by Robert Wiener
NJJN Staff Writer

September 23, 2009

Israeli entrepreneurs descended this month on the Meadowlands — New Jersey’s sprawling symbol of both urban negligence and environmental promise — to pitch their innovations in green technologies to American investors and municipalities.

Bearing small solar panels and photographs of windmills, representatives of 14 Israeli companies discussed their technologies at the U.S.-Israel Cleantech Conference at the Meadowlands Environment Center in Lyndhurst Sept. 16.

The innovations included devices to capture wind energy more efficiently, energy-efficient window panes, fuels derived from plant oils and animal fats, and an efficient system for separating municipal waste into recoverable materials (see sidebar).

There to play matchmaker between the Israelis and potential investors was the New Jersey-Israel Commission, a branch of the NJ State Department that fosters commerce between the two states. Some 200 representatives of towns and businesses attended the event.

“Our objective is to identify where there is potential for these companies to either locate in New Jersey or to identify potential collaborations between these companies and businesses in New Jersey and bringing innovative technologies to our state,” Andrea Yonah, the commission’s executive director, told NJ Jewish News.

Her intentions complemented those of Yair Shiran, the Israeli government’s economic minister to North America.

“We have a large number of startup companies in Israel — especially in the areas of life sciences, homeland security, and clean-tech. When they are ready to commercialize, they come to the United States, and New Jersey is a good candidate,” he said in an interview with NJJN.

Limor Nakar-Vincent, a representative of the U.S.-Israel Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation, told the audience her organization is eager to provide seed money for collaborations between companies in the two nations that “wish to develop new technologies.”

Since 1977, the foundation has provided $245 million in subsidies for 740 projects, which have produced sales of over $8 billion.

As the Israelis pitched their inventions and innovations, NJ officials boosted the Garden State as a business incubator.

“We believe we have some natural advantages that give us the edge,” Jerold Zaro, chief of the Governor’s Office of Economic Growth, told NJJN. “We are sandwiched between New York and Philadelphia, with international airports, seaports, 1,000 miles of roadways; we can move goods and services; and we have the most educated and abundant labor force in the country. We are 60 percent of the cost of doing business in New York.”

Chairing the conference was Newark attorney Mark Levenson, a board member of the NJ-Israel Commission.

He pointed out that New Jersey is Israel’s ninth-largest trading partner and that there are more Israeli companies headquartered in New Jersey than in any other state.

“At the end of the day,” he told NJJN, “I would like to see lots of people walk home with lots of business cards and lots of concrete meeting times and calls scheduled over the next few weeks so we can further economic activities.”

 

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Faster, cheaper, cleaner

Armed with props, photographs, and PowerPoint demonstrations, representatives of 14 Israel corporations pitched their innovations at the U.S.-Israel Cleantech Conference at the Meadowlands. A sampling:

A mightier wind: Leviathan Energy, based in Beit Shemesh, manufactures energizers that speed up wind turbines and their energy output. Both Israel and New Jersey “have low wind, and this wind turbine enables people who would not otherwise find it cost-effective to get a good return on their investment,” said vice president Joseph Van Zwaren.

Pane with gain: Pythagoras Solar displayed a glazed solar window pane that would increase energy efficiency in high-rise buildings. “It is critical to implement solar in a very simple, cost-effective way,” said Udi Paret, vice president for business development.

A tiger lily in your tank: TransBiodiesel Ltd. in Haifa uses plant oils and animal fats rather than chemicals to manufacture fuels. “Our production process is benign for the environment, and the byproducts can be used for food and pharmaceutical applications,” said a company brochure.

Gray gardens and more: Cequesta, in Jerusalem, sells low-cost technologies that recycle slightly polluted “gray water” from showers and washing machines. “You can use it for your gardens, your toilets, and for washing,” explained David Waimann, the company’s CEO. “You just put one of our systems in your basement, and no special government subsidies are needed.”

Pocketful of sunshine: AORA, based in Yavne, manufactures small solar power stations. “We send power and heat on half an acre of land to 17 households. No one else can do that,” said COO Yuval Susskind.

Apply as needed: Power Electronic Systems in Yehuda sells a product that senses the load on an escalator and adjusts the voltage to conserve energy. “During rush hours, they are filled with people,” but off-peak “they still use the full load of energy — but they don’t need to,” said CEO Eran Tago.

— ROBERT WIENER

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