initiatives, april - may 2016

april-may 2016 initiatives 1

initiatives april-may 20162

Trade up to modern, efficient work space

When building new space, companies can benefit from greater employee densities, resulting in higher quality work space in smaller footprints. This can help reduce your utility and operating costs, while also helping you attract and retain the new workforce.Contact us to find out more about the quality and efficiency advantages of Redstone Gateway at 256.895.9820 or [email protected]. Located just outside Gate 9 at Redstone Arsenal.

Representative images of customizable interior spaces

Developed as a joint venture of Corporate Office Properties Trust and Jim Wilson & Associates, in cooperation with Team Redstone.


A plAn for HeAltHy employees

Your employees are your most valuable asset so keeping them healthy is very important to the health of your business.

And that’s where we come in. WellnessWorks from Huntsville Hospital is the umbrella of a variety of unique services designed and delivered just for you and your employees.

In fact, everything we do from wellness promotion programs and screenings to occupational medicine services through OHG, to workers compensation services with Comp1One—was designed with you in mind.

Call our WellnessWorks team and discover how we can help you and your team.

(888) 567-3144


Joined in February 2016

306 Barbecue at GreenbrierAbaco Systems, Inc.

Advanced Aerospace Tooling, Inc.Alabama Colon & Gastro, P.C.

Alabama Outdoors, Inc.Bell Media

The BRICCabaret Catering, Baking, & Event Planning

Camisary, Inc.L. Steven Conway, AdvoCare Independent Distributor

Dunkin’ DonutsEnvisionU, LLC

Garrett Estes, Edward Jones Financial AdvisorExtreme Clean Auto Wash

Good GritLinda Green

Hiller Plumbing . Heating . Cooling . ElectricalHomegrown LLC

Humana MarketPOINTLott Knows Paper LLC

Mosquito Squad of HuntsvilleMountain High Outfitters (dba Active Adventure V, LLC)

Nick’s RistorantePapa Murphy’s Pizza

Pretty ParticularRepublic Services

SDC, Inc. (Systems Development Corporation)Swan House

Town Granite, Inc. Valley Cleaning Service

WaterWalker Small Business CenterYounrich, LLC

Joined in January 2016

200 West Side Square (SFRC, Inc.)A+ Glass Company, LLCACE Creative Engagement, LLCADT Security Services1Akima, LLCBrenda Armstrong, Edward Jones Financial Advisor Best Management and Consulting, LLCBlock AdvisorsBeau Brooks, State Farm InsuranceCentral North Alabama Health Services, Inc.Coldwell Banker of the ValleyColeman Worldwide MovingEvent MagazineFarm Burger HuntsvilleGoodyear Tire and RubberHolieSmokes BBQIBERIABANK - MadisonInspire Salon of MadisonIntermission Mobile MassageMetabahn, LLCNexus Energy CenterParadigm Group Retirement ServicesPeoples Independent BankDavid Phillips, Edward JonesPinot’s PaletteRachel Brown HomesShe’s So JadeStrickland CompaniesThis Side Up Moving CompanyWaypoint Strategies, LLCWhat’s for Supper, Inc.WIAT CBS 42 & LIN Digital

If you want to make a valuable investment in your businessand the community, the Chamber is the place to start.Contact Donna McCrary, Membership Retention Manager: 256-535-2027 or [email protected].

welcomenew chamber members

mailto:dmccrary%40hsvchamber.org?subject=


C H A M B E R O F C O M M E R C E O F H U N T S V I L L E / M A D I S O N C O U N T Y

4SITE, Inc. • AECOM • Alpha Beta Technologies, Inc. • Amanda Howard Real Estate • Anglin Reichmann Snellgrove & Armstrong, PCAverbuch Realty Co., Inc. – Scott Averbuch • BancorpSouth • Brown Precision, Inc. • Bryant Bank • CB&S Bank • Century Automotive

CFD Research Corporation • Coast Personnel Services • deciBel Research • Decisive Analytics Corporation • DESE Research, Inc. • Digium, Inc.Elliott Davis Decosimo • Fite Building Company, Inc. • Foreign Language Services • Fountain, Parker, Harbarger • HEMSI • Hiley Cars Huntsville

Huntsville Botanical Garden • Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau • Huntsville Tractor & Equipment, Inc.Investor’s Resource/Raymond James • The Lioce Group, Inc. • Littlejohn Engineering Associates, Inc. • LSINC Corporation • Miltec • MSB Analytics, Inc.

National Bank of Commerce • North Alabama Multiple Listing Service • PHOENIX • PROJECTXYZ, Inc. • Public Financial Management, Inc. • QTECRenasant Bank • RJ Young • ServisFirst Bank • Sierra Lobo, Inc. • Sigmatech, Inc. • SPS, Inc. • Venturi, Inc. • West Huntsville Land Co., Inc.

BBVA Compass • Crestwood Medical Center • Lockheed Martin Corporation

PNC Bank • SAIC • SES - Science and Engineering Services, LLC • Technicolor

PROGRESS INVESTORS

ASRC Federal Analytical Services • Baron Services, Inc. • BASF Corp. • BB&T • Beason & Nalley, Inc. • Bill Penney Toyota, Scion & Mitsubishi

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP • Coates Transportation Group • Connected Logistics • Consolidated Construction Company

Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) • Davidson Technologies, Inc. • Huntsville-Madison County Builders Association • iBERIABANK

IronMountain Solutions • J. Smith Lanier & Co. • Keel Point, LLC • L-3 Communications Corp. – Huntsville Operations • LEAN Frog Business

Solutions, Inc. • Logicore • MTS, Inc. • The Orthopaedic Center • Progress Bank • Radiance Technologies • Rosie’s Restaurants, Inc., &

Right Way Restaurants, Inc. (DBA Steak Out) • SELEX Galileo Inc. • Turner • Vencore, Inc. • Wells Fargo Bank • Woody Anderson Ford

PROGRESS PARTNERS

AEgis Technologies Group • Aerojet Rocketdyne • Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Alabama • Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.DynCorp International • Dynetics, Inc. • First Commercial Bank • Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation

Jerry Damson, Inc. • Landers McLarty Corporation • Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne P.C.Northrop Grumman Corporation • PARSONS • Raytheon Company • S3 • Sealy Management Company, Inc.

Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc. • Torch Technologies • Wyle CAS Group

CHAMBER TRUSTEES

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

Huntsville Hospital

Madison CountyCommission

Regions Bank

Port of Huntsville

TennesseeValley

Authority

ADTRAN, Inc.The Boeing Company

City of MadisonEmerson Network Power - Avocent

Redstone Federal Credit UnionRemington Outdoor Company

DEVELOPMENT PARTNER

PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE

DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL

REGIONAL PARTNERS

CHAIRMAN’S COUNCIL

LEADERSHIP FORUM


256-533-7834 | bibank.com | Member FDIC

Will AlexanderBusiness

Development

DeMarco McClain Vice President

Barry Bryan Senior

Vice President

Tim Singleton Madison County Area President

Meet Our Huntsville Lending Team


april-may 2016

aroundtheglobe

biosciencebriefs

coverstory

Huntsville: Gig City

blueribbonawards

14

12

2420

government&publicaffairs

memberengagement

nasaupdates

economicdevelopmenthighlights

252721

18educationupdate11

4 Welcome New Chamber Members

5 HREGI Investors

8 Message from the President | Board listing

10 Community Profile

22 2016 Executive Committee | 2016 Board of Directors

26 Chamber Staff | Associated Organizations

editorial staff

publisherChip Cherry, CCE

executive editorCarrie Rice

editorial designerKristi Sherrard

contributing writersStephanie Hyatt

Mike Ward

advertising salesEddie Graves

email: [email protected] mission of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County is to prepare, develop and promote our community for economic growth.

www.HSVchamber.org (additional contact information on page 26)

Submissions for editorial content are not accepted. Information in this and other Chamber publications is at the discretion of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County. Advertising inquiries go through AL.com (contact at right).

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.hsvchamber.org/

http://www.al.com/huntsville/#/0


Executive CommitteeRose Allen, Chair, InterFuze Corporation

Joe Newberry, Chair-Elect, Redstone Federal Credit Union

Rey Almodóvar, Immediate Past Chair, INTUITIVERon Poteat, Chamber Foundation Chair, Regions Bank

Kim Lewis, Secretary/Treasurer, PROJECTXYZ, Inc.

Gary Bolton, Vice Chair, Economic Development & Industry Relations, ADTRAN, Inc.

Kevin Byrnes, Vice Chair, Government & Public Affairs, Raytheon Company

Penny Billings, Vice Chair, Membership, BancorpSouth

Greg Brown, Vice Chair, Workforce & Education, Brown Precision, Inc.

Jeff Gronberg, Vice Chair, Small Business & Events, deciBel Research, Inc.

Danny Windham, Vice Chair, Marketing & Communications, Digium, Inc.

Tharon Honeycutt, Vice Chair, Member Engagement, MSB Analytics, Inc.

Mayor Tommy Battle, Chair-Appointed, City of Huntsville

Mark Curran, Chair-Appointed, L-3 Communications - HSV Ops

Bryan Dodson, Chair-Appointed, PHOENIX

Beth Sippel, Chair-Appointed, First Commercial Bank

Chairman Dale Strong, Chair-Appointed, Madison County Commission

Mayor Troy Trulock, Chair-Appointed, City of Madison

Tracy Marion, General Counsel, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, P.C.

Chip Cherry, President & CEO, Chamber of Commerce

Elected BoardBill Bailey, Radiance Technologies, Inc.

Kristina Barbee, Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.

Bob Baron, Baron Services, Inc.

Janet Brown, Belk

Kevin Campbell, Northrop Grumman Corporation

Frank Caprio, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Lynn Collyar, Deloitte LLP

Michael Cox, PARSONS

Deke Damson, Jerry Damson Honda Acura

Dorothy Davidson, Davidson Technologies, Inc.

John Eagan, BB&T

Joe Fehrenbach, Intergraph Corporation

Trip Ferguson, U.S. Space & Rocket Center

David Fernandes, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Inc.

Gene Goldman, Aerojet Rocketdyne

Mike Gullion, SCI Technology – a Sanmina company

John Gully, SAIC

Jan Hess, Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.

Steve Hill, AEgis Technologies Group

Dr. Pam Hudson, Crestwood Medical Center

Dr. Andrew Hugine, Alabama A&M University

Hank Isenberg, IronMountain Solutions

John Jordan, Wyle CAS Group

David King, Dynetics, Inc.

Brian Magerkurth, Par Pharmaceutical

Janice Migliore, PALCO Telecom Service, Inc.

Leigh Pegues, PNC Bank

Jim Rogers, Lockheed Martin Corporation

Jeff Samz, Huntsville Hospital

Dr. Gurmej Sandhu, Sigmatech, Inc.

Charlie Sealy, Sealy Management Company

E.J. Sinclair, SES - Science and Engineering Services, LLC

Mike Stanfield, Miltec

Cynthia Streams, Domino’s Pizza (Valley Pizza, Inc.)

Nilmini Thompson, Systems Products and Solutions, Inc.

Tim Thornton, nLogic, Inc.

Lynn Troy, Troy 7, Inc.

Ken Tucker, The Boeing Company

Frank Williams, Landers McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep

Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee andBoard of Directors 2016

Dear Chamber of Commerce Investors, Community Leaders and Friends:

Delegations from regions throughout the U.S. have visited our community hoping to learn the secret to our success. They leave with an appreciation of how well we work together to address challenges and seize upon opportunities. We benefit from hosting these delegations because it reminds many of us just how special the area we call home really is!

The recent Google Fiber announcement is a great example of what can be accomplished when you bring bright, open minded people together to craft a strategy to ensure that we have the internet infrastructure needed to be competitive. Mayor Battle and the Huntsville City Council articulated a vision. The Huntsville Utilities Board, Jay Stowe, and his management team did an excellent job of identifying a solution that serves both their need of managing their infrastructure, and the community’s desire to have more robust internet capabilities. The result of the City and Huntsville Utilities’ efforts was the creation of a new type of partnership between a City utility and the private sector to provide world-class internet service to both business and residents. Well done!

Congratulations to LEAN Frog Business Solutions, nLogic, Geeks and Nerds (GaN), and PROJECTXYZ for being honored with the U.S. Chamber’s DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award. These four were among 100 companies nationwide to be recognized for 2016. We are very proud of the management and employees of LEAN Frog, nLogic, GaN, and PROJECTXYZ. Also, additional congrats to LEAN Frog for recently being named a finalist for the U.S. Chamber’s DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year!

Cummings Research Park (CRP) has been a significant part of our region’s economic engine for more than 50 years. A master planning process is underway that, when complete, will provide a vision and plan that will ensure that CRP remains vibrant for the next half century. Watch your inbox for updates on the master plan. I believe you will be excited about the possibilities.

I look forward to seeing you at a Chamber event soon!

Chip Cherry, CCEPresident & CEOChamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

A Message from Chip Cherry


Introducing one-on-one service. Yes, this is a bank ad.

When you open a Private Banking Account at ServisFirst Bank, you can expect very competitive interest

rates on accounts and loans. But you also get something you probably weren’t counting on: an assigned

banker dedicated to your specific needs. That’s how ServisFirst Bank does business; different, we know.

Paula C. RenfroeSVP Private Banking OfficerNMLS ID: 776285256.722.7834 office • 256.337.9666 [email protected]

Amanda WeaverVP Private Banking OfficerNMLS ID: 780767256.722.7824 office • 256.701.7755 [email protected]

DeLynn GowerAVP Private Banking OfficerNMLS ID: 1076567256.722.7812 office • 256.701.0581 [email protected]

A T L A N T A • B I R M I N G H A M • C H A R L E S T O N • D O T H A N • H U N T S V I L L E

M O B I L E • M O N T G O M E R Y • N A S H V I L L E • P E N S A C O L A • T A M P A B A Y


For more information, visit:

www.hsvchamber.org

Aerospace & DefenseHuntsville/Madison County is home to the U.S. Army Redstone Arsenal

and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center which combine to drive a

thriving aerospace and defense technology industry. More than 41,000

people work at Redstone Arsenal and NASA managing some of the

country’s most important and sophisticated technology programs

including missiles, aviation and space exploration.

Research & Technology

Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park has earned a reputation as a

global leader in technology development. The second-largest science and

technology park in the U.S., Cummings Research Park is home to more

than 300 companies and 29,000 people involved in technology research and

development.

Top Ten EmployersRedstone Arsenal* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35,866*

Huntsville Hospital System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,129

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center*. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,000

Huntsville City Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,079

The Boeing Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,600

Madison County Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,389

SAIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,229

City of Huntsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,206

The University of Alabama in Huntsville. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,675

ADTRAN. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,522

Source: Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County *includes on-site contractorsSources: U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov),2014 American Community Survey

Madison City of City of HuntsvillePopulation County Huntsville Madison Metro Area

2010 Census 334,811 180,105 42,938 417,593

2014 Census 350,229 188,226 46,450 441,086

% Growth 4.6% 4.5% 8.2% 5.6%

Households & Income

# of Households 135,409 76,959 16,583 167,565

Avg. Household Income $79,837 $71,903 $112,609 $77,454

Per Capita Income $32,307 $31,010 $42,284 $30,960

communityprofile

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1.25% APY (annual percentage yield) for 36 months. APY is accurate as of February 10, 2016. Interest is calculated daily and paid monthly. Interest must be credited to a new or existing Progress Bank checking account. Minimum opening deposit $5,000. Subject to 90 day early withdrawal penalty except that one withdrawal is allowed without penalty during each 12 month period not to exceed 1/3 of original CD principal amount. One “rate bump” is allowed at customer request vs. original CD rate – “rate bump” extends CD maturity an additional 36 months from the date of rate increase. Additional deposits will earn the same rate of interest as the original CD principal amount or the “rate bump” rate if this option is exercised. One additional deposit is allowed during each 12 month period of the CD with a $5,000 minimum. The total of all additional deposits cannot exceed the original amount of the CD. Offer expires April 29, 2016.

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When I started teaching high school more than a decade ago, I was a second career teacher filled with excitement and en-

thusiasm. I couldn’t wait to get a copy of the teacher edition (THE TEACHER EDITION!) textbook, so I could immediately start plan-ning how I would marshal students through every page of that glorious, big, blue guide to ninth grade literature. My fervent belief was that literature was beautiful and wonderful and that being ex-posed to it by someone who loved Shakespeare and mythology and poetry would lead my students to love reading and writing just as much as I did.

I had passion for my subject. I cared about my students. I believed in them and in their education. What I lacked, though, was a suffi-cient understanding of the skills they needed to master at the ninth grade level. I knew they needed to read and write, but I didn’t have a clear roadmap that would get them to the college level. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a bad teacher. I wasn’t even a misguided teach-er. I was a good teacher, an inspiring teacher, but a teacher who didn’t have a clear focus for moving her students forward on a clear path toward college readiness.

My first exposure the Common Core State Standards was like an old school Southern revival. I felt that someone had looked into my soul, seen the teacher I wanted to be, and given me the gospel message that would enable me to become that teacher. Ever a prag-matist, I did not see a conspiracy to take over my classroom by the federal government. Instead, I saw a clear trajectory that outlined bit by bit what my students would need to learn at each grade level.

Somehow, the ideology of Common Core – providing all teach-ers with a skills roadmap for students as they move through the grade levels – has become conflated with testing or, worse yet, with politics. Common Core, which in my classroom takes the form of the Alabama College and Career Ready Standards, provides my stu-

dents with an education directly comparable to students in other parts of the country. It means that children in military families can transfer into my classroom knowing that they will be learning the same standards on the same trajectory they were following before their family relocated. It means that I am not an isolated educator in an isolated classroom finding her way through a textbook. In-stead, I am empowered: engaging in conversation with educators throughout the country and talking the same language about the same standards with the same goals in mind. Rather than limiting my teaching, the Common Core has given me the direction I was searching for, freeing me to become the teacher I knew I could be.

I still teach Shakespeare. I still teach poetry and mythology. But now, when I teach them, I teach them with a specific, goals-driven purpose. Rather than reading just because reading is important, my students and I read to craft arguments. We read for textual evi-dence (RL 1) in support of a claim about theme (RL 2). We connect informational texts to the literary texts we’re engaged with. This is not new to teaching. It is what good teaching has always looked like. But Common Core and standards-based education in gener-al provides teachers with a clear, concise view of what that good teaching can and should be at each level. And I, for one, am glad that I heard the message.

• Stephanie Hyatt

The lead English teacher for Huntsville City Schools, Stephanie Hyatt teaches AP English Language and

Composition and Debate at Lee High School. In 2012, Hyatt was named Teacher of the Year for both Lee High

School and Huntsville City Schools. Hyatt works with the National Math and Science Initiatives to provide teacher workshops

throughout the country working with AP and honors teachers.

educationspotlight

A Teacher’s Roadmap


blueribbonawards by Carrie Rice

Small businesses are the backbone of our local and national economy. They represent 85 percent of our Chamber members,

and we remain committed to recognizing and honoring the impact of small businesses in our community.

Big dreams deserve big rewards, and chambers know how im-portant it is to recognize the very best in American small business. Following a record numbers of entries, the U.S. Chamber of Com-merce announced 100 DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award winners – and FOUR Huntsville companies made the list!

Congratulations to Chamber members and 2016 Huntsville-based Blue Ribbon Award winners: LEAN Frog Business Solutions, nLogic, Geeks and Nerds (GaN), and PROJECTXYZ.

In addition to the 100 Blue Ribbon Award winners, the U.S. Chamber selected the seven finalists for the DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year, and LEAN Frog was named one of the seven! The 2016 DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year will take home a $10,000 cash prize.

“We are thrilled to be selected as the Southeastern finalist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s DREAM BIG Award,” said Sherri Headrick, LEAN Frog co-founder and the Director of Marketing and Personnel. “The recognition reinforces that this is a time of exciting growth and opportunity for LEAN Frog and our mission to maximize the services public schools provide students, parents, and communities. We are thankful for the support of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County, the hard work of our talented team, and the trust of our wonderful customers.”

LEAN Frog Business Solutions, led by Byron and Sherri Head-rick, a husband-and-wife team, uses LEAN Six Sigma (LSS) princi-ples to help public schools improve student services and optimize operations. Seeing a need for organizations to do more with less, especially those within the public education system, Byron and Sherri founded LEAN Frog with the goal of increased efficiency, ef-fectiveness, and sustainability in school systems, ultimately trans-forming public education in the southeastern U.S. Huntsville-based LEAN Frog employs 18 full-time staff in two offices, has impacted more than 230,000 students, and has saved school systems more than $80 million to date.

The DREAM BIG award celebrates the success of small business and honors its contributions to America’s economic growth. The Small Business of the Year, the seven regional finalists, and 100 Blue Ribbon winners will be honored on June 14 during America’s Small Business Summit in Washington, D.C.

Tim Thornton, CEO and President of nLogic said, “nLogic is

honored to be recognized by the U.S. Chamber for the DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award. This award is attributed to the dedication, hard work and professionalism of all our employee-owners. This recognition would not be possible without the continued trust of and partnership with our customers. nLogic is proud to be among the four Huntsville companies recognized for this award which is attributed to the entrepreneurship fostered by our award-winning community.”

Dr. Jonn Kim, President and CEO of Geeks and Nerds (GaN) said, “We are honored to be included in the Best 100 Small Business in the U.S., along with PROJECTXYZ, LEAN Frog, and nLogic. It is such an impressive, almost unfathomable, achievement for Huntsville to produce four companies in the best 100 in the U.S. This award is a culmination of hard work by super em-ployees at Geeks and Nerds, our awesome Chamber of Commerce, and the city of Huntsville. We live and work in a progres-sive city that promotes innovation and en-trepreneurship, and we are so fortunate to have the support of our community to continue our success! Let’s keep going, Huntsville!”

Kim Lewis, CEO of PROJECTXYZ said, “PROJECTXYZ is thrilled to be named a DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award winner by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce alongside some of Huntsville’s best admired small businesses – LEAN Frog, GaN and nLogic. Our company is deeply committed to fostering good business practices, dynamic re-lationships, and offering our customers the highest level of service and accountability possible. This award further validates our efforts here in the community and beyond. We have worked hard to grow this company with a family-like, col-laborative atmosphere – with everyone pitching in, working hard, taking risks and achieving success.”

The 2016 DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award Winners were select-ed from a record number of applicants from across the country and were judged in four key categories: strategic planning, employee de-velopment, customer service, and community involvement.

Congratulations again to our four DREAM BIG Blue Ribbon Award winners – and good luck to Small Business of the Year final-ist, LEAN Frog! ∏

Local small businesses receive special honors Dreaming BIG

https://www.uschamber.com/event/americas-small-business-summit-2016

https://www.uschamber.com/event/americas-small-business-summit-2016


Partner with the Right Employment AgencyFinding the right talent for your business is critical. The wrong fit will cost your Company valuable time and money. At Snelling, we’re flexible, responsive and invested in your long-term success.

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Snelling is your direct conduit to exceptional talent in a broad variety of business sectors, including:

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http://bit.ly/SBAwards2016

april-may 2016 initiatives 15continued on page 16

Do you remember the terrible screeching sound made by old dial-up modems: “eeerrrr, eewwww, weeeee”? Ugh, those sounds

made us cringe, and we’re all happy that those days are behind us! Fast forward to present day: people living and working in Hunts-

ville are on track to have lightening quick high-speed internet and TV services in just a few short years – thanks to the City of Hunts-ville and Huntsville Utilities. What? Huntsville is officially now a Gig City after being selected by Google Fiber to become one of only 10 Google Fiber Cities in America! Wooo Hooo!

The construction of a new fiber network will meet the area’s rap-idly growing data and communication needs.

“We already know Huntsville is a place where people do cool things, smart things, things that change the world,” said Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle. “A rocket city deserves rocket speed, and that means a network that connects to the Internet at 1 gigabit per second. Your Internet will be 50 to 100 times faster than it is today.”

Huntsville Utilities projects the network to be available for Google Fiber to serve their first customers in the area by summer 2017, with an estimated network completion in roughly 3½ years.

“Google’s entrance into our market bolsters our high-tech legacy, energizes our entrepreneurs, tinkers and engineers, and supports the high quality of life Huntsville is known for delivering,” Mayor Battle said. “Fiber to the home is the Internet infrastructure for the 21st century. It is as vital to our quality of life as roads, water, sewer and electricity. It will become the benchmark for cities vying for talent.”

Fifteen months ago, the City embarked on a quest to entice broadband providers to Huntsville with a request for information

Opposite page: Jill Szuchmacher, director of Google Fiber Expansion, speaks at a news conference under a Saturn V rocket at the Davidson Center at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, announcing that Huntsville Utilities and Google will build a fiber network to bring high speed TV and Internet service to the city’s residents and businesses. (Bob Gathany/AL.com)

Above: Huntsville aerial by Marty Sellers, SellersPhoto.com. Digital illustration of optic fiber cables by Yuriy Kirsanov, 123rf.com.

This colorful bunny is the mascot of Google Fiber.

by Carrie Rice

Huntsville: Gig City

Keep Calm and On! Becoming a Gig City...


Huntsville: Gig City, from page 15

last year. Since that time, Southern Light began building fiber to the businesses in Cummings Research Park, and Comcast and AT&T announced plans to offer gigabit service to customers.

Harrison Diamond, Business Relations Officer for the City of Huntsville, served on the Mayor’s Gig City Initiative Team and helped lead the project for the City. Diamond said that the fiber sys-tem being designed by Huntsville Utilities is NOT just for Google Fiber. Huntsville Utilities will be able to share the cost of construct-ing the network with private companies through multiple lease ar-

rangements. This saves taxpayer dollars. Leases are open to any company wishing to connect and pro-vide service.

“Google Fiber is just the first,” Diamond said. “We think the Huntsville model is something other com-munities around the country will want to replicate.”

Huntsville has been laying fiber for nearly two de-cades and Huntsville Utilities has also been working toward building out a fiber network. Why fiber? Quite simply, fiber ensures a more re-silient and robust electrical grid. Fiber will allow critical infrastruc-ture the ability to communicate with one another. When there is an outage, instead of wasting time guessing where the problem is, crews can immediately respond and restore power, Diamond said.

These developments have helped bring more competition and choice to residents and businesses. And now, in order to prepare municipal Information Technology services, local electric grid technology and more for the future, Huntsville Utilities is going to invest in new fiber infrastructure.

“We installed our first fiber optic line about 16 years ago and quickly recognized the need to further expand our fiber network to meet rapidly growing data and communication needs,” said Jay Stowe, CEO of Huntsville Utilities. “As we build this vital network, we will have excess dark fiber capacity that will be available for lease by interested parties, such as Google Fiber.”

Huntsville Utilities will own the fiber network, but they will not provide internet services. A strong fiber system will give Huntsville Utilities a resilient grid which is much needed as it impacts every-thing from emergency responders to public safety communication to a smart traffic control system – ensuring steady traffic flow for

shorter commutes. The fiber system will cost Hunts-ville about $60 million, and it was going to happen regardless of the ability to lease excess fiber to private broadband companies.

The Huntsville Utilities board of directors unani-mously approved the lease agreement with Google Fiber in February.

In addition, the network is being built to improve the communi-cation capabilities of the water, electric, and natural gas systems, which will improve the operational efficiency of each system and provide better service to customers.

Mayor Battle emphasized the City’s vision for broadband service is in alignment with Google Fiber’s. “Our citizens need and deserve competitive opportunities for connectivity with the highest possible speeds at the lowest possible cost. Google Fiber is committed to the same goal.”

Beyond the Mayor’s office, Huntsville’s Gig City Initiative in-volved a host of local CEOs, Chamber and Cyber Huntsville repre-sentatives, national consultants The Broadband Group and CTC, and owners of area start-up companies. Their input was invaluable

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in creating this new municipal model for gigabit service.“Abundant high-speed Internet can help communities grow stron-

ger, laying a foundation for innovation and economic growth,” said Jill Szuchmacher, Director of Expansion for Google Fiber. “Hunts-ville’s leaders have taken a big step by bringing a new fiber network to their residents and businesses. We look forward to working with Huntsville Utilities and the City to bring Google Fiber to more people.”

Governments are great at building infrastructure – it is one of the most important pieces to create and sustain a successful com-munity. Cities and their people are using more and more technol-ogy to function – making fiber no less an infrastructure need than roads, water, sewer and electricity.

Studies show there are nearly 6.4 billion connected devices in the world today, and that number is expected to increase by the bil-lions by 2020. All those devices require connection to high speed broadband.

“Getting the Gig is not the achievement. Using the Gig is the true excitement,” Diamond said. “The digital world and the physical world are more interconnected than ever before, and this is just the beginning.

Since the Google Fiber network will be open to providers and companies, city leaders are confident that this dark fiber model will encourage more providers to enter our market. More providers mean more competition, and that is better for customers.

Diamond added that broadband will enable communities to break the digital divide and enable true digital self-sufficiency. It will help entrepreneurs create the next great company from home, where many successful businesses first start out.

Google Fiber project leaders agree that Huntsville is charting a new path – but that is nothing new for us. Huntsville has always been a leader in technological innovations, including rockets to take humans to the moon. The City developed this Gig City model to pro-vide rocket-speed broadband to more people and businesses. Con-nectivity is new infrastructure, and you have to have it if you want to compete in today’s high-speed technology age.

• Carrie Rice

Left: Jill Szuchmacher, director of Google Fiber Expansion, with Mayor Tommy Battle, City of Huntsville, at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, announcing that Huntsville Utilities and Google will build a fiber network to bring high speed TV and Internet service to the city’s residents and businesses. (Bob Gathany/AL.com)

Below: The Huntsville Google Fiber story was such big news that stories ran in our local media market as well as national media outlets: Fortune, Forbes, USA Today, TechCrunch, PC Magazine, CNET, Motherboard, Slate magazine, and Wired. (Bob Gathany/AL.com)


economicdevelopmenthighlights

Sierra Nevada Groundbreaking Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) expanded its footprint in Huntsville in February, breaking ground on a new aircraft modification and upgrade facility at the Madi-son County Executive Airport and announcing the potential of 200 new jobs to the Huntsville area.

“We are excited to continue our successful partnership with U.S. Army Avi-ation, our strategic partners, and the local Huntsville community at large,” said Tim Owings, corporate vice president for SNC’s Integrated Mission Systems (IMS) business area. “Huntsville is a hub for many of SNC’s key customers, including the U.S. Army. This aircraft modification and upgrade facility is representative of SNC’s continued commitment to the community and to Army aviation.”

The 130,000-square-foot facility will be built in two phases. Phase I will be a 30,000-square-foot hangar for aircraft modifications and upgrades in support of SNC programs currently in or near in production. Construction for Phase I was expected to begin in March, and SNC expects it to be fully operational in early 2017. Phase II is being planned in preparation for future fixed- and rotary- winged program support to include an additional 100,000-square-foot hangar facility. ∏

WAAY To Go! WAAY 31 TV general manager Paul Dughi was named one of Broadcasting & Cable magazine’s 2016 Digital All-Stars because of the television station’s aggressive

approach to embrace up-and-coming digital platforms. Dughi was the only local television station honoree receiving special recognition from the magazine.

“In addition to debuting an app on Roku and partnering with Watchup to deliver news on the Apple Watch, the ABC affiliate was the first TV station in the country to launch a channel on FireTV,” the magazine noted.

Dughi says he is “humbled” to be placed in the same com-pany as some of the major players in the television industry. “The rest of the list

reads like a who’s who of major networks like Showtime, Disney/ABC, Bravo and ESPN,” said Dughi, “Or tech companies and studios like DreamWorks, Roku and SlingTV. Just to be mentioned in the same article is heady stuff.” ∏

Dynetics Honored with NASA Award NASA has selected Dynetics as the 2015 Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year among companies nationwide. The NASA Small Business Industry Awards (SBIA) recognizes outstanding businesses that support NASA in achieving its mission.

Dynetics CEO David King said, “Dynetics’ experience in managing complex fed-eral programs has served us well on this contract. We appreciate the confidence

NASA continues to show in our ability to provide high-quality IT services responsively with innovative ideas. And, as we are pro-viding Marshall with these services, we are privileged to also build hardware for the Space Launch System, another area in which we are helping NASA achieve its mission.”

In 2010, NASA awarded Dynetics the Marshall Space Flight Center Information Technology Services (MITS) contract to pro-vide a range of services for NASA, including IT security services;

IT planning, policy, architecture and integration; telecommunications services; applications and web services; computing and data center services; and audio/visual information services.

Jonathan Whitcomb, vice president of Dynetics, said, “It is indeed an honor to be recognized nationally by NASA for our work in IT and related technical services. Working with our local partner to help the MSFC reach its goals and achieve its mission is a privilege for Dynetics as we have continued to grow our business in these areas for both government and commercial customers.” ∏

Torch Technologies Recognized in Forbes Torch Technologies was named by Forbes as one of the Best Small Companies in America for 2016. Torch was one of 25 companies selected, and the only Alabama-based company named to the list.

Torch CEO Bill Roark said, “Torch was founded with a focus on service to our customer, service to our community, and ultimately, a focus on the ethical treatment and service to our company’s employee-owners. I am incredibly proud of the dedication and loyalty of our employee-owners, as they are the reason we have received this honor as a Best Small Company in America.”

Torch Technologies is a 100 percent employee-owned technology services and solutions company, headquartered in Huntsville. For more information about Torch, visit www.torchtechnologies.com ∏

IBERIABANK’s Harper named YMCA’s Chairman of the Board IBERIABANK is pleased to announce Ginger Harper, Senior Vice President, Private

Banking and Retail Banking Manager, has been named Chairman of the Board for the Heart of the Valley YMCA. This is the first time that a female has been named Board Chair for the YMCA.

Ginger has 16 years of private and retail banking experience. She is responsible for lending, investment strategies, trust and financial planning for the Huntsville market and leading the strat-egy for retail and community outreach locally.

“We are thrilled to have Ginger take on the role of the YMCA’s Chairman of the Board,” said Jerry Courtney, CEO, Heart of the Valley YMCA. “The Y is a volunteer led organization and effective Board leadership is critical to the success and impact of the YMCA. We are fortunate to have Ginger as our next Board President, I believe her skills, passion and commitment to the YMCA and community will serve us well.” ∏

snap: Mike Ward, the Chamber’s Senior Vice President of Government & Public Affairs, celebrated a career milestone in March — an incredible 25 years with the Chamber! Mike has seen a lot of

changes in that time. In 1991 when he started, I-565 was under construction — a project to connect us to the Interstate system; most of the larger, newer buildings in Cummings Research Park West were not in existence; and the “newest” building on Redstone Arsenal had been around since the 1960s. Oh, how times have changed!

Dughi

King

Harper

http://www.torchtechnologies.com


compiled by Carrie Rice

continued on page 20

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Individual memberships in

UAH Business Incubator Plans for a $12 million business incubator at the University of Alabama in Hunts-ville (UAH) got a boost recently with a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Dept. of Commerce Economic Development Administration. UAH was among 25 grant awardees, totaling $10 million.

The EDA investment funds the university’s Virtual Proof of Concept Center (POCC). The POCC will serve as a strategic approach to utilize university resources at UAH to bring “shelved” technologies into the marketplace through identification and funding of entrepreneurs and by providing a range of services to convert ideas, research and prototypes into viable commercial products.

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby’s office was instrumental in assisting UAH during the application process, said Dr. Ray Vaughn, UAH vice president for research and economic development.

“We sincerely appreciate all the advice and assistance we have and continue to receive from Sen. Shelby and his unwavering support of UAH and the Huntsville community,” Dr. Vaughn said. “We are extremely pleased about the news that EDA awarded this i6 Challenge grant in support of our Innovation to Invention Center.” ∏

New Brand and Vision for Local Creativity After 53 years, the Arts Council has changed its name to Arts Huntsville to reflect the organization’s mission to more widely promote and support the arts, entertainment and cultural sector. The change comes as the sector has seen tremendous growth in our region in recent years.

“We have an incredibly vibrant arts scene and we want to ensure greater local, regional and national engagement with our artists and cultural organization,” said Arts Huntsville Executive Director Allison Dillon-Jauken. Arts Huntsville is the larg-est arts engagement, advocacy and service organization in North Alabama with a mission is to serve the greater Huntsville metropolitan region.

“A city without a strong cultural component would be a boring, unimaginative place. We are thankful for the artists and musicians, sculptors and creatives work-ing and living in Huntsville, and are grateful for organizations like Arts Huntsville who celebrate and advocate for creativity in the community,” said Huntsville May-or Tommy Battle. “We congratulate Arts Huntsville on its ongoing efforts to realize its vision of Huntsville as the premier mid-sized city for the arts, entertainment and culture in the Southeast.” ∏

Theory of Everything For the first time, scientists have observed ripples in the fabric of spacetime called grav-itational waves, arriving at the Earth from a cataclysmic event in the distant uni-verse. This confirms a major prediction of Albert Einstein’s 1915 general theory of relativity and opens an unprecedented new window onto the cosmos.

Physicists have concluded that the detected gravitational waves were pro-duced during the final fraction of a second of the merger of two black holes to produce a single, more massive spinning black hole. This collision had been pre-dicted but never observed.

The gravitational waves were detected on Sept. 14, 2015 by both of the twin Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors, located in Livingston, La., and Hanford, WA.

Research scientist Dr. Tyson Littenberg at the University of Alabama in Hunts-ville (UAH) Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) helped the LIGO team develop sophisticated computer algorithms that comb through data and extract physical information from a detection.

“I knew within a few hours of the detection that we had something big. Really big,” he said. “The significance cannot be overstated. Gravitational waves are the last missing confirmation of Einstein’s general theory of relativity – our most fun-damental understanding of how physics works in the macroscopic world.”

The LIGO discovery has broad connections in the fields of fundamental physics, astrophysics and astronomy. For more information, visit bit.ly/UAHgravity ∏

http://bit.ly/UAHgravity


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‘Hero Fund’ helps bring genomic medicine to low-income patients The HudsonAlpha Foundation received a generous $1,050,000 anonymous dona-tion to establish the Hero Fund. This fund will help patients who need, but cannot afford access to genomic medicine.

In November 2015, the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology opened the Smith Family Clinic for Genomic Medicine, LLC. The Clinic uses whole genome sequencing to diagnose patients living with rare, undiagnosed or misdiagnosed diseases. The Hero Fund will provide financial assistance to qualified Clinic pa-tients.

“We consider the patients at the Smith Family Clinic for Genomic Medicine heroes,” said Howard Jacob, PhD; executive vice president for genomic medicine at HudsonAlpha. “They fight every single day, battling devastating disease, inef-fective or no treatments and no answers.”

“The donor’s intent is to help as many patients as possible, so we have been tasked with raising matching funds,” said Lynne Berry, executive director of the Foundation. “Your ‘gene-erosity’ makes it possible to help those in need.”

To learn more or to support the Hero Fund, visit support.hudsonalpha.org/hero ∏

Local Snelling office honored with unique industry awards Snelling of Huntsville, a leading employment agency, was honored with Inavero’s Best of Staffing® Client and Talent Awards for providing superior service to their clients and job seekers. Presented in partnership with CareerBuilder, Inavero’s Best of Staffing winners have proven to be industry leaders in service quality based completely on the ratings given to them by their clients and the perma-nent and temporary employees they’ve recruited for their clients.

“Our Huntsville team is a seasoned group of professionals focused on build-ing strong, collaborative partnerships with both our clients and our candidates. The most rewarding aspect of our business is matching best-fit candidates with excellent opportunities in great companies where both parties can achieve suc-cess. The Best of Staffing award recognizes our team’s outstanding commit-ment to our clients and candidates,” Snelling of Huntsville Owner, Paul Brashier said.

Snelling of Huntsville is an executive search and staffing services firm, lo-cally owned by Paul & Kathryn Brashier. The company has served Tennessee Valley busi-nesses for more than 50 years and is a founding member of the North Alabama Better Busi-ness Bureau with an A+ Rating. Snelling provides customized employment solutions for its

clients by recruiting and placing professionals in a variety of fields including accounting, engineering, sales and customer service, human resources, legal, and administrative professions. In addition, Snelling’s medical division provides staffing solutions for clinical and administrative medical professionals. ∏

ED Highlights, continued from page 19 biosciencebriefs

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NASA Marshall People on the Move NASA Administrator Charles Bolden named Todd May director of the agency’s Mar-shall Space Flight Center here in Huntsville. May was appointed Marshall deputy

director in August 2015 and has been serving as acting director since the Nov. 13, 2015 retirement of Patrick Scheuermann.

As director, May will lead one of NASA’s largest field instal-lations, with almost 6,000 civil service and contractor employ-ees, an annual budget of approximately $2.5 billion and a broad spectrum of human spaceflight, science and technology devel-opment missions.

“Todd’s experience and leadership have been invaluable to the agency, especially as we have embarked on designing, building and test-ing the Space Launch System, a critical part of NASA’s journey to Mars,” said Bolden. “He brings his expert program management and leadership skills and sense of mission to this new role, and I look forward to having him at the helm of Marshall.”

Since its inception in 2011, May led the Space Launch System (SLS) program through a series of milestones, including a successful in-depth critical design review. SLS, now under development, is the most powerful rocket ever built, able

to carry astronauts in NASA’s Orion spacecraft on deep space missions, including to an asteroid and ultimately on a journey to Mars.

One of May’s first administrative duties was to appoint Jody Singer as deputy director of NASA Marshall. Singer will assist May in managing Marshall. Singer has been with NASA for more than 30 years holding leadership positions in a variety of engi-neering, propulsion and spaceflight development programs.

“Jody has tremendous depth of management experience with SLS, space shuttle and other programs, keen leadership skills and a proven ability to build partnerships – all vital to the tremendous team effort required to reach our space

exploration goals and destinations,” May said. “I feel proud and fortunate to be able to call on her to serve as Marshall’s deputy director.”

For her dedication and commitment to excellence and achievement in support of the human space program, Singer was awarded the Silver Snoopy Award by the NASA astronaut corps in 2011.

With May’s appointment to Center Director from SLS, Jerry Cook has been named deputy director of NASA’s Space Launch System Program at Marshall. He has more than 30 years of expe-rience in both an operational and developmental environment of strategic planning, program management and program execution.

Appointed to the position in December 2015, Cook shares responsibility for all facets of the SLS Program, including programmatic and tech-nical planning, procurement, development, testing, evaluation, production, and operation of the integrated SLS. ∏

nasaupdates

May

Singer Cook

Marshall Space Flight Center


2016chamberexecutivecommittee

Rose Allenpresident, InterFuze Corporation

Board Chair

Kim Lewischief executive officer, PROJECTXYZ, Inc.Secretary/Treasurer

Gary Boltonvice president, global marketing, ADTRAN, Inc.

Vice Chair – Economic Development & Industry Relations

Kevin Byrnesvice president & center executive, Raytheon Company

Vice Chair – Government & Public Affairs

Penny Billingsdivision president, BancorpSouth

Vice Chair – Membership

Joe Newberrypresident/chief executive officer, Redstone Federal Credit Union

Chair-Elect

Rey Almodóvarchief executive officer,INTUITIVE

Immediate Past Chair

Ron Poteatnorth alabama area executive, Regions Bank

Chamber of CommerceFoundation Chair

Greg BrownCFO / Co-CEO, Brown Precision, Inc.

Vice Chair – Workforce& Education

Jeff Gronbergpresident, deciBel Research, Inc.

Vice Chair – Small Business & Events

Danny Windhamchief executive officer, Digium, Inc.

Vice Chair – Marketing & Communications

Tharon Honeycuttpresident, MSB Analytics, Inc.

Vice Chair – Member Engagement

Tommy Battlemayor,City of Huntsville

Chair-Appointed

Mark Curranvice president, army programs/HSV operations, L-3 Communications Corp.

Chair-Appointed

Tracy Marionattorney, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, P.C.

General Counsel

Bryan Dodsonchief executive officer,PHOENIX

Chair-Appointed

Beth Sippelpresident/chief executive officer, First Commercial Bank

Chair-Appointed

Dale Strongchairman,Madison County Commission

Chair-Appointed

Troy Trulockmayor,City of Madison

Chair-Appointed

Chip Cherry, CCEpresident &chief executive officer,Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County


2016chamberboardofdirectors

Lynn CollyarDeloitte LLP

Bill BaileyRadiance Technologies, Inc.

Leigh PeguesPNC Bank

Dr. Andrew Hugine, Jr.Alabama A&M University

Hank IsenbergIronMountain Solutions

David KingDynetics, Inc.

Brian MagerkurthPar Pharmaceutical

John JordanWyle CAS Group

Janice MigliorePALCO Telecom Service, Inc.

Jim RogersLockheed Martin Corporation

Dr. Gurmej SandhuSigmatech, Inc.

Kristina BarbeeBooz Allen Hamilton, Inc.

Bob BaronBaron Services, Inc.

David FernandesToyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama

Janet BrownBelk

Kevin CampbellNorthrop Grumman Corporation

Frank CaprioBradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Charlie SealySealy Management Company

E.J. SinclairScience & Engineering Services, LLC

Cynthia StreamsDomino’s Pizza (Valley Pizza, Inc.)

Nilmini ThompsonSystems Products and Solutions, Inc.

Tim ThorntonnLogic, Inc.

Lynn TroyTroy 7, Inc.

Frank WilliamsLanders McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep

Ken Tucker The Boeing Company

Jeff SamzHuntsville Hospital

Michael CoxPARSONS

Deke DamsonJerry Damson Honda Acura

John EaganBB&T

Dorothy DavidsonDavidson Technologies, Inc.

Joe FehrenbachIntergraph Corporation

Trip FergusonU.S. Space & Rocket Center

Dr. Pam HudsonCrestwood Medical Center

John GullySAIC

Mike GullionSCI Technology, Inc. – a Sanmina company

Steve HillAEgis Technologies Group

Jan HessTeledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.

Gene GoldmanAerojet Rocketdyne

Mike StanfieldMiltec


aroundtheglobe

Huntsville-based RadioBro Corporation hosted a grand opening of their new office in Bremen, Germany. RadioBro specializes in

design, development and production of miniature electronics sys-tems including data acquisition and monitoring solutions for the aviation and aerospace industries. The Bremen office will enhance their marketing and sales efforts to companies in Bremen such as OHB, BLG and Airbus Defense and Space.

The company was started in 2014 by brothers Mark, Eric, and Daniel Becnel of Huntsville. Their products include MiniSatCom, a lightweight spacecraft rad io, and Cyclone, a system that records data from flight tests. The Bremen office will be led by Nathanial Long.

“Nathanial was employee number two at RadioBro and helped us establish our Huntsville office,” said Mark Becnel, RadioBro president. “He has built good relationships in Bremen while in the UAH study abroad program at the Hochschule, and we are excited to have him lead this new facility.”

The RadioBro Bre-men office will be in the World Trade Center in Bremen, a business incubator that provides space and support to inter-national companies through Bremenin-vest. Bremeninvest is the lead agency for economic devel-opment in German State of Bremen.

“Bremen is hub for European aerospace and automotive indus-try very similar to Huntsville,” said Becnel, “Bremeninvest recog-nized our talent, introduced us to potential customers and helped us set up our presence. They made things very easy for us.”

Andreas Gerber, Director of International Affairs for Bremenin-vest said, “We are very proud to welcome RadioBro to the Bremen industrial community. This is a success story for everyone. I look forward to seeing both Bremen and Huntsville industries benefit from RadioBro’s expansion here.”

“RadioBro is a dynamic, results-oriented company that is poised to have a big impact on the aerospace and aviation industries,” said Lucia Cape, Senior Vice President for Economic Development at the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County. “We con-gratulate them on their growth and look forward to their contin-ued success, both domestically and internationally.”

RadioBro is collocated in Madison, AL with STI Electronics, the manufacturer of their electronic components.

• Carrie Rice

Local electronics company opens office in Bremen, GermanyWillkommen, RadioBro!

L-R: Alexander Vorwerk, Project Leader for International Establishments, BremenInvest; Andreas Gerber, Director International Affairs, BremenInvest; Nathanial Long, Managing Director of European Headquarters, RadioBro Corporation, Bremen; Mark Becnel, President, RadioBro Corporation, Hunts-ville; Kirk Atkinson, President, Adah International, Inc., Birmingham, AL.

Mark Becnel and Nathanial Long in the RadioBro European Headquarters, World Trade Center Bremen, Germany with their Cyclone product.


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government&publicaffairs

Redstone Arsenal is the engine powering roughly half of the Huntsville/Madison County economy. Consequently, much of

what the Chamber’s Government & Public Affairs division does is focused, in one way or another, on efforts to protect and grow the installation and the roles and missions of the agencies located there.

Today, Redstone has approximately 40,000 people working on the base, including the ~6,000 people that work at NASA’s Mar-shall Space Flight Center. More than 70 different entities are lo-cated on Redstone. Redstone is a federal campus for a wide variety of federal agencies and offices. The really good news is that there’s room to grow that federal asset to be even larger.

In February, FBI Director James Comey and U.S. Senator Rich-ard Shelby cut the ribbon on the Terrorist Explosive Device Ana-lytical Center (TEDAC) which will bring ~250 jobs to the region in the near term. But there are bigger plans in the works that could significantly increase that number. TEDAC extracts forensic evi-dence from explosive devices that are obtained around the world, both before and after they’ve been detonated, to “connect the dots” between bomb makers and devices. FBI personnel at TEDAC also develop material used to test TSA and other bomb detecting equip-ment, to ensure that the equipment is capable of detecting the most current threats facing our people and facilities.

The benefit of being located at Redstone is that TEDAC is able to leverage the organic knowledge of several other Redstone tenants in the intelligence and the improvised explosive device (IED) world – creating what many consider to be the explosives research capital of the world at Redstone. Those tenants include the Defense Intel-ligence Agency’s Missile and Space Intelligence Center and the Al-cohol Tobacco and Firearms’ National Center for Explosives Train-ing and Research (NCETR), as well as the engineers and scientists working at the Research and Development Centers on Redstone.

But TEDAC represents only one potential avenue for growth on Redstone. While fu-ture rounds of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) have yet to be announced, there’s an increasing chance that Congress could authorize an-other BRAC round as early as 2019. Efforts are currently under-way to help position

Redstone to gain additional activities by improving local infrastruc-ture necessary to support such growth. The 2005 round of BRAC brought more than 4,700 direct jobs and an additional 10,000

support jobs to the region. Future opportunities are unknown at the moment, but trends are positive for additional growth.

While attracting new missions to Redstone will be important for its continued growth, it’s also critical that we support the agencies and operations currently located on Redstone. The Chamber re-cently sent a delegation of community leaders to Washington, DC to meet with our Congressional delegation to review the Chamber’s Federal Agenda. Our Agenda reflects the federally intensive nature of our economy and identifies key federal programs that are im-portant to both our Nation’s defense and space leadership and to our local economy. With our delegation’s support, our region con-tinues to prosper as a science and technology powerhouse.

The continued development of the Redstone federal campus will require the best efforts of all of us living in this region. The Cham-ber is pleased to have many partners across the Tennessee Valley who are equally committed to supporting Redstone.

• Mike Ward

Leading the effort to protect and grow Redstone ArsenalOur Mission

L-R: TEDAC Director Greg Carl, LTG Larry Wyche, Sen. Richard Shelby and FBI Director Comey.


Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

STAFFExecutive Staff

Chip Cherry, CCE, president & CEO

Amy Locke, executive assistant

Amy Tubb, resource desk coordinator

Annette Atchley, resource desk assistant

Economic Development, Industry Relations & Workforce

Lucia Cape, senior vice president

Lyndsay Ferguson, workforce director

Erin Koshut, Cummings Research Park director

Ken Smith, research & information services director

Will West, economic development specialist | project manager

Government & Public Affairs

Mike Ward, senior vice president

Tina Leopold, assistant

Marketing & Communications

Carrie Rice, director

Kristi Sherrard, graphic designer

Hiroko Sedensky, web designer

Investor Relations

Donna McCrary, membership retention manager

Tiffany Jordan, membership representative

Tina Blankenship, membership representative

Kristy Drake, engagement specialist | program manager

Small Business & Events

Pammie Jimmar, IOM, director

Emma Williams, specialist

Finance & Administration

Ruth Klinzak, interim director

Jamie Gallien, IT manager

Mary McNairy, accounting specialist | human resources

Lori Warner, accounting specialist

Joe Watson, facilities supervisor

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County225 Church Street NW, Huntsville, AL 35801

phone 256-535-2000 | fax 256-535-2015

www.HSVchamber.org

Associated Organizations

communityfoundationhsv.org

theschoolsfoundation.org

www.uah.edu/sbdc


http://communityfoundationhsv.org/

http://theschoolsfoundation.org/

http://www.uah.edu/sbdc


Penny BillingsMarket President, BancorpSouth - Huntsville

Vice Chair - Membership

Lisa AbbottSenior Vice PresidentCadence Bank256-319-2501 (work)[email protected]

Katie BosargePublic Relations Davidson Technologies, Inc.256-489-0256 (work)[email protected]

Clint KirklandSenior VP/Business Banking Progress Bank256-319-3600 (work)[email protected]

Joe KnochOwner/PresidentAir Essentials, Inc.256-217-2273 (work)[email protected]

Camille GardnerDirector, Corp. Business & Proposal Development AEgis Technologies Group256-922-0802 (work)[email protected]

Lee LesterRetired Banking Executive256-539-6448 (work)[email protected]

Leslie McGillFinancial Center Sales Mgr. First Commercial Bank256-551-3399 (work)[email protected]

Michelle OmenskiRealtorKeller Williams Realty256-468-1527 (work)[email protected]

Chris RussellSenior Vice PresidentCadence Bank256-319-2502 (work)[email protected]

Tiffany Taylor, CPA, CGMAExecutive Analyst - FinanceIntergraph Corporation256-730-2000 (work)[email protected]

David WhitakerDiv. Director (Logistics & Info Tech)CALIBRE Systems, Inc.256-217-1647 (work)[email protected]

memberengagement

Supporting the Chamber supports your communityChamberON

Chamber membership is an investment in the community which allows you to associate your business with one of the oldest and

most recognized brands in the world, the Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County has been working for this community since 1894 – yes, that’s right, the late 1800s! Just one look through history books will show you how we’ve helped turn a great town into a thriving, progressive and modern community – and we did that with the help of our mem-bers.

Over the years, our Chamber members have been instrumen-tal in helping make our region a tremendous success. You have done this through your membership dues and by promoting your company through our annual Chamber sponsorship campaign – known as ChamberON.

Why participate in our annual sponsorship campaign? The ChamberON goal is to ensure that members have access to out-standing programs, services and events resulting in an en-hanced member ex-perience. Increased member participa-tion in Chamber ac-

tivities help the Chamber prepare, develop and promote our com-munity for economic growth.

Supporting the Chamber benefits the entire community: ChamberON plays a key role for our community – by supporting us through sponsorship your company has a direct impact into the success of our community.

Growing support through sponsorships: We have a highly energized group of ChamberON Volunteers who give a tremendous amount of their time to connect with Chamber members who are looking to become more actively engaged in the Chamber and our mission through sponsorship opportunities. They are your person-al conduit to an enhanced Chamber ROI.

The ChamberON campaign has something of value for every type of business/organization – from investing in annual events or our high-impact marketing assets. There are wonderful opportunities

at every level – from $200 on up – for your company to receive value from your Chamber investment. Let the Chamber staff help you grow and promote your business! The current ChamberON campaign runs through May 13, 2016. For more information about ChamberON and to view sponsorship opportunities, visit hsvchamber.com and click on ChamberON

(sidebar tab), or contact Kristy Drake, Engagement Specialist/Pro-gram Manager, at 256-535-2036.

• Carrie Rice

Drake

http://hsvchamber.org


PRSRT STDUS Postage

PAIDBirmingham, AL

Permit #40

http://bit.ly/2016chamberON

initiatives, april - may 2016

Documents