NewswireTODAY - /newswire/ - Pittsburgh, PA, United States, 2009/08/06 - Etcetera Edutainment has successfully closed a round of growth capital from a group of private Western Pennsylvania investors and Innovation Works, which invests in high-potential companies with the greatest likelihood of economic impact.

Etcetera, which was founded in 2005, develops immersive, videogame- and simulation-based safety training products. Industrial safety professionals use Etcetera’s engaging virtual environments to instill workforce safety habits and reduce the risk of costly, preventable workplace accidents. The company will use the funding to extend the sales and marketing of its safety training products, including its next major commercial product launch in Fall 2009.

“We’re building the foundation for a sustainable, high-growth company, and this financing is a strategic part of that,” said Jessica Trybus, Etcetera Edutainment founder and CEO. “We already have significant demand for our products; we’re using the capital to ramp up the internal resources we need to market and deliver them to customers."

This investment round, which was completed June 1, was the first for the company. Etcetera spent more than three years focused on gaining customers, understanding the market and developing its core technology before seeking expansion funding.

Etcetera was founded in January 2005 by fellow faculty and graduates of Carnegie Mellon’s Entertainment Technology Center (ETC), a world-renowned research hub focused on using video game design techniques and technologies to help people learn more effectively. Ernst & Young recently recognized the company’s growth and innovation by naming Trybus a 2009 regional Entrepreneur of the Year.

About Etcetera Edutainment

Etcetera Edutainment (etceteraedutainment.com) is a leader in developing games and simulation products for immersive industrial safety and product training experiences. Etcetera Edutainment’s proprietary technologies combined with expertise in game development and design are the foundation of powerful and immersive simulation and game-based products that contribute to retention of content, message and brand.

Agency / Source: Etcetera Edutainment

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