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SBIR Advisory Board
 Dr. Ruaño has been an entrepreneur in the biotechnology industry for 15 years. He is a pioneer in several molecular technologies for profiling genome diversity stemming from population and evolutionary genetics. He obtained M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University. Dr. Ruaño founded Genomas in 2003, and is the company's President. Dr. Ruaño is Director of Cardiovascular Genetics at Hartford Hospital. He is also Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at George Washington University School of Medicine.
Dr. Ruaño founded Genaissance Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in 1997 as the first company to pioneer pharmacogenomics and personalized medicine. He served as the Company's Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientific Officer. There he developed the current standard for genetic associations based on gene haplotypes and multi-allele genotypes. Dr. Ruaño began his biotechnology career at BIOS Laboratories in 1988. He was principal investigator and was awarded 5 Phase II SBIR grants and 11 Phase I SBIR grants totaling $2.5M by NCI, NHLBI, NIGMS, NSF and DOE. Dr. Ruaño SBIR experience was presented at the 2002 Fall National SBIR/STTR Conference. Dr. Ruaño as Genomas PI was recently awarded an SBIR Phase I grant for development of genetic diagnostic products in antipsychotic-induced metabolic syndrome (NIH 1R43 MH 073291-01). He is senior editor of the journal Personalized Medicine and founding director of the Personalized Medicine Coalition in Washington, D.C. Dr. Ruaño was elected to the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering in April 2004. He serves on advisory committees of the American Association of Clinical Chemistry and of the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry instituting guidelines for pharmacogenetic testing in the clinical laboratory. Over the last three years he has served in various steering committees working with the Food and Drug Administration on pharmacogenomic guidelines for drug development.
 Before co-founding ATMI in 1986, Gene Banucci served as a Director for American Cyanamid's Chemical Research Division, where he directed more than 400 scientists and engineers in new product research and development for this $1 billion unit. He also created and directed Cyanamid's Discovery Research Department where he managed the creation of new specialty chemical and materials technologies, leading to new business ventures.
Gene holds 21 issued U.S. patents and is an author of numerous published scientific articles. He is a founding member of the Connecticut Technology Council, a member of the Board of Directors of Zygo, Inc., and a member of the Board of Trustees of Beloit College. He received his PhD in Organic Chemistry from Wayne State University, and his BA in Chemistry from Beloit College. He had a 10 year career with General Electric Company, including 4 years at GE's Plastics Business where he managed research and engineering activities.
 Dr. Serio has been a Principal Investigator on experimental and/or modeling studies on the pyrolysis, gasification, liquefaction, and combustion of coal; characterization and development of advanced jet fuel formulations; pyrolysis of biomass and waste materials; synthesis of fullerenes; pollution formation in combustion systems; FT-IR monitoring of combustion systems; advanced fire detection methods; and polymer thermal degradation. For several years, he led the team that developed AFR's widely used FG-DVC model for the pyrolysis of coal, biomass and related materials.
He has been employed at AFR since March 1984, joining the company after receiving his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also holds a B.S. degree in chemical engineering ('with distinction') from Cornell University.
Dr. Serio has been a Principal Investigator or Program Manager on contracts and grants for several government agencies, including NSF, DOE, DOD, EPA, NASA and USDA. He is currently a member of the Industrial Advisory Committee for the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Connecticut and the editorial board for the journal, Fuel. Dr. Serio has served as Chair, Program Chair, Program Secretary, and Trustee for the American Chemical Society (ACS) Division of Fuel Chemistry. He also served as a member of the joint CCR/ACS/AIChE task force on the DOE energy research budget in 1996-97 and was a consultant on a five year coal research project sponsored by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
Dr. Serio has three patents and more than 150 publications, including two encyclopedia chapters. He was the senior editor of a book titled "Synthesis and Characterization of Advanced Materials," that was published by the ACS in 1998 and which is now available from Oxford University Press. He is a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the American Chemical Society, the Cornell Society of Engineers and the MIT Chapter of Sigma Xi.
 Kevin Burns is President and co-founder of Precision Combustion, Inc. (PCI). PCI (North Haven, Connecticut) has developed world technology leadership in clean and efficient catalytic combustion and in short-contact-time catalytic reactors for energy sector applications and with military, other governmental and industrial development support. Key applications include fuel processing for fuel cell and other applications, catalytic combustion for ultra-low emissions gas turbines, downhole steam generation for oil and gas production, fume cleaning for multiple applications, and chemicals manufacturing. The fuel processor is uniquely efficient and compact, especially for logistic liquid fuels. The catalytic combustor achieves low single ppm digit NOx emissions directly from the gas turbine without efficiency penalty and without post-combustion emissions controls. The high heat rate downhole steam generator offers increased heavy oil and other hydrocarbon production at substantial energy and environmental savings. The fume cleaner is uniquely compact and efficient.
The company’s strategy has been to use the SBIR program to develop the initial stages of its technology. It has won 31 SBIR Phase II awards over a 20 year period. The company has also attracted substantial governmental follow-on SBIR Phase III support, as well as development and product sales to major industrial companies. PCI has twice received Tibbetts awards for excellence in the SBIR program. PCI is currently working with the U.S. DoD and a number of industrial customers on applications of its technology.
Mr. Burns earned an MBA in Management with distinction from Wharton and a BA in public policy from Princeton University, where he was also a University Scholar and a Woodrow Wilson School Scholar.
 Ms. Deborah K. Moss, a graduate of Smith College, co-founded E Magazine, a national consumer magazine dedicated to environmental issues and remains an active member of its board.. In 1993 Ms. Moss joined the management team of her family's Milford-based manufacturing firms and she was responsible for initiating development efforts on the proprietary Hydrofiller technology. Ms. Moss led the corporate spin off of Avalence, LLC from its founding companies in order to further commercialization of the Hydrofiller product line. She presently serves as Chair and CMO of the company providing a strategic and marketing focus for the company.
 Mr. Andrew Timmerman is President - Fairfield Crystal Technology, responsible for Fairfield’s Business Management and Operations. In his previous appointment he was instrumental in commercializing silicon carbide (SiC) wafers helping establish Sterling Semiconductor as the 2nd world supplier of SiC wafers. He directed the operations efforts for both a $5.9-million DARPA and a $3.2-million Title-III contract focused on establishing Merchant Suppliers for silicon carbide wafers. Mr. Timmerman has more than 23 years of management, manufacturing and engineering experience. Prior to starting Fairfield Crystal Technology, LLC, he held various management positions for Dow Corning, Uniroyal Technology/Sterling Semiconductor and Silicon Valley Group. He graduated from Lehigh University with a Bachelor Degree in Mechanical Engineering, earned an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a Master Degree in Manufacturing Engineering from Polytechnic University.
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