AquaShield, Inc.

When the Tennessee Valley was first settled, the Tennessee River was the artery of commerce, abounding with boats carrying necessary resources to and from the area. As trains, planes, and vehicles gradually replaced river cargo and passenger transportation, waterways no longer carried such heavy volumes of traffic. Increasingly, the rivers became burdened with waste from surrounding communities. AquaShield, Inc. is doing something to protect that priceless natural resource. “As the city of Chattanooga grows, our waterways are falling victim to people and pollution,” says Kelly Williamson, president and owner of AquaShield. “In response, AquaShield offers products that allow growth while providing good environmental stewardship.” AquaShield produces storm water drainage systems that prevent everything from bulky trash to microscopic hazardous chemicals from infiltrating rivers and lakes around the world.

A Cleansing Innovation
The goal of AquaShield is to meet customers’ needs and stay ahead of the competition in an environmentally friendly manner. Whereas most of AquaShield’s competitors (a handful of companies scattered across the United States) house their filters in concrete, AquaShield uses recycled high-density polyethylene, which keeps the systems’ weights at a minimum, making them easy to transport and install. There are no moving parts to the various products, and once sediment and debris are caught in the filters, they stay there—even in overflow situations.

AquaShield’s product line consists of three solutions for treating storm water.

Aqua-Guard™ is inserted beneath the grates of standard street-side drains and catches 90–98 percent of dissolved petroleum and oils, along with various other chemicals and metals.

Aqua-Filter™ helps water meet or exceed water quality treatment criteria by running all storm water through a unique “treatment train” made of several filter media.

Aqua-Swirl™ is the first stop in the treatment train that can work as a stand-alone system, trapping floatable debris and other large contaminants.

Like City, Like Company
The innovative filtration system at AquaShield was created in the mid-1990s and has been developed and refined ever since. Installed everywhere from North Georgia to Hawaii to Korea, AquaShield products are customized so that clients receive exactly what they need.

“We’re proud to be in Chattanooga and to watch the city grow and develop,” says Williamson. “AquaShield is a progressive company located in a progressive town.”

Microwave Technologies, Inc. High-Tech Meltdown in Chattanooga and Beyond When you think of the word “microwave”, you probably think about the last dish you cooked in your home or at work. But for one man, the electromagnetic radio waves that make your microwave function brought visions for uses above and beyond preparing meals and snacks. Stan Morrow, president of Microwave Technology, Inc., was working with ceramics and microwave technology for a company in Oak Ridge when he decided to quit and become an entrepreneur with innovations of  his own to employ in the field. “I knew I was going to bring the technology to Chattanooga because it’s such a great city,” he says of the company he started in October 2003.

A New Wave in Business
One of the major innovations  from Morrow’s work is a method of melting metals using microwave energy (radio waves) to create purer alloys, which are mixtures of metals and potentially other substances to give hardness or other desired qualities.

The original metals are contained in a ceramic, heat-resistant vessel where they are heated to high temperatures using microwave energy. This process uses much less energy and is faster and safer than traditional heating and melting to make alloys. It’s also making a significant impact on the foundry industry and may potentially be used to make better alloys in automobiles.

“We’re actually developing applications for specific sectors,” Morrow says. “We’re selling the developing processes and equipment as well as the ceramics and ceramic technologies that allow you to use these technologies.”

In addition, Microwave Technology is working with federal agencies and is looking to commercialize its services, demonstrating the advantages they offer private sector businesses.

Future Fortunes in Innovation
“Being the developer of this technology and seeing the wide variety of applications that it yields has inspired me,” says Morrow. “I have redeveloped it some since the company began, and I think the future looks promising. I see us growing to a point where we’re sublicensing our technology and contracting companies for specific applications in addition to delving into greater research and development. Perhaps we’ll even establish satellite operations around the country.”

With so much growth on the horizon for Microwave Technology, Morrow is excited about being in Chattanooga—and staying here.

“I’ve gotten so much support from the Chamber, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and the community,” he says. “Since we started the company, everything has moved so quickly. It’s amazing how much we’ve grown. We’re proud to be based in Chattanooga and really want to keep our headquarters here.”

Smart Furniture, LLC “Mass Customization” Goes Online A love of Legos led Stephen Culp to create modular shelving so popular that its space-saving creativity was touted in the June 2004 issue of O: The Oprah Magazine, while ABC featured the patented interlocking units on its hit show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. And Culp’s Chattanooga-based business, Smart Furniture LLC, is only three years old. Building Blocks for Innovation The idea for ready-made modular systems came to Culp

during law school at Stanford University. “Combine the creative environment of Silicon Valley with the stifling analytics of law school, and a good idea can pop up in a daydream,” says Culp, who entered and earned notice for his Smart Furniture system in the Stanford Entrepreneurial Challenge. “I saw a need for this product in the workplace, home, and retail markets,” he says.

The Smart Furniture system includes 10 basic components that users can connect and stack without tools, building bookcases, retail spaces, and other space-saving solutions. Customers can visit the company’s Web site at www.SmartFurniture.com to access the Smart Designer and create and play with designs at their leisure. It’s like giving customers their own set of Legos. However, while the operation is based almost solely on Internet sales, the customer receives ample support. 

“We’re empowering the customers to design what they want, when they want, but we’re available to answer any questions or provide any assistance that is needed,” Culp explains. The company offers Design While You Watch, which provides customers with a live link to watch on their computers while the designer creates a customized unit to meet their needs. “The positive feedback we get from our customers tells us they appreciate the interface,” he says.

A Setting for Success
Although the idea for Smart Furniture was planted in the Silicon Valley, it was cultivated in the Tennessee Valley. 

“I wanted to launch and refine the company in Chattanooga,” Culp says. “I have family here, and I was looking for a place that appreciates and nurtures small businesses. Chattanooga definitely has an entrepreneurial spirit. If innovation happens here, it’s considered important and is embraced. I intend to stay in the area and grow my company.”

With products now sold in all 50 states and Canada, Smart Furniture recently negotiated a significant venture capital investment that Culp anticipates will further fuel the company’s growth.