LAS CRUCES, NM – The New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) announced the selection of Fiore Industries Inc., of Albuquerque, NM, as the contractor to perform Protective Services for Spaceport America. The company was awarded a two-year base contract with a not-to-exceed value of $2.3 million and two one-year renewal options. Fiore will provide 24/7 site security, badging, firefighting, emergency medical services and environmental, safety and health requirements at Spaceport America. Initially, the contractor will develop policies and procedures for the site security, emergency response, and risk management, as well as perform pre-operational exercises.

Fiore will lead a team of companies that will work together to provide all Protective Service requirements during the two-year contract period. Other team members include: Allied Barton Security Services, LLC (ABSS); Sierra Vista Hospital New Mexico (SVH); Zia Engineering and Environmental Consultants, LLC (Zia); and New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (NM Tech).

The Fiore team has experience providing a broad range of services including security services to all United Space Alliance facilities, security support to the Miami International Airport, and security services to Raytheon Corporation. The team also served White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) as both the incident command contractor and the firefighting response contractor, and served Region 2 Emergency Medical Services, Inc. as the EMS contractor. This caliber of relevant experience makes the team well suited to provide service at Spaceport America.

“The New Mexico Spaceport Authority is very pleased to award our Protective Services contract to Fiore Industries, Inc. Fiore is a New Mexico-based contractor with extensive experience providing these type of services,” said Chad Rabon, NMSA General Operations Manager.

Bill Miera, President and Chief Executive Officer of Fiore, Inc., said “Fiore Industries is honored to have been chosen by the NMSA to perform this critical work on the first-ever, purpose-built spaceport.  Along with our partners, we are committed to the success of this endeavor. Having been born and raised in New Mexico and having family here that goes back to the 1600s, I have worked on creating jobs and educational opportunities in this state my entire career.  We consider ourselves stakeholders in the spaceport effort and as such, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with the NMSA in creating employment in such a leading-edge industry”.

About Spaceport America

Spaceport America has been providing commercial launch services since 2006.  Phase One of the construction for the spaceport is expected to be complete in late 2011.  Phase Two of the construction and pre-operations activities will follow, including the development of a world-class Visitors Experience for students, tourists and space launch customers.

The State of New Mexico entered into a 20-year lease agreement with Virgin Galactic, Spaceport America’s anchor tenant.  Virgin Galactic is currently developing the world’s first commercial passenger-carrying space vehicle fleet, including the WhiteKnightTwo mother ship and SpaceShipTwo launch vehicle.

Officials at Spaceport America have been working closely with entrepreneurial space leaders like Virgin Galactic, UP Aerospace, and Armadillo Aerospace, as well as established aerospace firms like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Moog-FTS to develop commercial spaceflight at the new facility.  The economic impact of launches, tourism and new construction at Spaceport America are already delivering on the promise of economic development to the people of New Mexico.

For more information, please visit: www.spaceportamerica.com

For more information on Preview Tours, please visit: www.ftstours.com

Facebook: Spaceport America, or follow us on Twitter: @Spaceport_NM

About Fiore Industries Inc.

Fiore was started in Albuquerque, NM by Bill Miera in 1989 and remains a New Mexico-based firm with multiple sites. They bring over 22 years of successful operations experience and achievements to the spaceport. They have been awarded numerous innovative research contracts and are currently developing a new, more capable “jaws of life” technology with New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology to assist in emergency response and rescue. Flore was also named as one of NM Business Weekly’s “Top 25 Technology Companies” from 2002 to 2006. In 2010, they were named the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business of the Year in 2009.

Fiore brings a structured method for managing complex services through individual subcontractors, an in-depth understanding of financial management and project reporting requirements, and a broad understanding of the local New Mexico culture and employment market. 

For more information, please visit: www.fiore-ind.com

LAS CRUCES, NM – When Dr. Pat Hynes was recently notified that the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium at New Mexico State University (NMSU) was selected by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a 2010 Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation, she predicted that this would help make New Mexico the magnet for commercial space in the nation and the world. At a press conference held August 19 at NMSU, Dr. Hynes noted that this highly competitive process for the $10 million dollar funding was an important win for New Mexico because it also marks the first time the federal government has made a major investment in the commercial space industry, and it was made in New Mexico.

“Robert Goddard and NMSU’s Physical Sciences Laboratory were pioneers in the space industry along with White Sands Missile Range, leadership in space research is our heritage at NMSU and in New Mexico” Dr. Hynes said. “As we begin the age of Spaceflight for Mankind, the State of New Mexico is once again leading the effort.”

The FAA has created the Center of Excellence (COE) program in partnership with the Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) to help identify solutions of existing and anticipated space transportation issues. By teaming with the nation’s top academic research institutions, the COE will help ensure the protection of the public, property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial launch or reentry activities. NMSU will be the lead institution for the FAA, working with the following core university partners: New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology; Florida Institute of Technology; Florida Center for Advanced Aero-Propulsion; Stanford University; University of Colorado – Boulder; and the University of Texas – Medical Branch.

Initial funding for the COE is $2 million for the start-up phase, with and additional $4 million in agency funds over the first five years of operation, which will be matched by the partners to total $10 million in initial funding. Center Operations Cooperative Agreements will be issued to all seven research universities. Research funding will come from government contracts in addition to the operating funds in the form of IDIQ contracts.

Dr. Hynes explained what the COE will do for the FAA. “We will work on research for improved spaceport operations systems, and to find ways to improve airspace integration, for example.” She explains that vehicles traveling to space will transverse through present commercial air space, so changes to the air traffic control process will allow for frequent travel to and from space. “We will also characterize the business of commercial space, and define the related markets we expect it will create.” In addition, the COE will provide education services for all organizations involved in commercial space transportation.

Dr. Hynes is also the Director of the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium which is a member of the congressionally funded National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. This program is administered by NASA. The statewide consortium supports a wide range of space related research and education projects, including the Student Launch Program which provides annual access to space from Spaceport America for student experiments.

The “Connect New Mexico” event connected all eight new gateway sites into the Supercomputer using its new teleconferencing capability. The sites are:

• The University of New Mexico
• New Mexico State University
• Eastern New Mexico
• Western New Mexico University
• New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
• Santa Fe Community College
• San Juan College
• The State Capitol

These sites will be utilized by the universities and local businesses that need high performance computing for design and modeling purposes. The Supercomputer can be used for research, educational activities, training, and business modeling in the areas of energy, environment, digital film, aerospace, and biotechnology, among others.

The founding institutions for the New Mexico Computing Applications Center, which runs the Supercomputer, are UNM, NMSU, New Mexico Tech, and Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories.

For more information about the event and future Supercomputer gateways, see the Governor’s newsroom and the NMSU News Center.