Posted: January 8, 2010

Contracts

Northrop Grumman Corp. subsidiary AMSEC LLC has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Navy for maintenance, repair and modernization of submarines homeported or transient through Pearl Harbor.

AMSEC was one of six contractors awarded a five-year indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract that has a combined value of $140.4 million to all contractors involved.

Work will be performed at the company's Pearl Harbor location and is expected to be completed by December 2014. The maximum value for each submarine maintenance contract is $23.4 million.

The Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Pearl Harbor is the contracting activity.

AMSEC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman's Shipbuilding sector, is a full-service provider of engineering, logistics and technical support services to the U.S. Navy and maritime industry.

Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Sperry Marine business unit, headquartered in Charlottesville, has been awarded a follow-on contract to provide performance-based logistics support for navigation and steering systems installed on U.S. Navy surface ships and submarines.

The contract was awarded by Naval Inventory Control Point, Mechanicsburg, Pa., exercisinig a three-year option on a previously awarded five-year PBL contract. The total value of the three-year contract is $42 million. The initial year award is valued at $14.8 million.

Iridium Communications Inc. and ITT Corp. have announced that ITT has received a contract from the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division to supply 1,450 Iridium-based handheld tactical satellite communication devices for use by U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Under the firm, fixed-price contract, valued at $9.7 million, ITT will manufacture and deliver the Distributed Tactical Communications Systems - Radio Only transceivers by March. The radios use the Iridium satellite network.

Last June, Naval Surface Warfare Center awarded Iridium a five-year development contract valued at up to $21.7 million for phase two of the DTCS program. Under phase two, Iridium is making in-orbit upgrades to the satellites and ground infrastructure to expand the footprint of the system from 100 to 250 miles, and to permit more than 2,000 "nets" to be activated simultaneously on the satellite network.

Asahi Glass Chemicals USA Inc. has retained the marketing services of LudlowB2B of Virginia Beach. Asahi Glass Chemicals is a subsidiary of Asahi Glass Corp. of Tokyo, Japan.

Ludlow will be responsible for the U.S. launch of the ETFE Film product line, which was used at the Beijing Olympic Games as a cladding material for the Cube Swimming Pool and the Birds Nest Building. ETFE Film has also been used at other major sports and entertainment venues around the world.

Ludlow will be responsible for the product's launch in North and South America.

Ludlow is also the marketing agency of record for several other Asahi Glass Chemical products sold in the U.S.

New businesses & services

In response to the closing of the International Paper plant in Franklin, an initiative of the Southeastern Virginia Partnership for Regional Transformation invites area business owners and entrepreneurs to take online business training courses from Element K free of charge.

The opportunity is funded by a Department of Labor WIRED grant and is delivered through a partnership among the Crater Small Business Development Center of Longwood University, Crater Planning District Commission, SEVA-PORT and the Virginia Electronic Commerce Technology Center at Christopher Newport University.

The Crater SBDC recommends a core curriculum of self-paced courses including the topics of negotiating, marketing, communication and teamwork. There is also an extensive course catalog of classes that apply to specific needs and businesses.

To enroll, visit http://elementk.craterpdc.org./

Cape Henry Racquet Club opened for business in early December at 1350 Waterfront Drive off N. Birdneck Road in Virginia Beach. For more information, visit www.capehenryracquetclub.com.

Grants

Hampton University has been awarded a $380,000 workforce development grant by the Department of Health and Human Services' Health Resources and Services Administration. The grant will be used to staff the Hampton University Proton Therapy Institute.

According to Cynthia Keppel, scientific and technical director of the institute, at full operation, the institute will employ 127 people.

When it opens in August, HUPTI will be the largest free-standing proton therapy facility in the world, at 98,000 square feet, according to a university press release. The institute is expected to treat more than 2,000 patients a year with prostate, breast, lung and pediatric cancers.

The Norfolk Foundation has awarded the Elizabeth River Project a $50,000 gift to assist with the final design and construction costs for phase one of the Paradise Creek Nature Park, 40 acres of woods and wetlands along the river's Southern Branch in Portsmouth.

Park design firm Clough Harbour Associates will prepare the final design and engineering specifications for the first phase, according to an ERP press release.

A Virginia Recreational Trails grant of $125,000 will help fund two miles of trails at the park. The Virginia Port Authority plans to spend $2 million at the site to dig out what was once the tidal bed and return it to tidal wetlands, according to the release.

The waterfront property for the park was purchased by ERP for $1.14 million, with lead grants from The Virginian-Pilot and The Virginia Land Conservation Foundation.

Phase one will open in 2012 and phase two is scheduled to open by 2014. It will include an off-the-power-grid interpretive center, education pavilions and educational public art.

Transactions

CB Richard Ellis has announced the following leases:

• 20,112 square feet at Airport Industrial Center II in Virginia Beach to Mygrant Glass Co., a privately owned auto glass wholesaler headquartered in Hayward, Calif. The industrial property is owned by GMIP Thurston Avenue LLC. H. Ashton Williamson III MAI, senior vice president, R. Worth Remick, vice president, and Blake W. Dozier, associate, represented the landlord in the transaction.
• 18,900 square feet at 4840 Brookside Court in Norfolk to Rexel, which specializes in electrical parts and supplies. 4840 Brookside Court is a 60,900-square-foot industrial center in Norfolk Industrial Park. Williamson represented the landlord in the transaction.

  Thalhimer, a member of the Cushman & Wakefield Alliance, has announced the sale of 2400 Potters Road in Virginia Beach. The Virginia Beach Community Development Corp. purchased the approximately 9,000-square-foot office building from Towne Station LLC for $900,000 as an investment and will occupy the facility.

  John P. Duffy Jr. CCIM and Gardner King handled the sale negotiations.

  S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. has announced the sale of 39.16 acres of land on Gum Road in Chesapeake to Kings Pointe Associates. Mark B. Warlick SIOR, senior vice president, represented the seller, James & Venice King LLC.

  A division of the Dragas Cos., based in Virginia Beach, Kings Pointe Associates has received city approval to develop two residential communities on the site. Kings Pointe South will be made up of 1,300-square-foot, two-bedroom single-story condominiums, and Kings Point North will feature two- and three-bedroom, two-story condos starting at about 1,700 square feet of living space.

  LPTO Trust has acquired from GE Capital the former America's Best Value hotel in Pensacola, Fla. Mumford Co., headquartered in Newport News, represented GE Capital Franchise Finance in the sale of the closed hotel.

  The property will be reopened by LPTO following renovations and conversion to multifamily use.

  David Mumford with the Newport News office of Mumford and Mike Francis with the company's Dallas office facilitated the transaction.

  Events

  The Texas Children's Cancer Center's annual art exhibit, "Making a Mark," returns to the Portsmouth Museums Jan. 16 through Feb. 21. For its fifth visit to Portsmouth, the annual exhibit will be on display at Andalo's Clubhouse at the Courthouse Galleries.

  Sponsored by the Periwinkle Foundation, the show is part of an art therapy project for those ages 3 to 22 whose lives have been touched by cancer and related blood disorders.

  Andalo's Clubhouse is the temporary location of the Children's Museum of Virginia while the museum is renovated and expanded.

  For more information, call 393-5258.

  On Wednesday, Jan. 20, the University of Phoenix will host a free career expo at its Virginia Beach Learning Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to connect job-seekers with employers. The center is located in the Virginia Beach Town Center at 150 Central Park Ave.

  The career fair is open to the community and participants will have the opportunity to attend free workshops and seminars presented by the university.

  Companies expected to participate in the expo include the police departments of Newport News, Virginia Beach and Portsmouth; the U.S. Secret Service; Dominion Virginia Power; AXA Equitable; Office Team; Target; Leukemia and Lymphoma Society; University of Phoenix; and Bank of America. For more information, call Arnold James at 222-5161.

  The 17th annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, a program of The Simon Family Jewish Community Center, will take place at the Roper Theatre in downtown Norfolk Jan. 23-31.

  The festival opens on Saturday, Jan. 23, at 8 p.m. with "A Matter of Size," an Israeli comedy that led that country's equivalent of the Academy Awards with 13 nominations. Tickets for opening night are $25 and include a dessert gala after the movie.

  For a complete listing of the films as well as ticket prices, visit www.simonfamilyj.org or call 321-2338.

  The Mid-Atlantic Horticulture Short Course, produced by the Virginia Horticultural Foundation, will take place Jan. 24-29 at the Founders Inn and Spa in Virginia Beach. The course features national speakers, educational sessions and workshops related to the horticulture and landscape-management industries.

  The conference allows participants to qualify for industry continuing education credits and certifications in one place.

  The event also includes a program for home gardeners on Thursday, Jan. 28. Called "Get Down Under: Gardening Starts Below Ground," the day includes morning coffee, a buffet lunch, book signings and a silent auction as well as advice on a variety of topics for home-gardening enthusiasts. Registration for this day is $65 before Jan. 15; $75 thereafter; and $85 at the door.

  Registration forms are available at www.mahsc.org. More information on the short course can be obtained by calling 523-4734 or

  e-mailing info@mahsc.org.

  Awards & honors

  For the eighth year in a row, Hampton has been named as one of the most technology-advanced cities in the nation by the Center for Digital Government. In its population category, 125,000 to 249,999, Hampton tied for seventh place out of 10 with Hollywood, Fla.

  Lincoln, Neb., placed first in that category.

  The designation is based on the center's 2009 Digital Cities Survey. The annual study examines how city governments are using digital technologies to better serve their citizens and streamline operations.

  The survey, developed by the center and the National League of Cities in 2001, is open to all U.S. cities with a population of 30,000 or more.

  For the fourth year in a row, Cox Communicatons has received the "Employer of the Year Award" or the Henry Pace Jr. Award from Chesapeake System Services, for creating work opportunitites for people with severe developmental disabilities.

  Cox provides opportunities for the disabled to work on a variety of tasks, including assembly and packaging work. Work is performed at a Cox warehouse facility and at CSS headquarters.

  Gary McCollum, Cox senior vice president and general manager, said, in a prepared statement, "We began this partnership with CSS in 1997 as a result of a need to have certain devices disassembled. The first project put 10 people with disabilities to work and saved Cox $150,000."

  Today, Cox provides these work opportunities to more than 130 people with disabilities from Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach.

  CSS is a private nonprofit formed to provide vocational opportunities for people with developmental disabilities.

  Anesnah Design & Marketing, with locations in Virginia Beach and Durham, has received the Outstanding Small Business Award from the City of Virginia Beach Minority Business Council for graphic design work on the city's Five-Year Comprehensive Plan.

  Award presenter Delceno Miles, who is chair of the Minority Business Council, cited Anesnah for its on-time, high-quality delivery of project elements throughout the design process, in addition to the affordability of the project for the city.

  The Hampton University Center for Entrepreneurial Studies in the School of Business has received the National Minority Business Council Inc.'s Outstanding Education and Training Insitution Award for 2009. The award acknowledges the center's aim to be a leader in research and educational programming to increase the number and quality of minority entrepreneurs.

  LifeGuard30, a product of ViVre Medical of Portsmouth, has been recognized as one of 2009's Best EMS Tech Innovations by EMS1.com, which are emergency medical services industry Web sites. The listing represents the top products the editors recognize for improving EMS quality of care and capabilities.

  LifeGuard30 is a system designed to store and transport personal medical information for use at the scene of medical emergencies. The device stores ID and personal information on medications, allergies, medical conditions, emergency contacts and more, all digitally viewable on the device.

  Howell Creative Group of Williamsburg has won a 2009 American Graphic Design Award for the design the firm developed for CommonWealth One Federal Credit Union's Annual Report.

  Dallas-based HomeVestors of America Inc., known as the "We Buy Ugly Houses" company, has announced that JIG Holdings LLC of Virginia Beach received a "Rookie of the Year for 2009" award at the HomeVestors annual convention in December.

  In addition, Mike Fouts of JIG was named a "Top Buyer for 2009."

  Each HomeVestors franchise is independently owned and operated.

  Charity ranking

  The Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center Foundation recently received its second consecutive four -star rating, out of a possible four, from Charity Navigator. The foundation raises funds to support the Virginia Beach aquarium's exhibits, educational programs and stranding response program.

  Accreditations

  Foot Solutions Yorktown has been awarded a three-year accreditation in orthotics and pedorthics by the American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics and Pedorthics Inc.

  Misc.

  For the fifth consecutive year, Virginia ranks first among the 50 states and U.S. territories for the number of historic districts added to the National Register of Historic Places during federal fiscal year 2009.

  In 2009, Virginia added 30 historic districts and 74 individual properties to its thousands of previously listed places on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register.

  Virginia also ranked second in the nation in 2009 for the number of individual properties listed on the National Register, according to the National Park Service.