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Central Florida Roundup
3-D printed rocket to launch from Cape Canaveral
From 3-D Printer to Space
A few weeks into the new year, Relativity, a startup that makes 3-D-printed rockets, announced that it reached an agreement with the Air Force to launch from Cape Canaveral.
In April, the company, which calls itself the world’s first autonomous rocket factory, announced a client: Telesat, the Canadian satellite company. Relativity says it is the first time any major global satellite operator has selected a completely venture-backed aerospace startup for launch services.
The company says its 3-Dprinted rocket, the Terran 1, has 100 times fewer parts than traditional rockets, a simpler supply chain and can be built in fewer than 60 days.
AEROSPACE
- Boeing delayed the first test launch of an astronaut capsule that it’s developing for NASA. The flight, initially scheduled for May at Cape Canaveral, will not take place until at least August.
EDUCATION
- University of Central Florida trustees appointed Thad Seymour, the former Tavistock executive who had been leading the development of the university’s downtown Orlando campus, as the school’s interim president after former President Dale Whittaker stepped down.
GOVERNMENT
- Orlando will develop a registry of certified LGBTQ-owned businesses and compile data on how often it contracts with them, though the city will not guarantee a minimum percentage of business to them as it does with minority- and women-owned businesses.
HEALTH CARE
- Hospital chain AdventHealth and Orlando Hand Surgery Associates will open a joint regional surgery center called The Hand to Shoulder Center. GuideWell Innovation, a Lake Nona-based affiliate of Florida Blue, appointed Kirstie McCool- Chadwick executive director.
MANUFACTURING
- Frito Lay has postponed plans to build a $130-million, high-tech distribution center in Osceola County, although the company told the Orlando Sentinel that it intends to go forward with the project eventually.
NON-PROFITS
- Shelley Lauten resigned as CEO of the Central Florida Commission on Homelessness, warning that the region won’t be able to address homelessness without a dedicated funding source.
RETAIL
- Owners of the popular Winter Park restaurant the Ravenous Pig, James and Julie Petrakis, plan to open a 3,000-sq.-ft. brewery.
TECHNOLOGY
- Austin, Texas-based investment firm Vista Equity Partners acquired Orlando-based PlanSource, a provider of cloud-based benefits administration technology.
TRANSPORTATION
- Virgin Trains USA, the passenger rail company formerly known as Brightline that wants to link Miami with Orlando, is planning to add stops on or near a Disney property and at an Osceola County station of the SunRail commuter train system.
TOURISM
- SeaWorld Orlando opened a 6-acre Sesame Street-themed land. Meanwhile, a former SeaWorld associate general counsel was charged with insider trading after he made $65,000 selling company stock last year. Walt Disney World banned all smoking and vaping in its four theme parks. Orange County, Orlando and other governments could have to spend more than $50 million if Orlando is chosen as a host city for the 2026 World Cup. The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort signed a deal with the Army guaranteeing job interviews to soldiers for possible jobs after they leave the service.
- Orange Lake Resorts, the parent company of Holiday Inn timeshares, opened a 125,000-sq.-ft. headquarters and plans to add 250 employees. The Alfond Inn, the Winter Park hotel owned by Rollins College, will add 73 rooms — bringing its total to 185 — plus a wellness center, meeting space, spa and second pool.
Read more in Florida Trend's June issue.
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