Daily Business Report-March 7, 2019
“The Green Necklace” outlines some of the Port of San Diego property. (Photo courtesy of the Port of San Diego)
Port of San Diego generated $9.4 billion
for local economy in latest economic report
The Port of San Diego’s overall economic impact on the San Diego County region in 2017 was $9.4 billion, a 13 percent increase over two years, and a 22 percent increase over four years, according to the agency’s latest Economic Impact Report.
There were more than 44,300 jobs on the Port’s waterfront, including shipbuilding and cargo handling, tourism and hospitality jobs. Through a multiplier effect, approximately one in 30 San Diego County jobs were generated by the Port.
“The results of the study reinforce the significant roles the Port of San Diego plays in contributing to our regional economy,” said Port Chairman Garry Bonelli. “As an economic engine, our Port provides good-paying jobs to tens of thousands of our residents. At the same time, our bay offers a spectacular recreational playground while the Port champions protections for our diverse ecosystem.”
The 2017 Economic Impact Report was prepared by Economic & Planning Systems and is the eighth study of its kind commissioned by the Port since 1992. The report examines the economic activity that takes place on, or is directly attributable to, the 34 miles of waterfront cared for by the Port (military installations and the San Diego International Airport make up most of the other 20 miles).
Additional findings of the 2017 Economic Impact Report include:
• Waterfront jobs and business operations generated approximately 70,000 total jobs throughout the region, a 3 percent increase over two years.
• The growth in direct employment attributable to the Port increased by 1.6 percent over two years, while direct economic impact increased by 3.7 percent.
• Economic activity on San Diego Bay and along the Port’s surrounding waterfront generated more than $140 million in property, sales and hotel taxes (collected by the Port’s five member cities and the county of San Diego. The Port does not assess/collect taxes).
• The Port’s two cargo terminals processed over 1.8 million tons of cargo (included more than 370,000 automobiles and more than 100 million bananas per month).
• Cruise ship terminals experienced a 14 percent increase in activity, with 88 cruise calls and passenger throughput of about 244,000.
• Fifteen major hotels and resorts offered close to 8,000 rooms.
• The San Diego Convention Center hosted 149 events attracting 899,000 people in 2017.
The Blue Economy, consisting of ocean-related enterprises, continues to grow. Six pilot projects launched since 2017 through the Port’s Blue Economy Incubator Program include shellfish aquaculture operations, vessel washing technology, copper remediation, and smart marina optimization.
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Engineers build a soft robotics
perception system inspired by humans
An international team of researchers has developed a perception system for soft robots inspired by the way humans process information about their own bodies in space and in relation to other objects and people. They describe the system, which includes a motion capture system, soft sensors, a neural network, and a soft robotic finger, in the Jan. 30 issue of Science Robotics.
The researchers’ ultimate goal is to build a system that can predict a robot’s movements and internal state without relying on external sensors, much like humans do every day. In their Science Robotics paper, they show that they have achieved this goal for a soft robotic finger. The work has applications in human-robot interaction and wearable robotics, as well as soft devices to correct disorders affecting muscles and bones.
The system is meant to mimic the various components required for humans to navigate their environment: the motion capture system stands in for vision; the neural network stands in for brain functions; the sensors for touch; and the finger for the body interacting with the outside world. The motion capture system is there to train the neural network and can be discarded once training is complete.
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Illumina, Chinese firm partner on
NGS system for genetic disease
GenomeWeb
Illumina and China firm Boai NKY Medical Holdings have partnered to develop next-generation sequencing-based hereditary disease tests in China.
Under the agreement announced on Tuesday, NKY and Illumina will develop an NGS system based on Illumina’s MiniSeq system and NKY’s library prep kits and analysis software to develop in vitro diagnostics for hereditary kidney disease. The goal is to develop a platform that will meet regulatory criteria of China’s National Medical Products Administration.
NKY is Tianjin-based manufacturer of polyvinylpyrrolidone, a water-soluble polymer that is used in a range of pharmaceutical, industrial, and cosmetic applications. But recently, it has also formed a precision medicine business arm.
“The molecular diagnosis of hereditary diseases has three major applications,” Huasheng Fang, chairman of NKY, said in a statement. First, “it could be a good auxiliary diagnosis for certain diseases; second, it could be used as a screening method for high-risk populations with a family history of hereditary diseases.” Lastly, it could provide guidance to families, who have given birth to a child with congenital disease, on their reproductive health, he said.
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Navy hero Linda Shaffer-Vanaria
Linda Shaffer-Vanaria was one of the U.S. Navy’s first women test pilot’s and squadron commanders. At the time she entered the Navy, the U.S. Code Title 10 did not allow for women in combat so she was constantly architecting a career path to be positioned to achieve her career milestones including painstakingly going through the entire Junior Officer billet guide line by line to identify possible assignments, a volume the size of a phone book, something near unimaginable today in the realm of the Internet.
Early in her career, Linda was going down in a high performance jet and had to eject. After pulling the ejection handle, instead of rocketing out of the airplane, she remained trapped inside. She literally had only a few seconds to live. She focused on what might be possible and tried firing the seat a second time by gripping and actuating the ejection handle differently. As she was plastered against the canopy, out of her seat in inverted flight with violent gyrations, this took extreme focus and was difficult to execute. This focus saved her life. She has devoted her thought leadership to this place of edge performance, specifically facing volatility and uncertainty with imminent decisive action to survive and thrive against all odds.
Shaffer-Vanaria will speak at the Kick Off Luncheon April 1 as part of San Diego Women’s Week sponsored by North San Diego Business Chamber. Women’s Week runs April 1-5. Click here for the schedule.
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SDG&E offers bill credit
to electric vehicle drivers
For the third consecutive year, electric vehicle (EV) drivers in this region will have the opportunity to reap a financial reward in the form of a credit on their San Diego Gas & Electric bill— for driving clean, contributing to better air quality, and aiding in the fight against climate change.
The region’s approximately 35,000 EV drivers, whether they drive an all-electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid, can apply for SDG&E’s Electric Vehicle Climate Credit now through May 31, 2019. The credit is made available as part of a statewide program administered by the California Air Resources Board to fight climate change. Utility rates are not used in funding the EV Climate Credit.
University City High School student Josielyn Fishel gives a presentation during an Oral Communications 103 class taught by Miramar College adjunct professor Barbara Ann Bush.
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Public invited to joint meeting of college
and school district’s governing boards
Special initiatives to ensure student success, an expanded San Diego Promise program, the future of dual enrollment, and enhanced career education opportunities are on the agenda when the governing boards of the San Diego Community College District (SDCCD) and the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) hold their annual joint meeting on March 19.
The meeting, the eighth joint session since 2011, is scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Educational Cultural Complex Performing Arts Theatre, 4343 Ocean View Blvd., in San Diego. The session will be facilitated by Carl Luna, a professor of political science at San Diego Mesa College’s Accelerated College Program, which offers college courses to advanced high school students. Luna is also a well-known civic leader and political commentator in the San Diego news media.
Among the topics up for discussion is the San Diego Promise program, which offers two, tuition-free years of education at San Diego City, Mesa, or Miramar colleges for first-time, full-time students. Approximately 2,000 local students have enrolled in the San Diego Promise in the current school year, up from 661 students in 2017-18 and 186 students when a pilot program was launched the prior year.
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Scripps La Jolla Named Among
Top 100 Hospitals in the U.S.
For the fourth consecutive year, Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla has been named among the top 100 hospitals in the nation in a study conducted by IBM Watson Health.
The 26th annual Watson 100 Top Hospitals study released this week identified the best hospitals in the United States based on their overall organizational performance, including clinical care metrics and operational data. Previously, the study was known as Truven Health Analytics 100 Top Hospitals.
Recognized in the large community hospitals category, Scripps La Jolla was the only hospital in San Diego County to make the prestigious list this year.
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Center for Community Solutions
Geena Davis to Headline
50th Anniversary Gala
The Center for Community Solutions (CCS), a nonprofit agency in San Diego that offers a crange of sexual assault, stalking, and intimate partner violence prevention and intervention services, will host the first of two events commemorating its 50th anniversary on Wednesday, June 5, atop the USS Midway Museum.
Academy Award winning actress and women’s rights advocate Geena Davis will serve as the celebrity keynote speaker at the event. Geena Davis is one of Hollywood’s most respected actors, appearing in several films that became cultural landmarks such as “Thelma and Louise,” “A League of Their Own, “Tootsie,” “Beetlejuice” and “Stuart Little.” She is not only an Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor but is widely recognized for her tireless advocacy of women and girls. She is the Founder and Chair of the nonprofit Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, was appointed Special Envoy for Women and Girls in ICT for the United Nation’s International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and is an official partner of UN Women.
In addition to the celebrity keynote, CCS will offer a tribute to Vice President Joe Biden and the 25th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act, landmark legislation that was authored and sponsored by then Sen. Biden. For the past 25 years, VAWA has strengthened the nation’s criminal justice and coordinated community-based response to domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking crimes.
Tickets and sponsorships can be purchased online at www.ccssd.org.
