IronClads: Wisconsin entrepreneur Hobbins awarded 2010 ‘Innovation Champion’ award

Entrepreneur Ben Hobbins has been selected to receive one of Wisconsin’s most coveted awards for entrepreneurship, a 2010 ‘’Innovation Champion’’ award, presented by WISC -Wisconsin Innovation Service Center, UW EX, DEED, and Wisconsin Small Business Development Centers. Each year, WISC selects individuals and organizations for this award in recognition of ‘’work in advancing entrepreneurship in Wisconsin and its positive effect on our community.’’

“I am honored to receive this award from WISC and such great organizations,’’ says Hobbins. ‘’In very difficult economic times, challenges present themselves on a daily basis for start up companies. It is so important in reaching goals that entrepreneurs stay the course in the hardest of times, continue development and retain solid partner backing.’’ In 2009, Hobbins was tagged national prominence, selected as a ‘’Popular Science TOP 10 Inventor’’. With a circulation of over seven million readers worldwide, his IronClads™ technologies was featured in Pop Sci’s June ‘’Inventions Issue’’ for one of the 10 inventions that “best represent the spirit of homegrown ingenuity and solve real-world problems in a practical and innovative way.” Hobbins’ Wisconsin invention was showcased alongside nine other groundbreaking inventions, including projects developed with leading US business and other leading engineering schools -such as MIT and others.

Hobbins entered his IronClads™ technologies project in the Governor’s Business Plan contest in 2007, along with a K-12 entrepreneurship education project called the American and Wisconsin Youth Entrepreneurs Network. The IronClads™ project finished in the TOP 10 for Advanced Mfring and its new composite technologies continue to win awards around the globe. The American and WYEN K-12 entrepreneurship education project went mainstream early this year at a Capitol reception presided over by UW EX Chancellor David Wilson, Aaron Olver, Secretary of WI Commerce, and UW EX-DEED officials. Hobbins’ far-reaching K-12 project has been in active development since 2006 in cooperation with UW EX, DEED, SBDC, Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Network, DPI, and many other very key inaugural partners, sponsors, resources and assets.

“The Innovation Champion award significantly enhances industry acclaim for hard work, patent pending technologies, product reputation and adds value for company shareholders, even in hard times’’ adds Hobbins, “that’s what it is all about.’’

Hobbins attributes much of his project’s initial development success to the University of Wisconsin-Madison Business School, UW Engineering’s Polymer Engineering Center led by Tim Osswald, WISC for vital New Product Assessments, UW Extension, DEED, SBA and the State SBDC network with providing the IronClads™ project key resources and expertise.

‘’Without them, I would have struggled to get the IronClads™ project moving. I owe Wisconsin, which strongly supports entrepreneurship, technology development and invention, much credit for the success of my project.’’

Hobbins is conducting a workshop at the Ideas to Profits Conference September 30th in the Wisconsin Dells called, “From Idea to Top 10 Invention©’’ (©January 2010 Ben Hobbins). More information on this conference can be found at http://www.ideas2profits.org. Last year Hobbins was the conference’s ‘’Featured Inventor’’.

Media Contact: Ben Hobbins 608-513-3535 // jbhobbins@yahoo.com // http://www.buyironclads.com

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