• E-Newsletter

Job number one for small businesses: Small businesses throughout Virginia affected by the coronavirus emergency can apply for a low-interest Economic Injury Disaster Loan through the U.S. Small Business Administration. The program will provide small businesses with working capital loans of up to $2 million. Click here to go to the SBA Covid-19 site.

Call to action: How is your company reacting to the coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis? Is your company developing any technologies, implementing any noteworthy procedures or have advice for other companies on how conduct business more effectively in this situation? Please contact the FCEDA communications division at info@fceda.org or 703-790-0600 with relevant information that we may possibly share with our readers. Thank you for your assistance in these unprecedented times.

Get local business assistance: Continuing business operations in today’s situation is challenging and the FCEDA is working to assist businesses with information and access to critical resources during this emergency. Visit the FCEDA’s Covid-19 Business Resource Hub for up-to-date information, resources and assistance for businesses.

The FCEDA, like other economic development organizations in the region, is working virtually until at least April 1, and our staff is working full-time with businesses of all kinds to offer assistance and direct them to resources. For direct assistance, email the FCEDA at info@fceda.org, or call 703-790-0600 to leave a voice message for our staff. And click here for resources available in the other nine jurisdictions that make up the Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance.

Here are some useful informational resources:

• Fairfax County information for businesses impacted by coronavirus: click here
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Virginia: click here
• SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program information and other COVID-19 related resources and guidance for small business: click here
• CDC resources for businesses and employers: click here
• Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance — links to COVID 19-related resources throughout the region: click here
• Small Business Impact Survey —The Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity is asking small-business owners to participate in a short survey on impacts to operations and revenue because of the covid-19 virus. Survey responses are being accepted until March 28. Click here to take the survey.

Covid-19 Related Events

• March 26, 2:00 p.m.: Growing Through Challenges When Remote. The Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce is continuing its free webinar series focused on business continuity planning to provide the business community with the most up-to-date best practices and insights on managing your business through unexpected events. Click here to register.
• March 27, 1:00 p.m.: Telework 101: What You Need To Know to Help Keep Your Business In Business. The Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce, Dulles Area Transportation Association and the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority present a webinar that can help ensure the future of your business and the economic recovery of our region. Featured speaker will be Robin Mack, Director, Telework Technical Assistance, Telework!VA, winner of the 2008 Governor’s Technology Award.  Click here to register.
• March 27, 1:00 p.m.: Business Success Webinar Series: Understanding Your Leases and Contracts in the COVID-19 Landscape. The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce presents a webinar featuring Robert Hicks and John Kelly of Bean, Kinney & Korman to answer questions businesses may have during the current COVID-19 environment regarding leases, contracts for events and with vendors, and insurance coverage. Click here to register.

Get text updates: Fairfax County residents are encouraged to sign up for coronavirus-related text message alerts from the Fairfax County Health Department in order to stay current with important updates. To receive these alerts, text FFXCOVID to 888-777. In addition, residents can send specific questions or concerns related to the coronavirus to ffxcovid@fairfaxcounty.gov. This email account will be staffed Monday through Friday, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. to respond to community questions.

Regional cooperation critical: “Strong regional cooperation is critical as we continue responding to #COVID19 in the weeks and months ahead…” tweeted Virginia’s Governor Ralph Northam following a joint call with Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser on March 23. Read their joint statement: pic.twitter.com/dCtPOIIan2.

Regional economic predictions: The coronavirus pandemic ended the longest business expansion on record and could have a significant impact on unemployment rates, particularly in hard-hit retail and service sectors of the economy, according to ‘The Effect of the Coronavirus Pandemic on the Washington Region’s Economy,” by the Stephen S. Fuller Institute for Research on the Washington Region’s Economic Future at Fairfax-based George Mason University. Read the March 18 report by clicking here.

Help for NOVA students: Northern Virginia Community College’s (NOVA) Education Foundation launched an emergency student aid fund for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. NOVA reports that 60% of its 85,000 students are employed part-time or full-time. The college launched the fund to support working students who may be facing furloughs or layoffs as a result of the emergency. NOVA has a goal to raise $750,000 and supply 1,500 grants totaling $500 each. The college’s Education Foundation donated $250,000 to kick off raising money for the fund, and is looking for individual and corporate donors to reach its goal. Find out more in this Technical.ly DC article.

Free Covid-19 tracking app: Tysons-based software firm Appian created a low-code application to help safeguard employee health amid the coronavirus pandemic. Available for free to Appian members and companies with more than 1,000 employees, the COVID-19 Response Management application collects health information from employees and stores it in a HIPAA-compliant cloud. Click here for more information.

Coronavirus test development: Sterling-based biotech company Aperiomics launched a COVID-19 test available for to medical providers nationwide for $250 per sample. Aperiomics says it can turn around tests within 72 hours and has the capacity to process and deliver results on 1,000 tests a week. Doctors obtain samples via throat swabs and the tests use a technique to identify specific genetic markers within the coronavirus, the Washington Business Journal reported.

Coronavirus containment: Coronavirus infections in the U.S. are doubling faster than other nations, according to a new white paper authored by the infectious disease analytics team at Tysons-based MITRE. Based on the data, state and federal governments must enforce more aggressive actions to ultimately stop the spread. Read the MITRE white paper here.

Long-term appeal: Reston-based Leidos CEO Roger Krone said that the coronavirus doesn’t damage the long-term appeal of the L3Harris security business that Leidos intends to buy for $1 billion. The businesses provide screening products and other industrial-automation technology for airports and critical infrastructure. The deal is set to close in June, according to Inside Defense. Krone was also interviewed for an Economic Club of Washington, D.C. podcast. Listen to the podcast here.

Commercial Real Estate Future: Faced with the coronavirus pandemic, Virginia-based commercial real estate firms say they’re pausing transactions in the short-term, but are still moving forward with long-term development plans. The firms are also turning their focus toward supporting tenants and landlords through financial difficulties caused by the crisis, according to a Virginia Business story.

Non-coronavirus news!

Tracking trafficking: Tysons-based MITRE’s Homeland Security Systems Engineering and Development Institute built a dashboard for law enforcement personnel to monitor and visualize data that may indicate human trafficking activity. SSEDI, a federally funded research and development center, produced the analytics tool through the Department of Homeland Security’s Hermes Research project. Executive Gov trafficked this story.

Herndon re-do: Construction on a redevelopment project in downtown Herndon is expected to begin soon. Contractors will be on the site of the former Subaru dealership on 770 Elden Street this week to begin preparing the site for demolition, according to a town statement. The $85 million project includes 273 apartments, 17,000 square feet of retail, a new arts center, public space and a new parking garage for public and private use, reported Reston Now.

Demand and supply: Demand Wealth, a Tysons-based wealth management and planning firm providing retail investors with a digital alternative to traditional asset management, said it landed a seven-figure investment from fintech private equity firm Niche Investment Partners. Specific financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Potomac Tech Wire carried the release.

Cosmos connection: Falls Church-based wireless network company Lynk Global sent a text message from a satellite in space to a standard mobile phone on Earth. “This is a game-changer for the billions of people who own a mobile phone, for the billions who do not have affordable connectivity, and for the entire mobile communications industry,” Lynk co-founder and CEO Charles Miller said in a statement. “In the near future, you will stay connected everywhere. All the time,” reported Virginia Business.

Wolf for hire: Air Force program managers nationwide will be able to call in hackers-for-hire to conduct security testing of computer systems under a recently signed umbrella contract. The arrangement, with a $75 million ceiling, was signed late last month with Chantilly-based Dark Wolf, a small business providing cybersecurity services. No need to hack into this Air Force Magazine article.

Notable contract wins by firms in Fairfax County

Science Applications International Corp. won a $950 million contract from the Defense Logistics Agency, a combat support agency of the Department of Defense that includes more than 26,000 civilian and military personnel. Virginia Business.

Northrop Grumman landed a nine-year, $65.2 million contract from the Navy to provide systems and services to facilitate interoperability between a narrowband military communication satellite network and an ultra-high frequency satcom gateway. GovConWire

MicroTech, along with teaming partner Agile Defense, scored a $43 million task order from the U.S. Air Force Europe. Under the deal, will provide network control center services. Air Force Technology

1901 Group landed a new subcontract from Science Application International Corp. Under the deal, the company will help migrate the Army’s IT infrastructure and enterprise application to a cloud environment. Executive Biz

Featured business events

March 25 — How to Market that Makes Selling (Almost) Unnecessary. The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce presents a Business Education Series webinar on marketing for small or home-based businesses featuring James Lawson and Angela Inzerillo, co-founders of Impact Business Solutions. Click here.

March 26 — Growing Through Challenges When Remote. The Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s presents the fourth webinar in the Business Continuity Series, focused on ways teams can effectively work together while working remotely, not by surviving while remotely operating your business, but thriving. Click here.​​

March 27 — Telework 101: What You Need To Know to Help Keep Your Business In Business. The Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce, Dulles Area Transportation Association, and the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority presents a webinar on what you need to know to help ensure the future of your business and the economic recovery of our region as a whole. The featured speaker will be Robin Mack, Director, Telework Technical Assistance, Telework!VA. Click here to register.

March 27 — Business Success Webinar Series: Understanding Your Leases and Contracts in the COVID-19 Landscape.
The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce presents a webinar featuring Robert Hicks and John Kelly of Bean, Kinney & Korman to answer questions businesses may have during the current COVID-19 environment regarding leases, contracts for events and with vendors, and insurance coverage. Click here to register.

March 30 — Metro Monday: Innovation Districts Along the Silver Line Expansion. The Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce hosts a monthly informative event centered around the Metro Silver Line. This month’s session will be held as a webinar on innovation districts featuring Victor Hoskins, Fairfax County Economic Development Authority; Colleen Kardasz, Loudoun County Economic Development Authority; and Bob Geolas, HR&A Advisors. Click here to register.

April 7 — Entrepreneurship 101: Starting a Business in Fairfax County. The FCEDA presents monthly workshops with our partners: the Fairfax County Government, Fairfax County-based Community Business Partnership, the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, and the U.S. Small Business Administration. Click here to register.

June 16 — Impact AI: National Impact, Local Innovation. The Northern Virginia Technology Council presents a conference on developments in artificial intelligence and the strength of the regional AI ecosystem. Click here to register.