to map a project’s progress,Picard says.

“We can show them stuff every day— stills, animation, composites — andthat’s invaluable. When someone is pay-ing a lot of money, they truly grind youto see how you’re spending it.”

Like Project Firefly, TIC considers anemployee-driven business model to beits biggest asset.

“We are dedicated tothe growth of the ani-mation industry inFlorida. By providingcreative, quality workfor our clients, we planto be a major part ofthat growth and createstability for our employ-ees and their families.”

— John Webber, Project Firefly Animation Studios

Top: Cecropia, Orlando Animation Director BrooseJohnson (right) and artist Dan Gracey (left). Bottom: Project Firefly Animation Studios Animator Travis Blaise.

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“A lot of times, working for some-one else, the best ideas get shotdown,” Picard says. “We just want tomake our own stuff, to stay the courseand keep making as much original con-tent as possible.”

KEEPING IT REALWhen Cecropia, Inc., a Boston-basedcomputer gaming company, was seek-ing a way to bring its new, character-dri-ven games to life, opening an Orlandooffice seemed the natural answer.

“We realized what we really neededwas something called personality ani-mation, and that is something that wasfounded by Walt Disney,” says AnnMarie Bland, the company’s president.“As we were searching for our solution,we came across a resumé from some-body from Disney, and we found outthe studio was about to close.”

Working with Disney’s outplacementdepartment, Bland and company found14 full-time employees and 10 free-lance contractors in Orlando to helpdevelop their game, scheduled forrelease in March 2005.

designed by its in-house engineeringstaff, Cecropia instead has createdcharacters whose facial expressionsand body language are the very cluesthat lead players through the game.

“What we’re producing is a roman-tic comedy with our star players, Edgarand Sylvia,” Bland says, referring to thetwo main characters in the as-yetunnamed product. “It’s like an ani-mated feature film, and it’s entertain-ing to watch not only the charactersand how they move and animate, butthe social psychology of how peopleplay it.”

But it’s the social psychology ofCecropia’s Orlando office that perhapsbest reflects the newfound vibrancy ofOrlando’s animation business.

“Our guys and gals have amazingtalents, and they can really stretch theirwings far here,” she says. “In any largecorporation, it’s hard to cross into anew department or a different function,but that’s what smaller companies canprovide. Everyone we’ve hired hasreally embraced that, and they’vegrown within themselves.”

Unlike other local animation com-panies, which create mostly broadcastmaterials, Cecropia is attempting toinvent a new product: a storytellingvideo game in which players controlnot just the characters’ actions, buttheir emotions as well.

“This [is] a new form of entertain-ment, a new delivery form of story-telling using technology,” Bland says.“Players can actually participate in afilm. They control the characters emo-tionally and how they socially interactwith other characters.”

Using a simple dial controller remi-niscent of the early video game Pong,players of Cecropia’s “story games”can become as emotionally involvedwith their characters as they would witha film or television personality. The key,Bland says, is to combine high techgaming technology with traditional ani-mation techniques.

“Three-D animation looks great, butif you look at the characters’ faces andhow they walk and talk, it’s very plas-tic,” she says.

Using proprietary software x

TIC Productions, Inc.’s animated music video project produced for Sony Music.

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Great ideas have to start somewhere. For some, it’s an idea stumbled upon from a desire to automate a process; for others it’s a series of relationships that make it possible. Take the cases of two Central Floridacompanies that are changing the face of transportation technology —G&T Conveyor Company and Kinetics, Inc.

>>

ADVANCINFROM AUTOMATED TRAVEL KIOSKS TO INTEGRATED BAGGAGE SYSTEMS, TRANSPORTATION TECHNOLOGY TAKES OFF FROM CENTRAL FLORIDA.

By Tracey C. Velt

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For G&T Conveyor, the great idea wasborn of a need for more efficient baggagehandling systems and built on successfulpast relationships. For Kinetics, it was anidea — self-service airline check-in kiosks— that germinated while the company’sfounder was working as a sales agent fora travel agency.

Very different ideas, but both offer

technology that’s changing the landscapeof travel around the world. And, both areheadquartered in Central Florida.

KINETICS: THE LEADER IN SELF-SERVICETECHNOLOGYIf you’ve traveled Delta, Continental,

ATA, or any one of 14 airlines using self-service check in, you’ve likely usedone of Kinetics’ kiosks. It’s a productthat’s hard to ignore in a time whencompanies are trying to be more pro-ductive with less employees. Capitaliz-ing on this productivity trend is LakeMary-based Kinetics, founded byDavid Melnik.

NG TRAVELIllustration Frank J. Quinones

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“More than a decade ago, I assem-bled a small team of travel profession-als and established a relationship withNCR to build a business focused onimproving the archaic distribution channels of the airline industry,” saysMelnik. “The idea literally evolved frommy second bedroom. I had worked sell-ing airline tickets to small businesses,and I wondered why this couldn’t bedone through ATM machines.”

His idea — self-service kiosks at airport check in — would eventuallychange the way travel is done. By sliding in your credit card, the kioskautomatically pulls up your airline reservation, allows you to choose howmany bags you want to check and givesyou a seat map of the plane you’reboarding. You can see where your seat

is and which seats are sti l l open, allowing you to pick a different one ifavailable. Once complete, your board-ing pass prints from the machine.

But, achieving success in the airlineself-service market proved to be farfrom easy. From 1991 through 1995,Kinetics worked with a variety of customers that included state governments, Fortune 100 companies,and domestic and international airlines.Solutions ranged from self-servicemotor vehicle registration, smart-cardprototypes, biometric-identificationsoftware, and deployment of self-service ticketing systems for the DeltaShuttle and Lufthansa German Airlines.

At the end of 1995, Kinetics endedits six-year relationship with NCR and

charted its own course in the market.They launched their own version of self-service hardware and enterprisesoftware. With Alaska Airlines as thelaunch customer and Northwest Airlinesfollowing, this sparked the beginning ofa major change in the behavior of thetraveling public and the now widespread adoption of self-service.

Kinetics’ products, services andvision have combined to become theblueprint for the soon-to-be universalsuccess of self-service in the NorthAmerican airline industry.

Almost 10 years after their initialpartnership, NCR and Kinetics aretogether again. NCR acquired Kineticsin October 2004.

“Joining withNCR,a

recog-n i z e d

leader inself-service

solutions, isthe right thing

to do for Kinetics,our customers and our

employees,” says Mel-nik. “This combinationwill propel our companyinto the next generationof self-service technol-ogy, help us broadenour success in changingthe face of travel and

enable us to seize new opportunities inthe international travel marketplace.”

The significance of Melnik’s self-service business model is far-reaching. The company provides selfcheck-in machines to two-thirds of thenation’s airports. In fact, according to anarticle in Fast Company magazine lastyear, tens of millions of airline customers checked themselves in onmachines that were designed, produced,and supported by just 67 employees inan office about 20 miles north of down-town Orlando, an area quickly becominga mecca for large and small technologyand simulation companies.

“I never even considered putting mycompany anywhere else,” says Melnik.“Being in Central Florida is a great draw

to employees who want the family-ori-ented atmosphere and quality of life.”

Melnik wanted to break through thetraditional corporate model of being ina large metropolis.

“The quality of life that surroundsour office has a comforting effect onemployees,” says Melnik. “You’d haveto pay me a ridiculous amount ofmoney to convince me that I should liveor have my company somewhere else.”

In addition to building the companyheadquarters in Central Florida, Melnikfinds it vital to recruit local talent.

“We focus on recruitment in theCentral Florida area,” says Melnik.”Most of our programmers live hereand all of our developers are locatedhere. The only significant workforce thatdoesn’t live here is our team of field ser-vice technicians, who spend every daytraveling from hub to ‘spoke’ to per-form preventive maintenance on Kinet-ics TouchPort self-service hardware.”

What makes Kinetics unique,besides being the first to develop theself-service kiosk business model, is theway the company helps businessesstreamline and become more produc-tive by offering software that makes thecheck-in process available on the Inter-net, as well as at the point of service.

More than that, the company doeseverything in house, from writing thesoftware to designing the hardware. Agroup of 12 technicians keeps the airport kiosks running at what Continental says is 99.5 percent reliability, according to the article in FastCompany. At Continental Airlines, 66 percent of U.S. passengers check themselves in at Kinetics kiosks.

“We never thought it would goabove twenty-five percent,” says ScottO’Leary, Continental’s senior manager incharge of airport self-service for passen-gers. That means fewer lines, moreemployees offering a smile and cus-tomer service, and a less-harried traveler.

What lies ahead for Kinetics? “We ’ l l continue to have strong

growth,” says Melnik. “We were justacquired by NCR and that gives us thefuel to expand globally and into otheraspects of travel and hospitality, including self-service kiosk and Internet

“The quality of lifethat surroundsour office has acomforting effecton employees.You’d have to pay mea ridiculous amount ofmoney to convince methat I should live orhave my companysomewhere else.”

— David Melnik, Kinetics, Inc.

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check-in at hotels, rental car agenciesand quick-service restaurants.”

Just think, says Melnik, “Ten yearsfrom now, there’ll be things you do foryourself that used to be handled bysomeone else, and you’ll forget thatyou never handled it before.”

G&T CONVEYOR:SECURITY INBAGGAGE HANDLINGIn business, reputation and relationshipsmean everything. No one knows that better than Ted Majewski, Sr., whoworked in the baggage handling indus-try installing systems before retiring to Central Florida. Demand for MajewskiSr.’s installation expertise soon broughthim out of retirement and became the catalyst for creation of G&T ConveyorCompany, which he founded with son,Ted Majewski, Jr., in 1987. First run as aninstallation company, putting other com-panies’ baggage handling systems intoairports, G&T quickly transformed intothe largest airport industry-dedicatedsupplier of baggage handling systems.

When the need to do some lightmanufacturing forced them to movefrom their first location, the Majewskislooked around the state, considered allthe variables — qualified workforce,work ethic and infrastructure —anddecided on their current location inTavares, about 30 miles north of down-town Orlando. The num-ber one reason they choseCentral Florida was theregion’s workforce.

“The work ethic in Cen-tral Florida is one of thestrongest I’ve seen in thetwenty-five years of myprofessional career,” says PresidentJohn Majewski, who joined the com-pany to help brothers Ted Jr. and Larrywhen Ted Sr. retired several years ago.“This, along with our proximity to theairport, governmental support throughgrants, and the local technical schoolsand colleges [University of CentralFlorida and Rollins], have all acted ascatalysts to the rapid growth of ourcompany.

“What began in a str ip mall in Clermont (north of Orlando) has now

Seattle. They’ve signed three consecu-tive contracts in excess of $20 millionthat will completely enable the airportwith the latest in checked baggagesecurity and sortation.

“A little closer to home,” says John,“We’re close to completing the baggagehandling system for the new terminal inFort Myers, [Fla.]. This $20 million systemis state of the art, and G&T will also be operating and maintaining the systemafter it goes into operation in 2005.”

What does the future hold for thisCentral Florida company?

“G&T is tracking $5 billion worth ofbusiness in our domestic market in thenext five years,” says John. “We’re continuing to be aggressive in ourgrowth with both acquisitions of oursmaller competitors and complementarylines of business. G&T is also gettingmore aggressive with our internationalsales efforts and have had some recent

success in South America. We justsigned a contract to design the baggagesystem for the Shanghai InternationalAirport in China. Our business is global.”

From the most obvious front-endoperation such as self-service airlinecheck in, to the unseen back-end activities such as baggage handling,Central Florida companies are takingthe lead.

grown to an $80 million business. Wehave over 500 employees across thecountry and more than 275 that workin our world headquarters in Tavares,”he says.

According to John, “We’re a turn-key supplier, meaning we design, engi-neer, manufacture, install, operate andmaintain baggage handling systems.”

G&T also writes the software thattracks the bags through the system andinterfaces with the airl ine fl ight systems to match bags with passengersand route them to the proper flights.

“With the recent changes in securityrequirements, tracking bags from checkin through the intricate levels of securityscreening and on to sorting for depar-ture, has made our proprietary softwareeven more valuable,” says John.

Since G&T originally installed amajority of other companies’ U.S. bag-gage sortation systems, as well as theirown, they are now a leader inthe in-line integration of secu-rity screening equipment intoboth their own systems andtheir competitors’.

“With themost complete product line, a com-pany dedicated entirely to this indus-try, and a division that provides ongoing support after thedesign and installation, we’re a uniquepartner,” says John.

Just ask airport management in

“The work ethic inCentral Florida is one ofthe strongest I’ve seenin the twenty-five yearsof my professionalcareer. This, along withour proximity to the air-port, governmental sup-

port through grants,and local technicalschools and col-leges, have allacted as catalyststo the rapid growthof our company.” —John Majewski, G&T Conveyor

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i n t e l l i g e n t f o r m s o f l i f e s t y l e

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A lot has changed in and around downtown Orlando since it first earnedits reputation as “The City Beautiful”. While still easy on the eye, old-timers

here can remember when the bustling area around Colonial Drive-Highway 50was populated by more cows than humans, with acres of pastures stretching fromthe tiny downtown area as far as you could see. Orange groves, too, made theirhome here, the scent of their blossoms perfuming the air before the trees borefruit each year.

>>

By Denise Bates EnosORLANDOQuality of LifeCOOL NEW PLACES TO ROAM, LIVE & PLAY — ORLANDO HAS IT ALL

TODD ENGLISH’S BLUEZOO

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What a difference a few decades make. Today, you’re more likely toencounter high-rises and watering holes,chic boutiques and divine dining destinations than fruit stands and tractorsin The City Beautiful. Here’s a look atsome great places to live and play.

EVERYTHING BLUE Feeling blue? Well, it can’t be becausethere’s nothing to do — Orlando offersplenty to put you in the mood. Here arejust a few of the many options:

>> Blue Martini Lounge , Mall at Millenia, 4350 Millenia Boulevard,Orlando; www.bluemartinilounge.com

This newcomer to Orlando’s chic socialscene opened in January, and it’s a welcome addition to the city’s sophisti-cated nightlife roster. Blue Martini servesup an impressive variety of flavorful martinis — more than two dozen in all —as well as fine wine and a full bar. A tastytapas menu of appetizer-sized dishes per-fectly complements the spirited offerings.

>> Todd English’s Blue Zoo, The WaltDisney World Dolphin Resort, 1500Epcot Resort Boulevard, Lake BuenaVista; 407.934.1111

What would you expect from a restau-rant housed in a hotel named after amarine mammal? Seafood, of course —and the trendy Blue Zoo delivers. Hookthe Catch of the Day, or try one of thedelectably prepared fish dishes that arestandard fare at this not-so-standardeatery. An excellent wine list, private dining rooms and desserts to die forround out the tempting options.

>> House of Blues, Downtown Disney’sWest Side, 1490 East Buena Vista Drive,Lake Buena Vista; 407.934.2222

This is the place to hear top musicalacts of every description in an arty,relaxing atmosphere. You can grab abite to eat at the adjacent restaurant oroutdoors in the Voodoo Garden whilea house band plays, or try the GospelBrunch on a Sunday morning — it’s asoul-stirring, foot-stomping experienceyou’ll never forget.

Get ready for some high tech fun at these grownup video game escapes.From Xbox and virtual reality to blast-in-the-past classics like Pac-Man,these venues take socializing and having fun to a new level!

Thumb Fu Gaming358 North Park Avenue, Winter Park; 407.466.7875;

www.thumb-fugaming.com

XS Orlando — Pointe Orlando9101 International Dr, Orlando; 407.226.8922; www.xsorlando.com

Disney Quest® Indoor Interactive Theme Park Downtown Disney’s West Side, 1490 East Buena Vista Drive,

Lake Buena Vista; 407.828.4600

QUICK TAKES: CONTROL PAD

BLUE MARTINI LOUNGE

HOUSE OF BLUES

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CITYSIDE CRIBSThinking about ditching your rental con-tract and making a residential commit-ment? Home ownership doesn’t have tomean dullsville in the suburbs whenthere are so many hip and happeningplaces to call your own downtown.

And if downtown is the heart ofOrlando, then Lake Eola Park and itsdramatic, dome-shaped fountain arethe heart of downtown. It’s a goodplace to begin your home-findingquest, as the area is peppered withstriking structures that house luxurycondominiums. Check out The Waverlyon Lake Eola (www.waverlyonlakee-

ola.com); The Vue at Lake Eola(www.thevueorlando.com); and Thorn-ton Park Central, Eola South, ParkNorth at Cheney Place and OsceolaBrownstones (www.condohq.com)where residential development lives inharmony with shopping and dininglocations. 55 West (www.fifty-fivewest.com), a 32-story condominiumproject located in the central businessdistrict, is slated to break ground anyday now.

Slightly farther afield, but still astone’s-throw from downtown, you’llf ind the China Glass Warehouse(www.condohq.com), the area’s only

authentic residential lofts; and BaldwinPark (www.baldwinparkfl.com), a pri-marily single-family home developmentthat also offers attractive condo living.

Of course, such sought-after localesdon’t come cheap, so expect to pay apremium for the convenience of livingin the middle of the action. You mightfind a small efficiency to purchase forunder $200,000, but more spaciousplaces typically have a starting priceabove that amount, which can quicklyskyrocket to $300,000 and up. Upper-floor units and penthouses caneasily reach seven figures — as the viewincreases, so does the price. x

BALDWIN PARK

55 WEST

THE WAVERLY ON LAKE EOLA