Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com April 27, 2015 • Worcester Business Journal 7 Minute Pitch Contest, with the pro- ducer of a "smart pancreas" taking home $3,500 in prizes. Admetsys, of Boston, won both the $2,500 first prize and the $1,000 Audience Choice Award at the forum's ninth annual contest, according to a statement from the orga- nization. Admetsys won for a product that automates glucose and insulin delivery to hospitalized diabetic patients. It expects to improve the eco- nomics of health care by addressing the nation's diabetes epidemic. VitaThreads, a company founded by WPI professors which makes rapidly absorbent sutures, took the $1,500 second prize, and Articulate Labs won special mention from the judges for an orthopedic device that speeds recovery from knee surgery. WORCESTER — The Charitable Foundation of Bay State Savings Bank has awarded $16,000 in grants to nine local nonprofits: Abby Kelley Foster House in Worcester; Dismas House of Worcester and Oakham; 15-40 Connection, based in Westborough; Genesis Club House of Worcester; Girls Incorporated of Worcester; Massachusetts Symphony Orchestra, based in Worcester; Mohegan Council, Boy Scouts of America in Worcester; Pernet Family Health Service of Worcester; and You Inc. of Worcester. FRAMINGHAM — HeartWare International has received Canadian approval to market an implanted heart device in that country. The product, the Ventricular Assist System, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2012. It's implanted as a bridge to heart transplant surgeries in patients with end-state heart failure. The product features a small, full-sup- port circulatory assist pumping device designed to be implanted next to the heart, allowing the patient to avoid the abdominal surgery generally required to install competing devices, HeartWare said. BOYLSTON — A garden accessible to people with mobility issues will be ready this summer at Tower Hill Botanic Garden. The Garden Within Reach "continues the organization's long tradition of bringing people and plants closer together," Tower Hill said in a statement. The inclusive garden was designed by a New York- and Los Angeles-based architectural firm and is being built by Lauring Construction of Worcester. Tower Hill said the garden will be New England's largest built on the principles of "universal design," an architectural strategy that allows for equal access for all ranges of mobility. The three big rating agencies have affirmed the state's bond ratings and a "stable" economic outlook for Massachusetts, according to state Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, who met with representatives of Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch with Gov. Charlie Baker and House and Senate leaders. Goldberg announced that the bond ratings, which influence the cost of borrowing, were affirmed at Aa1, AA+ and AA+, respectively, by the three agencies ahead of the next com- petitive bond offering. The bond rat- ings have remained unchanged, one notch below the top AAA rating, since September 2011, when it was upgraded by Standard & Poor's. (State House News Service) Massachusetts' unemployment rate continues to fall, reaching its lowest point in about seven years last month, according to preliminary estimates from the Baker administration. March's 4.8-percent unemployment rate is a decline of 0.1 percentage points from February's rate of 4.9 percent, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) reported. And it was the lowest rate in Massachusetts since 4.8 percent in February 2008, prior to the beginning of the recessionary impact on employ- ment. The March rate also represents a 1.1-percent drop from March 2014 unemployment rate of 5.9 percent. Massachusetts has an estimated 3,963 "middle-market" companies, mak- ing up 1 percent of overall businesses in the state, according to a new report. The report, "Middle Market Power Index" from American Express and Dun & Bradstreet, ranks Massachusetts fourth among the states in its share of firms in the middle market. Middle- market enterprises are defined as gen- erating between $10 million and $1 billion in annual revenue. The report's statistics also show that middle-market firms, though relatively small in num- ber, are making "an outsized contribu- tion across industries." Nationally, the report said, there are more than 136,000 middle-market firms, which employ, on average, 368 workers. !e New England housing market has begun to gain traction as the re- gion entered spring, with a year-over- year increase in pending home sales in March, according to the Massa- chusetts Association of Realtors. !e 4,836 pending single-family home sales — those under agreement to be sold — represent a 14.4-percent gain from March 2014, while the median price rose 1.9 percent, to $320,000. !e pending sales numbers and prices represent a continued upswing from February, when 3,066 sales were pend- ing at a median price of $317,500. Q Introducing an ALL NEW Business Expo This year we went back to the drawing board We've developed an exciting new plan for this year's EXPO! It's conference and exhibitor format is more focused with a tight schedule and new energy to bring increased attendance. Find out more by calling the Chamber today at 508-753-2924 or by visiting our web site www.worcesterchamber.org. For 27 years we've brought together the region's business community at the largest trade show and networking event of the year. But a rich history is no guarantee of future success. For the last couple years, and attendance at the show has frankly been disappointing. We asked ourselves, our members and our exhibitors – should the show go on? !e answer was YES – with a new focus, a new energy, a new commitment to programming and in a dynamic and di"erent way for 2015. • A whole new facility layout on the third floor of the DCU Center • Reduced booth cost, reduced hours • A big increase in educational programming Welcome to the ALL NEW Business Expo Presenting sponsors REGIONAL BRIEFS

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