| San Diego Business Journal

Balmert to Lead SDMAC

The San Diego Military Advisory Council has tapped Mark Balmert to be its new executive director, effective Oct. 1, following the retirement of current Executive Director Randy Bogle.

NASSCO’s New $219M Navy Contract Could Grow

The U.S. Navy has awarded General Dynamics NASSCO a $218.7 million firm fixed-price contract for shipyard work on the USS Bonhomme Richard.

CalPrivate Bank to Open El Segundo Office

San Diego-based CalPrivate Bank has received federal approval to open a location in El Segundo, where it will serve the South Bay region of Los Angeles County.

Martin Named Sempra Chairman

The board of directors at Sempra Energy has named CEO Jeffrey Martin chairman, effective Dec. 1.

New Leader, Bigger Dry Dock Working at Shipyard

A U.S. Navy career gave him a front-row seat to history. Now retired Rear Adm. David M. Thomas Jr. is tending to the fleet.

California Pacific Airlines Sets Nov. 1 Start Date

California Pacific Airlines announced it will begin scheduled service on out of Carlsbad on Nov. 1, with additional flights starting Nov. 15.

U.S. Government Picks Viasat for In-flight Satellite Services

The Pentagon has awarded Viasat as much as $560 million worth of work over eight years.

Contracting Notes: LRAD to Provide Acoustic Hailing Devices to Army

Defense contracting notes, in no particular order: LRAD Corp. said Aug. 23 that it received an $11 million contract to provide acoustic hailing devices to the U.S. Army.

Sempra Declares Dividends

Sempra Energy’s board of directors declared quarterly dividends for three classes of stock on Sept. 6.

Amazon Aims to Hire Hundreds

Amazon.com Inc. plans to hire 300 high-tech employees in San Diego, more than doubling its technology workforce in the region.

Kratos Receives Navy Radar Contract

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Inc. said Sept. 4 that it received a U.S. Navy contract that could be worth as much as $67.5 million over five years.

Knowles to Replace Buss as Cubic’s Defense Chief

Cubic Corp. is promoting Michael Knowles to president of its Global Defense business division, as well as corporate senior vice president.

Peer Advising Dispute Leads to Lawsuits

LEGAL: Biz Owner Wins Against Adviser, Now Going After Vistage

Peer advising groups can be a great help to CEOs — mostly.

Viasat Radio Gets NSA Approval

The National Security Agency has approved one of Viasat Inc.’s handheld military radios for use by Five Eyes partners and coalition military forces.

SPAWAR Wants You, Tech Companies

SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific, the U.S. Navy lab on Point Loma, has put out a call for something new. Its uniformed and civilian staff hope to delve further into new technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality.

Submaran’s Mission Capabilities Draw Investors

The intrepid oceangoing drone called the submaran has more funding.

Navy Chooses Boeing Over GA-ASI, Lockheed

The U.S. Navy awarded a six-year, $805 million initial contract to build its MQ-25 Stingray aircraft to Boeing Co.

Althea Expands Into New Manufacturing Space

Ajinomoto Althea Inc., the biopharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing company, has opened a 57,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Sorrento Mesa.

Banerjee Named to Cubic Board

Cubic Corp. has named Prithviraj Banerjee to a newly created seat on its board of directors.

USO Opens New Headquarters

USO San Diego opened a new, 3,800-square-foot headquarters at Liberty Station on Aug. 29.

Cubic Transportation Deal Tops $35M

Cubic Corp. said its Transportation Systems business received a contract from an Australian government agency that could be worth in excess of $35 million.

Solar Energy Innovators Sought for Contest

Inventors with an interest in solar energy will vie for $3 million in prize money as the U.S. Department of Energy kicks off its American-Made Solar Prize competition.

CalPrivate Bank Forms Small Business Lending Divisions

CalPrivate Bank has increased its emphasis on Small Business Administration loans, establishing two separate SBA lending channels.

Navy Had Role in Nixing Acquisition of Qualcomm

A U.S. Navy office charged with investigating foreign investment in U.S. companies helped scuttle Broadcom Inc.’s hostile takeover of Qualcomm Inc. in March, a U.S. Navy admiral told a San Diego audience of military and civic leaders on Aug. 22.

NASSCO Tapped For Design Help With Logistics Ship

The Navy has asked General Dynamics NASSCO for some early help in designing a new class of logistics ship.

Viterbi Gives $50M to UC San Diego

Businessman, academic and philanthropist Andrew J. Viterbi has given $50 million to UC San Diego to support its ophthalmology programs.

Kratos in Line for Training Systems Work

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Inc. is among 23 companies selected to compete for U.S. Navy work under a deal the Navy calls Training Systems Contract IV.

Navy Uncovered a Concerning 'Connection' in Proposed Qualcomm-Broadcom Deal

A U.S. Navy office charged with investigating foreign investment in U.S. companies helped scuttle Broadcom Corp.’s hostile takeover of Qualcomm Inc. in March, a U.S. Navy admiral said.

GA Pulls in $134M Missile Defense Contract

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems received a three-year, $134 million contract from the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency.

Canada Awards Cubic a $27M Deal

Cubic Corp. said Aug. 20 that it received a $27 million contract from the Canadian military.

Viasat’s Stock Dips On Q1 Results

TECH: Some Analysts See Overreaction, Rate Stock as a Buy

Shares of Viasat Inc. swooned, dipping 17 percent Aug. 10 after the company released results from the first quarter of its 2019 fiscal year.

Finding Weaknesses Is a Strength of ATA

ENGINEERING: Firm Does Analysis, Design and Software

Shake, rattle and roll. That is an admittedly nontechnical explanation of what ATA Engineering Inc. does.

NASSCO Gets Work on USS Cowpens

The U.S. Navy awarded General Dynamics NASSCO a $147.7 million contract to modernize the USS Cowpens, a Ticonderoga-class cruiser.

Cubic’s GATR Gets $522M Army Contract

GATR Technologies has a one-half billion dollar deal in hand.

Kratos Reports Q2 Revenue of $151M

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Inc. reported a net loss of $7.7 million on revenue of $151.2 million during the company’s second quarter, which ended on July 1.

Capacitor-Maker Maxwell Closes Public Offering

Maxwell Technologies Inc. said Aug. 13 that it closed a public stock offering of 8,580,000 shares at $3.25 per share.

Cybersecurity Specialist Fhoosh Names Carter Chairman

Cybersecurity software company Fhoosh has named Scott Carter chairman of the board. The company made its announcement Aug. 15.

LRAD Grows Revenue, Shrinks Loss

LRAD Corp. reported a net loss of $80,000 on revenue of $7.5 million in its third quarter, which ended June 30.

Flooding Incident Prompts Up to 1,493 NASSCO Layoffs

General Dynamics NASSCO said it plans to lay off part of its workforce because of a flooding incident in a dry dock in mid-July.

Merlin Teams Up to Expand Its UAV Services

DEFENSE: 3 Cos. Coming Together Will Handle Variety of Roles

“Bob, 51 & Brian, 49, will start a company to support Big Safari and make things happen, with planning starting in 2007 and operations in 2008.”

Turtle Beach Increases Revenue 218 Percent

Turtle Beach Corp., a maker of gaming headsets and accessories, reported net income of $6.3 million on net revenue of $60.8 million.

Trade War May Complicate Sempra’s LNG Plans

ENERGY: Company Is In ‘Constructive’ Talks With Activist Investors

Sempra Energy’s plans to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export business could get bogged down in a widening U.S.-China trade war, though Sempra CEO Jeff Martin struck a cautious tone while speaking with analysts about the prospect.

Employment Law Firm Announces Name Change

Berger, Williams & Reynolds LLP, or BWR, is the new name of the downtown law firm specializing in employment and business litigation.

GA Hones Carrier System’s Capabilities

One day shy of the first anniversary of a fighter jet launching off the USS Gerald R. Ford, the Naval Air Systems Command released a statement saying its General Atomics aircraft-handling machinery is progressing through a comprehensive test program.

Viasat Grows Revenue, Says More Expansion to Come

Viasat Inc. recorded a higher net loss — and higher revenues — in its latest quarter.

NuVasive and Siemens Form Partnership

NuVasive Inc. said Aug. 9 that it has formed a strategic partnership with Germany-based Siemens Healthineers.

Portable Nuclear Power Reactor Program Advances at GA

ENERGY: Company Aims For Less Waste, More Safe, And Less Expensive Model

Naysayers are nothing new for General Atomics. While others say nuclear power is on the decline, the privately held company is betting on a vision of small reactors cooled by helium gas.

Brad Graves

Reporter

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