The Dominion Post, January 11, 1995

Local team awarded NASA contract

A NASA software reuse initiative contract has been awarded to a local team of technology companies led by D.N. American, the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation announced.

The team, calling itself QSORT, includes D.N. American, Electronic Warfare Associates, DSD Laboratories Inc., Galaxy Global Corp. and Azimuth Inc.

The WVHTC Foundation is a nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to accelerating the state's economic growth through research, development and education.

Entrepreneur Magazine, April 1996

How 78 Entrepreneurs Built Their Million Dollar Businesses

WEST VIRGINIA

Company: Azimuth, Inc.

Location: Morgantown

Business Began: 1989

Start-Up Cost: $15,000

1995 Sales: $3 million

1996 Projections: $6 million

Adam Macias and Craig Hartzell are no strangers to risk. Indeed, as veterans of the U.S. Army Special Forces, they learned the value of occasionally throwing caution to the wind -- literally.

"We travelled around the world together and jumped out of airplanes," says Hartzell, 45, of the pair's days in the military. "I was a communications specialist, and he was a weapons specialist."

Add to the equation Hartzell's background in electronics, and it made perfect sense for him and Macias, 45, to team up as co-founders of electronics systems and software engineering firm Azimuth. The firm, which expects to compute sales of $6 million this year, counts NASA and the Department of Defense as two of its high-ranking technical support and systems integration clients.

"We realized there was no engineering firm in [West Virginia] that really understood how to work in the federal sector," says Hartzell. With partner Tina Connoway, 31 -- whom they met through professional contacts -- the two military veterans have rocketed Azimuth to the top.

The Times West Virginian October 24, 1997

Wheeling's PMG Group proves 'virtual company' concept works in W.Va.

by George Hohmann, Business Editor

WHEELING -- "Virtual Companies" -- organizations that pull various firms together for a specific project, then regroup in different configurations for additional projects -- are a hot business topic.

Just yesterday, the president of Lockheed Martin Enterprise Information Systems Division presented a keynote address at a national virtual company conference in Fairmont.

While virtual companies are being talked about nationwide, a few have actually gone into business. And one -- right here in West Virginia -- is actually bringing a product to market.

PMG Manufacturing Group, headquartered in Wheeling, is expects to begin shipment next week of "The RoadSpike," a retractable spike barrier strip system for police agencies engaged in stopping high-speed pursuits.

The idea is simple: Create a barrier strip that can be stored in the trunk of a police car. To end a high-speed chase, an officer with the RoadSpike positions himself ahead of the chase. The RoadSpike is taken out of the trunk and unrolled across the highway. When the target vehicle approaches, the officer activates the strip. Hundreds of hollow spikes rise. When the perpetrator's car drives over the strip, the spikes puncture the tires, ending the high-speed chase.

The RoadSpike's big safety advantage is that police using it in the field raise and lower the spikes using an 18-foot control cable, which allows them to be positioned clear of the impact zone.

The product has many clever features.

Because the spikes can be elevated and retracted at will, the officer operating the device can use it only on the target vehicle -- not a vehicle before or behind it.

The spikes don't just puncture the perpetrator's tires. They actually stick in the tires. Because the spikes are hollow, they release air from the tires slowly, resulting in a controlled deflation and vehicle stop. Replacement spikes can be installed in the field.

PMG -- an alliance of 28 metals manufacturing firms, mostly in West Virginia -- signed a license for commercial development and production of the RoadSpike March 7 with Lockheed Idaho National Engineering Laboratory.

The product represents "a significant transfer of new technology to the private sector from the National Institute of Justice's Office of Law Enforcement Technology Commercialization via the National Technology Transfer Center (NTTC)" at Wheeling, said PMG spokesman John Wiater.

According to Wiater, the NTTC introduced PMG to Lockheed. The resulting contract gives PMG exclusive rights to produce, sell, sub-license and distribute the RoadSpike worldwide.

Primary customers are the 20,000 police and 5,000 sheriff departments nationwide. There are 250,000 high-speed chases per year in the U.S. In the last two years, there were 760 deaths as a direct result of high-speed chases plus thousands of injuries, Wiater said.

The RoadSpike, which sells for $550 for the basic model, means business and jobs for West Virginians, he said.

Together through PMG, the alliance's member companies can offer customers team engineering, quality management, computer numerically controlled (CNC) machining, and laser machining, heat treating, plating, rubberizing, electric and hydraulic system design, aviation welding, packaging, bar coding, marketing and other capabilities.

"This synergism allows the member companies to be partners in a virtual company that can bid and secure major contracts collectively," said Robert Steele, PMG chief operating officer. "Such contracts could not be secured individually with one or two specialized capabilities."

Wiater said nine companies are involved in producing the RoadSpike. They include Superior Hydraulics of Morgantown, maker of the spikes.

Azimuth Inc., with offices in Morgantown and Fairmont, has developed a remote control device which will be offered to RoadSpike customers as an option. The remote control will allow police to operate the RoadSpike far from 300-500 away.

Development of the remote control device is a story in itself, and illustrates how complex -- and how simple -- just one component of a product can be.

Azimuth senior engineers Kevin Koch and Ken Neoh said they had to be sure the remote control device they developed could withstand a wide variety of temperatures, since it would likely be stored in the trunk of a police cruiser. The signal is digitally encoded, to avoid accidental activation of the device due to interference from radios, cellular phones or other equipment.

Koch and Neoh said they aimed at producing a remote control device with a low parts count -- a battery, the receiver electronics and a motor -- to keep the product simple.

PMG traces its roots back to the Ohio River Valley Manufacturing Consortium, which functioned in 1990-91. Established in 1995, PMG has secured about $2.5 million in contracts in its first months of operation. Recently, the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation awarded PMG a contract to explain how PMG's virtual corporation works, Wiater said.

The first product contract the WVHTC Foundation awarded PMG was to build prototypes of high pressure vessels for International Fuel Cells, Wiater said. PMG's first significant government contract was from the U.S. Army for tank treads and brake drum backing plates.

PMG's other products include a self-contained water filtration system, which PMG took from concept to the shop floor. Other projects include high pressure containment vessels and industrial bucket lifts.

Wiater believes PMG has many opportunities to create jobs.

He noted that Carnegie-Mellon University (CMU), Pittsburgh, has been focusing on robotics. "Whatever CMU comes up with, PMG could manufacture," he said. "In 1996, the domestic market for robotics topped $1 billion."

Wiater also believes PMG could play a roll in manufacturing pneumatic and plastic products for Ohio companies and composite materials, coal derivatives and wood products for Kentucky firms.

PMG gave an update on the RoadSpike Oct. 16 to Sen. Robert C. Byrd; Rep. Alan B. Mollohan; Gov. Cecil H. Underwood; the Rev. Thomas Acker, president of Wheeling-Jesuit University; a representative of the National Institute of Justice; and Thomas Burgoyne, acting director of the National Institute of Justice's Office of Law Enforcement Technology Commercialization.

Byrd, Mollohan and Underwood have been very supportive of PMG and the RoadSpike, Wiater said.

The Dominion Post September 14, 1997

WVU's PRT to receive $4 million upgrade

Associated Press--WVU's Personal Rapid Transit System is scheduled to get a $4 million computer upgrade that will help prevent system failures of the 25-year-old system, Sen. Robert C. Byrd said Wednesday.

The university awarded the contract to Boeing Information Space and Defense Group.

Byrd added $4.2 million to the Transportation Appropriations Bill last year for the project.

The project involves rewriting the computer programs and replacing the equipment with modern hardware and software packages.

The project is scheduled to be completed by next summer.

Boeing intends to subcontract the project to Azimuth Inc., of Morgantown, and DSD Laboratories and Electronic Warfare Associates Inc., both of Fairmont.

Click on cartoon for larger image

The Innovator February 1997

Azimuth, Inc. Leads White Hall Elementary NetDay Volunteer Activity

Technology in education advanced even further toward the future Jan. 25 as a team of volunteers wired White Hall Elementary as part of the West Virginia NetDay Activities. White Hall is the first school in Marion County to be adopted by volunteers to advance Bell Atlantic's World School program. Approximately 25 volunteers wired six of the school's 10 classrooms and the media center for Internet access.

"There's a lot of excitement among staff and students," said White Hall Principal Roger Pratt. "We have the basic-skills computers, of course, but our goal at the end of the year is to have at least one Internet-accessible computer in each classroom to allow our teachers and students access to information from around the world. This will be a tremendous help to our school and our community."

According to Lydotta M. Taylor, vice president of education for the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation, the two NetDay hookup kits installed at White Hall cost $400 each, but, she added, hooking up schools to the Internet is worth the cost.

"It gives the kids tools in the classroom," said Taylor. "What it's going to mean to kids will really make the difference. Access to the Internet gives them resources they would not have otherwise."

White Hall Elementary was adopted for the project by Azimuth, Inc., a technical services firm based in Morgantown with engineering headquarters in Fairmont. Azimuth employees spent the week prior to the event prepping the school for the event and served as the nucleus for the volunteer effort. The other volunteer groups involved were White Hall parents, Marion County Schools, Bell Atlantic Pioneers, Bell Atlantic and the WVHTC Foundation.

"Azimuth is setting an example of commitment and leadership for the business community," said Laurance A. Milov, WVHTC Foundation President and CEO. "Both the schools and the company volunteers will benefit from these partnerships."

NetDay is a national, grassroots effort that began in California and has expanded to 30 other states, including West Virginia. The national goal of the program is to wire at least five school rooms and a library in every school. However, West Virginia has expanded the model from NetDay to NetYear. During the next year, NetDays will be held in schools throughout the state. West Virginia will work to get every K-12 classroom in the state wired for the Internet.

According to Linda Roberts, director of technology for the U.S. Department of Education, West Virginia's schools are among the most advanced in the nation for computers in the classroom and schools connected to the Internet. To date, nearly 500 West Virginia schools are connected to the Internet through Bell Atlantic's World School program.

"West Virginia is the role model for the nation," she said. "You are definitely ahead of the pack."

The Times West Virginian January 1997

White Hall Elementary goes 'online'

By J.C. Atkins, Staff Writer

WHITE HALL -- Technology in education took another healthy stride Saturday. White Hall Elementary School officials went "online."

White Hall is the first school "adopted" by volunteers to advance Bell Atlantic's World School program into Marion County. Roughly 25 of those volunteers wired six of the school's 10 classrooms and the media center for Internet access.

Saturday's special event was called "NetDay."

NetDay is a national, grassroots effort to get schools hooked up to the Internet, according to Bell Atlantic's Don Molter. But that name is misleading. NetDay is actually a yearlong effort to improve Internet connectivity in West Virginia. Nearly 500 state schools are already connected through the Bell Atlantic program.

Azimuth, Inc., a technical services firm, composed the core of volunteers for Saturday's wiring of White Hall. Azimuth, which is based in Morgantown but has its engineering headquarters in Fairmont, is an affiliate company of the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation (WVHTF). The WVHTF is coordinating the county effort.

Workers from Azimuth spent last week prepping the school for the work completed Saturday.

"There's a lot of excitement among staff and students." White Hall principal Roger Pratt said. "We have basic-skills computers, of course, but our goal at the end of the year is to have at least one (Internet-accessable computer) in each classroom (to) allow our teachers and students access to information from around the world. This will be a tremendous help to our school and community."

Lydotta Taylor, vice president for education at the WVHTF, said the two NetDay hookup kits installed at White Hall cost $400 apiece. She said hooking up schools to the Internet is worth the cost.

"It gives kids tools in the classroom," Taylor said. "What it's going to mean to kids will really make a difference. Access to the Internet gives them resources they would not have otherwise."

But, with access comes responsibility. There are places kids can go on the Internet where the subject matter is not child's play. Pratt said Internet access will be carefully watched.

"The classroom teachers and media center personnel will monitor it," Pratt said. "This is part of the Internet training that teachers receive."

Molter said the national goal of NetDay is to wire at least five rooms and a library in every school.

"We will exceed this in West Virginia," Molter said in a media release. "Our goal is to wire every school and all the classrooms that we can."

Along with workers from Azimuth, volunteers for Saturday's wiring included White Hall parents and people from Marion County public schools, Bell Atlantic Pioneers, Bell Atlantic, and the WVHTF.

"It's a good cause," said Azimuth volunteer Jim Parker. "These kids need a chance to get on the Internet."

West Virginia currently leads the nation in the use of education technology, but the fast pace of technology must be maintained.

"West Virginia kids have to get hooked up or be left behind," Parker said.