Daily Business Report-Aug. 26, 2019
The third Expeditionary Sea Base ship, Lewis B. Puller, seen in this file photo. General Dynamics NASSCO was awarded a contract worth up to $1.6 billion for the design and construction of two additional ESB ships, with an option for a third.
General Dynamics NASSCO awarded
$1.6 billion contract to build more Navy ships
General Dynamics NASSCO, a subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), was awarded a contract by the U.S. Navy worth up to $1.6 billion for the construction of the sixth and seventh ships of the Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program, as well as an option for ESB 8.
The contract, announced by the Department of Defense today, provides $1.08 billion as a fixed-price-incentive modification to a previous contract for the design and construction of the two ships, with an option for the third that, if exercised, would bring the total cumulative value to $1.63 billion.
Named after famous names or places of historical significance to U.S. Marines, ESBs serve as a flexible platform and a key element in the Navy’s airborne mine countermeasures mission, with accommodations for up to 250 personnel and a large helicopter flight deck. The ship’s configuration supports special warfare and Marine Corps task-organized units.
Work on the two new ships of the ESB program is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2020 and continue to the second quarter of 2023, providing the opportunity to sustain and grow the workforce along San Diego’s working waterfront. NASSCO’s unique location along the historic San Diego Bay provides shipbuilders and skilled tradespeople with unparalleled access to the nation’s leading maritime support businesses, and highly-trained employees allow NASSCO to build and repair some of the world’s greatest ships in the most efficient manner possible.
In 2011, the Navy awarded NASSCO with a contract to design and build the first two ships in the newly created MLP program, the USNS Montford Point and USNS John Glenn. The program expanded with three more vessels, the USS Lewis B. Puller, USNS Hershel “Woody” Williams and the Miguel Keith, configured as ESBs. Following the delivery of the first four ships to the U.S. Navy, the fifth ship, the Miguel Keith, is scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2019.
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Announcing the 2019 40 Under 40 Award Winners
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Middle school students get
Fish & Richardson invite to
Space & Rocket Center Space Camp
Three local middle school students from Bethune Elementary School in the Paradise Hills neighborhood of San Diego recently attended U.S. Space & Rocket Center Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala. after winning full scholarships from the law firm of Fish & Richardson P.C.
During Space Camp, the students experienced space shuttle missions, participated in programs about space exploration and learned about mission control.
Fish created the scholarship program in 1999 to provide an educational opportunity and inspire students from economically disadvantaged areas to consider the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.
Every year, the firm sends over 30 students – from each of the 11 U.S. cities where the firm has offices – and their teacher chaperones for the six-day, all-expense-paid trip to Space Camp.
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Qualcomm tops Fortune’s 2019 ‘Change the World’ list
Fortune Magazine released its 2019 Change the World list, which highlights companies that are addressing social challenges through their core business activities. Qualcomm topped the list at no. 1, with Viasat and Illumina also making this year’s ranks. Additionally, local tech startup Aira made the publication’s “One to Watch” list.
Read more…
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Jackson Design and Remodeling named to Inc.
Magazine’s ‘Fastest Growing Private Companies’
Jackson Design and Remodeling (JDR) has been named to Inc. Magazine’s list of the nation’s “Fastest Growing Private Companies” for a landmark 10th time, only the third San Diego company to do so. Of the tens of thousands of companies that have applied to the Inc. 5000 over the years, only a fraction have made the list more than once. A mere third of a percent of companies have made the list 10 times.
“Our 10th appearance on the Inc. 5000 list demonstrates the hard work and talent of our entire team,” said JDR President and CEO Todd Jackson. “We love our community here in San Diego and we are dedicated to delivering the absolute best results for our clients. We invest in people and that makes all the difference. I’m constantly amazed by the team I get to work with every day. This is an accomplishment we all share.”
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City of San Diego wins Achievement
of Excellence in Procurement Award
The city of San Diego’s Purchasing and Contracting Department is among this year’s winners of the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award. The award recognizes agencies that demonstrate excellence in best practices for public procurement.
The city of San Diego is one of only 46 agencies in California and one of only 67 cities in the United States and Canada to receive this award.
“We are honored to be one of the recipients of this prestigious award,” said Kristina Peralta, director of the city’s Purchasing and Contracting Department. “It’s gratifying to know that the City of San Diego is recognized as a leader in public procurement innovation and best practices.”
The Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award is presented annually by the National Procurement Institute and recognizes organizational excellence in public and nonprofit procurement.
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Qualcomm CFO Dave Wise retires
Dave Wise has decided to retire as CFO of Qualcomm Inc. after a 23-year tenure at the company. Qualcomm’s board approved the appointment of Akash Palkhiwala, senior vice president of finance, as interim CFO while the company seeks a permanent replacement. Wise will remain in a consulting capacity.
Palkhiwala is responsible for finance and all chipset products and segments including Mobile, RF Front End, Compute, Auto, Connectivity and Networking and IoT.
Palkhiwala joined Qualcomm in 2001 and has previously held a variety of roles in finance, including treasurer and lead for corporate finance overseeing Qualcomm’s overall financial planning and analysis. He has been part of the senior finance leadership team for more than 10 years.
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Personnel Announcements
Real estate attorney Kirsten Worley
joins Higgs Fletcher & Mack
Attorney Kirsten Worley has joined Higgs Fletcher & Mack as partner in its Real Estate and Construction Law Practice Groups.
Worley has a significant commercial litigation and transactional practice, with a particular focus on real estate and construction litigation and transactions, as well as creditors’ rights related to the industry. She represents owners, general contractors, subcontractors, developers, lenders, sureties, private equity capital investors, suppliers and businesses of all sizes from large corporations to local small businesses, and business owners.
Her wide range of experience includes everything from large firm institutional-sized litigation with hundreds of thousands of complex discovery documents to small vendor disputes. Worley’s practice also includes work on everything from large-scale breach of contract litigation to mechanics’ liens, stop notices and bond claims.
Prior to joining HFM, Worley owned her own firm, Worley Law P.C. and previously was a partner at boutique construction and surety litigation firm Watt, Tieder, Hoffar & Fitzgerald LLP. She is admitted to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and all U.S. District and Bankruptcy courts of California, and she regularly appears in other courts around the country.
Worley earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California Los Angeles and earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of California Berkeley School of Law. Worley currently serves on the Executive Board of the UCLA Real Estate Alumni Group / Ziman Center for Real Estate and is a member of the Associated General Contractors.
