Firehole's mission is to deliver tools and services that enable wide-spread application of composite materials leading to lighter, stronger, safer and more fuel efficient structures

Firehole Technologies has its beginning in the academic research of composite analysis during the mid 1990's. The core technology was part of an academic research project at the University of Wyoming in the Mechanical Engineering Department. In 2000, a number of entrepreneurial graduate students and faculty at UW, seeing the commercial potential of the technology, set their minds to take control of their destinies and began Firehole Technologies.

During its first years of existence the company focused strongly on the research and development of composite technologies utilizing the US Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs. Much of our research has been used by federal agencies such as the Office of Naval Research, Missile Defense Agency, Air Force Research Laboratories, and most recently NASA. To complement the original composite failure technology, additional models of composite analysis have been developed.

Now with the market for advanced composite analysis growing, Firehole Technologies is poised to further commercialize its technologies and bring them to a wider audience. In the short time of one year, we tripled the size of our workforce with plans to have a number of our technologies commercially available by 2009. Our company has expanded into a variety of software and consulting services for the US Government and private industry.

A true technology transfer company and commercial startup from a university, Firehole embodies the spirit of University and Industry linkages. We continue to maintain close collaborative relationships with University of Wyoming faculty and graduate students.

---

Wyoming often conjures images of mountains, rivers, and wildlife. Firehole Technologies' name sake is the Firehole River, a Wyoming river that originates in Yellowstone National Park. The Firehole is unique because it flows through several geyser basins which empty hot water into it, often causing steam to rise. It was named by early trappers because the steam makes it appear as if it is on fire. The Firehole is also known for exceptional fly fishing.

Firehole Technologies is proudly located in Laramie, Wyoming. Our name reflects our Wyoming roots and shows the Equality State has more to offer than beautiful landscapes, it can also offer high tech solutions. The unique approach we take to solving the complex problems associated with composite materials analysis are of special interest to the aerospace, manned and unmanned aerial vehicle, automotive, energy, and leisure industries.

Jerad Stack

Chief Executive Officer

As CEO of Firehole Technologies, Jerad Stack manages the company, formulates and executes long-term strategies, and sets the tone for the company's values, ethics and culture.

Mr. Stack has over a decade of experience in the management and delivery of simulation software for applications ranging from classified military satellites to commercial aircraft to high-end computer servers. This broad experience in the industry has given Jerad a keen understanding of both the business and technology of modeling and simulation software.

Prior to taking the reins of Firehole in 2007, Mr. Stack worked for Raytheon's - Space Systems Division where he lead teams in the development of customized simulation software for national satellite systems. Prior to Raytheon, he was a Technical Consultant for the enterprise software company Trilogy Inc. in Austin, Texas. At Trilogy, Jerad led consulting teams in the deployment and development of customized modeling software for Global 1000 technology companies such as Sun Microsystems, IBM, Boeing, and Hewlett-Packard. In addition, his duties included significant business development and sales engineering.

Jerad has been awarded the Trilogy Customer Success award, Raytheon’s Technical Honors designation, the 2006 Raytheon Program Employee of the Year award and the National Reconnaissance Office's Gold Coin award for outstanding work on national satellite systems.

Jerad holds an M.S. and B.S. both in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wyoming and has an (inactive) TS/SCI security clearance.

---

Emmett Nelson

Chief Operating Officer

Emmett Nelson is the COO of Firehole Technologies. In this position he directs the day-to-day development and delivery of software and services for Firehole’s customers. In recent years, he designed and supervised the research, development, and production of Helius:MCT™ — Firehole’s flagship composites simulation package. From 2005 through 2008, Emmett also served as Firehole’s President and is responsible for acquiring the investments that have led to the company’s rapid growth.

Mr. Nelson is an expert in finite element analysis, multiscale simulation, and failure and damage modeling with several years experience analyzing composite structures. Prior to coming to Firehole, Mr. Nelson worked as a structural analyst for ATK Thiokol Propulsion where he experienced firsthand the lack of sufficient analysis tools for composites. It is this previous experience that drives Emmett to continue to build better, more capable software for composites simulation.

A native of Blomkest, Minnesota, Emmett is the author or co-author on over 20 technical publications and conference papers — all related to analysis of composite materials and structures. He is the Composites Section Chair for the 2009 NAFEMS World Congress and was the co-chair for the Composites Failure Modeling section of the 2008 AIAA/SDM conference. He holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wyoming and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from North Dakota State University

---

Dr. Don Robbins

Chief Engineer

Don is the guidepost for technical innovation at Firehole. He is a key contributor to all innovations and his technical competence is unparalleled. His responsibilities include developing and executing technical strategies, winning and delivering on research contracts and interacting with both industry and academic technical thought leaders.

Dr. Robbins is a computational mechanics expert with 20+ years experience in developing finite element methodology and codes for the analysis of composites. He is the author or co-author of over 25 refereed journal publications and invited chapters in books in this area. His research has been well received by the research community, with three of his journal papers having been cited in excess of 100 times each. Prior to joining Firehole technologies, Dr. Robbins was a professor at the University of Maryland. He also has previous industry experience at Michelin.

Dr. Robbins holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (1994) and an M.S. and B.S. in Agricultural Engineering for Auburn University (1987, 1984).

---

Jason Gies

Vice President of Business Development

As Vice President of Business Development, Mr. Gies focuses on sales, marketing, and new product development for Firehole's software and services offerings.

Jason brings a diverse background of building sales through customer relationships and quality engineering to Firehole. Prior to joining the Firehole team, Mr. Gies was Quality Assurance Manager for a leading ASME nuclear fabricator where he was in charge of customer relationships at companies like Alstom Power, General Atomics, Taiwan Power Company, Lincoln Electric, Miller and Fluor. Through his work in the nuclear industry, Jason built a keen appreciation for product quality (he holds numerous quality certifications), and building strong relationships with both private enterprises and governments.

Prior to this work, Mr. Gies spent over 6 years with IDES, Inc., focusing on sales, product development and quality assurance for such companies as John Deere, Carpenter Technologies, and General Electric. He also has previous work experience with the Wyoming Composite Materials Research Group (CMRG.) Jason holds a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wyoming.

---

Bill Wright

Director, Commercial Products and Engineering

Bill is the technical networking specialist between Firehole and our aerospace partners. He directs the engineering team in producing quality deliverables that exceed customer expectations.

Bill has 30 years of technical and managerial experience. Most recently, he was the Director of Mechanical Engineering for Orbital Sciences Corporation; a firm responsible for building the Ground Midcourse Defense System, launching communications and scientific satellites, and providing a variety of other launch services dealing with domestic and international partners. Bill developed his group (350+ engineers) into a variety of inter-dependent disciplines to include: Computer Aided Design, Structural Test, Design & Integration, Analysis and Materials. Annual budgets for his operation exceeded $40M.

Preceding his tenure at Orbital, Bill was an officer in the US Air Force. He flew C-130’s for 7 years in the active Air Force and 6 years in the Air Guard. He was a Flight Evaluator, Flight Instructor, flew internationally on a regular basis and participated in defense exercises world-wide. Bill received the "Most Outstanding Officer" trophy from his flight school.

Bill holds an M.S. and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wyoming.

---

Dr. Mike Kmetz

Board of Directors Chairman

Mike Kmetz is the Board Chairman for Firehole Technologies. For over 20 years, Mike has been the President of IDES Inc. — an engineering software company focused on delivering the highest quality plastic materials informational services to clients around the world. He has built a reputation for his strong work ethic, focus on results and exceptional ability to forge and maintain major client relationships.

Dr. Kmetz is in a unique position to advise Firehole as the company grows. He has significant experience in the engineering software industry, starting IDES in 1986 as a spinoff company from a research project for IBM conducted by the University of Wyoming. Since then, Kmetz has remained focused on fostering a healthy sustainable enterprise that serves a growing core of loyal customers. Kmetz oversees a staff of twenty in Laramie, Wyoming with sales offices in Europe and Mexico.

He serves on the boards of the Wyoming Technology Organization and the Wyoming Business Council, and has served on the National Engineering Advisory and the Mechanical Engineering Advisory boards at the University of Wyoming. He is also active in a number of industry organizations.

Dr. J.N. Reddy

Dr. Reddy is a world renowned expert in composite material analysis and simulation. He is currently the Holder of the Oscar S. Wyatt Endowed Chair at Texas A&M University where is also serves in the position of Distinguished Professor.

The author of numerous books in the area of continuum mechanics, finite element analysis and composite materials, his research is well respected by both his peers and industry. Dr. Reddy advises Firehole in its R&D efforts, its US DoD research proposals and general technical matters.

---

Nathan Potter

An expert in web marketing and search engine optimization, Nathan is currently the Marketing Manager for IDES Inc. Potter advises Firehole in creating, managing and measuring all of the company marketing campaigns. Previously, he has held mid to high-level sales and marketing positions for Winter Park Ski Resort and PlanetClick.com, a democratic search engine that developed technologies later adopted by Google. Mr. Potter has been a featured speaker on B2B Internet Marketing for MarketingSherpa.com, the Wyoming Technology Organization and the Idea Expo.

Nathan holds a Bachelor's Degree in Communications with an emphasis on Marketing from Luther College (1993).

---

Dr. Andrew Hansen

Andrew Hansen is one the creators of the MCT concept and has a long history of support to Firehole. Dr. Hansen – along with three entrepreneurial graduate students – founded Firehole Technologies in 2000 and he has been involved with the company ever since. Currently, Dr. Hansen is the Associate Dean of Engineering for the University of Wyoming and also serves as a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Hansen received a BS in Civil Engineering from Montana State University in 1980 and a MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Washington in 1982. Andrew returned to Montana State and received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1985. He has been a professor at the University of Wyoming since December of 1985. His current research interests include mixture theory, advanced multicontinuum theories, and composite materials.

---

 

Neil Benton

CEO, Centact Solutions

A native of Casper, WY, Neil holds a BS in Marketing from the University of Wyoming. While in high school he started his first business. He started a lawn mowing and landscaping business his sophomore year in high school, he ran his successful lawn business for nine years. After he sold his lawn business in 1997 he moved to Seattle, Washington where he spent 4 years working at Avenue A, Inc, the US leader in Internet digital marketing where he played a key role in the growth and start up of Avenue A, Inc. He then in 2002, along with two other business partners started Metro Coffee Company in Casper, Wyoming. In 2004 Neil started The Hoxton Group, which is a marketing firm. The Hoxton Group was formed to help businesses develop marketing strategies and to understand which advertising medium is the most effective for those strategies. In November of 2006 Neil Benton founded Centact Solutions. Centact Solutions is a web based service which helps banks manage construction loans.

---

Dr. Mark R. Garnich

Mark Garnich is one of the co-founders of the MCT concept and has a long history of support to Firehole Technologies. Currently, Mark serves as an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the University of Wyoming where he continues to advance the MCT idea into new and diverse areas. Mark advises Firehole on both the technical and business front as he has been involved in both technology and business development for the company.

Dr. Garnich received a BS in Mechanical Engineering in 1981 and a MS in Engineering Mechanics in 1983 from the Michigan Technological University. Mark was a research engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) from 1983 until 1993 when he enrolled with the University of Wyoming where he received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1996. He returned to PNNL for 5 years before coming back to the University of Wyoming where he has been a professor since August of 2001.

---

Josh Dorrell

Mr. Dorell is spends numerous hours advising Firehole in our sales and marketing endeavors. When he is not helping Firehole succeed, Josh is the Director of Business Development for IDES Inc.

Josh started his career at IDES in 1996, while studying Mechanical Engineering at The University of Wyoming. After earning his Bachelor's Degree in 1998, he began leading the Content Development Team. In 2000, Josh began working directly with customers and moved to the Sales Team. In addition to his work at IDES, Josh teaches a course in Sales and Sales Management at the University of Wyoming, College of Business.

Upcoming Opportunities To Meet Us:

SAMPE Fall Technical Conference

October 11-14, 2010, Salt Lake City, UT

Associations and Memberships

American Composites Manufacturers Associations

The American Composites Manufacturers Association provides a forum for the composites industry to develop and enhance shared opportunities and address common challenges. To work toward the Mission of the organization, ACMA has adopted these priority goals: Be the recognized source of education and information for the composites industry, Proactively and positively affect regulatory and legislative outcomes, and Promote the development and expansion of markets for composite products.

---

American Society for Composites

ASC provides a communication forum for the engineering and scientific community in composite materials allowing to expedite the growth of knowledge gained from inter-disciplinary engineering and scientific research in composite materials and promote the exploitation of the unique properties of composite materials in emerging applications.

Visit www.asc-composites.org

---

American Society of Mechanical Engineers

Founded in 1880 as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, today's ASME promotes the art, science & practice of mechanical & multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe.

Visit www.asme.org

---

International Sports Engineering Association

The principal aim of the ISEA is to act as a forum to discuss technical issues relating to sport. The Association also aims to act as the interface between those carrying out research in sports engineering related topics and the sport and leisure industry.

Visit www.sportsengineering.co.uk/

---

NAFEMS

NAFEMS is a vendor neutral, not-for-profit membership association of more than 800 companies from all over the world. Members range from major corporations such as Boeing through mid-sized organizations such as JCB, to small-scale engineering consultants.

Visit www.nafems.org

---

AIAA

AIAA's more than 35,000 members chart the course for aviation and space. Attracting aerospace professionals and students from around the world, AIAA's numbers encompass the industry's leading technology innovators and decision-makers.

Visit www.aiaa.org

---

Materials Research Society

Founded in 1973, MRS now consists of over 15,100 members from the United States -- as well as nearly 70 other countries. The Society is different from that of single discipline professional societies because it encourages communication and technical information exchange across the various fields of science affecting materials.

Visit www.mrs.org

---

 

RECWy

The Renewable Energy Coalition of Wyoming is a non-profit for promoting and facilitating the development of wind and other renewable energy resources.

---

Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering

The Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering, SAMPE®, an international professional member society, provides information on new materials and processing technologies through chapter technical presentations, two journal publications, symposia and commercial expositions in which professionals can exchange ideas and air their views. As the only technical society encompassing all fields of endeavor in materials and processes, SAMPE provides a unique and valuable forum for scientists, engineers, designers and academicians.

Visit sampe.org

---