February 2011 – Originally published in GLITR

Global Embedded Technologies, Inc., better known as Global ET, is building better power electronics for military vehicles.

And a big reason why is the Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center.

Founders, Mark Stanczak and Dave Backus graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn with degrees in electrical and computer engineering in 1990.

Stanczak worked for AM General and Chrysler, and earned a master's degree in electrical and computer engineering from Oakland University in 1994, before incorporating Global ET, in 1995 with Backus.

"It was a career goal of mine to venture out and start an engineering company — something Dave and I talked about in college," Stanczak said. "I convinced myself that if I didn't try it at age 26, I would look back at age 36 and say I should have done it. Now I'm 42 and I'm still doing it."

GlobalET's first big job was hardware and software for a highway advsiory radio in a project involving the state of Michigan and Ameritech, then Michigan's dominant phone company. That led to work for ITS MIchigan and embedded systems for radar-powered automatic door openers for commercial buildings. Then, in the late '90s, the company was successful at scouting work from auto suppliers, "subcontracting bits and pieces of their electronic modules — code, special circuits."

By 2002, Stanczak said the company began to look into applying for federal Small Business Innovation Research grants through the United States Army's Tank-Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center in Warren.

And that's led to the firm's product offerings — solid state power electronics, power switches, power converters, and power management systems to make vehicles more efficient.

"The SBIR process for us was a game changer," Stanczak said. "We're now on our third SBIR with TARDEC."

And SBTDC staffers have been instrumental in getting those SBIR grants, Stanczak said.

"A person named Anna Bier was very helpful in critiquing SBIR proposals," Stanczak said. "Our first one, she literally came back with eight pages of suggestions, and all of them were good.

"We are working closely on a regular basis with Praf Pande. He's more involved with the business and strategic planning side of things, and he has been very, very helpful for my business partner and me, who are engineers by nature and by schooling, get more of a focus on business development, which we have not had in the past."

Pande's tutelage, Stanczak said, has helped GlobalET "to pursue bigger opportunities, change how we plan and conduct ourselves."

Stanczak said Pande helped him develop "future business indicators — we call them smart numbers. These include indicators of proposed business, our business pipeline. In the last six months we have tripled those indicators."

Finally, Stanczak praised Phil Tepley, SBTDC's Ann Arbor-based "Tech Team" coordinator. Stanczak said Tepley was instrumental in on going efforts to commercialize technology from their SBIR program.  In the near-term, Global ET is able to pursue an additional $750,000 enhancement to an SBIR covering research into power management and control of vehicle to grid systems.

All told, Stanczak said of the SBTDC: "This is something the state of Michigan provides to small business that should be taken advantage of. It's really been a help."

More about Stanczak's company at www.globalet.com.

The MI-SBTDC not only assists innovative technology companies like Global Embedded Technologies, Inc. but it also serves Michigan's manufacturers and growing second stage companies, as well as startups and other existing small businesses. To learn about MI-SBTDC services for your business, please visit www.misbtdc.org.

Contact the SBTDC.