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Rockledge, Florida (PRWEB) October 22, 2013
Mainstream Engineering Corporation, a solutions-oriented research, development and manufacturing business that focuses on innovative solutions to critical thermal control and energy conversion problems, has been recognized as a recipient of the Class of 2013 Florida Companies to Watch award.
Florida Companies to Watch is an awards program (in association with the Edward Lowe Foundation) that celebrates privately held second-stage companies headquartered in Florida. To be eligible for the Florida Companies to Watch award, applicants must employ between 6 and 99 full-time-equivalent employees and have between $ 750,000 and $ 50 million in annual revenue or working capital in place.
Fifty awardees are selected for demonstrating the intent and capacity to grow, based on employee or sales growth, exceptional entrepreneurial leadership, sustainable competitive advantage, outstanding corporate culture, inspired community giving and other notable strengths. The awards event is on Thursday, October 24 at Hard Rock Live in Orlando, Florida.
Mainstream has received other substantial awards in the past including the State of Florida Governor’s New Product Award, Regional Winner of the SBA Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year Award, several Blue Chip Enterprise Initiative Awards, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Award for Excellence, NASA’s Technical Commercialization Award, and SBA’s Tibbetts Award for commercialization.
On the local level, Mainstream has received awards for job creation and economic development: an Appreciation Award from Eastern Florida State College’s Business Incubation Center for supporting small business development in the area, several Industry Appreciation Awards from the local Economic Development Council, and a citation from the Mayor of Rockledge for jobs creation.
“We are very proud of the recognition we have received from outside organizations, but our proudest attribute is that we make the best products in the world and they are all made in the USA, right here in Brevard County, Florida,” stated company president Dr. Robert P. Scaringe.
Mainstream’s mission is to research and develop emerging technologies and to engineer these technologies into superior quality military and private-sector products that provide a technological advantage. Mainstream’s philosophy is to use the government-funded research dollars to solve a problem for the government and then spin-off this technology to benefit the commercial sector. The resulting products are usually significantly more advanced than current products on the market. Mainstream has been very successful with this philosophy, proven by the 100 plus patents, either issued or pending, for their products.
Mainstream’s QwikProducts (http://www.qwik.com) are specialty tools, chemicals, test and repair kits; certification testing; and heating/cooling/refrigeration technologies used by technicians in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry. Their most recent product, QwikSEER+, was recently featured on the Department of Energy Website (http://science.energy.gov/sbir/highlights/2013/sbir-2013-01-b) as a practical, low-cost device to improve the efficiency of residential air conditioning units.
Mainstream recently spun-off a new company, Rivian Automotive (http://www.rivian.com), and this company is developing new advanced fun-to-drive high-mileage automobiles using advanced manufacturing techniques.
Mainstream plans to spin off Mainstream BioEnergy, a company that will produce tractor-trailer-sized portable vehicles to convert yard waste and other organic material directly into liquid fuel.
About Second-stage Businesses and Florida Companies to Watch
Florida Companies to Watch is unique because of its focus on second-stage companies and the wide-ranging industries they represent. Second-stage companies are those that have moved beyond the startup phase and seek significant, steady growth.
The impact of these companies on Florida’s economy is immense, and this year’s honorees are examples of such companies in the state. During 2007–2009, Florida’s resident companies averaged more than 110,000 second-stage establishments according to YourEconomy.org, an online resource of the Edward Lowe Foundation. Those second-stage companies employed nearly 2.5 million workers. For more information, visit http://www.FLCTW.GrowFL.com.
About GrowFL
GrowFL provides strategies, resources and support to second-stage companies for next-level growth. By supporting companies with strategic research and peer-to-peer CEO mentoring, GrowFL helps companies overcome obstacles to growth and leads them toward prosperity.
Based on the philosophy of Economic Gardening—to grow existing businesses in a community, region or state—GrowFL is the program of the Florida Economic Gardening Institute at the University of Central Florida and is a critical component to the state’s economic development strategy and Florida’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
During the pilot program from 2009 to 2011, GrowFL helped more than 400 companies create 1,400 new jobs and had an annual economic impact of $ 510.4 million. At the beginning of 2013, that number has grown to nearly 700 companies supported by GrowFL. For more information, visit GrowFL.com.
About the Edward Lowe Foundation
The Edward Lowe Foundation inspired the creation of the Companies to Watch program to celebrate second-stage entrepreneurs and their companies. Established in 1985, the Edward Lowe Foundation is a Michigan-based nonprofit organization that supports entrepreneurship through recognition, education and research with a focus on second-stage companies. The foundation also encourages economic gardening, an entrepreneur-centered strategy providing balance to the traditional approach of business recruitment. For information, visit http://www.EdwardLowe.org.
