$750,000 grant

Scientific Systems Company, Inc. (SSCI), a developer of technology solutions for defense and industrial suppliers, has been awarded a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Air Force to develop high-quality three-dimensional (3-D) imaging technologies for use in automated surveillance systems. The Small Business Investment Research (SBIR) grant leverages SSCI’s technology enabling intelligent autonomous land-based and aerial unmanned systems to perform their missions in hostile or challenging environments.

The SBIR program is seeking new technologies enabling future surveillance systems to capture very high-quality 3-D images of vehicles, buildings, terrain and other subjects using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology. SSCI will develop SAR 3-D imaging technology capable of providing uniform wide-area intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance gathering capabilities in all weather, both day and night. The technology will enable autonomous unmanned vehicles to navigate and identify targets on the ground. It will also enable highly accurate SAR 3-D aerial reconnaissance by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).

Physical security information management

Proximex, developer of products for the physical security information management (PSIM) market, has signed a contract with the Port of Long Beach, the nation's second busiest seaport. Under the terms of this contract, Port of Long Beach installed Proximex Surveillint in its new Command and Control Center. The Port of Long Beach Command and Control Center serves as the Port's Security Division headquarters and as a coordination and communications hub for security agencies that protect the harbor complex, including tenants, shippers and customers. (Michael McMullen, lead program manager for the Port of Long Beach.)

$3 million network

Boddie-Noell has renewed its EverWorX Managed Wide Area Network contract with Contingent Network Services. The estimated value is $3 million. Boddie-Noell (http://www.bneinc.com) is currently the largest Hardee’s franchisee in the U.S. with some 315 restaurant locations.

TexasOnline 2.0

The state of Texas has signed a new seven-year contract with Texas NICUSA, LLC to manage TexasOnline 2.0 (www.texasonline.com), the official government portal for the state of Texas. TexasOnline currently offers more than 850 services to 2.4 million visitors every month and has processed $12 billion in transactions since inception in 2000. The new contract calls for maintaining these services and enhancing TexasOnline with new services and “next-generation” Web design and Web 2.0 tools to give citizens easier access to government services. (Brian Rawson, executive director of DIR and the State’s Chief Technology Officer.)

Belk merchandising

Belk has signed an agreement to use TradeStone’s Merchandise Lifecycle Management suite of software solutions. Sales of Belk’s private brand merchandise have increased to more than 25 percent of the company’s total sales. As one of the nation’s leading privately-owned department stores, Belk prides itself on meeting customers' needs for fashion, quality, value and selection. TradeStone’s software solutions will help Belk reduce the private brands design, production and delivery cycle time, thus improving its ability to deliver fashion-forward merchandise to stores and customers in a timely and efficient manner. (Diane Hartjes, Belk project manager and director of private brands operations.)

Wicked Fashions

Leading apparel company, Wicked Fashions, Inc. and Brickfish, The Social Media Solution, have announced its “Hang with Ryan” campaign. The campaign, located at http://www.brickfish.com/RSbySheckler_Overview, was developed to drive awareness around Wicked Fashions, Inc.’s first celebrity clothing line, RS By Sheckler. The line was created in partnership with professional skateboarder, philanthropist and MTV reality star, Ryan Sheckler and is available at JCPenney and other leading retailers. (David Strumeier, senior vice president of sales for RS By Sheckler.)

Welch Foods warehouse and inventory management

Welch Foods has improved warehouse and inventory management operations with Gemini Simplified Interface mobile software solution (Gemini or G.SI) for Oracle Process Manufacturing (OPM). With Gemini, Welch’s has improved operational control, inventory accuracy, visibility and order fulfillment by automating processes across three production/warehousing locations nationwide. Gemini, which controls inventory data collection and management across Welch’s entire product line of juices, spreads and fruit products, enables the company to trace lots and batches within 24 hours providing visibility greater than 99 percent of the time with inventory accuracy rates exceeding 99 percent. In addition, the system has enabled Welch’s to gain control over product compliance, a significant feat considering the ever increasing demand of food safety regulatory requirements. (Ray Gosselin, vice president of information systems and chief information officer, Welch’s.)

VW dealership

Riverbank Volkswagen, a family-owned VW dealership, has deployed MegaPath’s Duet™ service to improve productivity and customer service. Riverbank VW is leveraging Duet to share and access corporate data, as well as improve customer response time and satisfaction by ensuring network uptime to process and quickly respond to Web site leads. Duet leverages MegaPath’s all-optical MPLS network to deliver a low-cost, high-speed Internet and full-featured voice service bundle that is ideal for small-to-medium sized businesses. Duet includes productivity features found in enterprise voice and data solutions without the staffing requirements or investment in network and telephony needed for customers to deploy their own infrastructure. (Andrew Goldstein, President of Riverbank Volkswagen.) www.riverbankvw.com.

Strategic Academic Enterprise

Hudson County Community College (HCCC) has selected Datatel Colleague SQL Server to provide an end-to-end solution that manages its complete student lifecycle. The software will enable HCCC to build a Strategic Academic Enterprise that drives student achievement and institutional success. Colleague will replace an IA Plus software system from SunGard Higher Education. (HCCC Board of Trustees Chair William J. Netchert.)

$495 million contract

L-3 Communications’ Global Security & Engineering Solutions (GS&ES) unit is one of three companies awarded a five-year, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (ID/IQ) prime contract by the U.S. Air Force. The combined value of the contract is $495 million. Through this force protection security system contract, L-3 will provide support to the elements of integrated base defense at Air Force and other Department of Defense sites throughout the world.

$7.8 million RF spectrum modeling

Overcrowding in the radio-frequency (RF) spectrum that was once the exclusive domain of the Department of Defense (DoD) threatens national security. Yet, the commercial sector’s use of wireless spectrum is rapidly expanding as well, in particular for mobile wireless devices. To address these competing needs, Alion Science and Technology will support the Army Spectrum Management Office (ASMO) with RF spectrum modeling, simulation, analysis, certification, and automation services under a $7.8 million contract. The contract, issued under the Alion-operated Modeling and Simulation Information Analysis Center (MSIAC) contract vehicle, will provide ASMO with the technical services needed to ensure that adequate RF spectrum access is available for current and future Army platforms.

$27 million USDA contract

ICF has been awarded a multi-year contract valued at up to $27 million with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development, Rural Utilities Service (RUS). Under this contract, the ICF team will support the RUS Broadband Initiatives Program, a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.