Hycrete, Kergy and other news

• Hycrete, which provides waterproofing and anti-corrosion materials for concrete, announced a Series B financing (amount undisclosed) by NGEN and Rockport. The company's additives can eliminate the need for membranes and other materials in construction, as well as providing other benefits such as extending structural lifetime, etc. Notably, green architect (and "cradle to cradle" proponent) Bill McDonough is an advisor to the company. This also seems like a useful excuse to point out this article on green buildings in NYC.
  

• PE Week Wire today notes that Khosla Ventures has invested a $3.3mm Series A into a "maker of alternative energy equipment", Kergy Inc. There's little publicly-available information available anywhere about the company.

Some other news and notices:

• If you're in the Bay Area this coming Tuesday (the 22nd), swing by the 111 Minna Gallery for a renewable energy happy hour co-hosted by the Antenna Group and the Renewable Energy Business Network. Drinks start flowing and tongues start wagging at 6pm -- RSVP to Nick Allen (with your affiliation) if you'd like to attend.

• And in news of cleantech efforts outside of the Bay Area, Tyler Hamilton had this useful article about the rapid rise of cleantech investing up in Canada. You can also see his blog post about it here.

Other notes: Given the overlaps between nanotech and cleantech (here's yet another example), it's useful to note that overall investments in nanotech seem to have declined 39% in the first half of the year.... Add another VC to the cleantech investor list: DCM's Hurst Lin says they're looking to invest in "traditional industries" (including clean energy technologies) in China... "There's a lot of vibration in this space."... The solar consolidation trend continues -- this time it's a financial group moving downstream into installation services, interestingly... Treehugger interviews Joel Makower... Lastly, solar panels and wind power are "urgently requested" to save lives: the US Army wants more renewable energy systems in Iraq. At $100/gallon, it makes sense, and it's yet another validation that these clean energy technologies are accepted and ready for prime time.