Janesville among finalists for business that could create 100 jobs
Photo 
Gregory R. Piefer
Photo
Eric Levitt
JANESVILLE — We’re in the running.
Janesville, Chippewa Falls and Stevens Point are being considered for a business that would create 100 jobs with the possibility of more in the future.
Greg Piefer, CEO of SHINE Medical Technologies, confirmed Tuesday that he had been in negotiations with Janesville officials.
“Janesville is a possibility,” Piefer said. “We’ve been very impressed by Janesville, by the city leadership.”
Janesville City Manager Eric Levitt said the city is pursuing SHINE Medical.
“The city council and I believe that this would be an excellent company to have located in Janesville,” he said.
Blackhawk Technical College is part of the attraction for company officials, Piefer said.
The technical college could help with the specialized training needed for what would be essentially high-tech manufacturing jobs.
SHINE Medical hopes to produce molybdenum-99, an isotope needed for detecting heart disease and staging cancer.
Currently, the isotope is made by taking a piece of highly enriched uranium and placing it near a nuclear reactor. The process creates an exchange of neutrons, and the neutrons make the needed isotopes.
“Our process does it without a reactor,” Piefer said.
The reactor process creates unusable byproducts, and the new process “reduces the potential threat and nuclear footprint associated with current production methods,” according to a news release.
Salaries could be in the $50,000 to $60,000 range.
“Workers need to be very reliable and very well trained—we’re going to be holding them to a very high standard,” Piefer said. “The way to do that is to pay them well.”
SHINE has been working with a variety of state and national agencies, including the National Nuclear Security Administration; UW-Madison; Morgridge Institute for Research, a nonprofit biomedical research institute; Los Alamos National Labs; the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory; and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, better known as WARF.
Federal agencies and labs are interested in any research that can be used to produce the medical isotopes without using highly enriched uranium, according to the news release.
Piefer’s business is similar to that of NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes, a company that is considering two locations to build a high-tech facility. One of those locations is in Rock County.
In September, the group led by SHINE and the Morgridge Institute signed a $500,000 cooperative agreement from the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Global Threat Reduction Initiative to advance the technology. Piefer’s company also recently raised $11 million in venture capitol.
Those technical and investment milestones will help the business move forward and obtain federal matching funds.
Company officials will make a decision about the plant’s location sometime this summer, Piefer said. Manufacturing would start in 2014.
Jun 9, 2011 at 8:29 p.m.
Suggest removal
I give credit to the City of Janesville for making the pitch. This City needs a win, and Shine's decision to locate here would be a nice win.
Jun 9, 2011 at 8:09 p.m.
Suggest removal
Janesvillean, you are right. Vat, what? You don't make sense.
Jun 9, 2011 at 6:40 p.m.
Suggest removal
“Workers need to be very reliable and very well trained—we’re going to be holding them to a very high standard,” Piefer said. “The way to do that is to pay them well.”
Don't expect some teachers to be applying for these jobs. They just got disqualified with this quote.
Jun 9, 2011 at 6:17 p.m.
Suggest removal
But the decision will come this summer. So how is this supposedly a sudo event? Seriously? Sorry its not the phantom GM rebirth. Sheesh, you people have no appreciation for upstarts. And thank GOD, it will NOT be UNION driven.
Jun 9, 2011 at 11:46 a.m.
Suggest removal
Actually, Janesville has a 150-year history as a manufacturing center, bigdaddy2. And during Doyle's tenure unemployment fell (from 6.2% to 5%) -- until the global recession hit.
http://www.unemployment-rate.org/states/...
.
Unemployment, of course, was lowest during the Clinton presidency, when the country enjoyed robust growth and no significant recessions. Historically, unemployment has generally been lower during Democratic administrations.
Jun 9, 2011 at 11:37 a.m.
Suggest removal
this company will not get off the ground< they are showing they will do something in the future, come on 2014 to start. This deserves the DARWIN for people falling for this. If this was investor money no company would start 3 yrs from now. they would start immediately to get a return, but with govt money you show that you are going to create jobs and get more money then state that this is dangerous to people who already have a low immune factor. Wake up people!! typical educated liberals soaking up the funds without giving back.
Jun 9, 2011 at 6:48 a.m.
Suggest removal
@nopartforme
you forgot one thing 100 more jobs Doyle helped bring to WI. in his 8 years. These will not be union jobs and if you look around it was the Democrats that has flushed this State down the toilet.
Any ways why would any body want to move into Janesville area, its a farming area and people bitch about the smell. That really looks good when they open the paper and read that kind of stuff.
Jun 8, 2011 at 8:15 p.m.
Suggest removal
I wouldn't hold your breath on this company landing in Janesville. I agree with Oreally.
Jun 8, 2011 at 8:13 p.m.
Suggest removal
"SHINE Medical Technologies, confirmed Tuesday that he had been in negotiations with Janesville officials." --------------------What could they be possibly "negotiating." It doesn't matter, left, right, republican or democrat, supporters of this sort of exortion encouraging communities to essentially bid for jobs are on a slippery slope with free market capitalism. I have to agree with Maxi for the most part - the jobs were here. The real story revolves around which Wisconsin community will deficit spend the most for a few jobs that are unsustainable without deep government help.
Jun 8, 2011 at 7:30 p.m.
Suggest removal
Finally, one of not many companies who believe in paying their employees what they are worth. There are too many businesses that want hard working and well trained people but they don't want to pay them for it. THUMBS UP TO THIS COMPANY FOR APPRECIATING THEIR EMPLOYEES!
Jun 8, 2011 at 7:24 p.m.
Suggest removal
This is a really poorly written article. And folks this has nothing to do with Walker. These aren't jobs that are coming to Wisconsin from somewhere else. This Middleton company is connected with UW-Madison and received federal funding (Maybe you need to thank Obama for these jobs)and venture capital.:"In September, the group led by SHINE and the Morgridge Institute (UW) gained a $500,000 cooperative
agreement from the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration’s Global Threat Reduction Initiative to
advance novel technology for production of molybdenum-99 without use of highly enriched uranium.
Achievement of the latest technical and investment milestones enables the group to proceed with a
request to secure the remaining federal matching funds of up to $25 million... About SHINE Medical Technologies
Founded in 2010 to pursue opportunities presented by its novel technology, SHINE Medical
Technologies is based on inventions co-licensed with Phoenix Nuclear Labs. With 10 employees and a
laboratory in the Middleton Business Park just west of Madison, SHINE received initial support from
Wisconsin Investment Partners, individual angel investors and the Morgridge Institute for Research. For
more information, visit: www.shinemed.com.http://www.shinemed.com...
Jun 8, 2011 at 7:05 p.m.
Suggest removal
Stevens Point strikes me as the likely winner.
Jun 8, 2011 at 5:54 p.m.
Suggest removal
I find this research and development fascinating! Regardless what county it settles in, they WILL be setting up shop, here in Wisconsin! Kudos to Walker!
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.