Plenty of advice for entrepreneurs at Innovation Expo

CORALVILLE - Jim Dierickx is on the hunt for investors to pump $330,000 into the beta test phase of his business plan to produce green auxiliary power units for semi-trailer trucks - but is he going about it all wrong?

That was what Dierickx, of Lowden, really wanted to know after making a furious 10-minute business plan pitch at the Pitch and Grow session of the Innovation Expo Wednesday, Oct. 26, at the Coralville Marriott.

Dierickx said his fledgling Direct Drive Energy LLC needs the money to produce 50 to 100 initial units that he can sell to small trucking outfits to gather field test data on his product's reliability and efficiency.

The product would use kinetic energy that mostly goes to waste from the drive wheels of a semi truck to charge a battery-powered system to heat and cool truck cabs. The $8,500 system Dierickx designed could save truck operators about $22,000 per year in diesel fuel costs associated with idling of engines to provide heat and cooling for driver comfort during rest periods.

Great idea, a critique panel told Dierickx - before proceeding to tell him that he may, indeed, be headed in the wrong direction.

Aaron Warner of Integrated DNA Technologies told Dierickx he should first take his test plan to the University of Iowa College of Engineering to be validated before he begins testing, so that his test results will have more credibility in the market.

Mark Kittrell of PrimeLogic Partners in Waterloo and other inquisitors hammered Warner with questions. Would the units cause tire wear? Be serviceable in the field?

Enthusiastic audience members also chimed in, telling Dierickx he should just partner with a large trucking company to test the systems in exchange for an equity stake in the company in order to save time. One audience member said he loved the idea, but doubted it could be patent protected because it relies to heavily on the simple concept of a dynamo.

About 16 entrepreneurs made their pitches during the sessions, including Moped U of Iowa City, which wanted advice on how to franchise its moped rental business for the college market, and Flat-D Innovations of Cedar Rapids, which wanted advice on how to take its flatulence odor control products into the mainstream consumer market.

Spectators were fascinated.

"Not only do you get to hear other people's ideas, but you get your own (ideas) kicked up," said Max Farrell, a Grinnell College student. He followed the Moped U critique closely for clues that might help him with his ideas to create a car sharing or shuttle service business for Grinnell students.

Galen Crozier of Homestead was more interested in finding out how to make an effective funding pitch for his Get Her Covered business, which has just begun marketing covers to protect the windshields and passenger windows of trucks from ice, snow and sun without magnets or elastic cords to keep them in place.

"What I might think is important about my product might not be what an investor would be interested in," Crozier said.

The critiques were not the hostile condemnations many have seen on the business idea pitch reality TV show Shark Tank. Crozier found the critiques "very honest, but very nice" with plenty of advice about what information to include in future pitches and what should be left out.

About 470 participants were registered for the one-day conference, sponsored by the Entrepreneurial Development Center of Iowa. In addition to the Pitch and Grow sessions, it included a Seed and Venture forum that allowed entrepreneurs to make pitches directly to venture capital and angel investors.

The events included a "pitch-off" to decide which entrepreneur or firm had the best business pitch.