 |
 |
 |
|
Startup produces medical products at former Twin Ports Dairy in Superior
Date: 4/3/2008
by Wayne Nelson
(Photo: Clearly Superior CEO Doug Stetzer holds a patent for AquaCareH20 and the process for making the product.)
A new company is producing a patented thickened water product targeted a national medical market.
Investors in the new firm, Clearly Superior, Inc., introduced the startup business Tuesday, April 2. The operation is located at 6120 Tower Ave., site of the former Twin Ports Dairy. The former creamery has a 600-foot well that can draw up to 500,000 gallons of water daily from an ancient underground aquifer.
The water resource is a key asset for producing AquaCareH20, the patented product the firm has developed to help victims of “dysphagia” (dis-faa-gia), a medical condition that makes it hard to swallow. It often afflicts patients of stroke, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, throat cancer, spinal cord injury and Alzheimer’s disease, said Doug Stetzer, president and chief executive. When these patients have difficulty swallowing, they are susceptible to dehydration and infections.
Stetzer developed the product and holds federal patents on both AquaCareH20 and the process for producing it. Stetzer and half dozen investors, most of them in Superior, contributed about $200,000 in equity to launch the company, said one of those investors, Kevin Hopkins, also chief executive of Superior-based Telephone Associates.
Clearly Superior acquired the site from former owners and the National Bank of Commerce, which also provided financing. The startup also received $100,000 in loans from the Douglas County Revolving Loan Fund and Northwest Wisconsin Business Development Corp. The Wisconsin Department of Commerce also has awarded the investors $138,000 in technology zone tax credits. The project has received technical support from the city of Superior, but no business subsidies, Hopkins said.
Other thickened water products on the market for treating dysphagia are made with cornstarch and are murky in color, Stetzer said. AquaCareH20 is clear, tastes like water and can be mixed with coffee, juice, other flavorings and can be used in food preparation.
He said the plant has passed Federal Drug Administration inspection, and the product has been approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The product also has won kosher approval, an invaluable tool for marketing to Jewish institutions and individuals, said Dan Krisak, national sales manager.
He said the firm has developed a network of regional distributors, including the St. Mary’s/Duluth Clinic Health System’s Midwest Medical subsidiary. Clearly Superior also is selling the product online. Krisak believes 80 to 85 percent of sales will be to nursing homes and rehabilitation hospitals.
Stetzer, the chief executive, predicted 2008 sales of $800,000 and $1 million. The company began producing its product in early January. “We are working on other products, as well,” he said.
The company has 10 employees and expects its payroll to grow to 30 or more within two years.
