Incubator breaks ground

   The UCF Business Incubator Kissimmee broke ground at City Centre in downtown Kissimmee. Check out photos here.
   Osceola County, City of Kissimmee and University of Central Florida Business Incubation Program officials participated in the ground breaking of the UCF Business Incubator–Kissimmee on Thursday, June 24, at the City Centre Avenue.
    The University of Central Florida partnered with Osceola County, the City of Kissimmee and Kissimmee’s Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) on the facility that will offer support services to help start-up companies accelerate their growth and generate jobs in downtown Kissimmee.

Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS), the leader in secure document management, announced that nominations for its 2010 Excellence in Healthcare Information Management Award are open. The award will recognize one leading healthcare facility that has gone above and beyond to implement secure document strategies to protect its patients’ private information and remain compliant with government standards. The winning organization will receive accommodations for two to learn more about data protection at the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) Convention and Exhibition taking place September 25-30. The winner will receive two complimentary registration passes and three nights stay at the Gaylord Palms Hotel. The organization may also opt to make a donation to its charity of choice instead of attending the conference. All practicing healthcare organizations are eligible. Entries must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern on August 1, 2010.  Submissions can be made at www.cintas.com/healthcareaward.

Unemployment dips

   TALLAHASSEE – Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May 2010 is 11.7 percent. Thisrepresents 1,086,000 jobless out of a labor force of 9,272,000. The unemployment rate is down 0.3 percentage point from the April rate of 12.0 percent. This was the second monthly decline in the state’s unemployment rate since February 2006.
    “A growing number of positive indicators, including an increase in job opportunities and a decline in the
unemployment rate, provide continued evidence that the state’s economy is recovering,” said Agency for
Workforce Innovation Director Cynthia R. Lorenzo. “With the leadership of Governor Crist, we remain focused on providing resources to Florida’s families and supporting employers as our economic climate improves.”
     Osceola's rate also fell to 12 percent from12.3 percent in April.

CI in the news

   Celebration's Channel Intelligence Inc. (CI), the leader in technology innovation for Web-initiated commerce, announced last week adoption of its patented retailer solutions technology by PETCO.COM. The specialty pet retailer is implementing CI’s SellCast™ RetailerSolutions service, the industry-leading solution for improving retailers’ data performance on comparison shopping engines (CSEs) and online marketplaces. 

    CI, which connects manufacturers and retailers through e-commerce portals, has named industry veteran Ron Sparks to head up development of its suite of retail data-feed management software. Sparks, who joined Channel Intelligence in June 2006 as program manager for the client engineering team after working for retail organizations including Blockbuster Online, will serve as vice president of SellCast development, leading ongoing improvements to the company’s SellCast suite of software.

   Florida Hospital and Nicholson Center for Surgical Advancement all mentioned in Orlando Sentinel story about Robotic Surgery. Urologist Vipul Patel, a world-renowned robotic surgeon who is largely responsible for the development of Florida Hospital's robotics program and its Nicholson Center for Surgical Advancement, which focuses on robotic surgery and training.
   Training on the da Vinci system is typically in two parts: Surgeons receive on-site, half-day training by Intuitive Surgical at their hospitals to become familiar with the robot and its instruments. Then they are sent to a two-day surgical-skills training at one of da Vinci's 19 regional training centers, which include Florida Hospital's Nicholson Center at Celebration Health.
   Patel said the center also provides advanced training opportunities. "Our training is individualized; a surgeon could spend a day or a month with us," he said.

UF "Super Incubator" breaks ground

University of Florida and Gainesville leaders broke ground Monday on the Florida Innovation Hub, a business “super incubator” designed to promote the development of new high-tech companies based on UF research. Funded through an $8.2 million grant from the federal Economic Development Administration and $5 million from the university, the 45,000-square-foot facility is the first building in a proposed research park called Innovation Square. The building is scheduled for completion by fall 2011.

    Central Florida's planned high-speed train could create an economic boon worth billions of dollars for the region, according to a study sponsored by an international conglomerate that will bid on building the system, according to an Orlando Sentinel report by Dan Tracy.
    Up to 27,500 jobs would be created and nearly $3 billion worth of new business would occur annually in Orlando if the city is linked with Tampa to the west and Miami to the south by the year 2035, the analysis says. The surrounding area could pick up $1.7 billion each year in economic activity, as well.
     The report, paid for by Siemens, will be released today during a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Oklahoma City. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer will be there and speak about his city's successful efforts to win a high-speed train.

Chamber's Legislative Update Wednesday