GSA Technology Council

Matt Packey has been named the senior vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) of LendingTree, LLC. In this roll, Mr. Packey will provide executive leadership to the finance divisions of the company.

Mr. Packey was previously the company’s chief accounting officer. During his eight-year tenure at LendingTree he also served as controller, where in addition to being responsible for the accounting unit, he was directly involved with the financial due diligence of nearly a dozen capital raising efforts and mergers and acquisitions.

“Matt has proven to be incredibly diligent, hard-working and savvy,” said LendingTree CEO C.D. Davies. “I’m thrilled that we have such a capable and outstanding professional leading our company’s financial operations. He’s been a part of every major LendingTree milestone and he knows our company inside and out. We know we’re in great hands under Matt’s stewardship.”

Prior to joining LendingTree, Mr. Packey served as vice president and controller at Broadway & Seymour, Inc. and as a manager at Deloitte & Touche, LLP.

Mr. Packey is a cum laude and honors program graduate of the University of Akron, where he earned his bachelor’s of science degree in accounting. He is a certified public accountant, a member of the AICPA and a board of advisor member of the Charlotte Chamber.

Two ScanSource, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCSC) sales units, T2 Supply and Paracon, have joined forces to create ScanSource Communications. The new company encompasses T2 Supply’s industry-leading video conferencing and telephony products and Paracon’s high-quality communications products and services. Together, these companies will become a comprehensive value-added distributor of total communications solutions, including video and audio conferencing products; telephony solutions, including Voice over IP (VoIP); and computer telephony building blocks.

Through this alliance of two powerful value-added distributors, resellers will realize increased opportunities and efficiencies, such as access to additional communications solutions, new avenues for sales and technical support consultation, and expanded education and training opportunities on new products that can complement their current offering and help them grow their business.

“We are excited to bring together our teams, who not only have a great synergy and are extremely talented and laser-focused on growing our customers’ businesses but also have fun doing it!” said Jill Phillips, president of ScanSource Communications and former president of T2 Supply. “With our increased bandwidth and strengthened sales and business development teams, resellers will see a level of unmatched service and support. We are looking forward to a seamless transition with great opportunities for our customers.”

“As ScanSource Communications, we will continue to provide the outstanding products, efficiency and service our reseller partners have come to expect from us as two separate companies. Only now, we will have additional solutions to offer them and even more personal touch to deliver through one unified company,” said Yvette McKenzie, vice president of merchandising for ScanSource Communications and former vice president of merchandising for Paracon. “We are also looking forward to helping our vendor partners reach potential new customers by introducing their products to a customer base that may likely be untapped. It’s a win-win for all of us.”

The new management team of ScanSource Communications will consist of Phillips and McKenzie, as well as Mike Ferney, vice president of sales and Tod Vedock, vice president of business development.

Clay Sorensen, former president of Paracon, remains with ScanSource, Inc. He will lead the development of several new corporate initiatives as the vice president of strategic development.

Collexis Holdings, Inc has announced that it has acquired its long-time development partner, SyynX Solutions, a privately-held software company based in Cologne, Germany.

For nearly a decade, Collexis and SyynX have collaborated on both a technical and commercial level and the transaction is designed to combine the respective strengths of each company. Recently, the two organizations partnered to design the next generation in social networking, an online platform for the life sciences community. The comprehensive system of pre-populated expert profiles, coupled with the ability to analyze all associated professional connections within the network, allows scientists and researchers across multiple organizations to share data and collaborate in ways never before considered.

SyynX software applications, based on the proprietary Collexis Fingerprint technology, are already a valuable research tool employed globally by organizations such as Johns Hopkins, the Mayo Clinic, Harvard University’s Dana Farber Cancer Institute and The National Institutes of Health.

“The SyynX software component is an ideal strategic complement to our existing capabilities as the market leader in high-definition search and discovery solutions,” said Bill Kirkland, CEO of Collexis. “Our comprehensive offerings address a growing market trend, as scientists are increasingly recognizing the essential role that informatics, database and workflow solutions play in more effectively managing research programs and driving higher productivity. We believe that the acquisition of SyynX will position Collexis as a global leader in providing these solutions, and our value proposition to clients will be stronger as a result.”

SyynX has been providing innovative knowledge solutions and text mining applications to solve the unique challenges of the life science and healthcare market since 1999, including: Merck Sharp & Dohme; the World Health Organization (WHO – Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research); BioSci project (EMBO) and Asklepios Hospital Group, the largest privately held healthcare system operating 100 hospitals in Germany and six in the United States, where SyynX has implemented a comprehensive skills and knowledge management system.

“After working together with the Collexis team for several years, the SyynX team is more than excited about bringing the two companies together,” said Christian Herzog, MD, CEO of SyynX Solutions. “The Collexis Fingerprint core technology, combined with the applications built by SyynX, will provide a great advantage to existing customers, as well as future ones.”

“This formidable combination will enhance the world of knowledge management, text and knowledge mining solutions not limited to the life sciences market,” said Martin Schmidt, Chief Technology Officer of SyynX. “The strong potential of this corporate collaboration is perhaps most evident as we prepare to launch our unprecedented social networking and collaboration platform for the biomedical research community in early 2008. We believe that this platform will change the way research is done.”

About Collexis Holdings, Inc.

Collexis Holdings, Inc., a leading developer of High Definition Search and Discovery software since 1999, is headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina (USA) with operations in Geldermalsen, The Netherlands and, with the acquisition of SyynX, in Cologne, Germany. Collexis’ proprietary technology builds conceptual profiles of text, called Fingerprints, from documents, websites, e-mails and other digitized content and matches them with a comprehensive list of pre-defined “fingerprinted” concepts to make research results more relevant and efficient. This matching of concepts eliminates the ambiguity and lack of priority associated with word searches. The results are often described as “finding needles in many haystacks.” Through this novel approach, Collexis can build unique applications to search, index and aggregate information as well as prioritize, trend and predict data based on sources in multiple industries without the limitations of language or dialect. Shares of Collexis common stock are traded under the symbol CLXS on the OTC Bulletin Board (OTC BB). For more information, please visit www.collexis.com.

About SyynX Solutions GmbH

SyynX Solutions GmbH is a German software company focused on text mining-based applications for the areas of life science and health care. Collexis and SyynX have co-operated closely for nearly a decade on the technical and commercial level. The SyynX applications based on the Collexis Fingerprint technology are used by customers like universities, pharmaceutical and biotech companies around the world. For more information, please visit www.syynx.de.

Leading armored vehicle manufacturer Force Protection, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) today announced it has received a $376 million dollar contract to produce an additional 800 vehicles for the U.S. Marine Corps’ Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle program.

This latest delivery order calls for 553 MRAP Category I Cougar 4X4 and 247 Category II Cougar 6X6 vehicles. Vehicle deliveries are scheduled for completion by April 2008. Force Protection has received contracts for more than 2,700 MRAP vehicles thus far in the program.

“This order is significant in several ways,” said Force Protection COO Raymond Pollard. “First, it is the second largest vehicle contract in the company’s history; second, it is indicative that our proven in-field performance has shown that all v-shaped armored vehicles are not created equally; and, third, it is fresh evidence that our vehicles represent a leading and effective battlefield solution in Iraq.

“We are currently ahead of our MRAP delivery schedule,” added Pollard. “This new order is expected to keep our current production lines operating at or near capacity and to continue to supply vehicles in greater numbers as we support the blast protection needs of the warfighter.”

The vehicles covered by this new order are to be manufactured by Force Dynamics LLC, a joint venture between Force Protection and General Dynamic Land Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD).

Force Protection’s Cougar and Buffalo vehicles have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a Phase IIR grant for $200,000 to Clemson University’s Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films, an NSF Research Center, to partner with Tetramer Technologies, LLC, a Clemson University spin-off company.

The grant will help Tetramer further develop encapsulation polymers for quantum-dot technology. Quantum dots are nanoscale crystalline structures that absorb and re-emit light. In the last five years, commercialization of quantum dots has exploded with their use as biological sensors. New uses for this technology, such as white light-emitting dots, show promise in providing lower cost sources of light when coupled with light-emitting diodes (LEDs).

Graham Harrison, Jianyong “Jack” Jin, Earl Wagener , Doug Hirt, Dennis Smith, Phil Brown , Jeff DiMaio. Through the partnership with Tetramer, Clemson’s Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films (CAEFF) undergraduate and graduate research students will be exposed to entrepreneurial training.

“Our students will explore cutting-edge science while developing business acumen,” said Doug Hirt, director of CAEFF. “This is a unique opportunity to give our students a first-hand look at how small businesses operate from both research and commercialization standpoints.”

“This new grant will help advance Tetramer’s nanocrystal-encapsulation technology and accelerate its adoption into commercial applications,” said Tetramer technology manager Jeff DiMaio. “This collaboration has the potential to impact the solid-state lighting, solar-energy harvesting, and polymer-optical fibers markets, as well as benefit national security through development of radiation-detection technology.”

The NSF grant is intended to stimulate the transfer of innovative, leading-edge research performed at university Engineering Research Centers to small businesses, which then move research results into the marketplace. This collaboration has CAEFF acting as a catalyst to provide the research that Tetramer, a small business, needs to further make it successful and competitive. Tetramer, in turn, serves as a catalyst to get university research fast-tracked to commercialization.

The project is based partially on patented Clemson optical fluoropolymer technology licensed by Tetramer and originally developed in Clemson’s COMSET (Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies) laboratories for optical applications.

CAEFF has conducted research at the cutting edge of computational materials design since 1998. With major support from NSF, the center has advanced the state of the art in modeling polymer processes beyond any existing model in the world. CAEFF supports South Carolina’s growing knowledge-based economy by promoting a transformation from trial-and-error development to computer-based design of fibers and films.

Tetramer Technologies was formed in 2001 as a faculty-driven start-up company commercializing high-value research activities pursued at Clemson University. In addition to quantum-dot encapsulation, the company specializes in automotive fuel-cell membranes, gas-separation membranes for enhanced shale and tar sands oil recovery in North America, optical waveguides, piezopolymers and renewable resource materials. Tetramer currently employs 11 researchers; two of those on this project are Clemson Ph.D. graduates.

SpinVox, has enabled voice posting on Facebook, Jaiku and Twitter.`Social Networks through SpinVox` enables voice-driven social networking from any mobile phone.

Social Networks through SpinVox’ is launched today as a key element of the new, state-of-the-art SpinVox website. People can create an account on www.spinvox.com, where they can manage one, two or all three of their networking sites from one, personalised page. In addition, accounts can be set up so that one voice-powered contribution can be posted automatically to all three networking sites. SpinVox expects to extend this capability to other well-known social networking and micro-blogging sites in the coming months.

No need to wait for web access or use a keyboard

Now bloggers can generate posts by simply speaking into any mobile handset. Social Networks through SpinVox then automatically creates text and then posts directly to their chosen sites. People can now contribute to Facebook, Jaiku or Twitter wherever they are – no need to send an SMS, try to log on to the web from a mobile or wait until they get home and are online. If a user wants to share something immediately with their online community – an urgent piece of news, a review of a great film or their latest holiday adventure – they can. Bloggers are no longer off-line just because they’re out and about. It can all be done through a simple phone call.

Capture your thoughts, emotions and experiences `in the moment`

“SpinVox is all about using voice to enable person-to-person messaging through any network or service – whether by SMS text, email, blog, or social network walls and spaces,” said Christina Domecq, CEO and co-founder of SpinVox.

“The use of social networks and micro-blogging sites has exploded in the past few years, but, so far, they’ve lacked true mobility and so are not achieving their full potential. Whether you’ve just walked out of a concert or have discovered a great new place to eat, your voice can now be used in place of the keyboard to tell the world the news and capture your thoughts, emotions and experiences `in the moment` as and when they happen.”

Builds on the lead of Spin-my-Blog

In February 2007 SpinVox enabled voice to enter the blogosphere for the first time with its ground-breaking service, Spin-my-Blogâ„¢. The service was the first to allow users to post their thoughts onto a blog by calling a phone number and speaking the message, which is then converted automatically to text and posted on the site.

“The launch of the Social Networks through SpinVox service is a further groundbreaking development for Web 2.0, which is largely characterised by the power it gives users to generate and share their own content,” added Domecq. “SpinVox is a natural interface between online and mobile worlds – and is already in use by LiveJournal users in the blogosphere – enabling the power of Web 2.0 communities to go truly mobile.”

The Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG), the world’s largest user knowledgebase for Oracle® Applications users, announced its active involvement in the upcoming Oracle OpenWorld 2007 conference on Nov. 11–15 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

Throughout the week, the OAUG offers more than 35 member-led educational sessions to attendees on topics such as approaching enterprise SOA adoption; preparing a technical roadmap for Fusion, Release 12 and Oracle Fusion Applications; understanding BPEL for workflow developers and extending the E-business Suite with the JDeveloper OA Extension. These presentations are designed to provide ideas, best practices, innovations and solutions for users of Oracle Applications.

On Sunday, Nov. 11, the OAUG hosts the OAUG Fusion Council Panel, presented to provide attendees of Oracle OpenWorld 2007 with up-to-date information regarding the status of Fusion Applications and offer a chance to interact with industry experts during a question-and-answer session. The panel discussion will be held from 1:30-2:30 p.m. in Room 3006, Moscone West.

Also on Sunday, Nov. 11, the OAUG hosts more than 55 special interest group (SIG) meetings, including OAUG Database SIG, OAUG Federal SIG, OAUG Fusion Council, OAUG Middleware SIG and OAUG Workflow SIG. The numerous SIG meetings are open to all interested conference attendees and are not limited to members of each specific SIG.

“The OAUG’s dedicated initiatives at Oracle OpenWorld 2007 greatly contributes to our goal of integrating and bringing together the Oracle community,” said Jan Wagner, president of the OAUG.

For more information about membership in the OAUG and the OAUG’s initiatives at the Oracle OpenWorld User Group Pavilion, visit oaug.org.

Infor today announced that Infor Performance Management (PM) has been positioned by Forrester Research, Inc. as a Strong Performer in its October 2007 report, “The Forrester Wave: Business Performance Solutions, Q4 2007.”

“Infor’s ranking as a Strong Performer by an independent research firm is a reflection of our PM strategy to deliver integrated, feature-rich applications and analytics that improve the bottom line,” said Christina McKeon, director of product marketing for Infor PM solutions. “Our differentiated approach enables organizations to realize immediate business benefits from PM, and it also reduces the total cost of ownership by unlocking value from existing enterprise systems.”

Infor PM Business Process Applications are enterprise applications for strategic and operational planning, budgeting, forecasting, reporting, and consolidation. These applications can be deployed individually or in a suite configuration on a single platform.

“The Business Process Applications offering is a seamlessly integrated performance management suite that affords Infor a competitive advantage against several of the large BPS [Business Performance Solutions] vendors. Infor should thus be considered when planning, consolidations, and performance measurement are required from a single application platform,” wrote Paul Hamerman, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester, in the report.

Infor PM solutions leverage Infor Open SOA, Infor’s service-oriented architecture framework, which is designed to provide interoperability, as well as enable long term IT flexibility and business agility.

“Infor has a large portfolio of ERP solutions used by more than 70,000 customers globally. Although not limited to selling performance management solutions only to this installed base, Infor has a service oriented architecture (SOA) based integration strategy that strengthens its value proposition for selling to existing customers,” noted Hamerman in the report.

Infor was among ten major vendors of Business Performance Solutions selected by Forrester to participate in the report. Each was required to possess a core offering of, at a minimum, planning/budgeting, financial consolidations and performance measurement applications. Forrester evaluated each vendor based on 83 criteria, grouped in three major categories: current offering, strategy and market presence.

Lenovo today announced the appointment of Liu Jun as senior vice president and president, Consumer Business Group. He reports directly to William Amelio and is responsible for the company’s worldwide consumer business. (more…)

The South Carolina Center of Economic Excellence Review Board has approved $5 million in state funding for a new Health Sciences South Carolina CoEE dedicated to research that promotes independence for senior citizens.

Called SeniorSMARTâ„¢, the newly approved HSSC research center will be structured around three major themes: SHARP BRAIN, focusing on helping seniors maintain intellectual activity; SMART WHEELS, which will promote independent mobility outside the home; and SMART HOME, helping seniors maintain independent mobility inside the home. Research will commence when the state’s $5 million award is matched one-to-one by private, federal or municipal funds.

HSSC President Jay Moskowitz, PhD, said the new CoEE is a reflection of HSSC’s mission to use health sciences research to advance the health of South Carolina’s citizens and advance the state’s economy. Furthermore, it offers South Carolina a strong leadership role in the high-growth senior health and quality of life marketplace.

“Our country is just beginning to experience explosive growth in its senior population as the Baby Boomer Generation reaches retirement age. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that South Carolina’s senior population will grow by 133 percent between 2000 and 2030. We need to be prepared to keep our seniors healthy and capable of independent living for as long as possible. The SeniorSMART CoEE couldn’t be better timed to meet our state’s public health needs, to develop commercial products and services, as well as capitalize on a growing population of consumers with significant economic clout,” Dr. Moskowitz said.

The HSSC SeniorSMART CoEE will involve HSSC partners Clemson University, the University of South Carolina (USC), Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center, and Palmetto Health. Eventually, a fifth HSSC partner, the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), also will be involved. Paul Eleazer, MD, professor, Internal Medicine, USC School of Medicine, will serve as the principal investigator for SeniorSMART. He will work alongside Dennis Poole, PhD, dean, USC College of Social Work; William Logan, MD, director, Geriatrics, Greenville Hospital System; Victor Hirth, MD, USC-Palmetto Geriatrics; Johnell Brooks, PhD, Clemson University; Harriett Williams, PhD, and James Laditka, DA, PhD, MPA, USC Arnold School of Public Health; and Judy Baskins, RN, Palmetto Health-USC.

While the HSSC SeniorSMART CoEE will be housed primarily at USC’s Columbia campus, research will be conducted statewide, leveraging the intellectual assets of the HSSC partners. in some cases, departments not always associated with the health sciences will be involved. “We hope to take advantage of USC’s engineering, social work, and medical schools to develop new ways of retrofitting residences so that the elderly can stay in their own homes longer and enjoy a better quality of life. Additionally, researchers will conduct studies at Clemson’s International Center for Automotive Research to develop cars that help older adults retain their ability to drive safely as they continue to age. Each of the HSSC partners will bring something to the table as we work to advance senior independence,” Dr. Eleazer said.

HSSC Board Chair and Greenville Hospital System CEO Mike Riordan added that not only will the HSSC SeniorSMART CoEE capitalize on and enrich existing research strengths in South Carolina like gerontology and automotive design; it also will enhance the quality of life for all South Carolinians. “All of us face the issue of caring for aging parents, an aging spouse and ourselves. If we can devise ways to keep seniors healthy, active and independent now, we will avoid major problems in the future,” Riordan said.