Nextronex Energy Systems (NES) has secured $1 million in local investments to finance the production of the company’s new solar inverter manufacturing program in Northwest Ohio.
The company announced the Series A round of financing Nov. 24 with $250,000 investments from Rocket Ventures of the Regional Growth Partnership (RGP) and UT Innovative Enterprise (UTIE) and additional amounts from local angel investment groups.
Additional financing is available from both Rocket Ventures and UTIE if the company meets milestones specified in the agreements.
“Nextronex has developed the most efficient and cost effective solar inverter in the world that will reduce the production costs of generating electricity from solar power,” said Norm Johnston, chairman of the board for Nextronex and director of Ohio Advanced Energy.

U.S. Reps. Bob Latta and Marcy Kaptur congratulate officials from Nextronex on the solar inverter unit.

Nextronex introduced the first solar inverter unit at its manufacturing facility located at Metcalf Field in Millbury where additional units will be produced in early 2010. The company expects to have as many as 100 people working on production, said Jim Olzak, a co-founder of the company with Johnston and director of manufacturing.
The first three units will be installed at the solar field at the Ohio Air National Guard base, Olzak said.
Johnston said the Nextronex inverter is the first new inverter on the market in Ohio and the final piece of equipment to have a complete solar installation made in Ohio.
“We want to go from being the Rust Belt to be the renewable energy center,” Johnston said.
The first unit will be sent to Underwriters Laboratories in New York for certification before they begin production, according to Peter Gerhardinger, chief technology officer of NES. The distributed design of the low-profile cabinet and wiring system will reduce installation costs, harvest more energy under low light levels and run only as needed with multiple units operated by one master control, said Gerhardinger.
“Each unit only runs the equivalent of seven and a half years over 20 years for longer life. If one unit goes down, you can bypass it and never miss a beat,” he said.
The Nextronex inverter system takes DC current from solar panels, inputs it into the core inverter assembly to create commercial quality AC current for electric power grids. The unique design includes an advanced heat extractor that uses natural air to cool it and reduces wiring costs for solar installations by 15 to 17 percent, Gerhardinger said.
One Nextronex inverter will produce 150 kilowatts, so seven units would be required for a megawatt solar field similar to those at the Air National Guard and UT’s Scott Park Campus.
“It looks like we’re going to achieve it with the financial support of RGP, Rocket Ventures, UTIE and other investors. We intend to exceed all expectations,” said Nextronex CEO Norm Rapino.
UTIE is a separate corporation established by UT President Dr. Lloyd Jacobs to support economic development in Northwest Ohio. Jacobs awarded $10 million from various business income sources at UT to the fund which has created an analysis and investment process reviewed by its board, according to Daniel Kory, associate vice president for technology transfer at UT.
“The fund was established to finance businesses with business or research connections at UT and create a strong region for complete photovoltaic development. Its support provides credibility for Nextronex with other investors,” he said.
Kory reported that Nextronex will use $100,000 of its investment to establish production of the inverter units and have the balance of $150,000 available for future needs.
It was the second financial grant to Nextronex from Rocket Ventures, according to Greg Knudson, director of Rocket Ventures and vice president of technology at RGP.
“It legitimizes the entire Nextronex operation for the angel investors,” he said.
The Nextronex project received bipartisan support from Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Toledo) and Rep. Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) who attended the announcement at Nextronex.
“It’s great to be able to build a fully operational solar installation with products made in this region and Ohio,” Kaptur said.
She cited the importance of cooperation among the business community, such as RGP and Rocket Ventures with UT and BGSU to have stronger partnerships to support these kinds of developments.
“We’ve been a leader in alternative energy with cutting edge technology and educated work force here in Northwest Ohio,” Latta said. “The federal government needs to recognize this area for funding thousands of potential jobs in the future here.”
Latta said he saw solar panels made in Northwest Ohio operating in Germany and wants it to happen here to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign energy.
“We’re a region that is moving forward with solar companies in Lucas and Wood County and understand the importance of solar energy for domestic use and exporting to other countries,” Kaptur said.

The Lilly Foundation will donate $2,500 to the Toledo State Hospital Cemetery Reclamation Project in honor of Larry Wanucha.
Wanucha, who has schizophrenia, received second place in the Artistic Contribution from the foundation Oct.16.
“I’m honored and grateful for the award. I’ve worked on recovery for 30 some years and working on my artistic skills has helped with that recovery,” Wanucha said.
The Lilly Reintegration Awards have honored the achievements of those with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder since 1997. Individuals who improve their lives and the lives of their peers are awarded in areas of artistic contributions, mentorship and achievement.
Wanucha received a $2,500 grant for the charity of his choice as a result of the award. In addition, Wanucha received a trophy at the ceremony in Indianapolis.
Peg Morrison, Wanucha’s co-worker and communications and fundraising manager for Neighborhood Properties, nominated Wanucha for the award.
“I heard about the awards and read the description and it had Larry written all over,” Morrison said.  “Living with the disease, have used a talent to further their own recover and help other people in recovery — that’s just Larry to a ‘T.’”
Wanucha is a social worker and artist who successfully manages his schizophrenia with medication and treatment. Wanucha is employed as a housing support specialist at Neighborhood Properties Inc, a nonprofit focused on ending homelessness for individuals with mental illness and addiction.
The prize money will help build a granite monument for the Toledo State Hospital Cemetery Reclamation Project, Wanucha said.
Wanucha started the local movement to honor those buried in the numbered graves of the Toledo State Hospital.
“I heard about other projects around the country and wanted to honor and restore dignity for those people who were buried at Toledo State Hospital and forgotten about,” Wanucha said. “I have a strong bond with the people of the cemetery because we share the mental illness, but I was lucky enough to be born in a time of medication. I was able to realize my hopes and dreams because there was treatment available to me that wasn’t available to those individuals.”
The reclamation project has been working alongside UT to provide a long-term memorial site for the two Toledo State Hospital cemeteries. The old cemetery, with burials from 1888 to 1922, is located behind Bowsher. The new cemetery, with burials from 1923 to 1973, is located on the UT Medical Science campus.
The project has been working to restore the 2,000 cement markers that are buried under ground and make sure they are visible from above ground. The makers have numbers that correspond with a log at the hospital that lists demographics and other information for the individual buried there, Wanucha said.
For more information about the awards, visit www.reintegration.com. For more information about the reclamation project, visit www.toledostatehospitalcemetery.org.

A former UT dean has threatened Glass City Jungle operator and Toledo Free Press fact checker Lisa Renee Ward with legal action and is accusing her of racial bias.
Eric Yueh-Ting Lee, former dean of UTs College of Arts and Sciences, said he would seek legal action if Ward did not remove a blog posting about him by Thanksgiving. He said he believes the posting would have been removed if he were white.
Yueh-Ting Lee claims Ward’s July 16, 2008 positing, “Dean Yueh-Ting Lee resigns from his post,” has had a negative impact on his career.
In an e-mail to Ward, Yueh-Ting Lee said, “I believe that the Web blog you presented or managed in July 2008 is related to libels and slanders, racial biases, or it is at least very partial. It had produced a negative impact on me and my career. The media which White people control only displayed negative information about me as a minority and ignored the racial discrimination against me by working with UT to hide racial discrimination [sic].”
The blog was posted the day after Yueh-Ting Lee resigned from his position on July 15, 2008, and links to stories from Inside Higher Ed and Toledo Free Press.
Yeuh-Ting Lee referred requests for comment to his lawyer, Kevin Greenfield, who was unavailable at press time.
Ward said she would not remove the posting from her site.
“I do not remove news material,” she said. “I do remove content if someone violates the rules of the blog but none of the content specific to him met that criteria. If anything, the material I posted showed he was treated unfairly by the university and was forced to resign. There was no mention in either the blog post or any links to his ethnicity being an issue. I’m sorry he’s having problems with perspective employers.”
Yueh-Ting Lee contributed a 2008 guest column to Toledo Free Press that was found to contain unattributed passages.

Having read Michael S. Miller’s Nov. 15 column, “A Toledo Christmas Carol,” I suddenly realized that Christmas was only weeks away and it might be time I penned my own holiday message to Toledo.
I considered in passing my resemblance to Santa Claus (who, I am told, does not in fact smoke cigars, but has been known to indulge in a pipe on occasion), and hoped I might be able to capture some of the spirit of the season because of this. I thought if perhaps I dug down deep in my heart, I might come up with something equally intelligent, erudite and inspiring for the readership of Toledo Free Press. It was then unfortunately, that I realized that I was still an evil Conservative, and therefore apparently without the required circulatory organ in question. As a consequence, this is the best that I can offer; for it will be a difficult Christmas for Toledo in 2009 …
The ghosts of Christmas past have laid a heavy burden on those of us left in “the good old city” today. Much like the main character in the original “The Christmas Carol,” so ably parodied by Miller, Toledo has led far too many years of a life that was less than exemplary; and has begun to reap the rewards of the high taxes, mounting debt and limited resources of that past.
So too do the chains of our past misdeeds, like those of Jacob Marley, bow our backs. Poor city contracts with its unions, profligate spending on decorations and investment in real estate that has proved ill-advised at best and borderline criminal at worst continue to weigh down the city. These chains may yet be broken, but it will not be done without pain.
Our ghosts of Christmas present are unsure. Far from the Scrooge-like tactics of the Dickens tale, however, we appear today to be living in an age where giving to those with less has gone beyond the bounds of good judgment and become almost a government obsession. No longer content with the concept of charity, performed willingly by many and accepted grudgingly by those most in need, we have instead a mandated tithe, extorted at the point of a gun from a working class grown increasingly weary and angry over the process and redistributed to a burgeoning “Oliver Twist” entitlement group, growing at an alarming rate and demanding ever more.
Toledo finds itself with a so-called “balanced budget” that still curiously shows millions in the red. Questionable accounting and even more questionable revenue sources leave little for our leaders to work with than a document more fictional than the Dickens classic itself.
Whether the future is to shine more brightly, however, is up to recently elected leaders who will decide upon either a new path or more of the same. Shall we remain alone, eating a cold and bitter gruel full of increasing taxes, unneeded regulations and unnecessary spending; or shall we accept our nephew’s invitation to dinner and the company of neighbors who see us at present as little more than evil and untrustworthy.
As for the ghost of Christmas yet to come… there is much to be hopeful for as we follow the dread figure pointing to our possible fate. A new mayor, a new face in city council, and yes, even a new dog warden may help to rewrite some of the evil markings on the stone that destiny points to. This year, there are not only Christmas parties, but tea parties, where those of good faith and sound judgment seek actively to write a new future upon the sins of our past and present.
The ghosts of Christmas past, present and future provide a warning and an opportunity. Let us hope that, like Scrooge, we have the ability to heed the warning and accept the opportunity presented gratefully. Let us hope we are willing to change and like him be as good as our word. Let us hope that it be may be said of us as Dickens did of Scrooge: “… that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, ‘God Bless Us, Every One!’”
This not-so-tiny Tim couldn’t agree more …

Tim Higgins blogs at http://justblowingsmoke.blogspot.com/.

As the endless stream of economic data continues to flow, let’s review our calendar of economic and monetary events.

Over recent weeks we have heard arguments back and forth by bankers, economists, et al, all weighing in on the inflation/deflation debate. Much of the disagreement in the inflation/deflation debate can be traced back to varying definitions and underlying assumptions. As a prime example, we have seen commentators bounce back and forth with regard to how they define inflation, as well as how they measure it.

After hearing references to everything from money supply growth and CPI to foreign exchange, we consider it of utmost importance that all commentators work from the same textbook. Without going into excessive detail, let us say that our definitions, which have remained consistent, are the following:

Inflation: a monetary event consisting of an increase in money supply in excess of growth in GDP over the same period.

Deflation: a decrease in the money supply circulating through the American economy that is not due to the destruction of wealth

Price inflation: measured by CPI, a symptom of monetary inflation that might also be due simply to supply and demand

Debt deflation: a loss of value on an asset that serves as collateral for a loan that leads to losses on the part both the bank and the creditor, who now has negative equity

In the near-term we still consider deflation to be a substantial threat to the global economy. We are particularly concerned with the prospects a second wave of debt deflation, spurred by another surge in real estate defaults, this time in commercial properties.

What’s more, with troubles in commercial real estate rapidly approaching, housing is still hardly out of the woods. With nearly 15% of Americans are behind on their mortgages (Mortgage Loans: Record number are late, CNNMoney.com), 23% are underwater on their homes (now having negative equity) (The Negative Equity Report, First American CoreLogic), and 7 months of inventory is sitting on the market (October 2009 Existing Homes Sales, Bloomberg), it seems hardly likely that housing will be returning to its glory days anytime soon.

As a brief side-note, after watching the activity of the Treasury and Federal Reserve for months and wondering why they continued to let banks hoard cash in excess reserves, be believe that we have finally found an answer in this theory.

We now believe that the Fed and the Treasury are both aware of the coming problems in commercial real estate, and they are allowing, nay encouraging banks to stockpile massive reserves – rather an extend credit to individuals and businesses – in order to cushion their books for a coming wave of write-downs in commercial real estate.

We find support for our hypothesis of coming debt deflation not only in bank losses/write-downs, money supply growth numbers, and a still-decreasing demand for consumer credit, both new and outstanding, but also in price indicators which typically measure the symptoms of inflation, namely CPI and PPI.

Consumer Prices as a whole are down from this time last year (CPI, St. Louis Fed), and since stopping their decline a major portion of increases in prices can be accounted for by increased energy costs that are more a function of a weaker dollar in foreign exchange – remember, oil is priced in dollars – than inflation.

In the longer-term we consider inflation to be a substantial threat to the global economy, particularly in the United States. Remember that an incredible amount of money was created out of thin air by massive government bailouts, and in all likelihood will continue as a result of quantitative easing.

That new money is presently creating a bubble in stocks and commodities that is being perceived by many economists as inflation. They’re wrong; the real inflation, an increase in money supply beyond growth in GDP, occurred with the expansion of money supply over the past decade, culminating with the government bailouts. “Inflation,” as defined by increasing prices and a currency declining in value, won’t occur until all this new money makes its way into the economy.

Inflation ultimately will become an issue. The government can’t double the monetary base without consequence (St. Louis Adjusted Monetary Base, St. Louis Fed). However, price inflation will not become a real factor until a true economic recovery begins.

This recovery will be characterized by the free flow and expansion of credit, otherwise known as an increase in velocity, which is thus far still contracting as the US savings rate climbs. Once velocity does pick up and the real recovery starts, inflation will be a major concern. However, it will be characterized not only by an increase in prices, but also in wages.

Remember: even Zimbabwe, with its recent run of hyperinflation that left its dollar worthless, experienced wage inflation along the way. Wage inflation is something that this country is, in our opinion, far from experiencing.

At this point unemployment is too high, too long, and still growing for there to be any kind of significant economic recovery. In our opinion, seldom are jobless recoveries are the real thing. This is evidenced by recent reports, durable goods among others.

It’s important to remember that the stimulus plans that were passed were never meant to foster an economic recovery, just to give the banks the keys to the Treasury. This administration, in the words of Hilary Clinton, does not want to waste a good crisis. The problem is that the crisis has gotten way out of hand, and the administration’s total lack of understanding of economics is becoming well-known.

At some point we as a country have to get beyond this crisis. If this administration doesn’t get us past it, rest assured that the next one will. What we desperately need is to find a sector that can provide the kind of jobs needed to pull us out. Unfortunately, we can safely say that the sector to lead this recovery will not be auto (which led in the 1980s), housing (as it did earlier this decade), tech (1990s), or green jobs, especially after everything that is now coming out about the Hadley Institute.

In our opinion, the only two sectors that might foster the kind of job growth that is required in an economic recovery could be energy (of all types, not just “green”), which also led a recovery in the 1980s, or possibly manufacturing (which led almost every economic recovery before 1980), if the recent trend continues of bringing back these kinds of jobs from overseas.

One major problem is manufacturing coming back to this country is that it is a long process. It took years for manufacturing to move abroad as outsourcing became popular. To bring it back requires massive investments in facilities, commercial processes, etc.

However, an even bigger obstacle standing in the way of creating both energy and manufacturing jobs is government. In order to encourage the kind of investment that is needed to create jobs, encouragement is required in the form of both deregulation and tax incentives. However, neither of those, much less job creation in any form, is on this administration’s agenda.

Dock David Treece is a stockbroker licensed with FINRA. He works for Treece Financial Services Corp., www.TreeceInvestments.com. The above information is the express opinion of Dock David Treece and should not be used without outside verification.

• Buzz: Quiz World. Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment. Available for: Playstation 3. Price: $59.99 for full bundle with controllers, $39.99 for game alone
• Scene It?: Bright Lights, Big Screen. Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Available for: Playstation 3, Wii and Xbox 360. Price: $39.99

Many products are competing for consumers’ hard-earned cash this holiday season. And while those looking for an action/adventure video game have Halo 3: ODST, Uncharted 2 or Super Mario Bros. Wii to lure their gaze, people looking for a more social experience have a couple of new trivia/party games aimed their way — Buzz! Quiz World for the Playstation 3 and Scene It?: Bright Lights, Big Screen for all major consoles.

In order to give these two games a proper test run, I played them with my good friend Jodie Hanf, a fellow quiz game enthusiast who I have faced many times, and who has beaten me more often than I care to admit. We’d played previous editions of both these games before, and now we faced off to determine trivia superiority — and not just between the two games.

We began with Buzz! Quiz World, a Playstation 3 exclusive. The Buzz! Series, a high-energy game show simulator starring an outspoken host that Jodie referred to as “a cartoon Greg Proops,” has been around for years. With the new game, the franchise takes some major steps in presentation and design. “I liked the fact that Buzz! actually looked like a game show — you had an audience, you had a host, you had a stage,” Jodie said.

Among the new elements we noticed immediately was the ability to give your character an actual name that Buzz would call out during play. But here, we ran into some surprising limitations — “Jeff” was there, but despite a large selection to choose from, “Jodie” wasn’t available. She finally settled on a nickname —Sparky.

“‘Sparky’ is in there, but not ‘Jodie?’” she asked, not unreasonably.

When we got into the teeth of the actual game play, though, we had a blast. Buzz! has always been a fun game, and this new edition adds some tweaks to the formula, both major and minor, that improve the whole experience. The sheer number of game play modes is very impressive, the included wireless controllers work great, and setting up a game is easy. There’s a much greater variety of rounds during play, and they’re randomized better so it doesn’t feel like the same thing over and over again.

During our first game, Jodie and I went down to the wire with a close and exciting contest. We actually ended the final round in a dead heat, leading to a final tiebreaker question — which Jodie answered first. Arrgh! Undone by my nemesis yet again! No matter, I thought, I’ll get back at her in our second game of Buzz! Except I didn’t, as she won again. D’oh.

No matter, I had a chance to redeem myself with Scene It?: Bright Lights, Big Screen. This is the third in a series of video games adapting the popular board game to a console, though the first two were exclusive to the Xbox 360. Now, Scene It? has expanded to all major consoles, and the version we were playing was also on my Playstation 3.

Whereas the original Scene It? included buzz-in controllers, none came with this PS3 version. One can either play with your standard controller or, if you have them, the Buzz controllers. Unfortunately, problems arise no matter which is chosen, thanks to some odd design elements. Scene It’s interface also features bland backgrounds and characters —no names at all, here.

Setting up a game is less-than-intuitive as well, and there are a depressingly small number of play options, especially compared to Quiz World. Scene It? also can repeat questions a surprising amount. But the game play itself is still fairly fun, and there are a number of categories so it never feels too repetitive. “I do like the types of games in the Scene It? series,” Jodie said. “Whereas in Buzz there (are games like) hot potato, which I find just aggravating.”

Scene It?’s case is not bolstered by its host, an annoying “director” who introduces each category. While Buzz’s host can be annoying, more often than not he’s entertaining, while Scene It?’s host elicited just one laugh in the two games we played. Luckily, you can turn the director off, though that sometimes leaves you guessing as to how to play a particular category.

In the end, though, not even poor design and a maddening host could keep Jodie from once again thrashing me. She triumphed in both games we played of Bright Lights, Big Screen, though her victory was tempered by how disappointed she was in the gaming experience.

“(Scene It?) seems very cold and very disconnected from what it used to feel like playing,” said Jodie, a big fan of the previous games. “This felt very thrown together.”

“I noticed that with Buzz you can have a lot more players than I thought (up to eight), whereas with Scene It? you can have only four,” Jodie said. She also brought up Buzz!’s wider variety of questions. “I think you can have a lot more people, and not just the number of people, play Buzz…Grandma might be able to play Buzz, even though she might not be able to play Scene It?, since she might not watch a lot of movies.”

These issues don’t even take into account other factors, like the online component available in Buzz!, which not only allows you to play with numerous gamers all over the world, but also to make and share your own quizzes. None of this is available in Scene It?, making it look like an even more inferior product.

When I asked which one she preferred, Jodie quickly responded, “Between those two, Buzz. Which, honestly, having only played the original Scene It? and the original Buzz!, I would have said Scene It?, but between these two, I really did not like the structure and the interface of the new Scene It? on this.”

So we both offered the same recommendation — if you have a Playstation 3, Buzz! Quiz World is definitely the superior product. If you only have a 360, the original Scene It? games are still available, and are pretty cheap if you buy them used. Buying either of them is definitely a better option than the disappointing Bright Lights, Big Screen.

And as far as our competition, all I can say is, I’ll be back, Hanf! You haven’t heard the last of me! (Insert evil cackle here.)

Jerry Jaffe, known to many wrestling fans as Dr. Jerry Graham Jr. has never looked back with regrets wishing things were different. The 62 year old, father of three, who’s celebrating his 42nd wedding anniversary, is also doing something he did not anticipate, returning to the wrestling ring for one last match after a ten year retirement.

Sunday, November 29th, Dr. Jerry Graham will enter the ring as a part of a three man tag team match facing a man who has recently become a nemesis, a man only known by the name Pastor Pain. Pain manages a wrestling duo called The Kentucky Wrecking Crew which has targeted Graham because of his relationship with the wrestling duo of Full Force made up of Bobo Brazil Jr. and Flying Andy Chene.

Growing up in Toledo, Graham dreamed of being a wrestler and attended many of the wrestling events held at the Sports Arena. “After I got out of the army I happened to meet Martino Angelo, there were wrestling schools, but with Angelo, I had one on one training,” said Graham via phone.

As a part of his training Graham started referring matches, he eventually started wrestling with one of his most notable early matches being one where he took on a full grown black bear. While Graham was only slightly injured with scratches, he stated that the bear had actually killed someone after he had faced the bear twice.

Graham was a world tag team winner several times in his WWA career, most often partnered with Bulldog Don Kent. “I went all over the world, to Kuwait, to Austria, got a chance to travel and see things I never thought possible,” Graham stated. He always returned to the Toledo area, living here for most of his childhood and adult life with his wife and his three sons.

After being retired for ten years, what brought Graham back in? “I’m like Al Pacino in the third Godfather, I got sucked back in,” Graham joked. “I started out as an advisor when WWA in Fort Wayne asked for my help in starting holding the wrestling matches at Sommerset Hall in Toledo several months ago.” Graham said this group was not one of those “schlock groups” out there that it was a professionally run market with some real wrestling talent.

“One thing led to another, then I got Full Force to team up again, I had managed Bobo Brazil Jr.and Andy Chene before I retired, and by the second match at Sommerset they were a team again,” said Graham. This is what led to the ring encounters with Pastor Pain and the Kentucky Wrecking Crew.

After several attacks, the most recent episode where Graham was handcuffed to the top of the ring and beaten by Pastor Pain and the Kentucky Wrecking Crew, Graham said it was this “unconscionable act” that made him decide to wrestle this one time. Graham stressed this was a “one time only” event, whether he wins or loses. “Since this is my last match I’m going to do whatever I have to, to get my pound of flesh,” Graham stated.

“I have no illusions of grandeur, I have been retired for over ten years, and with the rules of this match, having Pastor Pain and I in the ring for the first two minutes without being able to tag; I think I can take Pastor Pain as long as the Kentucky Wrecking Crew doesn’t interfere,” Graham said, then continued, “Two minutes may seem short to some people, but in the ring? That’s a long time.”

For more information on this upcoming match, visit www.wwasuperstarwrestling.com.