The Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP-NEP) Board of Directors has approved the investment of $60,000 in support of regional economic development.

Ben Franklin announces the following early-stage company investments that are provided to clients in the form of loans:

Colymer Industries, Ben Franklin TechVentures, Bethlehem. Ben Franklin Investment: $50,000 to implement a marketing and sales strategy to commercialize a new, proprietary, non-asphalt roofing and waterproofing material, Tarzanite, a coal tar formulation that is not water-soluble and is environmentally beneficial. The material is expected to outlast traditional asphalt-based materials by a factor of four.

SeKur Technology, Inc., Allentown. Ben Franklin Investment: $10,000 to complete a sales and marketing strategy to launch a proprietary licensing, encryption, and storage solution to secure digital media, including pdf documents, e-books, and audio-video files. The owner of the media can encrypt, track and control the distribution of any file, on- or off-line, preventing unauthorized transfer or download.