Daily Business Report: Friday, Jan. 7, 2022
Qualcomm articulates ‘ticket to the metaverse’
By Sean Kinney | RCR Wireless
While definitions of what the metaverse is, how it will be used, and who will make money off it might vary, it’s a safe bet that the future of immersive interaction will involve extended reality hardware and software, advanced connectivity, and a platform for developers to build on. As such, preeminent technology firms are staking out their positions as evidenced by the flood of metaverse-related announcement coming out of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Qualcomm has long been pushing Extended Reality, XR, which encapsulates augmented, virtual and mixed reality experiences. The San Diego-based fabless semiconductor firm has developed the XR2 5G platform, a reference design for hardware developers, and the Snapdragon Spaces XR Developer Platform.
At the Snapdragon Tech Summit, hosted by Qualcomm in December, CEO Cristiano Amon addressed the metaverse opporutnity head-on: “Whatever version of the metaverse you like, there’s going to be one thing that is going to be required. You’re going to need a device that will be focused on connecting physical and digital spaces. Snapdragon is your ticket to the metaverse.”
TOP IMAGE Image courtesy of 123.RF
Vista’s RinseKit generating high
sales of its portable showers
RinseKit, a Vista company that makes portable shower devices, said it will attend and present at the Miami 2022 Natural Disaster Expo on Feb. 7-8 and 8th.
The Natural Disaster Expo, which includes the Flood Expo, Heat & Fire Expo, Storm Expo, and Earthquake Expo is the leading event for disaster and emergency response professionals.
This announcement comes on the tails of the company seeing a massive increase of bulk orders by government agencies in 2021.
“RinseKit saw its sales increase over 60 percent in 2021,” said RinseKit CEO Steven Winters. While most sales came through traditional channels like direct-to-consumer and in-store, we also experienced a big uptick in bulk orders by government agencies. Fire and police departments, military units, Border Patrol, and animal control agencies all placed bulk orders of RinseKits for their personnel and fleets in 2021.
These important customers have been using RinseKits for hand washing, gear washing, eye-washing, emergency decontamination, and showering on-the-go.”
Cue Health to develop Omicron-genotyping
COVID-19 test with federal partner
Cue Health, a San Diego-based health care technology company, announced it will develop an Omicron-Genotyping COVID-19 test to be used in professional point-of-care settings as part of the company’s ongoing work with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
The Omicron-specific test will complement Cue’s existing highly-accurate, molecular COVID-19 test, which can detect all known COVID-19 variants, including Omicron, a finding announced by the company in November.
The additional funding from BARDA will be used to accelerate the development, validation, and regulatory authorization of a single-plex assay designed solely to detect the Omicron variant in nasal samples. The new test will be compatible with the Cue Health Monitoring System and the Cue Health Mobile Application.
COViD surge upends some California courts — again
The sharp increase in coronavirus cases is again challenging California’s courts, with judges releasing plans this week to scale back some courtroom procedures as the state experiences the largest spike in COVID-19 since January 2021.
In a déjà vu moment that led to a backlog of cases last year, some courtrooms are halting jury trials, moving some courtroom proceedings online and pushing back their calendars. Even so, some smaller counties that are experiencing the worst of the COVID-19 surge are doubling down on masks but aren’t ready to make drastic changes or temporarily send jurors home.
“The decision here is between access to justice and public safety,” said David A. Carrillo, executive director of the California Constitution Center.
Construction completed on assisted
living center for seniors in Encinitas
Ware Malcomb design firm announced the completion of construction of Westmont of Encinitas, an assisted living center for seniors, located at 1920 El Camino Real in Encinitas. Ware Malcomb provided architectural services for the 91,334-square-foot project.
Westmont of Encinitas is a two-story garden-style structure built on 3.2 acres. It incorporates 101 beds and 93 units: 35 studios, 50 one-bedroom units, and 8 two-bedroom units. Designed in the Craftsman style with coastal influences, the structure is built on a wood and steel frame.
Inside, amenities for residents include an indoor therapy pool, library, theater, beauty salon, activity rooms, full fitness center, full-service kitchen and a commercial laundry center.
Construction on Westmont of Encinitas was led by general contractor Westmont Construction.
Job resignations hit an all-time high
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the number of people who resigned or quit from their jobs in November 2021 reached record numbers, even while job openings, while still robust, started to decline.
More to the point, the number of resignations grew by 370,000 to a record high of 4.527 million. This represents a reduction of 3 percent of the total workforce.
Affected industries were hospitality and food services, health care, and transportation, warehousing, and utilities.
This marks the fifth straight month of resignations that have topped 4 million or more. BLS further reported that the number of job vacancies topped 10.5 million in November.
‘Simple’ bacteria found to organize
in elaborate patterns
By Mario Aguilera | UC San Diego
Over the past several years, research from University of California San Diego biologist Gürol Süel’s laboratory has uncovered a series of remarkable features exhibited by clusters of bacteria that live together in communities known as biofilms.
Biofilms are prevalent in the living world, inhabiting sewer pipes, kitchen counters and even the surface of our teeth. A previous research study demonstrated that these biofilms employ sophisticated systems to communicate with one another, while another proved biofilms have a robust capacity for memory.
Süel’s laboratory, along with researchers at Stanford University and the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Spain, has now found a feature of biofilms that reveal these communities as far more advanced than previously believed. Researchers discovered that biofilm cells are organized in elaborate patterns, a feature that previously only had been associated with higher-level organisms such as plants and animals. The findings, which describe the culmination of eight years of research, are published Jan. 6 in the journal Cell.
Frank Urtasun joins San Diego
Port Commission as newest member
Frank Urtasun, president of Regional Strategies Group (RSG), a public affairs and strategic communications firm, is the newest member of the San Diego Port Commission, representing the City of Coronado.
Urtasun is a lifelong San Diegan with more than 38 years of public policy and regulatory experience.
He has served on numerous government and community boards including 10 years as a port commissioner from 1992-2002, during which he twice served as chairman.
He has also served on the boards of the Downtown San Diego Partnership and the San Diego Housing Commission and was named one of “Ten Lifetime San Diegans” by the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.
The Port is governed by a seven-member board, of which three members are appointed by the City of San Diego and one each is appointed by the Cities of Chula Vista, Coronado, Imperial Beach, and National City.
Southern California Rental Housing
Association installs 2022 board
The Southern California Rental Housing Association installed its 2022 executive officers and board of directors with a vote of confidence for Lucinda Lilley, re-elected to a second one-year term as president of the board.
The installation event was held at the Courtyard by Marriott San Diego Central.
Additional officers include President-Elect Abigail Rex; Vice President Todd Henderson; Secretary Shannon Kelly; Treasurer Aiesha Blevins; Legislative Chair Allison Pfister; and Immediate Past President Kendra Bork.
New and returning board members include Jay Lopeman, Scott Ledesma, Buck Buchanan, Tom Tamar, Matt Ruane, Melissa Wickerd, Jennifer Ford, John LaRaia, Angela Zdroik, Natasha Howell, and Mark Feinberg.
San Diego’s throtl acquired by
Colorado-based Wheel Pros
Wheel Pros, a designer, manufacturer and distributor of proprietary branded aftermarket vehicle enhancements for light trucks, SUVs, passenger cars and ATVs/UTVs,
has acquired San Diego-based throtl, an aftermarket e-commerce platform for automotive and off-roading enthusiasts.
throtl’s Rick Beckerman, co-founder and CEO, Evan Beckerman, co-founder and COO, and Erol Erturk, co-founder and CTO, will remain with the combined company. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
throtl is a digital destination for automotive and off-roading enthusiasts. By using its connections with automotive influencers and access to a virtual library of digital content, throtl has created a community gathering spot and home that enables automotive and off-roading enthusiasts. throtl also empowers the buying power and convenience for its followers by offering a suite of aftermarket performance product offerings through their online throtl marketplace.
Illumina enters co-development
partnership with SomaLogic
Illumina Inc. has entered into a co-development agreement with SomaLogic to bring the SomaScan Proteomics Assay onto Illumina’s current and future high throughput next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms.
The partnership accelerates the rapidly growing high throughput sector of the proteomics market. With the scale and speed of Illumina NGS technology, researchers can more effectively and efficiently make biological connections from genetic sequence (genotype) to cellular function (phenotype) and accelerate opportunities for clinical impact.
As part of the agreement, Illumina will begin a multi-year development effort to integrate SomaLogic’s protein target volume with Illumina’s sequencing technologies, informatics toolsets and DRAGEN software to create a full end-to-end NGS workflow solution. As a result, researchers will access a more cost-effective, high throughput read-out capability for their multiomic assays on the same platform.
Maritime Museum of San Diego opens next
docent volunteer training program Jan. 18
The Maritime Museum of San Diego opens their next docent volunteer training program to newcomers Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Persons interested in the history of exploration and engaging in enhanced social interaction with Docents and public visiting the nonprofit destination are urged to attend.
According to Raymond Ashley, president/CEO of the Maritime Museum of San Diego, “The Docents and volunteer community share a wealth of knowledge, and a passion and pride with visitors. Maritime Museum guest comments reinforce the tremendous value and influence their knowledge and friendliness have on creating an unforgettable and educational visitor experience for all ages.”
Docent volunteers will learn about worldwide maritime history with a special focus on the 16th through 21st centuries represented by the vessels and artifacts in the Maritime Museum of San Diego’s collection. Docents will engage with museum visitors, fielding their questions and sharing knowledge to enrich the guest experience. Training is carried out through a series of lectures, suggested readings and walking tours.
San Diegans urged not to go to
emergency departments for COVID testing
County health officials are urging San Diegans not to go to local emergency departments for COVID-19 testing.
Local hospitals are experiencing an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations, as well as staff shortages due to the coronavirus and are preserving their resources for patients who are seriously ill.
The County recommends that people worried about COVID-19 infection and others seeking COVID-19 testing only go to a hospital to be tested if they have severe symptoms.
The region’s healthcare providers offer testing to members who meet each systems’ criteria. Many neighborhood pharmacies offer same day testing as do other locations on this list. The County, which has about 10 percent of the region’s testing capacity, has a network of no-cost testing public sites that are both walk-up and can take appointments.
Tri-City Medical Arts Building
in Vista sells for $8.3 million
Cushman & Wakefield announced the firm has advised the sale of the Tri-City Medical Arts Building, a two-story, 33,914-square-foot medical/office property located at 161 Thunder Drive in Vista. The property is adjacent to the Tri-City Medical Center, a 320-bed general acute care hospital serving North County.
ShareMD acquired the medical office building from a partnership of local investors for $8.3 million. The property was originally constructed in 1980 but underwent recent interior and exterior renovations in 2018.
Travis Ives and Gino Lollio of Cushman & Wakefield’s Healthcare Capital Markets Team collaborated with Mark Avilla of Cushman & Wakefield’s Private Capital Group in San Diego to represent the seller in the transaction. The firm’s Joe Zurek and Nehal Wadhwa, who specialize in medical office leasing throughout San Diego County, provided local market expertise.
