Space Florida, Israel Innovation Authority Announce Seventh-Round Winners of Innovation Partner Funding

Exploration Park, Fla., and Jerusalem, Israel (June 11, 2020) – Space Florida, the aerospace and spaceport development authority for the State of Florida, and the Israel Innovation Authority, an independent, publicly-funded agency created to address the needs of the local and international innovation ecosystems, are pleased to announce the seventh-round winners of industrial research and development funding tied to the Space Florida-Israel Innovation Partnership Program.

In October 2013, Florida and Israel established a $2 million recurring joint fund to support research, development, and commercialization of aerospace and technology projects that benefit both Israel and Florida. For this Call for Projects, 15 joint proposals were submitted by teams of for-profit companies in Florida and Israel. Four teams have been selected for this seventh round of awards.

“Florida is at the epicenter of the commercial space industry and today’s announcement of funding for the seventh-round winners highlights the bright future of the Space Florida-Israel Innovation Partnership Program,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “This funding will not only be instrumental in the growth of Florida’s space industry, but also for Florida-Israel relations. I look forward to seeing the great results these companies will achieve.”

“Florida’s space industry is etched into our state’s incredible history, and today’s award winners will now have the chance to leave their mark in history as well,” said Lt. Governor Jeanette Nuñez. “I’m grateful for the strong relationship our state has with the nation of Israel and expect to see great things from our combined efforts to expand our footprint in space. Congratulations to the seventh-round winners!”

“Space Florida congratulates the winning collaborations in the latest round of this thriving partnership between the State of Florida and Israel,” said Space Florida President & CEO Frank DiBello. “Israel Innovation Authority’s leadership in this ongoing relationship is tremendous in supporting research, development and commercialization of aerospace and aviation technology. We look forward to the success of the Florida and Israeli companies chosen as awardees in this latest call for projects.”

"Since its inception in 2013, the Israel-Florida collaboration on space related technologies yielded great success stories and projects that will truly make a difference in the aerospace sector,” said Aharon Aharon, Israel Innovation Authority CEO. “We were therefore, delighted that following the last meeting with the Governor of Florida we were able to expand the scope of relevant fields in future calls for proposals. We strongly believe that the success of this collaboration between companies from both Israel and Florida will further strengthen the ties between the two countries and economies. We wish much success to the winning teams and companies and look forward to the amazing changes they will make on our world and beyond."

The winners are as follows:

• Everix Optical Filters (Orlando, Florida) & SunCold (Israel) for the merging of SolCold’s active cooling layer with Everix’s optical fiber to use and manipulate solar energy. This upscale photonic crystal production will maximize the efficiency of solar power uses for cooling.
• SynMatter (Exploration Park, Florida) & Green ICPS (Israel) for the joint development of one-layer corrosion protection coating systems with built-in surface treatment for innovative applications in the military, aerospace and aviation industries.
• Made In Space (Jacksonville, Florida) & StemRad (Israel) for the development of in-space recycling plastic waste materials aboard the International Space Station into personal radiation protective equipment using unique additive manufacturing techniques in space.
• Censy’s Technologies Corporation (Daytona Beach, Florida) & MobiliComm (Israel) for the construction of advanced technologies that will enable a highly integrated dual-redundant simultaneous communications system, to provide increased reliability and quality of service (QoS) for command and control (C2), Telemetry, and situational awareness.

Each company will receive their respective funding awards from Space Florida and the Israel Innovation Authority.

The next joint call for applications is expected to be released in September 2020. Florida-based companies interested in more information can visit www.spaceflorida.gov, while Israel-based companies can visit www.innovationisrael.org.il.

# # #

About Space Florida: Space Florida was created to strengthen Florida’s position as the global leader in aerospace research, investment, exploration and commerce. As Florida’s aerospace and spaceport development authority, we are committed to attracting and expanding the next generation of space industry businesses. With its highly trained workforce, proven infrastructure and unparalleled record of achievement, Florida is the ideal location for aerospace businesses to thrive – and Space Florida is the perfect partner to help them succeed.

‍About the Israel Innovation Authority: The Israel Innovation Authority, an independent publicly funded agency, was thus created to provide a variety of practical tools and funding platforms aimed at effectively addressing the dynamic and changing needs of the local and international innovation ecosystems. This includes early-stage entrepreneurs, mature companies developing new products or manufacturing processes, academic groups seeking to transfer their ideas to the market, global corporations interested in collaborating with Israeli technology, Israeli companies seeking new markets abroad and traditional factories and plants seeking to incorporate innovative and advanced manufacturing into their businesses.