Olathe-built COVID-fighting biotech could be ‘Coolest Thing made in Kansas’ — Voting now open
September 17, 2020 | Startland News Staff
An Olathe startup that began offering its biotech to researchers in April — just as the pandemic hit — already is receiving statewide recognition for a product that ultimately could help take down COVID-19.
T-Blocks were announced Wednesday as one of the Top 16 nominees for the Kansas Chamber’s “Coolest Thing Made in Kansas” prize, which highlights Sunflower State manufacturers. Grown by Ronawk at the health tech startup’s Johnson County lab, the product is one of five Kansas City metro competitors for the honor.
Click here to vote for the “Coolest Thing Made in Kansas.”
A.J. Mellott and Heather Decker, Ronawk
“We hope this creates an opportunity to tell folks more about our T-Blocks, so we can do some good in the KC area,” said A.J. Mellott, president and co-founder of Ronawk.
Built on modular and expandable 3D substrates, T-Blocks (Tissue-Blocks) enable researchers across the globe to rapidly expand growth of cells — up to one trillion at a time — used in critical research that could save lives and shatter the COVID curve once and for all, he detailed.
Ronawk formally launched in February 2019. Mellott and co-founder Heather Decker, who also serves as CTO, initially weren’t expecting to use T-Blocks in the fight against a global pandemic a year into the endeavor, Mellott said, noting the product has broader applications.
“[What we’re creating is] going to help overcome some of the diseases that currently the whole world is facing and fighting against,” he said.
Click here to read more about T-Blocks and Ronawk, one of Startland News’ 2020 Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies in Kansas City.
The four other Kansas City-area products featured as nominees for “Coolest Thing Made in Kansas” include:
- Autoland, Garmin International, Inc., Olathe
- Al Davis Memorial Torch, Dimensional Innovations, Overland Park
- Microlite!, KMDI, Inc., Kansas City
- Pies, Tippin’s Gourmet Pies, LLC, Kansas City
Additional Kansas nominees rounding out the Top 16 include:
- EMP Shield, EMP Shields, LLC, Burlington
- SawHaul carrier, GearHaul, Chanute
- Custom Built Dredge, Custom Dredge Works, Inc., Topeka
- James Webb Space Telescope Struts, Aerospace Corporation, Newton
- Rawhide Portable Corral, Rawhide Portable Corral, Abilene
- BG Rev-It tool, BG Products, Wichita
- Custom Limestone Rock Signs, Fisher Rocks, Belleville
- Stanfield Heating Pad, Osborne Industries, Inc. Osborne
- Kalmar Ottawa Terminal Tractor, Kalmar, Ottawa
- CLX Ra Gaming PC Special Edition, CLX Gaming, Wichita
- Coleman-Mach, MACH 15 A/C, RV Products (a division of Airxcel), Wichita
Voting in the Top 16 round is open now through Sept. 21, with the Top 8 set to be announced Sept. 22. Nominees will then be pared down to Top 4, Top 2 and ultimately an overall winner through four phases of voting.
The “Coolest Thing Made in Kansas is expected to be revealed Oct. 6.
Click here to view the full contest calendar and rules.
Featured Business
2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Meet Kansas City’s ‘data experts in coffee,’ PerfectCube
Editor’s note: This content is sponsored by LaunchKC but independently produced by Startland News. Kansas City’s flourishing independent coffee roaster market has brewed opportunity for a duo of entrepreneurs. Mark Calhoun and Jim Starcev co-founded the big data platform PerfectCube in 2015. And although the platform is a viable analytics solution for any retailer, the…
Joni Cobb and Pipeline took ‘a leap of faith’ that’s paying off
In 2006, Joni Cobb was busy coaxing Kansas business executives to apply for a program honing their leadership skills. Then a state-subsidized program, Pipeline would cultivate promising entrepreneurs that would tangentially grow the Sunflower State’s economy with their firms. Extolled as rigorous, the Pipeline sales pitch hit snags with its intensiveness and novelty. Skeptical entrepreneurs…
The Pipeline fellowship’s journey to the Emerald Isle in photos
In an educational adventure focused on finance and global business strategy, the Pipeline entrepreneurial fellowship program ventured across the pond for a week of relationship building. I tagged along not only to observe the experience — expect more on that front soon — but to capture some moments with my camera. This smattering of photos, which…
Kansas City startups flex pitch skills in national Kauffman contest
Four Kansas City area startups — and one Lawrence, Kan. firm — have qualified to the top 40 of Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s 1 in a Million pitch competition. The competition offers those who have presented at 1 Million Cups in the last year a chance to snag a $25,000 prize. Hundreds of applicants — who…