Daily Business Report: June 16, 2023
Viasat selected by Air Force to deliver space
relay communications for multi-orbit mission
Viasat Inc., a Carlsbad-based global communications company, has been selected by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Space Vehicles Directorate to provide on-orbit space relay connectivity for its ARBALEST program, which aims to support a future space-based demonstration of operational capabilities for the Department of Defense (DoD).
The future AFRL mission will illustrate the advantages of enabling real-time, global connectivity between DoD low Earth orbit (LEO) spacecraft and commercial geostationary (GEO) satellites.
“Viasat is very excited to expand its partnership with AFRL and to accelerate the delivery of advanced commercial space-based communications for the DoD,” said Craig Miller, president of Viasat Government Systems. “This real-time space relay capability will offer an efficient method of moving LEO satellite data to the ground for operations. Most importantly, this technology will help increase resilience for future U.S. space missions and benefit warfighters with more direct, immediate access to information and data to improve the situational awareness and decisions supporting the safety of those on the front lines.”
Cubic awarded Royal Australian Air Force
contract to operate SPEAR software suite
Cubic Defense was awarded a contract with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) for software licenses and hardware to operate Cubic’s SPEAR software suite.
Revolutionizing the world’s most complex and advanced air combat training, SPEAR is the follow-on solution to Cubic’s Individual Combat Aircrew Display System (ICADS), the combat air forces’ live monitor and debrief system for over two decades.
The SPEAR rollout will also extend into Amberley, Tindal and Darwin bases. SPEAR is operational in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, the Middle East, and now Australia.
Rady Children’s Hospital embarks on
biggest building effort in nearly 70 years
A seven-story medical tower tall enough to be seen from nearby freeways is planned for the Rady Children’s Hospital campus in Serra Mesa and it will be the largest project in the pediatric health provider’s 69-year history.
Planned to finish in 2027 and already starting to get underway, the project will demolish most of Rady’s original 59-bed main building on Frost Street, which the San Diego Society for Crippled Children opened in 1954.
Estimated to cost between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion, the building program will nearly double the size of Rady’s busy emergency room, providing 84 treatment rooms compared to 46 on the ground floor of its existing Rose Pavilion, which was completed in 1993.
Nearly $17 million secured to address
San Diego riverbed homeless encampments
A county-led partnership has been awarded nearly $17 million in state funds to help people experiencing homelessness along the San Diego riverbed into more permanent housing and connect them with much-needed services.
Late last year, the state made $240 million in Encampment Resolution Fund grants available to local jurisdictions to help resolve encampments and get people into housing and services.
The county applied for that funding in collaboration with the City of San Diego, City of Santee and California Department of Transportation, and is getting $16,951,298.
The money, awarded to the County’s Department of Homeless Solutions & Equitable Communities, will help an estimated 300 people experiencing homelessness living along the San Diego riverbed.
County supervisors vote to expand open space
near Mount Olympus County Preserve
The county took steps Wednesday to buy more land within the Pala-Pauma and Rainbow community areas for open space and species protection. The Board of Supervisors approved the purchase of 425 acres of land located near Mount Olympus County Preserve. The land fits into the County’s North County Multiple Species Conservation Plan area and this purchase will permanently protect its chaparral, wetland and riparian habitats.
The additional acres expand the Mount Olympus County Preserve to more than 1,200 acres, providing a large shrubland habitat for deer, mountain lion and other sensitive species.
The appraised value of the additional land is $2,128,000, and the county will be able to use a $200,000 grant received from the California Habitat Conservation Fund toward the purchase.
What Californians can do
as home insurers retreat
By Grace Gedye | CalMatters
After State Farm declared in May that it wouldn’t sell any new home insurance policies in California, people shopping around for new insurance had one fewer option. When days later it was revealed that Allstate had quietly made the same decision last year, Californians are now left wondering: How bad is this? And how should the state respond?
The “crisis” in California’s insurance market was caused by “a laser focus only on affordability,” said Nancy Watkins, a principal at Milliman, an actuarial firm, at a legislative hearing on Wednesday. The companies are operating with “very crude tools” at the expense of availability and reliability, she said.
She said the current regulatory system is too rigid. “It’s like you’ve got your steering wheel locked straight ahead, you’ve got your speed set on cruise control, and now you find yourself on the Pacific Coast Highway,” she said. “What insurance company would agree to that?”
Home insurance premiums in California are a little cheaper than the national average — and much lower than premiums in other disaster-prone states like Florida and Louisiana. That’s without accounting for the fact that California has some of the most expensive housing in the country.
Talitha Coffee establishes San Diego operations
in support of survivors of sex trafficking
SAN DIEGO — Talitha Coffee, a new specialty coffee roaster headquartered in San Diego, announces its launch with a mission to produce high-quality, locally roasted coffee at an accessible price point, making an impact by providing employment opportunities, training and support networks for survivors of sex trafficking as they build hopeful futures. To extend its community reach, the coffee roasting company has also created “Talitha Survivor Support Network,” made up of a team of experts and organization leaders in the field of anti-trafficking. For more information about Talitha Coffee, visit talitha.com.
LIMBER Prosthetics & Orthotics lands $513,000
in seed funding from two institutions
SAN DIEGO — LIMBER Prosthetics & Orthotics Inc. has received $250,000 in seed funding from UC San Diego and $263,000 from San Diego Angel Conference, a University of San Diego Knauss School of Business program, for a total of $513,000. Investments for the medtech startup could also increase in coming weeks, with additional funding from individual angel investors. LIMBER develops patient-specific prosthetic devices.
Sycuan tribe donates
$100,000 to four local charities
EL CAJON — The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation donated $100,000 to four local charities at the Sycuan Cup 32nd Annual Charity Golf Tournament at Singing Hills Golf Resort at Sycuan. The Sycuan Tribal Council presented $25,000 to the Strong Hearted Native Women’s Coalition, Indigenous Regeneration, Make-A-Wish Foundation San Diego and Special Needs Resource Foundation of San Diego.
VIAL partners with Nielsen BiSciences
in clinical trial for treatment of warts
SAN DIEGO — VIAL, a global company providing next-generation clinical trial management services has partnered with Nielsen BioSciences Inc., a privately-held biopharmaceutical company based in San Diego, to study the safety and efficacy of CANDIN for the treatment of common warts. Nielsen focuses on developing and commercializing biological products with wide-ranging applications of cell-mediated immune responses. Vial will support Nielsen with their Phase III, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study of CANDIN for the treatment of common warts in adolescents and adults in the U.S. and Japan.
Firestorm Labs and Greenjets partner
to develop attritable drone solutions
SAN DIEGO — Firestorm Labs, the developer of the first completely Modular Unmanned Aerial System (MUAS) to deliver affordable mass to the modern battlefield, is partnering with electric propulsion specialist Greenjets to develop the first of its kind 100 percent additively manufactured UAV airframe and engine solution. Firestorm’s proprietary 3D printed interconnecting and interchangeable airframe component technology allows users to modify the vehicle to perform a wide array of mission sets from the same platform; all cemented by an AI/ML-enabled flight computer.
Latitude 33 Planning & Engineering wins
‘Project of the Year’ from APWA
SAN DIEGO — The American Public Works Association San Diego & Imperial Counties Chapter recently recognized the El Centro Library — a project engineered by San Diego’s Latitude 33 Planning & Engineering — with the “Project of the Year” award. The El Centro Library earned the top honor in the Structures category for projects in the $6 million – $25 million range at the awards ceremony in May. The APWA awards program recognizes the design and construction of public works projects and staff that improve San Diego County and Imperial County communities.
ECRI completes evaluation of the
DermTech Melanoma Test
SAN DIEGO — DermTech Inc., a leader in precision dermatology enabled by a non-invasive skin genomics platform, announced that ECRI completed its evaluation of the Pigmented Lesion Assay (PLA), the foundational assay for the DermTech Melanoma Test (DMT), and changed its rating from “Inconclusive” to “Somewhat Favorable.” ECRI is an independent, nonprofit organization focused on health care technology evaluation and safety to improve quality, reduce cost and achieve better outcomes across all healthcare settings.
Scripps Research awarded $46.8 million
for advancing human health research
LA JOLLA — The Scripps Research Translational Institute has received $46.8 million in renewed funding over a seven-year period from the NIH’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. As part of the nationwide Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) Program, the funds will support the institute’s continued progress in transforming human health research through technology-focused innovations. The institute, led by founder and director Eric Topol, M.D., is a leader in individualized medicine, combining genomic and digital technologies with cutting-edge artificial intelligence to transform personal health data into clinically useful knowledge.
Port of San Diego releases fourth edition
of its Blue Economy Incubator Report
The Port of San Diego has released the fourth edition of its Blue Economy Incubator Highlights Report, which outlines a new partnership with the NavalX Southern California Tech Bridge and the performance of each active project based on indicators linked to environmental, social, and financial benefits. The report covers five ongoing projects, two of which were recently featured on the “Today” show on NBC, and gives an overview of four completed projects. Read the full report at portofsandiego.org/blueeconomy.
Caltrans free Dumpster Disposal Day is Saturday
SAN DIEGO – Caltrans welcomes the public to bring non-hazardous, unwanted household items to the Clean California Dump Day in Santee on Saturday, June 17, from 8 a.m. to noon, or until capacity is reached at the site. The location is the Caltrans Santee Maintenance Yard at 8502 Railroad Ave. The event is part of Gov.Gavin Newson’s Clean California initiative, a sweeping $1.2 billion, multi-year cleanup effort led by Caltrans to keep roads and waterways free of litter.
City of San Diego continues road repair projects
SAN DIEGO – Many City of San Diego neighborhoods will soon have improved and safer streets thanks to the continuing slurry seal program that is repairing and resurfacing roads citywide. This week and next, the city will resurface streets in and around Skyline-Paradise Hills, Golden Hill, Normal Heights, Mira Mesa, Serra Mesa and Pacific Highlands Ranch.
Slurry seal is often completed in phases over several days or weeks, and multiple slurry seal projects are happening across the city simultaneously. This year’s storms delayed road repairs and maintenance, but recent weather conditions have allowed field crews to continue that work.
