Kerem Durdag, CEO of Biovation, a young high-tech bioscience company located in Boothbay, will be the guest speaker at the 2014 annual meeting of the Lincoln County Regional Planning Commission, Tuesday, April 29 at Waters Edge in Edgecomb. 

Durdag will talk about innovation, the climate and challenges of our small-business economy, and STEM education. Before his work at Biovation, Durdag was the CEO of BiODE (a laboratory equipment company), and eventually led the company to acquisition by the Dover Corporation, a global manufacturer of innovative equipment and components. He was also past CTO for STEAG HamaTech, and Engineering Manager at Conceptronic, both public companies and world leaders in high-tech manufacturing. Durdag is also the founder of an event targeted to encourage entrepreneurship for high school and college students in Maine. 

Biovation manufactures non-woven fabric material using plastic from corn-starch for niche and demanding applications in medical, military and industrial applications. Last year, the company was awarded a U.S. Marine Corps contract for $978,000 to develop a boot-drying product for soldiers. Biovation will develop and test military-grade samples of a lightweight boot insert made of super-absorbent polymer and polylactic acid materials.

The LCPRC is Lincoln County’s economic development and land use and transportation planning organization. The annual meeting brings together officials and residents from throughout the county. The evening begins at 5 p.m. with light hors d’oeuvres, and is open to the public, free of charge. For more information and to RSVP by Monday, April 21, please email Emily Reinholt, ereinholt@lcrpc.org or call 207-882-5152.