SMARTalaska

05/16/2018

Following this past weekend's Blue Economy meetings, and the on-going push of the S.M.A.R.T. initiative, one common theme is woven through many of the 'future of Seward' vision plans: A place to make all this energy and innovation come together, develop and live. A "virtual incubator", or a virtual "innovation hub" really just means more email exchanges. What would it look like if Seward REALLY got serious about harnessing all of these ideas and dedicated a place for it?

I would like to bring this project in Utah to everyone's attention. I grew up in Utah, and have been travelling back to southern Utah every year for the past 35. A place I have always loved and cared about is the small city of St. George, Utah. My first memories were of a sleepy little town on the interstate on the way to Las Vegas. It has beautiful red-rock desert backdrops and some high snow-capped peaks very close. In the past 2 decades it has grown enormously, and is becoming another Palm Springs.

St. George had a unique airport that sat on top of a mesa. It was a medium sized commuter airport, and shared the mesa top with some businesses, a steak house restaurant and a few dozen homes. The views from up there are fantastic. A few years ago, due to increased air traffic and concerns of the increasing population directly below the mesa, they moved the airport many miles away right on the Arizona border. That left this amazing mesa-top mostly empty. MUCH LIKE THE SEWARD FORMER AIR FORCE REC CAMP.

Recognizing the incredible potential of this former airport site, the shakers and movers of St. George developed a plan for a new use of the mesa top:

http://techridgerfq.com/

THIS, ladies and gentlemen, is what Seward needs to do with the old Air Force property. It could be a mix of a business park to support new businesses based on SMART and the Blue Economy incubator, a public safety complex, a community fitness center and fitness trails connecting with the ball parks and schools, and a limited number of condos. This, I believe, would launch Seward into a fantastic place in Alaska's economy.

I'd love to read some feedback!

05/02/2018

Hey S.M.A.R.T. believers: here's a reminder........

04/24/2018

Come on Seward! Keep up the faith!
Let's make Seward Alaska's innovation hub for all things unmanned.
Going to this conference next week:

A quick look back at XPONENTIAL 2017 to get you ready for this year's show, April 30-May 3 in Denver, Colorado!

04/22/2018

Brandon Anderson will be attending the AUVSI Xponential international conference in Denver the first week in May. It will be a treasure-trove of new information and contacts to bring back in support of S.M.A.R.T.

If you’re looking to harness the power of unmanned technology, AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2018 is the spot. An intersection of cutting-edge innovation and real-world applications, XPONENTIAL is the one event that brings all things unmanned into sharp focus. Join more than 8,500 industry leaders and forward-...

04/01/2018

Why aren't we doing this in Seward?

While world leaders meet in Paris to discuss reducing carbon emissions believed to contribute to climate change, the government of Gibraltar is putting its own renewable energy plan into action.

02/21/2018

Here's an idea that's being proposed to the City of Seward management, the Chamber of Commerce, and all interested persons who follow S.M.A.R.T. - September 2018 - Seward hosts the First Annual Robo-Olympics competition! This would be a multiple day event (to allow for weather days) based out of the Dale Lindsey AKRR building and dock area and would consist of aerial, ground, water-surface and sub-surface competitions from various professional manufacturers to test 'real-world' capabilities of their systems. Numerous robotic systems could be showcased, demonstrated, and compete to complete a series of challenging tasks. With enough press coverage, these manufacturers would have the incentive to come to Seward to show off (put up or shut up!) their capabilities. This could have the potential to become a major annual event for Alaska, based in Seward. If you agree, please contact the Seward City management and the Chamber of Commerce to encourage their support.

02/18/2018

https://petapixel.com/2017/11/30/us-says-dji-camera-drones-spying-china-dji-says-claim-insane/

DJI camera drones are likely spying on the United States for China. At least, that's what a newly uncovered US government memo claims. DJI has responded by

01/13/2018

A U.S. Coast Guard drone carrier based in Seward?

01/09/2018

Check out this:

12/20/2017

https://www.marinelink.com/news/maritime-drones-flight430651

Flights of Fancy? No longer a pipe dream, aerial drones find a home in maritime. Price Waterhouse Cooper estimates the global commercial…

12/20/2017

Hello SMART followers. You may have noticed we haven't posted much in the past few months. Although there seems to be a lot of support for the concept, the implementation has struggled. So we have taken some time to re-group. Recently, the FAA announced a new program that took most people in the UAS world by surprise. They launched the UAS Integration Pilot Program:

'The UAS Integration Pilot Program is an opportunity for state, local, and tribal governments to partner with private sector entities, such as UAS operators or manufacturers, to accelerate safe UAS integration.'

Many entities, including small governments (cities, towns) and schools immediately recognized this opportunity. So did some of us here in Seward. To be a player, the FAA required the interested entity to register, and then in steps put forth a plan for their concept of operations in a small local setting. Jim Hunt (Seward City Manager) and Brandon Anderson met early on and discussed Seward applying to be one of the sites in the US to test specific ways to integrate small unmanned systems into the national airspace. The unique component we are "selling" to the FAA is a place to test and put into practice the combination of unmanned marine vessels together with aerial systems. There are many reasons why Seward and the local marine waters are well suited for this, and the existing potential partners are already located here.

Mr. Hunt has committed the City of Seward to take the lead in this effort, and hopefully bring together the original SMART group to include in the "team" that must be identified to the FAA.

This posting is the first informational piece put out, but more will come. Feel free to send a message to me through this page for more information. Also read this link for more information:

The UAS Integration Pilot Program is an opportunity for state, local, and tribal governments to partner with private sector entities, such as UAS operators or manufacturers, to accelerate safe UAS integration.

11/18/2017

https://www.faa.gov/uas/programs_partnerships/uas_integration_pilot_program/

The UAS Integration Pilot Program is an opportunity for state, local, and tribal governments to partner with private sector entities, such as UAS operators or manufacturers, to accelerate safe UAS integration. Entities that wish to participate in the program form teams and submit proposals to the FA...