The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 81

That's where research comes into the equation.
"We probably do a lot more in terms of understanding the science than other diagnostic companies
do," Lylerly says. "We enjoy the science . . . that's the
exciting part when you get to really figure out what's
going on and why."

ORIGO: STOP THAT DRIVE-BY TEXT!
Location: Roanoke County, Electric Road
Product: Distracted Driving Solution
As Clay Skelton headed to pick up the first prototype
of an ignition interlock system he'd invented to combat distracted driving, the 53-year-old noticed the
driver of a Range Rover behind him.
"I could see him in my rearview mirror texting,"
Skelton says. "When we took off, he kept texting. I
thought, 'This fool is going to hit me.'"
Skelton tried to put some distance between his
vehicle and the other, but another red light made
that impossible. Bam! The driver of the Range Rover
rear-ended him. Skelton's Volkswagon Golf needed
considerable repairs and Skelton had to have several
weeks of physical therapy for whiplash.
"It was ironic," Skelton says, with trademark dry wit.
The accident, Skelton says, left him hyper-aware
of how much other humans use their smart phones.
He hopes his product, called ORIGOSafe, will help
protect humans from ourselves.
"It's an addiction that affects everyone," he says.
Skelton designed his system to be used by the commercial trucking industry. As he began marketing
the product, though, he kept hearing from folks who
wanted one for their teenager.
As the father of three teens, Skelton understood
the concern. Origo now offers a stripped down version of the product sold to trucking companies for
about $400 installed. To get the price that low, he
says, the company's profits have been cut to "almost
nothing."
THE

R OANOKER.COM

The New River Valley biotech
company develops and

manufactures diagnostics for
intestinal diseases.

A car that has the ORIGOSafe installed will not
start unless a specified smart phone is placed into
the dock. Drivers can not hold or look at their phone
while the car is running, but they can use their
phones with a Bluetooth device.
Origo, which launched in 2013, is still very much a
small business. Employees put each unit together by
hand at a tiny warehouse on Commonwealth Drive
in Roanoke County. The company, which has five
full-time employees plus a host of contractors, has
a goal of selling 15,000 units in 2015.
Skelton has high hopes for what the company can
do. He tells a story about a small Louisiana trucking
fleet (he declines to name it) that had six accidents in
one year at a cost of $300,000. A year after installing
ORIGOSafe, according to Skelton, the company has
had no accidents.
"If you want to draw the conclusion that texting was
the cause of those accidents, you might logically do
that," he says.
Accidents will increase in number, Skelton believes,
as younger teens, who grew up with smart phone technology, grow old enough to get their driver's license and
later take their places in the work force, some of them
working behind the wheel.
"They're sending snap chats of themselves driving to
their friends," Skelton says. "I think the problem itself
is getting more and more dangerous every month."

ORIGOSafe (far left)
helps protect humans
from themselves.
TechLab President Charlie
Pennington (center)
stands in front of plaques
recognizing just a few of
the company's patents.
4DD Studios (above)
crafted the 4 and the 0
on this magazine's 40th
Anniversary cover.
To see the video of its
creation to to theroanoker.
com/MakingACover.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

http://www.theroanoker.com/MakingACover http://www.theroanoker.com/MakingACover http://www.THEROANOKER.COM

The Roanoker - January/February 2015

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