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Lending their voices: Employees who are working virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic yearn for the social interactions of in-person work, but want safety measures implemented in the workplace and on public transportation before they go back to the office, according to the findings of a Tysons Partnership survey. The survey, titled “Living & Working in a Pandemic,” garnered 702 responses. The survey questions, which could be answered from an employee or company perspective, addressed issues such as school reopening, working from home, returning to office-based work, shopping, dining and transit. The Partnership, which Fairfax County established to implement the vision for a more urban, walkable, transit-oriented Tysons, intends to use these results as a baseline of understanding employee and employer concerns about the pandemic, and hopes to do another survey in six months. Find out more in InsideNoVa.

Satellite stories: Tysons-based satellite communication company Iridium Communications launched a website called the Iridium Online Museum that traces the company’s beginnings in 2000, when it started the process of building a constellation of low earth orbit satellites. Online museum visitors can walk through this timeline (virtually) with videos, photos and artifacts to see how Iridium has grown to host more than 1.3 million users on its platform. “We’ve developed a lot of wisdom as a result of our history, and we want others to learn from the path we carved and appreciate, understand, and be inspired by Iridium’s story,” said Matt Desch, CEO at Iridium, Technical.ly/DC reported.

Send in the robots! Reston-based Macedon Technologies entered into a strategic partnership with N.Y-.headquartered UiPath, combining Macedon’s Appian-centric services and solutions with UiPath’s Robotic Process Automation (RPA) software, a technology that allows people to configure software, or “robots” to automate business operations normally performed by people. RPA robots can perform traditionally mundane tasks, such as capturing information or managing applications, more accurately than their human counterparts, and at a much lower cost than traditional IT solutions. Citybizlist picked up a release about it.

Pandemic project partnership: Reston-based Carahsoft Technology partnered with Madrid, Spain-headquartered Copado to distribute in the public sector market a Copado technology that’s designed to help organizations build and deploy software applications on the Salesforce platform. Free platform access is available for projects that aim to help address the coronavirus pandemic. Seven agencies have signed contracts with the software provider since March to create apps for citizens to report and track COVID-19-related information, ExecutiveBiz reported.

Top down communications: Northrop Grumman, based in the Falls Church area, completed a critical design review phase of a U.S. Space Force program that aims to modernize ground infrastructure for military satellite communications in the North Pole region. It can now begin development of Space Force’s North Pole Satcom Ground Component that aims to provide continuous coverage for secure, jam-resistant, strategic and tactical communications, reported ExecutiveBiz.

Enlightening acquisition: Reston-based government contractor EverWatch bought Annapolis Junction, Md.-based information technology contractor BrainTrust Holdings. This marks EverWatch’s seventh and largest acquisition, according to a statement from Chevy Chase, Md.-based Enlightenment Capital, which provides financial backing for EverWatch. EverWatch provides intelligence, defense and deployed mission solutions for national security agencies, while BrainTrust provides technology solutions to intelligence and defense communities, reports Virginia Business.

Heights for Herndon: Quadrangle Development filed plans with the Town of Herndon Planning Commission to build a 1.5 million square-foot mixed-use development at Herndon Parkway and Fairbrook Drive. The new plans call for four buildings: a 19- and 10-story office buildings and two eight-story residential buildings. The project would also include retail uses on the ground floor of one of the residential buildings. Check out the details in Bisnow.

Multiplying locations: The Russian School of Mathematics, a school offering K-12 math education, is planning to open a new location in Tysons next month, even though the fall offerings will be virtual. Soviet Union ex-pats formed the school in the late 1990s to make learning math fun and rigorous, according to a Boston Magazine profile. In February, the Russian School of Mathematics said that it reached 40,000 students. The mathematics program has more than 50 schools across the U.S., including locations include Reston and Ashburn. Tysons Reporter added up the details.

Parked at the top: Once again, the Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) facilities have been highlighted in Virginia Living Magazine’s Best of Virginia 2020 competition. Six FCPA facilities were named to uppermost slots with category sweeps in the Best Parks and Best Playgrounds categories. Taking top honors in the Best Parks category were Burke Lake with a first-place win, Frying Pan Park in second place, and Riverbend Park in third place. The Park Authority also swept the Playground category with Clemyjontri Park  in McLean winning first place, Burke Lake Park taking second place honors, and Chessie’s Big Backyard at Lee District Park in Franconia taking third place. Park yourself with Virginia Living Magazine’s July edition to learn more, or check out Fairfax County Government News.

Back on stage: Reston Community Center’s summer concerts have returned to Lake Anne Plaza and Reston Station. The 2020 Summer Concert series is free to the public and features two different recurring concert series. The Take a Break series is held at Lake Anne Plaza on Thursdays, and the Summerbration Fab Fridays series is held at Reston Station on Fridays, both from 7-8:30 p.m. RCC will be mandating social distancing protocol and masks to ensure COVID-19 safety at the venue. Patrons are requested to bring their own chairs or blankets for seating, and capacity will be limited due to social distancing, according to Reston Now.

Notable contract wins by firms in Fairfax County

Leidos received a $649 million contract to provide follow-on operations and support services to the Army’s Special Operations Command’s Tactical Airborne Multi-Sensor Platforms mission. ExecutiveBiz

Peraton won new and expanded multiple contracts worth a combined $188 million to support U.S. government customers in multiple war-fighting domains. ExecutiveGov

Perspecta received a three-year, $112 million contract to provide managed information-technology services for Department of Homeland Security data centers. GovConWire

SAIC won a $40 million contract from the Transportation Security Administration to provide operational test and evaluation services. Virginia Business

Octo Consulting Group scored a $11.8 million contract from the General Services Administration (GSA) to provide framework and architecture services for the GSA’s System for Award Management online application system. Virginia Business

Featured business events

August 12 — Defining the Region’s Resources for Latino-Owned Businesses Amidst the Pandemic. The Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce presents a webinar featuring panelists to include Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the FCEDA, and other notable experts. Click here to register.

August 12 — Business Education Series: Avoiding Procrastination – Productivity in the New Reality. The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce presents a webinar featuring David Dillon, Watney Insights Network. Click here to register.

August 20 — Beyond COVID-19 Webinar Series: Growth Funding. The Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance presents the tenth webinar in its three-part, 12 session webinar series: “Beyond COVID-19: NOVA Business Resiliency Webinars.” Panelists include: Roy Morris, partner, Dunlap, Bennett, Ludwig; Sharon Heaton, CEO, sb LiftOff; and Jim Gianiny, president, Veritas Solutions. Click here to register.

August 20 — Investment and Business Opportunities. The US-India Partnership presents a webinar featuring Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the FCEDA, among other esteemed speakers. Click here for more information and to register.

August 21 — Thinking about starting a business/ Estas ensando en abrir un negocio? The Virginia Hispanic Chamber presents a webinar with local experts from SCORE and the Virginia Hispanic Chamber will provide tools and information to help you open your business. Interpretación en español disponible. Click here to register.

August 26 — Wine & Tourism a Delightful Mix: Featuring Argentina, Chile and Northern Virginia. The Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce’s International Business Council presents a webinar focused on Wine and Tourism. Click here to register.

August 27 — NoVA B2G Matchmaking Conference and Expo. The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce presents the eighth annual event with online matchmaking, educational breakout sessions, a virtual Expo Hall, and keynote speakers. Click here to register.

How the Fairfax County EDA can help

Forward Virginia Phase 3 reopening guidelines: Fairfax County began the third phase of re-opening businesses on July 1. The Forward Virginia plan provides guidelines that all businesses must follow. Residents are still advised that they are “safer at home.” Click here to find out the updated guidelines.

Get business assistance: The FCEDA is here to connect businesses of all kinds to resources and information. Visit the FCEDA’s Covid-19 Business Resource Hub for up-to-date information. 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.