Promising Software Company Shows Value of Texas' Economic 'Ecosystem'

"Austin-based Phurnace Software acquired by Houston company"
BY LORI HAWKINS, AUSTIN-AMERICAN STATESMAN

Austin-based Phurnace Software, which began as a class assignment by a University of Texas MBA student, has been acquired by BMC Software of Houston.

Financial terms of the deal, announced Thursday, were not disclosed.

Phurnace sells software that simplifies the installation of applications based on the Java programming language.

The company was started in 2006 by Daniel Nelson as a class project. He and Robert Reeves, a UT economics major, teamed up to pursue the idea, and their business plan won the 2006 Moot Corp competition at the University of Texas McCombs School of Business.

"This is truly a Texas-grown company, from winning Moot Corp to being a member of the Austin Technology Incubator to raising money from Texas investors," Phurnace chief executive Larry Warnock said . "Now we're excited to be acquired by another Texas company, which is going to rapidly accelerate our growth."

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Texas Has Largest 10-Year Growth in Private Sector Jobs Among All States
Chairman Tom Pauken
The office of TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION

AUSTIN - Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Tom Pauken today released figures showing that Texas created more private sector jobs than any other state in the nation over the last 10 years and has the lowest unemployment rate among the 10 largest states in the nation.  Pauken cited the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics January 22, 2010 release of Current Employment Statistics for December 2009 showing Texas created 724,300 more net private sector jobs as compared to December 1999, the largest private sector job gain nationwide over the last decade.
 
Pauken also noted that among the 10 largest states as ranked by civilian labor force size, Texas was well ahead of all other large states in private sector job growth with a percentage net gain of 9.30 percent as compared to December 1999.  Florida was the only other large state to realize a net gain in private sector employment over the same period with 259,500 net jobs gained for a percentage net gain of 4.31 percent from December 1999 to December 2009.  The other 8 large states showed a net loss of private sector jobs over the same period.

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Put the Stimulus Money to Work for You
How to get government money for energy efficiency and other green overhauls.
By Editors of E/The Environmental Magazine

Even though the push to create green jobs is getting the lion's share of business news headlines right now, almost $7 billion of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act, the stimulus bill President Obama signed into law earlier this year, has been allocated to help businesses reduce their environmental footprints in any number of ways.

For starters, the stimulus package rewards businesses (as well as individuals) for investments in energy efficiency -- that is, for doing more with less power. The federal government has extended its tax credit program for energy efficient business improvements -- whereby 30% of qualified expenses up to $1,500 can be credited against your tax bill -- through 2010. No one knows yet if the program will be extended beyond that, so 2010 could be a great time to finally go for that upgrade you've been putting off.

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After Dry Year, Start-Ups Are Poised to Get Cash
By Pui-Wing Tam
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

After a dismal 2009, venture capitalists are preparing to ramp up their investments, injecting much-needed cash into start-ups.

Some venture-capital firms have loosened their purse strings in recent weeks and are starting to invest new money. That has resulted in several deals, such as last month's $52 million infusion into social-networking advertising and software company RockYou Inc. and the $57 million invested in online textbook-rental service Chegg Inc.

In addition, many venture capitalists say they have been meeting investment bankers and working with their tech start-ups on filing for initial public offerings next year.

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If you're a clean technology entrepreneur who was happy to say 'Good riddance' to the dreary business climate and crimped credit of 2009, we have bad news and good news for 2010.

Bad news first: the coming year probably won't feel much different for you than the previous one. According to Discover's latest Small Business Watch index, more than half (52 per cent) of small business owners believe conditions will continue to grow worse for them over the next six months, while another 24 per cent believe things will stay about the same. More than half (51 per cent) also plan to cut business development spending between now and July, and 26 per cent will make no changes in investment.

In other words, most entrepreneurs aren't expecting the money spigot to open up and start flowing more freely anytime soon.

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Green projects opening up variety of government contracting opportunities
By Mary Scott Nabers, CEO of Strategic Partnerships, Inc.

Construction and renovation projects are green. Audits, studies and training services are funded by green stimulus funds. Governmental entities are buying products and services of all types that are related to materials that have been recycled.

The U.S. Green Building Council reports that the green construction market will generate $6 billion in energy savings between now and 2013. That's significant...and government executives are taking advantage of every green option.

The move to green spending by public entities has been impacted dramatically by stimulus funding. Although almost all the money for green initiatives has flowed through public entities, private sector firms have provided most of the work.

In Pennsylvania, one public housing complex spent $4.4 million for green renovations, which included a geothermal water system, new insulated roofs and windows and energy-efficient appliances. This is a good example of what is happening with public housing units in every state in the country.

To read more click, here.