Finding success in business often means connecting with the right people. Entrepreneur and Inventor Kurt Brandt found many of the connections he needed through the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Network (WEN).  Today Brandt, president of Brandt Innovative Technologies in Pewaukee, has developed sensor technologies that could impact our security and our health.

While bringing two of his innovations to commercialization, Brandt worked with three of WEN’s four regional Directors: David Linz, Southeast Regional Director; Pat Dillon, Northwest Regional Director; and Kurt Waldhuetter, Northeast Regional Director.

“Dave Linz has provided a significant amount of effort. Pat Dillon, along with Dave Linz set up opportunities for us to talk to customers in the Dept. of Homeland Security and other potential customers,” said Brandt. ”And Kurt in the northeast has made some strategic relationships possible for us.  All of those people have contributed in a very positive way to our business. “

In 1993 while working on his Ph.D., Brandt started Brandt Innovative Technologies, a consulting business involved in research and development and system integration. 

“In the R&D part of the business, we develop sensing technologies and devise electronics and software behind those sensors to turn data into information,” said Brandt. “The other part of the business is turnkey test solutions, where we develop measurement solutions for mostly manufacturing customers.”

Brandt said that he has about a dozen technologies he wants to commercialize. The first and most successful to date is a non-invasive container inspection technology called Abiolux. This technology can detect the contents of unopened steal, aluminum, plastic or glass containers.

“One of the places we are looking to apply this technology is security. The Department of Defense has invested nearly a million in this already,” said Brandt.

With some WEN assistance, Brandt received phase I and II SBIR funding to help advance Abiolux.

Linz also put Brandt in touch with another WEN partner, Bud Gayhart, SBDC Director at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Gayhart assigned a student team from his small business consulting class to work on another of Brandt’s innovations called ArgusNet, a non-invasive sensing technology  that can measure critical-to-quality health parameters in humans.
 
“The student team met with Kurt, gathered information and did research on his technology and other technology currently being used, doing some patent searches as well,” said Gayhart. “They certainly helped him understand where the competition was developing their expertise and how he could differentiate from them, as well as fine tuning the future development of his product.”

ArgusNet could be used to determine if someone was exposed to ionizing radiation, chemical or biological toxins. Brandt believes that this technology could even diagnose other diseases like lung cancer, asthma and congestive heart disease. Brandt is currently negotiating a government project that would accelerate the growth of this technology, which ultimately could also be used to monitoring of diseases like diabetes and reduce heath care cost.

Brandt said the ArugusNet technology has already drawn interest from the Department of Homeland Security, NASA and the department of defense. He hopes to secure additional funding in the next two months. 

“Our goal is to put this sensor on every mobile device on the planet,” said Brandt.

Brandt Innovative Technologies currently has six employees and 18 subcontractors. Brandt expects to increase the number of employees significantly by the end of the year.
 
“We think both of these [technologies] are high-growth opportunities, and we are working hard to make it real.”