Advanced Technology Helps FPL Restore Power In Record Time
The 1-2 punch of Hurricanes Helene and Milton left millions of Florida home and business owners without power over the past three weeks. Fortunately, the largest electric utility company in the United States says they are closing in on full power restoration across the Sunshine State.
In a new press release, Florida Power & Light says that power has been restored to over 2 million Floridians which represents 99% of the customers who were impacted by Hurricane Milton, the second-most intense hurricane ever recorded over the Gulf of Mexico.
The majority of FPL’s Florida East Coast territory stretching from Jacksonville to the Keys has been “essentially restored” while some of the hardest hit areas of Manatee and Sarasota counties’ barrier islands still remain without power.
FPL President & CEO Armando Pimentel says utility crews in those areas “will continue to work relentlessly to bring the lights back on as safely and quickly as possible.”
“I’m proud that our crews have restored power to more than two million customers in just 5 days. And while that means 99% of affected customers have been restored, we also know that there are still customers without power in some the hardest hit areas.” – Armando Pimentel
An article earlier this summer in Miami’s Community News documented how FPL’s advanced technology is allowing restoration crews to more accurately pinpoint the exact location of where linemen need to be in order to restore power to millions of Floridians in record time. That full article can be found here.
Lamarr.ai Looks To Revolutionize Building Diagnostics Technology
This week Lamarr.ai announced the successful completion of a $1.1 million pre-seed funding round which is another step in the Atlanta-based startup’s quest to bring disruptive diagnostics technology to market for building owners and facilities managers.
Leveraging drones, thermal imaging and AI-based analytics, Lamarr.ai makes the process of detecting, diagnosing and fixing building envelope defects faster, cheaper and much more accurate than traditional methods.
Lamarr.ai CEO and Associate Professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Architecture, Tarek Rakha, said securing the funding round was a major milestone after researchers have spent a decade fine tuning the disruptive technology in laboratories at MIT, Georgia Tech and Syracuse University.
“The interest from real estate companies in what we’ve built has been incredibly rewarding after perfecting the technology for nearly a decade in our lab. This innovation is enabling property owners to address faults before they become expensive headaches or environmentally unsustainable threats.” – Tarek Rakha
According to the official press release, the funding round was led by Hazelview Ventures, the VC arm of Canadian real estate investment firm Hazelview Investments.
For more information, visit lamarr.ai.
Reticulate Micro Delivers Cutting Edge Radios To U.S. Air Force
This week Florida-based commercial and defense communications provider, Reticulate Micro, announced the first delivery of combat-tested Himera G1 Pro handheld radios to the United States Air Force.
This initial shipment of Himera G1 Pros, which the Air Force will use to conduct testing, incorporate Reticulate Micro’s cutting-edge Video Assured Secure Transmission (VAST) technology. VAST is a direct streaming solution which is unique for its ability to deliver real-time video streaming in environments where it was previously impossible or operationally impractical.
Reticulate Micro President and CEO Joshua Cryer says his company’s VAST technology will take the Ukranian-made Himera devices to the next level with the addition of more eyes on the battlefield.”
“The Himera G1 Pro is the perfect fit for our VAST system, providing resilient and secure connectivity at an affordable price. By combining the Himera G1 Pro with VAST, we’re aiming to democratize secure video transmission on the battlefield—empowering every warfighter with video-capable radio technology for enhanced situational awareness.” – Joshua Cryer
To learn more about VAST hardware and software, visit Reticulate Micro.
LightPath Technologies To Launch New Optical Gas Imaging Camera
This week LightPath Technologies, a leading provider of next-generation optics and imaging systems for defense and commercial applications, announced the launch of a new Optical Gas Imaging (OGI) camera platform to detect fugitive gas emissions from oil and gas applications.
OGI cameras are vital tools in the oil and gas industry that offer an efficient way to detect gas leaks that are not visible to the naked eye. LightPath’s purpose-built OGI camera leverages a non-germanium lens to improve upon current technologies by offering a cost-effective, higher sensitivity and ultimately more effective solution.
According to the official press release, Orlando-based LightPath is unveiling the new OGI camera at the CH4 Connections Conference taking place this week in Colorado. The annual CH4 Conference draws industry leaders like LightPath who share new technologies to detect and mitigate emissions.
To learn more about the new OGI camera, visit LightPath’s official website.
Leading Georgia Healthcare System Selects Accelecom Solutions
This week Accelecom, a leading provider of next-gen fiber solutions, announced that it has been selected by one of the largest Healthcare Systems in Georgia to provide custom Data Center solutions including secure and scalable high speed network connectivity.
According to the official press release, Accelecom’s state-of-the-art network infrastructure will enable the unnamed Georgia Healthcare system to accelerate its adoption of emerging technologies, to include cloud-based Electronic Medical Records (EMR’s), next-generation PACS systems and ever-evolving Internet of Things (IoT) platforms.
With corporate offices in both Georgia and Kentucky, Accelecom is uniquely positioned to assist large healthcare systems in the Southeast that are looking to tap leading edge Internet and Ethernet services that can increase productivity and improve connectivity. Beyond healthcare, Accelecom also specializes in connectivity solutions for education, government, agriculture and carrier clients.
To learn more, visit Accelecom’s official website.
Thousands of Flood Damaged Cars Potentially Coming To Market
CARFAX, the industry leader in vehicle history, released some eye-opening numbers this week and a state-by-state breakdown of where the most water damaged vehicles are located following Hurricane Helene which made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend on September 26.
According to CARFAX, there may be as many as 138,000 flood damaged vehicles here in the Southeast, and that total could easily double to 250,000 or more following the impact of Hurricane Milton just two weeks later. According to CARFAX, the states with the most water damaged vehicles post-Helene were:
- Florida: 60,700
- South Carolina: 27,5000
- North Carolina: 22,900
- Georgia: 16,800
- Tennessee: 4,900
- Virginia: 4,900
One week after Hurricane Milton made landfall, CARFAX raised their estimate to potentially 347,000 flood-damaged cars coming out of the 2024 Hurricane Season.
In the official press release, CARFAX shares the three things that car-shopping consumers should do to avoid purchasing a flood-damaged vehicle. One of those tips is using the free CARFAX Flood Check tool.
The CARFAX technology platform has evolved dramatically over the past four decades. While very basic Vehicle History Reports were first made available to the public in 1986, today CARFAX offers the most comprehensive data set about every vehicle on the road, and Virginia-based 3Pillar Global has played an important role in that evolution.
To learn more about how 3Pillar has helped CARFAX diversify their business model to fuel new sources of revenue, check out this interesting case study.
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