TechTown firms are beginning to become regular recipients of microloans from the Michigan Microloan Fund. The Ellison Corp. received one of the most recent loans announced last week.
Four firms received a total $122,000 in the latest round of microloans, which are low-interest loans that help finance growth for new economy startups. The other firms include Ann Arbor-based
Akervall Technologies,
Blaze Medical Devices and Waste Water Heat Transfers Systems.
TechTown-based Ellison Corp. creates safety devices for roadways, such as a traffic signal that has side-mounted lights to warn drivers that emergency vehicles are approaching.
Ellison Corp. plans to use the five-figure loan -- the specific amount for each firm is not released -- to help create product prototypes and perfect the engineering for the lights and the solar panels that go with them. The 3-year-old firm has not been able to receive loans to reach this milestone from local finance sources, such as banks or credit unions. "Getting that money was huge," says Aaron Ellison, founder of Ellison Corp.
The state created the
Michigan Microloan Fund last year to help provide this financing to growing startups. The $1.2 million fund, which is run by
Ann Arbor SPARK, has made dozens of loans to small businesses creating jobs rooted in the new economy. Its success has helped inspire the creation of similar microloan funds across Metro Detroit, including the
First Step Fund in TechTown and others in Oakland County and the
OU INCubator.
Source: Ann Arbor SPARK and Aaron Ellison, founder of Ellison Corp
Writer: Jon Zemke
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