Jerry Eden has worded in the energy industry for 20-plus years, including more than a dozen in an electricians union. In that time he has noticed Michigan seems to be lacking when it comes to keeping up with technological improvements.
"We seem to lag behind a little bit as far as technology advancement in Michigan," Eden says. "Sometimes a lot."
So he started to do something about it six months ago by starting
Synergy System Solutions. The Royal Oak-based startup specializes in integrating new technology into everyday uses. More times than not that has to do with adding alternative energy to the mix.
That could mean adding solar arrays to light poles to help keep streetlights on more cost-effectively. Or adding alternative energy generators to machines that work in remote places, such as the blinking arrows that steer construction traffic in the right direction far away from the nearest electrical plug.
Eden has been working with a number of different alternative energy players in Metro Detroit, including the
Green Team Coalition at the
NextEnergy campus in Detroit's New Center neighborhood. He hopes these projects help create more jobs in Michigan. It has already led to the creation of a three-person staff at Synergy System Solutions.
"I want us to be at the forefront of Michigan’s disruptive technology," Eden says. "Doing things differently, but innovative."
Source: Jerry Eden, president of Synergy System Solutions
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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