“Alexa, schedule a video call with Dr. Smith”: Austin-based startup Medici advances telehealth

telehealth

Doctor visits are a pain, and not because of that irritating chest infection or scorching fever. Wait times in the U.S. have increased 30 percent over the past four years, and that percentage is likely to rise over time, according to an article by Medscape. There is good news, though. Medici, a telehealth startup based in Austin, Texas, wants to make your doctor visits more efficient and less stressful by way of your mobile device.

Apart from doctors being overloaded, “they are buried with regulatory requirements, administrative hurdles and downward pressure on their own costs to run their practices. This burden is increasingly taking time away from doctors’ ability to focus on what really matters: providing great care for patients,” a statement from the Medici website said. “We are driven by a singular purpose. To change the doctor-patient relationship. The world is changing and healthcare must come along, too.”

The Medici application, referred to as the “WhatsApp of healthcare”, combines five principles: speed, harmony, ambition, resourcefulness and excellence. The app allows patients to contact doctors, be it physicians, dentists, therapists, even veterinarians, via text message or video call; all from a single platform. A diagnosis can be made over the app, which in return can reduce the number of patients in the waiting room. Patients can ask their doctors to join the app, or doctors can invite their patients to use it. For more context, check out the video below.

“Patients also face a growing burden, carrying more of their own healthcare costs and spending an average of 121 minutes on each medical visit they have,” the Medici website continued. “Our goal is to make global, innovative technology that will transform and truly inspire the world of healthcare.”

Are you developing new technologies to improve healthcare? Did you know that you can receive up to 14% back on your research expenses with the R&D Tax Credit? To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is a Specialist R&D tax advisory firm, offering tax credibility assessments, claim preparation, and advisory services to the state of Texas. We manage all facets of the R&D tax credit program in Texas, from claim prep & audit compliance to claim disputes. 

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPAs.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

“$1.1 million flop” – Failed Wind Turbines in Addison Demonstrate the Need for R&D

wind turbine

Almost a decade ago, the city of Addison, TX set its sights on constructing a new water tower powered by eight wind turbines that would sit atop of the tower. Intended to become an artistic and renewable energy landmark, the project was designed by an artist who claimed that when people see the tower, “They will know they are in Addison.” Unfortunately, the once-optimistic project would instead become known for its failed wind turbines.

In 2011, Landmark Structures was commissioned to build the water tower and Urban Green Energy manufactured the wind turbines which were installed in February 2012. One of the turbines fell off the tower only three months after installation. While no one was hurt, the turbines continued to demonstrate poor craftsmanship even after repairs. In December 2012, a blade hit a nearby building, destroying a conference room.  In 2013, the turbines were removed, re-fitted, and reinstalled. However, another blade flew off the turbine in 2014.

While the water tower was functional, the failed wind turbines, made originally in China, proved to be a safety hazard. According to Dave Lieber, the project was “a $1.1 million flop” and “not one kilowatt of electricity was generated.” As a result, the city of Addison is issuing a lawsuit against Landmark Structures and Urban Green Energy who had designed and handled the construction of the project. Until the legal case is sorted, the failed wind turbines will remain atop of the water tower.

Are you working on projects attempting to improve wind turbines and prevent future accidents and lawsuits like Addison’s failed wind turbines? Did you know your experiments, even those that were unsuccessful, could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you could receive 14% back on your expenses? To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE credits as well as CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

Luck should have nothing to do with it: Lessons from Hurricane Harvey about Resilient Technology

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Restoration projects continue in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey which had devastated Houston’s infrastructure. Although the destruction was not as bad as it could have been, experts believe that with the increasing likelihood of future deadlier storms, the Lone Star state should invest in more resilient technology. Karl R. Rábago, executive director of the Pace Energy and Climate Center, said in regards to the disaster in Houston, “We’ve dodged a bullet. We should honor our good fortune by not relying on it next time.”

This resilient technology should be directed towards flood management, sustainable power, and ensuring that critical services like fire stations and hospitals could continue to operate in the midst of disasters. During Hurricane Harvey, the W.A. Parish Electric Generating Station, one of the largest power plants in America, had been unable to generate power because of flooding. Water had clogged the station’s conveyor belt, preventing coal from moving throughout the plant and from generating electricity. Consequently, for the future, Joshua D. Rhodes, a postdoctoral researcher at Austin’s Energy Institute at the University of Texas, said, “We’re going to design power plants and oil and gas refineries with flooding in mind. Anything you don’t want to get wet, you move up.”

Diversity of power sources are important as well. Daniel Cohan, a civil and environmental engineering associate professor at Rice University, asserts that Texas should invest in other types of power technology, not just coal and nuclear. Cohan does not believe the solution to resilient technology is to have “a 90-day mountain of coal next to the power plant.” Rather, renewable energies should also be considered.

Additionally, microgrids could help maintain the utility grid, especially near critical services. Because they are local, onsite power generators that are disconnected from traditional power grids, microgrids can still supply electricity into neighborhoods even when the main grids are cut off. According to the Department of Energy, “Depending on how it’s fueled and hot its requirements are managed, a microgrid might run indefinitely.”

Are you engaging in R&D to build more resilient technology? You could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and can get up to 14% on your R&D expenses, even if your experiments were not successful. To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is Texas’ largest Specialist R&D tax advisory firm, offering tax credibility assessments, claim preparation, and advisory services. We manage all facets of the R&D tax credit program in Texas, from claim prep & audit compliance to claim disputes.  

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative

 

Infrastructure Masons Meet in Dallas to Tackle Challenges to Data Centers

powergrid

Data centers form the backbone to the modern economy, especially as many traditional services and businesses are increasingly moving online. However, maintaining and powering data centers can be quite costly. To discuss these challenges, Infrastructure Masons, or iMasons, met in Dallas last week at South Methodist University.

iMasons was founded by Mark Monroe, President of Energetic Consulting Inc, and Dean Nelson, Head of Uber Compute in 2016. Given the evolving challenges facing data centers and modern infrastructure, iMason was formed to allow industry professionals to meet and discuss potential solutions. The association has since grown to over 1,000 members worldwide.

Data centers are important to any economy. After all, internet giants like Facebook, YouTube, Google, Netflix, and others depend on digital clouds based in data centers. Yet, maintenance of data centers’ equipment is difficult; it needs to be replaced every three to five years and cloud applications that run on the equipment lasts only a few months. Perhaps more significant are the electrical power grids and utilities that allow these data centers and virtually everything else to function. As Monroe said, “If your social media site goes down, nobody dies. If your autonomous vehicle goes down and you’re connected to the grid on the foundation that the masons have built, then you’ve got something serious.”

In response to these challenges, the iMason members recognized that further investment in sustainable energy sources like wind and solar power energy is needed to meet the power demands of data centers. There is already hope that the data industry is influencing infrastructure changes, particularly towards renewable energy sources. Google, for instance, is known for pushing towards clean energy and the tech behemoth is now the largest renewable energy customer in the world. Utilities and infrastructure are responding to the demand.

In addition to the question of sustainability, the iMasons discussed other problems within the infrastructure industry, especially the aging work force and lack of diversity. Eddie Schutter, Head of Global Foundation Services at eBay, said, “It’s also an aging team in this industry. How do we bring in younger talent and how do we bring in the next generation?” New young and diverse talent are integral to leading new ideas in development. The importance of innovation in infrastructure cannot be overstated. In fact, innovation was a key factor in pushing for increasing the structural resiliency of data centers in Texas. This initiative allowed Texas data centers to continue to function despite Hurricane Harvey, in stark contrast to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

If you’re conducting R&D to innovate new ways to power data centers or improve infrastructure, you could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and can receive up to 14% back on your experiment expenses. To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today.

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE credits as well as CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

The Dallas to Houston Bullet Train: Boosting Transportation and Economic Growth the Texan Way

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Imagine a bullet train so fast it could transport you from Dallas to Houston comfortably in 90 minutes instead of driving in traffic for six hours on congested highways. Texas Central Partners is making that dream a reality with construction for the bullet train slated to begin late 2018 and early 2019 and to be completed within five years.

The bullet train would be the first of its kind in the United States. At speeds up to 200 mph, the train would carry 400 passengers to three major stops: Houston, Dallas, and the Brazos Valley Region. Nearly 14 million people travel between Houston and Dallas each year by air or by road, and congestion has significantly increased on the highways since 2012. The Interstate 45 between the two major Texan cities is also known as the second deadliest highway in the country because of its vulnerability for accidents.

Texas Central Partners is building its prototype based on Japan’s N700-I bullet train and Shinkansen system. With its 52-year record of zero fatalities, the N700 technology is known as the safest in the world. Texas’ bullet train will be built on an elevated double-track rail to further ensure public security so as not to intersect with highways and roads. The company’s External Affairs Director Holly Reed explained the state is a test for the rest of the United States: “The project is in Texas, but it’s on a national stage. It’s the right project being done the right way at the right time.”

Aside from the transportation benefit, the bullet train’s construction is expected to increase economic activity in the North Texas area. 10,000 jobs would be created from the renovation efforts alone while another 1,000 jobs would be added to the newly growing American high-speed rail industry. Costs of the project are an estimated $15 billion. Texas Central was adamant from the outset that funding for the bullet train would not come from government grants or subsidies. Instead, it would be financed by private sources. According to Reed, “This is an example of Texas doing things its way. It’s an entrepreneurial-led project being driven by free-market principles.”

Reed added that it follows the spirit of Texas innovation, “It’s a big idea, not any different than the first semiconductor that was built at TI (Texas Instrument) or when NASA put a man on the moon. This is an example of a project that has the principles that made all of those companies great.”

If you are also developing ideas and projects to improve Texas’ transit systems like the proposed bullet train, you may be eligible for the R&D tax credit which could save you up to 14% on your expenses. To find out more on how you can save money, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today.

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE credits as well as CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

Outdated Shopping Mall Proposed as Dallas Location for Amazon’s HQ2

Dallas Mall

Last Friday, cities in North Texas submitted their bids to become the home of Amazon’s second headquarters HQ2. To set it apart from the other 50 North American cities vying for the spot, Dallas’ proposals ranged from the practical – such as highlighting the upcoming bullet train project from Dallas to Houston – to the ironic, which suggested the online retail giant take over the location of the Valley View Mall, an outdated shopping mall.

Three Dallas developers, Hillword Urban, KDC, and Crescent Real Estate, had proposed the Valley View Mall location at LBJ Freeway and Preston Road as a potential site for HQ2. With the rise of online retail giants like Amazon, the Mall has struggled to adjust to fluctuating consumer trends in the 2000s and gradually, its major department stores closed one after the other: Bloomingdale’s in 1990, Macy’s and Dillard’s in 2008, JCPenney in 2013, and finally Sears in July 2017. The prospect of Amazon’s HQ2 replacing the Mall therefore adds a symbolic, ironic flare. The Mall is near three airports: Addison, Love Field, and DFW International, making it another appealing option since Amazon had included proximity to an airport as one of its requirements for HQ2. Dallas-based architects from Omniplan have already drafted a design for a 500,000 square foot building for HQ2. If successful, Amazon would move into HQ2 by 2019 and expand the space to 8 million square feet by 2027.

Texas is a prime prospect for HQ2. 20,000 Amazon employees already work in the Lone Star State, making it the third state with the most Amazon workers, aside from California and Washington State. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos had announced last month the company’s intention to expand to a second headquarters with a commitment to invest $5 billion to the new city and create 50,000 jobs in the area.  The Dallas Regional Chamber is in the process of preparing an executive summary of North Texas’ best proposals to send to Amazon for the company’s October 19 deadline.

Are you conducting R&D projects to build and improve existing buildings like Valley View Mall? You may be eligible for the R&D tax credit and can get up to 14% back on your expenses. If you would like to find out how your company could benefit from R&D Tax Credits, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today.

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE credits as well as CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

“The future is all electric” – General Motors announces a lineup of electric cars by 2023

electric car

 Auto industry leader General Motors announced yesterday that it aims to introduce a lineup of 20 electric cars by 2023 with two electric models to appear on the market within 18 months. Mark Reuss, GM’s Executive Vice President of Global Product Development, Purchasing, and Supply Chain, said, “General Motors believes the future is all electric.”

The announcement follows a growing pattern in the auto industry where other major players like Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover, and Mazda are committing to electric cars. Volkswagen and Audi likewise shifted their focus from diesel to electric. This trend is fuelled in part by several countries’ decision to ban internal combustion engines powered by diesel and gas in the future. Countries include China, India, and the United Kingdom.

GM’s lineup will include a broad array of vehicles, from pure electric-powered cars to hybrids and even vehicles using hydrogen-fuel-cell technologies. Traditionally, hybrids with their gasoline-powered engines and electric batteries have demonstrated a safe option to break into the fuel-efficient market. Hydrogen-fuel-cell power, in contrast, poses a greater market risk. This technology involves converting compressed hydrogen into energy and releases only water vapor as waste. However, major improvements to existing infrastructure is needed before hydrogen-powered cars can enter mainstream use. Currently, only California, particularly in Los Angeles and the Bay area, has the infrastructure to maintain hydrogen cars.

Despite controversy surrounding hydrogen power, GM has been working on a hydrogen cell battery since 2015 and hopes to begin production by 2020. Building on its Chevy Bolt electric car technology, GM recently introduced the Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure (SURUS). The SURUS is a hydrogen powered vehicle with a four-wheel drive that runs on two electric motors. GM hopes the SURUS will be used as delivery trucks and even ambulances in the future. There is still of course, room for improvement. As Reuss told The Verge, “Whatever we do, from an electrification stand point, the next version will be better than the version we have on the road.”

Are you experimenting with prototyping different electric and hydrogen powered vehicles? You could be eligible for the R&D tax credit even if you haven’t begun production yet. To find out more on the R&D tax credit, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today.

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE credits as well as CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.