Daily Business Report-Nov. 9, 2020
A first responder observing real-time ALERTWildfire camera network feeds in UC San Diego’s VRroom, a room-scale visual analytics environment for collaborative big-data analytics.
Eyes on Wildfires
ALERTWildfire reaches 610-camera
milestone during season of record fires
As California reacts to a record-breaking 2020 fire season, a backcountry observation network has reached a milestone of installing more than 610 cameras across the state. The cameras are part of the ALERTWildfire camera network, built by UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Oregon.
The network has become a vital firefighting tool helping first responders confirm and monitor wildfires from ignition through containment.
The ALERTWildfire cameras play a critical role for California as the state grapples with ever-intensifying fire seasons. In 2020, the Operations Southern California Center (OSCC)—the cooperative organization that includes agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, Department of the Interior and CAL FIRE—predicts temperatures across California to be higher than normal with lower than normal rainfall through December, creating conditions ideal for wildfires.
The high-definition ALERTWildfire cameras are able to pan, tilt, zoom and perform 360-degree sweeps approximately every two minutes with 12 high-definition frames per sweep. The cameras also provide 24-hour monitoring with near-infrared night vision capabilities. Each camera can view as far as 60 miles on a clear day and 120 miles on a clear night. Fire agencies and utilities can access actionable real-time data to confirm 911 calls, triangulate on the location of fires at their earliest stages and make critical decisions during and after wildfires.
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Port of San Diego conducting first overwater
lighting test on SD-Coronado Bay Bridge
The Port of San Diego is conducting the first ever overwater lighting field test as part of the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge Lighting Project, the next step in a multi-step process to artistically illuminate a portion of the 2.1-mile bridge span from the Coronado shoreline to Harbor Drive in San Diego.
The testing is scheduled to occur between 6:15 p.m. and midnight for a week-long period from yesterday to Saturday, Nov. 14. To facilitate the testing, 170 computer-programmable color LED luminaires and controllers are being temporarily installed on three of the tallest columns near the center of the bridge span.
Each night during the live technical testing, lighting in different colors, combinations, sequencing, and arrangements will be intermittently visible on the three columns. Occasional periods of darkness will occur as other aspects of the installation are tested. This test is a significant milestone in moving forward with the project to be able to provide San Diego residents and visitors an artistic architectural lighting installation that will illuminate the structure at night and create a unique aesthetic identity for the bridge and the bay after dark, port officials said.
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San Diego Diplomacy Council event to show how
video games promote world peace and diplomacy
The San Diego Diplomacy Council’s fall signature event – Global Game On: How Video Games Promote World Peace & Diplomacy – will be held Friday at 5 p.m. as a Zoom event. It serves as the nonprofit’s annual fundraiser and will focus on how digital diplomacy and video games help close divisive gaps around the world.
At the event, co-hosted with the San Diego chapter of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), attendees will be transported from war to peace: Panelists include Lual Mayen, who fled war-torn South-Sudan and spent 22 years in a refugee camp.
As founder of Junub games, Mayen now creates video games that build peace. He will be joined by Kate Edwards, a specialist in content culturalization and 27-year veteran of the gaming industry who currently serves as executive director of the Global Game Jam, the world’s largest annual game creation event; and Constance Steinkuehler, an American professor of informatics at the University of California, Irvine.
The event will also feature two representatives from the U.S. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, with welcome remarks from Assistant Secretary of State Marie Royce and moderation by Joshua Shen, strategic designer for interactive media and games.
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Kandji raises $21 million for software
that manages Apple devices in the workplace
Kandji, a San Diego startup that helps systems administrators manage and secure Apple devices used by businesses, has raised $21 million in a Series A round. The startup currently employs about 40, and will use the new funds to add more features to its platform and hire additional employees to expand its customer base.
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General Atomics completes first phase
of Navy maintenance and operational support
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has completed the first phase of a maintenance and operational support contract awarded by the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division.
The first phase of the contract provided for the maintenance of Navy NMQ-1B remote piloted aircraft located at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu. The second phase will involve operational training support for pilots to operate the NMQ-1s, which will be used as targets in Navy training scenarios.
“We look forward to further collaboration opportunities with the U.S. Navy,” said GA-ASI Senior Vice President of Strategic Development Barton Roper. “Our Predator-series RPA have a proven record of success as assets for military training and real-world operations.”
Phase 2 of the contract is expected to be executed in early 2021, culminating with a Navy NMQ-1B operational evaluation flight.
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Lytx compliance services to support UniGroup
Local video telematics company Lytx will support UniGroup, the $1.6 billion transportation company behind United Van Lines and Mayflower, through its Compliance Services program. Lytx’s program will help UniGroup handle Department of Transportation compliance needs and reduce compliance, safety, and accountability violations.
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Barry Jantz to retire next year as
CEO of Grossmnt Healthcare District
The Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) announced the pending retirement of Chief Executive Officer Barry Jantz, who will be leaving the district March 31, 2021 after serving as CEO since 2004.
Jantz previously served as a community relations consultant, managing the district’s annual grants program. In his years as CEO of the district, he led the effort to complete over $260 million in Proposition G improvements at Grossmont Hospital, as well as a successful 2014 ballot measure to continue the lease of the hospital to Sharp HealthCare until 2051.
“We very much appreciate Barry’s leadership in maintaining the integrity of the public-private partnership between GHD and Sharp HealthCare to operate Sharp Grossmont Hospital,” said GHD Board President Randy Lenac.
“My time with GHD has been amazing,” said Jantz. “Seeing the $265 million in Prop G improvements completed at Sharp Grossmont Hospital was among my personal and professional highlights, as it finalized about 14 years of intense work that will remain a lasting benefit to the community.”
The GHD board is currently finalizing the executive search process.
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Mark Dankberg becomes Viasat executive chairman;
Rick Baldridge to serve as CEO
GovCon Wire
Mark Dankberg, chairman and former CEO of Viasat, has been named executive chairman at the Carlsbad-based communications firm and succeeded by President Rick Baldridge as its chief executive.
Dankberg will continue to chair Viasat’s board of directors and be responsible for driving business direction and strategic technology efforts in his new position, the company said.
Baldridge has held the president and chief operating officer roles over the past four years, providing guidance for the firm’s government systems, space and commercial and broadband services business segments.
Viasat made the leadership changes as it prepares for a mission to launch its new global satellite platform designed to offer a broadband network capacity of 1K gigabits per second.
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San Diego Postal District has job openings
The San Diego postal district of the U.S. Postal Service has immediate job openings for:
Assistant Rural Carrier — $18.56
City Carrier Assistant — $17.29
Holiday Clerk Assistant — $18.15
Mail Handler Assistant — $16.55
Mail Processing Assistant —$17.95
PSE Mail Processing Clerk — $18.15
Rural Carrier Associate —$18.56
Holiday Tractor Trailer Operator — $19.64
Temporary Carrier Assistant — $17.29
Go to usps.com and click on “USPS Jobs – Careers” at the bottom left of the home page. (Or go directly to www.usps.com/careers.)
From the Careers page, select “Search jobs,” then select “California” as location and hit “Start.” You can narrow search by entering keywords. Example keywords to search for are: San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino. Current job postings with locations and requirements will appear. Job seekers should check back weekly for new job postings.
San Diego Post Offices include all Post Offices with a 921 Zip code and Chula Vista, National City, El Cajon, Campo, Spring Valley, La Jolla, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista, Poway, Escondido, San Marcos, Fallbrook, Ramona.
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Mesa Biotech to receive additional
$13 million for COVID-19 and flu tests
Mesa Biotech, developers of a handheld testing platform for infectious disease diagnosis, announced it has been awarded a contract up to $13 million from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), for development of its rapid molecular diagnostic test for detection of SARS-CoV-2 & Flu A/Flu B in a single sample.
The Accula SARS-CoV-2 & Flu A/Flu B Combination Test will provide Rapid PCR results in 30 minutes at the point of care.
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San Diego State University community
shares the books that they love
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the completion of construction of San Diego State University’s Love Library. Now home to more than 1.6 million books, serials and media titles in the library, with an additional 1.2 million and e-books and databases accessible to the SDSU community, the Love Library continues to evolve to meet the needs of students and SDSU’s aspirations as a research powerhouse.
The library is part of a legacy of expansion under Malcolm A. Love, who led the campus from 1952 to 1971 and retired just prior to its transformation from San Diego State College into the university of today.
Amid booms in student enrollment, faculty, graduate degree programs and research grants, plans emerged for a great new library to house over one million volumes. Construction began in 1968 and was completed in 1970. The building was named for Love in May 1971.
To cap off this milestone, librarians and staff have created a list of 50 Books SDSU Loves. Students, alumni, faculty, and staff nominated their favorite books, and librarians narrowed down the candidates to 50. The list reflects the diversity of the SDSU community. While some of the expected literary classics, such as Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” (No. 7 on the list) and “The Great Gatsby” (No. 18) by F. Scott Fitzgeraldare on the list, there are also modern novels by diverse authors.
For the complete list, click here
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Society for Neuroscience honors Scripps professor
Courtney Miller, an associate professor in the departments of Molecular Medicine and Neuroscience at Scripps Research, has been awarded the Louise Hanson Marshall Special Recognition Award from the Society for Neuroscience for her efforts promoting women in science.
Miller shares the award with her longtime colleague Ghazaleh Sadri-Vakili, an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and the director of the neuroepigenetics laboratory at MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases. The Louise Hanson Marshall Award honors an individual or individuals who have significantly promoted the professional development of women in neuroscience through teaching, organizational leadership or public advocacy.
In 2007, Miller and Sadri-Vakili founded the Professional Women’s Nexus (PWN) to enable women in careers to benefit from each other’s experience, advice and connections. The group now has over 750 members—mostly neuroscientists, but also representatives from other professions—across the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Through its weekly blog and online collection of articles, employment opportunities and funding announcements, PWN helps up-and-coming women scientists advance their careers.
