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Animated startup foresees big growth in life sciences: Company produces 3-D graphics with young talent

Harlon Wilson and Kurtis Rush originally intended their Indianapolis-based upstart business to provide 3-D animation for use in court cases. But if they had stuck to that business plan, Medical Animatics Inc. could not have produced the video to the hilarious “Urine Stream,” a song parody of Abba’s “Dancing Queen.” Here’s a sample of the chorus: So when you get the chance, undo your pants … And make a urine stream, gold and clean, oh it’s such a dream. Urine…

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NOTIONS: Hailing the hare in the land of the tepid tortoise

I was going to play smart aleck this week. I was going to write in hick dialect. I was going to lambaste us Hoosiers over our stubborn adherence to the status quo, our penchant to take things slow, our preference for partisanship, our pooh-poohing of progress and our bull-headed gumption to go it alone in a global economy. Then news broke that Indiana has the highest high school dropout rate in America. So I figured that for two reasons, I’d…

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Charter school group to buy Greek Church: Purchaser wants to talk to neighborhood about needs

A not-for-profit that runs roughly 60 schools nationwide has agreed to purchase the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox church at 40th and Pennsylvania streets. Imagine Schools Nonprofit Inc. hopes to set up a charter school at the site, but Jason Bryant, the corporation’s vice president in charge of Illinois and Indiana operations, said it first wanted to hold community meetings to get input on what’s needed. “There is flexibility for each individual school to set its own curriculum,” Bryant said. The…

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Developer goes west with retail: Lauth’s Brownsburg Station to cover nearly 70 acres

Lauth Property Group soon will break ground on Brownsburg Station, a massive retail complex that will be one of the largest in the Indianapolis area. The Brownsburg property, which will be roughly 500,000 square feet and sit on almost 70 acres, will take advantage of the west side’s rapidly growing suburbs. The project received preliminary approval from the town of Brownsburg in late June and needs only to clear a few minor hurdles before building can begin. Tenants could move…

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PROFILE: RYAN MCCORMICK: Laughter proves best medicine for cancer survivor

PROFILE RYAN MCCORMICK Laughter proves best medicine for cancer survivor When local companies need hazardous materials removed, Ryan McCormick hopes they call Active Environmental Ser vices, an environmental services company based in College Park. McCormick, a part-time comic, has been the sales and marketing manager for the Indianapolis-based company about three months. But two years ago, McCormick faced his own personal hazard when he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a form of cancer that attacks the body’s lymphatic system. He…

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Honda poses pay dilemma: New auto plant’s higher wages likely to force other employers to pay up or lose workers

GREENSBURG-Companies from Cincinnati to Indianapolis hoping to drive home business from Honda Motor Co.’s 2,000-employee plant might want to watch for an economic pothole hiding up the road. Giant auto plants plopped onto the prairie, while buying hundreds of millions of dollars in goods and services from companies in the state, also tend to swallow workers from established employers. That likely will force some Indiana employers to jack up wages and benefits to retain and attract workers pining to wear…

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IPS swap a flop?: Browning tells district to drop land-trade plan; site drew just 3 bids despite prime location

Indianapolis Public Schools is sitting on a 12-acre parcel of prime downtown land it probably could sell for big bucks. But its pursuit of a land swap instead has tempered interest in the site and raised questions about whether such a complicated deal is the way to go. Just three developers responded to IPS’ request for bids on its land east of Massachusetts and College avenues, despite the unsolicited inquiries that drove the school district to explore its options in…

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Black Expo CEO seeks ‘next level’: Rogers hopes to build on Williams’ legacy The Summer Celebration schedule appears in our Diversity in Business Focus. PAGES 15A-19A

The Summer Celebration schedule appears in our Diversity in Business Focus. PAGES 15A-19A The title of Indiana Black Expo Inc.’s 2005 annual report couldn’t be more fitting: “Con tinuing the Legacy.” It’s an apt description for both the organization’s recent history and its goals for the future. As Black Expo prepares to kick off its second Summer Celebration without its longtime leader, Rev. Charles Williams, CEO Joyce Q. Rogers is abuzz with ideas to make the nation’s largest black heritage…

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Artist out to protect her images: Noel sues Texas distributor for copyright infringement

Zionsville artist Nancy Noel’s original work can be seen in the homes of Mikhail Gorbachev, Robert Redford, Denzel Washington and Oprah Winfrey. Noel prides herself on its originality and authenticity. And she said she’ll “go after anyone” who threatens that. This spring, Noel filed a federal lawsuit against Texas-based art distributor Martha Ewell, alleging she made unauthorized copies of Noel’s images-including her popular Amish and angel collections-and sold them on the Internet. She is asking to be paid $30,000 for…

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Indianapolis marketing firm plays ‘game’ to win: Fun environment helps CIK Enterprises earn reputation as a ‘best’ place to work, inspires employees to give their all

Business is often compared to a game. There are winners and losers, MVPs and benchwarmers, touchdowns and penalties. Only the strong survive. The leaders at Indianapolis-based CIK Enterprises LLC take the competition seriously. But they don’t see why it can’t be fun, too. CIK’s 30,000-square-foot Georgetown Road office, known as “the stadium,” features green, blue and orange walls, some of which are rounded. Huge puzzle pieces listing company goals decorate the spacious atrium. A life-size Monopoly board displays monumental moments…

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Employee privacy a sensitive legal issue:

For all businesses, especially small companies, the best way to approach potential legal issues is proactively: spending time crafting policies and procedures today can save significant headaches-and attorney fees-down the road. This is especially true for the thorny issue of privacy in the workplace. While the right to privacy isn’t enumerated specifically in the Constitution, it remains a closely guarded prerogative for most Americans. Harris polls consistently show that more than 85 percent of respondents are concerned about the erosion…

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SMALL BUSINESS PROFILE: A-1 VACUUM CLEANERS AND JANITORIAL SUPPLIES: Vacuum dealer on his own Franchise dissolution gave owner freedom and more responsibility

SMALL BUSINESS PROFILE A-1 VACUUM CLEANERS AND JANITORIAL SUPPLIES Vacuum dealer on his own Franchise dissolution gave owner freedom and more responsibility For his entire adult life, Tony Stahl has been helping other people clean up their messes. From the time he graduated from John Marshall High School, Stahl has had A-1 Vacuum Cleaners as part of his work life, first as an employee and, most recently, as an owner. In fact, Stahl’s work with vacuums and customers was so…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: Have businesses given in to security anxiety?

According to the mainstream media, no sooner is your precious data placed on a hard drive than it’s promptly vacuumed off through a hacker’s hole and inserted into some miscreant’s illicit schemes for world domination. I admit I’ve advocated for computer security for years, but that was because most companies’ idea of security is to hide the backup CDs in the coffee creamer box. I never meant to contribute to the panic that seems to have gripped the American population…

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Radio tests HD waters: Indianapolis on leading edge of ‘revolutionary’ technology

And more are coming. Indianapolis is leading the charge toward high-definition radio, thanks to the strong presence of national players such as Emmis Communications Corp. and Clear Channel Communications, which operate a total of seven stations here. But the technological revolution reaches far beyond our airwaves. Industry experts call HD the most radical change in the radio landscape in 50 years, despite the fact that few listeners have the special radio receiver necessary to tune in the new channels. “We’re…

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SPORTS: High school hoops border war reduced to a scuffle

Often, when I’m asked to give talks reflecting on the success of the sports initiative in Indianapolis, I use summertime as an illustration. Back in the old days-and you know you’re getting old when “old days” refer to anything pre-1970-Indy’s June-July-August sports menu could pretty much be written on a single page and in large type. Once the Indianapolis 500 came and went on Memorial Day, about the only thing to do was wait for the start of college and…

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Hilbert estate drawing some offers: Letterman, Babyface, Judd not interested

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning passed on a chance to buy the Carmel estate built for Conseco Inc. founder Stephen Hilbert that’s on the market for a cool $20 million. Pacers forward Jermaine O’Neal also rejected the opportunity a couple of times, real estate broker Dick Richwine said. Nearly a year after it went up for sale, the Carmel property labeled the most expensive home in Indiana is still searching for the right buyer. But a recent flurry of interest and…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: We want to count jobs, but what’s the best way?

Americans like to keep score on things. And in the realm of economics, there are plenty of things to keep score on. But the economy is a huge, often unwieldy beast, and the data we use to track it are often quite a bit fuzzier than the rows of hardlooking numbers in the graphs and statistical reports we digest would make it seem. In fact, as the old joke goes, we economists like to present growth rates out to two…

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Vontoo finding its voice: Phone message marketer modeled on ExactTarget blends local, Indian talent

During his January trip to Bangalore, India, angel investor Robert Compton dreamed up dozens of ideas for high-tech business. To keep costs low, he planned to base each in Indiana, but outsource some work to the fastdeveloping nation’s famously inexpensive software talent. Now, only five months later, Compton is concentrating on just one: a startup IT company called Vontoo Inc. Based in Indianapolis, Vontoo will allow marketers to send audio messages to thousands of phones in a particular demographic, then…

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Making a splash: Delta Faucet aims for hip and handy with unique rebranding campaigns

Delta Faucet Co. has succeeded in luring fashionistas to its high-end line. Now the company wants to coax weekend wrench wielders into buying its most-affordable faucets. The Indianapolis subsidiary of Michigan-based Masco Corp. is launching its second major branding overhaul in two years. And Delta is again taking the account from a big-city ad agency and handing it over to locally based Young & Laramore. Young & Laramore, one of the few local agencies focusing almost exclusively on national brands,…

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