SALT LAKE CITY, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Utah's best high-tech innovations and the companies that created them will be recognized in the second annual Stoel Rives UTAH INNOVATION AWARDS. Entry forms are due February 25, 2004 and can be downloaded at http://www.stoel.com/innovation2004 .
The awards program is sponsored by Wasatch Digital iQ magazine, the Utah Engineering Experiment Station at the University of Utah and the law firm Stoel Rives LLP, with support from MountainWest Venture Group, Utah Information Technology Association and Utah Life Science Association.
The 2004 UTAH INNOVATION AWARDS will recognize the top innovations of 2003 in these six areas of invention:
* Biotechnology * Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals & Nutraceuticals * Medical Devices * Computer Software & Web Services * Electrical Devices * Mechanical Devices & Advanced Materials
Last year's winners included the discovery of an enzyme that improves pain relief and reduces inflammation, a technology that provides short- and long- range data communications with advanced networking capabilities and a lightweight structure that can support 170 times its weight.
"We view the Stoel Rives UTAH INNOVATION AWARDS as a way to illuminate innovations that deserve to be in the spotlight," said Kevin Laurence, a principal attorney with the Salt Lake City office of Stoel Rives LLP and founding organizer of the program. "Many of the innovations we see as submissions to the awards program have great potential to attract venture capital, spawn spin-off companies and strengthen emerging industries in the state. We hope the program will give Utah an even better-recognized name as a center of high-tech activity in the nation."
The Selection Committee for the 2004 UTAH INNOVATION AWARDS is composed of leaders in private industry, government and higher education. Many are experts in the six fields of invention represented.
Award winners will be announced at an awards lunch to be held Thursday, May 20, 2004 at noon in the University of Utah Olpin Union Ballroom. The lunch event will be held in connection with the Edison Conference, a day-long event for inventors, entrepreneurs and high-tech startup companies. Named in honor of Thomas Edison, one of history's most prolific inventors and successful entrepreneurs, the Edison Conference is the melding of two formerly separate conferences: the Inventions to Commercialization Conference sponsored by the Utah Engineering Experiment Station at the University of Utah and T2M's Base Camp. The registration fee for the Edison Conference is $95. The cost to attend the awards lunch only is $40 per person or $320 for a table that seats eight.
"Utah has long been and remains a world-class center of innovation," said Kimball Thomson, founder and senior editor of Wasatch Digital iQ. "The UTAH INNOVATION AWARDS provides deserved recognition to these innovations and the industry and university teams that develop them."
"We are honored to join with Stoel Rives in co-sponsoring this event that highlights the innovations that improve products, organizations and economic development in the state," added Wasatch Digital iQ publisher Martin Lewis.
For more information about the awards program, or to access the on-line entry form, visit stoel.com/innovation2004 .
Stoel Rives LLP is a business law firm with significant experience in the area of intellectual property law. The firm's Salt Lake City office has 53 attorneys, including 11 who help clients obtain patents and trademarks, arrange licensing agreements and define and protect intellectual property assets. The firm has attorneys with degrees in electrical engineering, computer science, biology, chemistry and physics.
For further information, please contact Kevin Laurence, Patent Attorney, +1-801-578-6932, kblaurence@stoel.com , or Lisa Badger, Marketing Manager, +1-801-578-6657, lbadger@stoel.com , both of Stoel Rives LLP.
Stoel Rives LLPCONTACT: Kevin Laurence, Patent Attorney, +1-801-578-6932,kblaurence@stoel.com , or Lisa Badger, Marketing Manager, +1-801-578-6657,lbadger@stoel.com , both of Stoel Rives LLP
Web site: http://www.stoel.com/innovation2004
