SURVICE was awarded a prime Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) supporting Research and Development technologies at NSWC - Crane. The technology areas awarded were:

SURVICE recently supported NASA by collecting critical surface measurements of mounting locations for the various optical components that will be attached to the frame of the new James Webb telescope. Read more here

SURVICE was awarded an Air Force contract to research the scanning and analysis of gas engine turbine blades to support next-generation manufacturing technologies.

SURVICE is proud to support the development of the Harford Business Innovation Center (HBIC) which will be located in our new Riverside Business Park facility. Harford County government officials announced the center to be opening this spring. The HBIC will help accelerate the development of small business contractors and technology ventures, and help them pursue opportunities at Aberdeen Proving Ground and technology markets. Read the full press release here.

SURVICE recently attended a Small Business Town Hall Meeting hosted by Governor Martin O’Malley. The Small Business Task Force, which is made up of small business (SB) owners, legislators, and leaders of several state and local agencies, presented the Governor with a report on several issues impacting small businesses as well as a list of recommendations for expanding access to capital, procurement, regulatory reform, sustainability, and workforce resources. This event is the latest in a series of initiatives by the O’Malley-Brown Administration focused on Maryland’s small businesses. At the Maryland Small Business Summit held near the end of last year, the Governor outlined three key initiatives as part of a broader economic agenda to help create jobs and strengthen small business in Maryland. The initiatives included streamlining the loan approval process for small businesses and expanding access to credit, offering a loan guaranty on small business deals, and establishing a Job Creation and Recovery Tax Credit, which would award businesses a tax credit for every unemployed worker it hires.

Picture Courtesy of the Governor’s Press Office

SURVICE participated in the Small Business Task Force from late August to December of 2009. During this time, SURVICE employees attended regular committee and subcommittee meetings working to improve conditions for Maryland’s small businesses. As a result of the Task Force’s efforts, recommendations were made to the O’Malley administration on such issues such as:

• Streamlining and fast-tracking some permitting processes for SBs
• Working to lower property taxes for MD SBs
• Consolidating state and local regulations
• Offering more healthcare options to MD businesses
• Improving contract capture for MD businesses
• Improving SB employee retention
• Improving federal contract and loan access for local companies

SURVICE’s involvement in this Task Force served as a great opportunity to showcase the actions of successful small businesses in Maryland and our commitment to our state’s support of local companies.

SURVICE supports Smithsonian in using the latest metrology tools and processes to reconstruct a nineteenth century artifact. A joint paper was published on this work at the Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA) conference in Williamsburg, VA.

Under a recent contract with the Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office (CTTSO), SURVICE planned, developed, and published a comprehensive text entitled APV Handbook: Guidelines for the Procurement, Testing, and Management of Commercial Armored Passenger Vehicles. This 205-page book—which was developed in coordination with the Pentagon Force Protection Agency (PFPA), Department of State, other federal protective service organizations, and armored vehicle manufacturers—is designed to be a ready-reference guide on APV life cycle management, training, testing, and performance topics. It contains guidance on APV budget and procurement requirements, quality assurance/quality control procedures, vehicle classification specifications, general threat information, ballistic and blast protection guidelines, and testing protocols, among other topics. The book recently was cited as a 2009 success story by the CTTSO’s Personal Protection Subgroup at its annual Advance Planning Briefing to Industry (APBI), and the text has been transitioned to the Government Printing Office (GPO) for future printing. To order the APV Handbook from the GPO, go to http://bookstore, gpo.gov; and for more information, contact Mr. Chris Cosgrove at chris.cosgrove@survice.com.

ARGUS is gaining recognition and has recently been featured in an online magazine, Panbo. To read more, click here.

The Harford County, Maryland-based SURVICE Engineering Company recently completed a research effort for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), to develop a new underwater charting system. The patent-pending system, named ARGUS™ (for Autonomous Remote Global Underwater Surveillance), harvests position and depth data from the chartplotters of underway vessels to provide contour mapping of the sea floor.

Using ARGUS, system planners estimate upwards of ten-fold savings over conventional surveying methods, as there are minimal costs associated with dedicated equipment, vessels, and manpower. The system simply rides onboard participating vessels, inconspicuously and autonomously collecting data as the vessels proceed along their normal routes. No interaction with the system is required on the part of vessel operators, and vessel owners are compensated for the collected data.

Most vessels transiting the world’s waterways are already equipped with relatively inexpensive chartplotters, providing vessel operators with location (global positioning system) and water depth (sonar) measurements. ARGUS automatically monitors these chartplotters and records their essential outputs, as well as outputs from its own proprietary internal sensors. Then, using any number of wireless communication options, including cellular andWi-Fi, the onboard data is remotely harvested from the individual vessels.

As part of the NOAA-funded research, SURVICE operated with the assistance of Flying Point Marina in Edgewood, MD, to collect data in the Bush River and Chesapeake Bay. The system and its proprietary processing were demonstrated to successfully account for tidal variations, static and dynamic vessel offsets, and environmental conditions, with location and water depth accuracies meeting International Hydrographic Organization survey standards. SURVICE is also currently conducting a related autonomous surveying project for the U.S. Navy.

Additional capabilities undergoing separate development efforts provide for the simultaneous logging of environmental sensor data and fish-finder outputs for mapping fish populations. SURVICE is also developing the capability to take full advantage of the inherent meshed network that ARGUS creates, providing two-way high-speed Internet connectivity at considerable distances offshore by leapfrogging the transfer of data between vessels. Implementation of these additional capabilities will significantly reduce the cost of the targeted survey data.

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held on October 30th to celebrate the opening of Aberdeen Hall, the newly expanded and renovated Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) facility at HCC. At the ceremony, SURVICE was recognized for their commitment of $20,000 in support of the STEM program with the naming of the new Physics Optics Lab after SURVICE Engineering. A plaque outside the the lab proudly displays our name. This lab features metrology-grade optics tables similar to those used within our Metrology facility, so sitting in the lab you almost feel as though you are right at SURVICE. The $20,000 will be used to provide two scholarships a year to students enrolled in the STEM program.

The expansion and renovation nearly doubles the capacity of the old Aberdeen Hall, which was built in 1964. The 20,000-square-foot, three-story facility consists of four biology labs, two chemistry labs, an instrumentation room, and a rooftop greenhouse. In addition to its state-of-the-art classrooms, the building has incorporated many green features. A rainwater collection system for flushing toilets and watering the greenhouse, solar hot water systems, natural lighting, and other energy-efficient components contribute to the building’s green profile.

The jobs coming to Aberdeen Proving Ground as a result of BRAC will require personnel with strong backgrounds in science and math, and SURVICE and HCC are dedicated to helping students prepare for careers in these areas. We have always believed in being innovative as well as finding ways to support the local community, and helping to bolster the STEM program at HCC is a great way for SURVICE to do both. We are proud to be a part of such a promising and successful local endeavor.

PMC, located in Socorro, New Mexico, specializes in the development of scientific software, specifically the simulation of weapon effects and the development of survivability/vulnerability simulations. PMC has extensive expertise in all stages of the modeling process starting from characterization of weapons, (shaped charges, projectiles, and warheads), simulation of weapon effects (penetration, blast, etc.), and development of complete end-game simulation codes. Customers include the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Carderock Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center – Dahlgren Division, and numerous commercial organizations.

SURVICE Engineering Company has been supporting the warfighter for nearly 30 years working to make combat systems safe, survivable, and effective. The PMC acquisition will help support this mission and bring enhanced capabilities to SURVICE customers.

“We are excited about bringing PMC’s great team of people into the SURVICE family. Together we will have new opportunities to expand our services to our customers,” said CEO and founder James B. Foulk.

For more information on the PMC Operation, contact Matt Perini at 575-835-4800 or Glenn Gillis at 410-273-7722.