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By William Hershey, Staff Writer 6:41 PM Saturday, September 12, 2009

COLUMBUS — If you’re looking for some sunshine on these dreary Ohio economic days, hook up with Doug McClelland, president of Mound Technical Solutions, Inc. in Miamisburg.

But be warned: McClelland’s not a typical corporate bigfoot.

He’s a handlers-free talker.

That means he answers the phone himself and responds to questions without screening them through a platoon of hand-wringing spin doctors.

Besides that, “I made the coffee this morning,” McClelland, 44, said in a phone chat last week.

What really brings out the sunshine is McClelland’s optimism about Ohio, a state burdened with 11.2 percent unemployment, shrinking wages and factories that keep shutting their doors.

Gov. Ted Strickland perked up McClelland last week when Strickland came to Dayton and designated the region a hub of aerospace innovation and opportunity.

“It’s significant that we forge a niche here in our region and people understand what our region’s about,” said McClelland, who was born in Xenia and now lives in Springboro.

Strickland declined to say how much money the cash-strapped state would spend to make this vision come true but said, “Trust me, money will follow planning.”

That’s the same line the governor’s been using to tout his plan to overhaul K-12 education which is big on ideas but so far short on dollars.

McClelland, however, has experience to back up his optimism. His company has participated in the state’s Third Frontier program and it’s paid off, he said.

The Third Frontier was former Gov. Bob Taft’s idea, aimed at expanding high-tech research and turning that research into business and jobs.

McClelland’s company, which has 13 employees, is located on the site of the former Mound nuclear laboratory and has been involved with nuclear-related projects.

With $1.1 million in grants from the Third Frontier, the company expanded into developing test systems for fuel cells, which convert the energy of hydrogen into electricity for a variety of uses, said McClelland. The grants required the company to work with other firms and universities, he said.

His company also collaborated with businesses that received other Third Frontier grants.

“We’ve reaped a lot of benefits by working with other fuel cell manufacturers and universities,” said McClelland.

The state legislature returns this week and, with Strickland’s support, is expected to consider putting an issue on next May’s ballot to renew Third Frontier funding. McClelland backs that.

“I think the state has reaped pretty good returns on the investment,” he said. “...The dollars are returned very nicely.”

According to the state development department, new research shows that the Third Frontier project has created 48,000 jobs throughout Ohio.

Through the middle of this year, the program has awarded about $1 billion in grants, including about $120 million in the Dayton area, John Griffin, director of the development department’s division of technology and innovation, said.

Earlier research showed that through the end of 2008 the average salary of the new jobs created was $67,654 and the cost to the program of each job created was $51,951.

Personally, McClelland is on a roll. He worked five stories underground in the old Mound laboratory and now works three stories above ground.

“I’m moving up,” he said.

Contact this reporter at (614) 224-1608 or whershey@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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