[news 2011-2012]

PARTEQ appoints first Entrepreneur in Residence and appoints Manager, Commercial Development

For immediate release

Dec. 12, 2011

PARTEQ Innovations is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Roger Bowes as its first Entrepreneur in Residence. The new position fills a growing need at PARTEQ for experienced entrepreneurs to help manage and mentor early stage startup companies and innovators, says John Molloy, President and CEO.

“We’ve been very successful at creating companies over the past quarter-century, but the addition of several new startups, and the rapid pace of growth in existing companies, has shown us the value of having a startup veteran on staff to help these companies grow,” he says.

Mr. Bowes comes to PARTEQ from a career spent growing ESG Solutions Inc., a Kingston-based global company specializing in microseismic monitoring and analytical technologies. A graduate of Queen’s in electrical engineering, in 1994 he parlayed his post-degree work in a Queen’s seismic research lab into an engineering role in the early stages of ESG and became a shareholder. At the company, he designed and built proprietary sensors and electronic data collection equipment while taking on increasingly senior management roles and earning his Professional Engineering designation. He became CEO in 2004 and over the next six years he led the company through a period of exponential growth, tripling its staff, achieving ISO certification, expanding into new international markets and setting up offices in Calgary, the U.S. and China.

“Roger’s experience is textbook ‘bootstrapping,’ Mr. Molloy says. “As a local entrepreneur he brings to PARTEQ a valuable toolbox of insights and lessons learned, and as an alumnus he has much in common with our researchers and innovators. He is the first of what we hope will become a large roster of local entrepreneurs and Queen’s ‘alumpreneurs’ who are willing to share their knowledge with the next generation of PARTEQ-nurtured innovators.”

PARTEQ is also pleased to announce Mr. Ramzi Asfour as Manager of Commercial Development, Engineering and IT.

Mr. Asfour is a mechanical engineer with product engineering experience in the high tech, aerospace and automotive industries. He will undertake all aspects of commercial evaluation and development of discoveries arising from research at the institutions to which PARTEQ provides services.

While pursuing his MBA at Queen’s he also worked with Queen’s School of Business, where he managed the Tricolour Fund, a training venture fund for Queen’s Commerce and MBA students. He was also project manager of the Dare to Dream entrepreneurship program, supervising and mentoring student entrepreneurs, and he was operations manager at the Business Career Centre, where he was responsible for developing and implementing data collection and reporting systems.

Prior to coming to Kingston he worked in mechanical design and process engineering in the fibre optic devices, aerospace and automotive industries.

Mr. Asfour is a graduate of the University of Waterloo (BSc Engineering) and Queen’s University (MBA).

Contact:

John Molloy

President & CEO

PARTEQ Innovations

P: 613. 533. 2342

E: jmolloy@parteqinnovations.co

About PARTEQ Innovations:

PARTEQ Innovations is the not-for-profit technology transfer office of Queen’s University, part of the Rideau Commercialization Network. PARTEQ works with institutional researchers and the business and venture capital communities to bring early stage technologies to market. Since 1987 PARTEQ has been instrumental in the establishment of 45 companies developing a variety of products, from potential drugs for Alzheimer’s, cancer and heart disease to automated bacteria detection for water systems, solar-powered appliances, and advanced materials used in the plastics, automotive, aerospace and household appliance industries.