Tag: NSWC Crane

Installation modernization remains top priority for Team Crane

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

 

Naval Support Activity (NSA), Crane was originally established in 1941 under the Bureau of Ordnance as the Naval Ammunition Depot for the production, testing and storage of military weaponry. More than 80 years later, the installation is now poised as a national leader in advanced technology development and testing from microelectronics, hypersonics, and semiconductors to pyrotechnics. With the evolution of the work being done inside the gates, it has become more apparent than ever that the buildings and infrastructure supporting these initiatives and its workforce need a significant upgrade after nearly a century of industry-leading growth and innovation.

Over the next several years, NSA Crane anticipates more than $500M of investment into facilities across the base, specifically for both Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Crane Division and Crane Army Ammunition Activity (CAAA). In fiscal year 2024 alone, nearly $30M in investment was announced for the creation and improvement of facilities, both for innovation and sustainment.

In March, NSWC Crane held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new strategic and hypersonics research, development, test and evaluation facility. This new capability supports advanced concept development and intends to provide a hub and research testbed to support analysis of glide body avionics hardware and software from any source. The benefit of a joint use facility such as this is the ability to leverage common computational data centers for more than one project. This will be the first of its kind on the installation and a major advancement for collaboration and shared resources between departments.

NSWC Crane also announced the construction of a new Strategic Systems Engineering Facility in April, that will expand existing capabilities by providing additional classified workspace for Strategic Systems hardware support. Additional future projects for NSWC Crane include a Composites Engineering Innovation Facility as well as Trusted Microelectronics Assurance Center, Unmanned Fusion Warfare Lab and Virtual Electronic Warfare and Mission Engineering Center.

The largest investment news comes from CAAA with plans for a state-of-the-art pyrotechnics facility. Expected to cost nearly $100M when complete in 2031, the facility is part of the Army’s modernization plan and provides more than 50,000 square feet for pyrotechnic production operations. For fiscal year 2024, CAAA will also invest nearly $10M in base rail and magazine repairs as well as break room renovations to align with its current focus on culture and inclusion.

The new pyrotechnics facility will be outfitted with new, modern-process equipment and additional manufacturing features to include remote operations capabilities, climate-controlled storage and magazines, curing huts and storage for finished items, as well as loading and packing capabilities Plans for improvements also include, fire protection and alarm systems, modernized information systems and cyber security measures and a closed-circuit television system.

Crane has served our country’s warfighters for the better part of a century, not only by meeting the current needs of our military, but by anticipating the challenges on the horizon. The forward-thinking leaders at Crane prioritize preparedness and are being deliberate and proactive in building the facilities and capabilities that will ensure our nation’s security. The installation’s strategic evolution and smart investments are why it, and its nearly 6,000-person workforce, continue to be one of the most valued and trusted resources for this generation and generations to come.

Crane Leadership provides annual report highlighting growth and collaboration

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

 

The annual “State of the Installation Address” provides an opportunity for Naval Support Activity (NSA) Crane to share Team Crane’s strategic goals and any operational changes or proposed construction projects that may impact the community. NSA Commander Luis G. Martinez provided the keynote address, briefing the White River Military Coordination Alliance and the Crane Regional Defense Group on the installation successes over the past year, as well as current and upcoming projects for NSA Crane, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC), and Crane Army Ammunition Activity (CAAA).

Cmdr. Martinez’s address included the following key updates about the installation, highlighting strategic goals, a workforce overview, and upcoming opportunities for community collaboration:

  • Strategic goals: NSA Crane will continue to focus on community outreach as a pillar of its strategy and modernize the installation. NSWC was noted as being more valued and relevant than at any time in its history and is positioned for an abundance of growth opportunities, and CAAA continues to ensure that warfighters always have the ammunition they need.
  • Future mission growth: NSA Crane will implement a regional engagement strategy to enhance relationships with community support organizations. NSWC is awaiting the highly anticipated WestGate One facility to support the growing trusted microelectronics and hypersonics efforts, and CAAA is participating in strategic planning processes.
  • Infrastructure and modernization: In 2024, CAAA anticipates more than $58 million of outside funding for modernization efforts and new facilities to support their employees. For NSWC, a new radiation test facility was completed in 2023 and three more facilities will break ground in 2024. NSA, in partnership with NAVFAC, will execute a horizontal infrastructure improvement plan to address the electrical distribution system, water, and natural gas pipeline replacement.
  • Workforce, job trends, and skills: The total on-base population is approximately 6,100, with that number projected to grow three to five percent over the next five years through increased involvement at career fairs both virtually and in-person, social media postings, direct hiring authorities and engagement with direct commands.
  • Opportunities for educational collaboration: Partnerships with Indiana, Purdue and Vincennes Universities, as well as Ivy Tech Community College in Bloomington, work to fill the job pipeline and keep the installation relevant to graduates.
  • Community partnership and requests for support: Team Crane has plans to identify opportunities to engage in the communities, specifically in ways that will help fill the talent pipeline locally and provide jobs to local youth after high school and secondary education.

As one of the largest employers in Southern Indiana, Team Crane plays an important role in the economies of our communities. Continued collaboration is key to building a strong relationship between community leaders and the public with those working inside the gates at Crane to make the most of opportunities that benefit our region.

Radius Indiana, Regional Opportunity Initiatives offer new defense talent attraction program

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (Nov. 3, 2023) – The expected demand for a massive influx of new specialized talent in the defense sector in southern Indiana is leading Radius Indiana to offer an innovative new talent attraction incentive program in conjunction with a new partner, Regional Opportunity Initiatives. Radius currently operates three existing talent attraction programs and thanks to this generous grant from ROI, that portfolio continues to grow.

The Defense Sector Talent Attraction Program will work to fill in-person, defense industry jobs in the Indiana Uplands region. All eight Radius counties (Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange, and Washington) will participate in this program along with Brown, Monroe, and Owen from the Indiana Uplands. Interested defense sector employers may apply for the incentive for qualified newly hired individuals who are going to relocate from out-of-state to any community in the Uplands region regardless of the location of their employment in the region. If approved, new employees must earn at least $60,000 and commit to moving to the region for at least two years.

Talent attraction focuses on recruitment from the talent pipeline outside of a given community, while workforce development aims to further an individual’s ability to grow their skills and develop the tools they need for business success in their community. The existing Radius talent attraction programs have specified that it is targeting the attraction of talent from outside the state of Indiana, in order to avoid depleting talent in other Indiana communities.

“Bringing new talent to our region is a vital piece to growing our communities and companies and we are excited to partner with ROI to introduce this new program. ROI and Radius have been partners on several previous initiatives supporting our region,” said Jeff Quyle, president and CEO of Radius Indiana. “We are continuously looking for opportunities to assist our private sector defense industry.”

The Uplands region is home to Naval Support Activity Crane, the third-largest naval installation in the world, with a current civilian and support contractor workforce totaling 6,000 jobs. This number is expected to increase in the near future with the current construction and infrastructure expansion projects on base, as well as the recently announced $84 million development for a microelectronics campus, WestGate One, that will create a hub for semiconductor excellence to support the surrounding DoD needs.

To learn more and apply to the defense sector incentive program, visit www.choosesouthernindiana.com.

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ABOUT RADIUS INDIANA: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange, and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane. It leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention, and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

DoD award launches microelectronics hub, builds on southern Indiana semiconductor momentum

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

The Department of Defense (DoD), through the WestGate Technology Park based National Security Technology Accelerator Other Transaction Agreement managed by Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Crane Division, has established a national network of microelectronic prototyping innovation Hubs. These newly created eight Hubs led by seven different states will provide a direct pathway to reduce the country’s reliance on foreign microelectronics and safeguard the nation from supply chain risks by accelerating domestic prototyping and growing a pipeline of U.S.-based semiconductor talent.

Last month, the DoD announced its first award of nearly $240 million under the CHIPS and Science Act to support this network of eight regional Microelectronics Commons innovation Hubs across the United States.

Governor Eric Holcomb commented on the announcement, sharing “(NSWC) plays a significant role in the DoD’s microelectronics strategy to build American dominance in microelectronics production and development.” He also added that it “builds on the Midwest’s strengths in research and development as well as workforce training at all levels, to build a domestic
semiconductor industry, a national security imperative to keep our nation ahead of our adversaries.”

The Silicon Crossroads Hub, led by Bloomington-based Applied Research Institute (ARI), is the largest consortium with 130 members and was initially awarded $32.9 million to help spur development of domestic production of microelectronics, semiconductor manufacturing and other advanced technologies.

ARI expressed in a written statement, “It is an honor for ARI to be designated as the largest member consortium in the official Microelectronics Commons Hub announcement this morning. The Silicon Crossroads Hub will continue to build upon the collaboration between our members across Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan within all six focused technology areas.”

With this announcement, the Hubs will be supporting prototyping capabilities for six technical areas (Secure Edge/Internet-of-Things Computing, Quantum Technology, 5G/6G Technology, Electromagnetic Warfare, Artificial Intelligence Hardware, and Commercial Leap-Ahead Technologies), effectively bridging the gap from lab to fabrication.

Comprised of a diverse set of partners in the private sector, the not-for-profit sector, and academia, the Microelectronics Commons has garnered rapid nationwide support and engagement. The inauguration of these Hubs will not only spur economic growth but ensure our region and nation maintains the necessary talent pool to keep us at the forefront of innovation. This major announcement and initiative partnered with the additional microelectronics campus news earlier this year highlights our southern Indiana region’s growth, momentum and overall impact to national defense.

NSA Crane Welcomes Three New Leaders in Change of Command Ceremonies

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

 

Earlier this summer, Naval Support Activity Crane (NSA Crane) and Crane Army Ammunition Activity (CAAA) welcomed two new commanding officers to southern Indiana.

The new leaders were welcomed through a change of command ceremony, a tradition that symbolizes a peaceful military transition of power and recognizes the outgoing commander’s accomplishments while welcoming the incoming commander to the organization.

Commander Luis Martinez was sworn into the position for NSA Crane this past June. Martinez graduated from the Naval Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and was designated a naval flight officer in July 2010. Martinez has logged over 1,300 E-2 aircraft flight hours and his personal awards include the Strike Flight Air Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals, and multiple unit and service awards.

Colonel Franyate D. Taylor became the 21st commander of CAAA in July. Taylor began her Army career as an enlisted soldier in 1991 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Ordnance Corps from Officers Candidate School in 1999. Taylor’s most recent assignment was in Battle Creek, Michigan, where she served as the Deputy Director for Defense Logistics Agency, Disposition.

Like the leaders before them, Martinez and Taylor are learning to balance the future for their organizations while acquainting themselves with the work that was completed before them. While they are adjusting to the new role, both commanders are also tasked with gaining the trust and support of those around them. The leadership teams, stakeholders and communities involved with Crane will also be adapting to the new leadership styles and expectations.

Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC Crane) will also undergo a change in command August 16 as Capt. Duncan McKay will exit the leadership role after spending the last three years in southern Indiana. His replacement, Capt. Rex Boonyobhas is currently serving at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard.

Today, Team Crane’s civilian and contractor workforce stands 6,000 strong. NSA Crane continues to grow as the base’s missions evolve. NSA Crane has shared its intent to expand its community partnerships under a Future Base Design initiative that is designed to bring increased optimization, mission support efficiencies, and stronger ties to the community and services available outside the gate. More than $150 million in construction projects and infrastructure improvements are currently underway on the installation including the CAAA rail holding yard and NSWC Crane’s strategic radiation testing modernization facility. We at Radius are looking forward to the completion of these plans and will continue to look for new ways to grow our community relationships.

Tourniquet Technology Takes Top Spot at 2023 Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (July 3, 2023) — A Bloomington-based company, MSP Manufacturing, won first place in the fourth-annual Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition on Tuesday, June 27.   

Radius Indiana sponsored the virtual competition in coordination with Elevate Ventures, Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division (NSWC Crane), the Indiana Small Business Development Center (ISBDC), and The Mill. Judges included southwestern Indiana defense and economic development leaders who had previous experience with pitch competitions and knowledge of NSWC Crane. 

The top three contestants shared cash prizes totaling $12,000. 

  1. Junctional Tourniquet ($6,000 prize): MSP Manufacturing, led by Johnny Goode, looks to simplify the current tourniquet market and aims to decrease the number of preventable deaths caused by blood loss. Goode’s plan involves creating smaller, more compact tourniquets that can more easily be carried and used in an emergency for civilian or law enforcement use.   
  2. EdgeDeploy™: ($4,000 prize): C3I Tech, LLC, led by David Charlot, offers collaborative directed energy enabling autonomous drones to become acoustic hailing devices in support of DoD/industrial/maritime security and surveillance. This non-lethal defense focused product helps rapidly determine the intent of an adversary (or non-adversary) using collective intelligence (ML).
  3. Hummingbird ($2,000 prize): OneO[Q], presented by Dr. Hossein Alisafaee, is creating a drone system for churches, schools, malls, and similar environments to be the first defense against threats until authorities arrive on the scene. 

“I was very interested in the technology for my product the second I read about it. The Mill and NSWC Crane Tech Transfer officer were extremely helpful as I prepared for the competition,” said Goode. “Our goal is to provide valuable technology to our warfighter, law enforcement personnel, and fire responders. I am personally excited about introducing new technology to former teammates and friends of mine.”

Radius Indiana created the royalty-free IP pitch competition as an opportunity for interested businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurs to take advantage of NSWC Crane’s Rapid Response Licensing Program, which launched in Spring 2020 in response to COVID-19. The competition offered royalty-free access for those who seek to commercialize patented technologies and concepts developed at NSWC Crane. 

“I greatly enjoyed listening to the pitches of each of the entrepreneurial teams, and I look forward to seeing the progress they will make as they continue to develop the technology. It is always exciting to see technologies available from Crane transition to industry,” said Amanda McCullough, acting intellectual property portfolio manager for NSWC Crane.

This event was the sixth pitch competition hosted by Radius since 2019. These competitions have included pitch opportunities for high school students, adults, startups and established businesses or products and ideas. 

“We are so grateful for the opportunity each year to host this competition and on behalf of Radius we would like to congratulate this year’s winners,” said Blaine Parker, director of entrepreneurship and small business support for Radius Indiana. “Radius is dedicated to the defense ecosystem in southern Indiana and we look forward to seeing what’s next for our pitchers and NSWC Crane.”

To view NSWC Crane’s entire IP portfolio, please visit www.techlinkcenter.org.

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About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

About NSWC Crane: NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electronic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi- spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s Warfighter.

About Elevate Ventures: Elevate Ventures is a private venture development organization that nurtures and develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies. Elevate Ventures accomplishes this by providing access to capital, rigorous business analysis and robust advisory services that connect companies with the right mix of resources businesses need to succeed long term. To learn more about Elevate Ventures, visit elevateventures.com.

About Indiana Small Business Development Center: The Indiana SBDC creates a positive and measurable impact on the formation, growth, and sustainability of Indiana’s small businesses by providing entrepreneurs expert guidance and a comprehensive network of resources. To learn more about you can access free resources through the ISBDC network, visit us at www.isbdc.org. 

About The Mill: The Mill’s mission is to spark Bloomington’s innovation economy by launching and accelerating startups, and its vision is to become Indiana’s center of gravity for entrepreneurship. For more information about The Mill, visit https://dimensionmill.org/.

Radius Indiana graduates 2023 class from Economic Development for Community Leadership Program

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (May 3, 2023) — The sixth annual Radius Indiana economic development course at French Lick Resort concluded last Thursday, providing community leaders from six Indiana counties with insights into the evolving field of economic development. 

Participants in the Radius Indiana Economic Development for Community Leadership Program attended educational sessions on topics related to local economic development, networked with other community leaders, and built skills in strategic planning and community problem-solving.

“Radius acknowledges that the field of economic development is undergoing considerable change to reflect the evolving needs of our communities,” said Jeff Quyle, CEO and president of Radius Indiana. “This year’s course provided information on topics that are timely and relevant to the vision that today’s community leaders have, topics like housing development, downtown business vitality, and population attraction. We appreciate the participation of our speakers who shared so much information that educates southern Indiana’s local leaders on issues of importance to economic vitality.”

The program is the only course of its kind to be offered in the southern Indiana area. Since the first course in 2017, nearly 165 people representing 25 Indiana counties have gathered to learn from national and regional speakers about topics and skills including site development, business attraction, workforce, marketing, quality of place, business finance and incentives, and entrepreneurship. 

The speaker lineup for the two-and-a-half-day course included:

  • Lisa Abbott, Regional Opportunity Initiatives – Housing Development 
  • Jim Plump, Jackson County Development Corporation – Economic Development Theory and Practice
  • Chelsey Manns, Manns Consulting – Site Development
  • Matt Eckerle, Baker Tilly – Incentives
  • Tim Conrad, Stimulus Engineering – Site Selector Prospective
  • Michael Wilcox, Purdue Center for Regional Development – Quality of Place
  • Jenna Dix, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Divison – NSWC Crane Update
  • Jason Hester, Greater Columbus Indiana Economic Development Corporation – Business Retention and Expansion
  • Michael Eggleston, Federal Reserve – Rural Prosperity
  • Carol Rogers, Indiana Research Center – Community Data
  • Wendy Dant Chesser, One Southern Indiana – Strategic Planning and Community Engagement 

“The Radius Economic Development Leadership course is truly second to none. There are very few offerings for economic development training and this course fills a much-needed gap for professionals and elected officials,” said Manns. “Radius and the team are forward thinking and extend the invitation beyond the Radius region, which benefits everyone.” 

The group also heard from five panels focused on Radius-based programs including Choose Southern Indiana and population attraction, Discover Southern Indiana and tourism, Spark Downtown and downtown revitalization, support for entrepreneurship and small business support, and economic development marketing.

This year’s graduates included city, town, and county representatives, consultants, realtors, defense industry specialists, economic development professionals, utility representatives, and marketing specialists. 

“I would encourage anyone who’s interested or works in economic development to consider attending this program. The course motivated me to take a deeper look into the challenges we face and how to get better involved,” said Matt Burkett, Deputy for Small Business for Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division. “The course was very comprehensive and covered a wide range of topics around economic development. I’m not an economic development professional, but I now better understand the challenges, available resources, and points of contact for businesses I engage with.”

Corporate sponsors and scholarships helped fund the program, including generous support from Hoosier Energy, Frost, Brown & Todd, Banning Engineering, Smithville Fiber, Duke Energy, Clark Dietz, and Indiana Municipal Power Agency.

Those interested in attending a Radius Indiana course in the future should contact the Radius office at 812-277-9778.

2023 Graduates from Radius Indiana’s Economic Development for Community Leadership Program

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ABOUT RADIUS INDIANA: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange, and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention, and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

 

Registration now open for fourth annual Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (April 28, 2023) – Royalty-free opportunities to commercialize patented technologies are now available to entrepreneurs, inventors, and start-ups who can pitch innovative proposals to commercialize the technologies this Summer. Southcentral Indiana defense and economic development industry leaders will host the opportunity on June 27 at the fourth annual Radius Indiana “Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition” with royalty-free IP. 

The competition offers cash prizes and unprecedented, royalty-free opportunities to commercialize the patented technologies and concepts developed by the PhDs, engineers, and staff at Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division, Indiana’s only federal research laboratory. Individuals or teams are invited to develop an innovative proposal using any piece of intellectual property available from NSWC Crane’s Technology Transfer Program.

“We are very excited about the opportunity to partner with Radius Indiana for the fourth Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition. Our hope is to continue to connect the entrepreneurial-minded with NSWC Crane’s world-class IP,” said Maria Duran, technology transfer director for NSWC Crane. “Each year, as a result, participants have gone on to establish formal collaborative relationships with NSWC Crane and/or license IP to commercialize technology from our portfolio.”

The competition is hosted by Radius Indiana, in partnership with Elevate Ventures, Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division, Bloomington-based Dimension Mill, and the Indiana Small Business Development Center. Entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to connect with industry leaders from these organizations, and cash prizes totaling $12,000 will be available to the top three contestants. Additional prize funds and assistance will be available for competitors who currently have or agree to establish locations in the Radius region of southern Indiana. 

“Radius Indiana is looking forward to the fourth annual Crane IP Pitch Competition and we are excited to see entrepreneurs pitch their ideas for using this amazing technology coming out of NSWC Crane,” said Blaine Parker, director of entrepreneurship and small business support for Radius Indiana. “The winners from past years have gone on to do great things with their new relationship with Crane.”

The pitch competition is being held in partnership with PROPELS Accelerator, a Dimension Mill program offering instruction on commercializing cutting-edge technology developed at NSWC Crane. The program takes place during a one-week boot camp. It focuses on developing a business and/or product idea with follow-on support over the following six weeks from experts in defense and entrepreneurship. Registrants participate in a demo night at the end of June and are then encouraged to pitch their idea at the Radius Indiana Crane IP Pitch Competition

“The Mill couldn’t be happier to once again support the Radius/Crane IP Pitch Competition as a sponsor with a commitment to expanding our entrepreneurial ecosystem. We’re currently helping folks in our PROPELS Accelerator develop commercialization plans around Crane IP, and the Radius competition is their best next step. This event really unleashes the potential of cross-sector collaboration and innovation around top-notch IP,” said Andy Lehman, head of accelerator programming at the Mill. 

The competition is free for participants. Entrants will receive a template to create a slide presentation for the competition. 

The registration deadline is June 16. Visit www.radiusindiana.com to learn more and register for the competition. 

 

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About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

About NSWC Crane: NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electronic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi- spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s Warfighter.

About Elevate Ventures: Elevate Ventures is a private venture development organization that nurtures and develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies. Elevate Ventures accomplishes this by providing access to capital, rigorous business analysis and robust advisory services that connect companies with the right mix of resources businesses need to succeed long term. To learn more about Elevate Ventures, visit elevateventures.com.

About Indiana Small Business Development Center: The Indiana SBDC creates a positive and measurable impact on the formation, growth, and sustainability of Indiana’s small businesses by providing entrepreneurs expert guidance and a comprehensive network of resources. To learn more about you can access free resources through the ISBDC network, visit us at www.isbdc.org. 

About The Mill: The Mill’s mission is to spark Bloomington’s innovation economy by launching and accelerating startups, and its vision is to become Indiana’s center of gravity for entrepreneurship. For more information about The Mill, visit https://dimensionmill.org/.

IEDC visits our Region for talent attraction update

Posted on by Radius Indiana

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

 

Talent attraction and workforce development are two of the most important aspects of economic development. Talent attraction focuses on recruitment from the talent pipeline outside of a given community, while workforce development aims to further an individual’s ability to grow their skills and develop the tools they need for business success in their community. Radius Indiana has implemented several initiatives over the last few years to bring new employees into the workforce as well as retain skilled employees to continue working in our eight-county region. 

Earlier this month, Radius had the opportunity to participate in a roundtable discussion with  Tony Denhart, executive vice president of talent and workforce for the Indiana Economic  Development Corporation (IEDC), to introduce him to the initiatives and programs taking place throughout the region. Denhart joined IEDC in January of this year and this trip served as his formal introduction to our part of the state. 

Denhart had the opportunity to meet with several organizations on his visit, including Regional  Opportunity Initiatives, representatives from WestGate@Crane Technology Park, and Naval  Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division as well as several defense contractors. Conversations  included learning about the Uplands Science and Technology Foundation (USTF), a nonprofit  research foundation dedicated to enhancing the vitality of WestGate@Crane Technology Park  and its recently-completed Master Plan. 

Each organization had the opportunity to share its talent and workforce efforts or its needs for talent. Radius discussed its four major ongoing talent and workforce attraction projects with  Denhart: Choose Southern Indiana; Veteran Recruitment- Digital Campaigns; Veteran  Recruitment- Hiring Program; and Catapult.  

Choose Southern Indiana offers a $5,000 relocation incentive to qualified out-of-state individuals  or families who relocate to the region. Such incentive programs are being increasingly used by  states and communities throughout the country to attract talent.  

Radius utilizes a series of social media and digital marketing campaigns to recruit military  veterans and retirees to move from outside Indiana to join the local population and workforce.  To complement the success of the digital campaign veteran recruitment strategies, Radius was  given funding from the State of Indiana for the purpose of attracting and retaining veterans from  outside of the eight-county region to grow the available workforce with unique skills and talents.  Radius became engaged in distributing veteran resumes across the private defense sector  industries. 

The Catapult program provides training to help individuals become skilled and educated in  modern manufacturing production based on employee training programs developed in  Japanese auto assembly plants in Indiana. 

Radius is one of the region’s leaders in workforce and talent attraction, and we thank Tony  Denhart for visiting our region and learning about our programs and initiatives.

Kupros awarded first place in Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition

Posted on by Radius Indiana

BEDFORD, Ind. (July 1, 2022) — A Loogootee-based start-up, Kupros, won first place in the third-annual Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch Competition on Tuesday, June 28.   

Radius Indiana sponsored the virtual competition in coordination with Elevate Ventures, Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division (NSWC Crane), Indiana Innovation Institute (IN3), the Indiana Small Business Development Center (ISBDC), and The Mill. Judges included southwestern Indiana defense and business leaders who had previous experience with pitch competitions and knowledge of NSWC Crane. 

The top three contestants shared cash prizes totaling $12,000. 

  1. Kupros: ($6,000 prize): Kupros manufactures an all-metal copper filament that revolutionizes the 3D printed antenna and electronics market and is led by Ian Ramsdell. This unique filament is 80 times more conductive than anything currently available and can be used successfully with low-cost, commercial-grade FFF/FDM printers, offering a more cost-effective, versatile, and efficient printing process than any other existing solution. 
  2. Blazing Audio ($4,000 prize): Blazing Audio, a deep tech consumer company pioneering a new style of immersive sensory interaction for real-world and virtual applications, is led by David Charlot. The company pitched building Hardware as a service (HaaS) Extended Reality (XR) solutions to provide responsive and interactive remote virtual training to billions around the world currently without access.
  3. HG ASEAN Invest ($2,000 prize): HG ASEAN Invest, led by Hubert Goodman, offers an automated data preprocessing tool that can create value from raw data to enhance an organization’s capability with modern data. Goodman’s Information Consulting will help organizations turn data into information that generates a return on investments. 

“The Crane IP Defense Innovation Pitch start-up competition was a well structured and challenging event with a high caliber field of start-up businesses,” said Ramsdell. “Kupros Inc is honored to have been selected as the winning entry and we thank the competition organizers Radius Indiana for this award.”

Radius Indiana created the royalty-free IP pitch competition as an opportunity for interested businesses, start-ups, and entrepreneurs to take advantage of NSWC Crane’s Rapid Response Licensing Program, which launched in Spring 2020 in response to COVID-19. The competition offered royalty-free access for those who seek to commercialize patented technologies and concepts developed at NSWC Crane. 

“NSWC CRANE is a rock star location for new innovation. Radius Indiana helps amplify this by fostering a startup-friendly environment,” said Charlot. “I found the judges’ questions and advice for Blazing Audio to have commercial success insightful and will use the wisdom shared to navigate the fun journey ahead. I really appreciate the opportunity to participate in the wonderful forum Radius Indiana has created to showcase startups bringing Crane IP to the commercial marketplace.”

This event was the fifth pitch competition hosted by Radius since 2019. These competitions have included pitch opportunities for high school students, adults, startups, and established businesses or products and ideas. 

“Participating in the NSWC Crane ecosystem through the Mill and sharing how our business will leverage the IP tech with Radius was a great experience and I’m grateful for the opportunity,” said Goodman. 

Radius plans to host additional pitch competitions in 2022. More information will be announced in the coming months.

“Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s pitch competition,” said Blaine Parker, director of entrepreneurship and small business support for Radius Indiana. “We are looking forward to seeing great things happen with the businesses that pitched for us, and Radius is here to help facilitate growing relationships with NSWC Crane.”

To view NSWC Crane’s entire IP portfolio, please visit www.techlinkcenter.org.

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About Radius Indiana: Radius Indiana is a regional economic development partnership representing eight counties in Southern Indiana: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Orange, and Washington. Formed in 2009, Radius Indiana also serves as a point of contact in Indiana for Naval Support Activity Crane and leads regional collaboration by leveraging the diverse assets of Southwest Central Indiana to drive attraction, retention and expansion of business, thereby increasing employment and investment opportunities and quality of life within the region.

About NSWC Crane: NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electronic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi-spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s Warfighter.

About Elevate Ventures: Elevate Ventures is a private venture development organization that nurtures and develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies. Elevate Ventures accomplishes this by providing access to capital, rigorous business analysis and robust advisory services that connect companies with the right mix of resources businesses need to succeed long term. To learn more about Elevate Ventures, visit elevateventures.com.

About Indiana Small Business Development Center: The Indiana SBDC creates a positive and measurable impact on the formation, growth, and sustainability of Indiana’s small businesses by providing entrepreneurs expert guidance and a comprehensive network of resources.

About Indiana Innovation Institute: IN3 (Indiana Innovation Institute) works with academia, industry, and government to create a hub of national security innovation that helps solve critical defense priorities. IN3 connects regional, state and national partners through a variety of means including convening research and business teams to solve emerging technical challenges for the U.S. Department of Defense. IN3 is focused on hypersonics, cyber-physical systems, trusted microelectronics and artificial intelligence. Learn more at www.in3indiana.com.

About The Mill: The Mill is the heart of southern Indiana’s startup ecosystem and its largest coworking space. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit center for entrepreneurship in Bloomington, funded by membership and event space fees, as well as by generous donations from corporate sponsors and angel investors from south-central Indiana.