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Media Contact: Mary Trier 407-620-3357

Local Expansion for Small Software Development Company brings New Jobs to Orlando

February 1, 2010. Orlando, Fla. Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS) announced today that it is expanding its local office in response to business growth.  ECS has hired nine new employees since the beginning of the year and states that the company intends to hire more employees in the coming months.  It has also expanded its office space with a move into a 4 thousand square foot building adjacent to its HQ facility in Research Park.  The new space will accommodate the company’s art and creative team.

“This move,” stated Larry Kayne, ECS Chief Operating Officer, “provides us with space to meet our immediate needs.  We anticipate continued growth as new organizations recognize the capability of virtual world technologies, and our current customer base experiences the power of training and educating their staffs in a distributed manner.”

The company has been on a growth path for the last five years and has been recognized as an award winning company by Inc. 500, Deloitte Fast 500 and Washington Technology Fast 50 as well as being the recipient of Florida’s IT Florida award in 2008.  Also in 2007 and 2009, the company founder, Waymon Armstrong was a finalist for Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award.  At the 2009 Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference, the ECS-developed “Computer Based Corpsman Training System” won two prestigious awards from the conference’s Serious Games and Showcase Challenge: Best Game in the government category, and the People’s Choice Award, which was voted on by attendees at the conference.  The game, developed for the Marine Corps, builds on an earlier Army combat casualty care game.  The new game adds functionality and assessment and allows Marines to tailor missions, and create new scenarios to provide Marines realistic training.  

After being one of the first companies to embrace computer gaming solutions for training and education in its early years, the company made a strategic move four years ago to add virtual world solutions to its core competencies.  Since that time, ECS has become a leader in providing secure virtual world applications to its which includes the Department of Defense, the National Guard, Department of Energy as well as civilian organizations who offer training and education.  The use of virtual world applications can save travel time and money and offers organizations stimulating and interactive learning solutions.

About ECS
ECS is a software development and solutions company located in Orlando, Florida.  The core mission of the organization is to provide advanced learning technology solutions to clients within the Commercial and Government sector. The company’s exponential growth is a direct reflection of the superior training and simulation products and services that are being delivered to ECS customers.   In 2009, ECS was named on Inc. 500’s prestigious list, the Deloitte Fast 500, Washington Technology Fast 50, as well as several other awards.

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Media contact: Media@Teamorlando.org, 407-620-3357

Serious Games Winners Announced

December 7, 2009. Orlando, Fla. – The Serious Games Showcase & Challenge winners were announced at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC).  The U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, Simulation & Training Technology Center from Orlando won in the government category for Computer Based Corpsman Training System (CBCTS).  The CBCTS also won the People’s Choice Award.  Orlando-based Engineering and Computer Simulations is the developer of the game.  Vessel Damage Control Trainer from BBN Technologies won in the business category; and Philip Seyfi’s NihongoUp won in the student category.

The Serious Games Showcase & Challenge has seen tremendous growth since its inception in 2006.  “This year had more international recognition, from entries to evaluation, which helped to expand the competition,” stated Kent Gritton, director of Joint Training Integration and Evaluation Center.  “We look forward to continuing to build greater awareness amongst students, and showing them the potential for jobs in this field.”

Team Orlando is Central Florida’s unique military alliance with academia and others that began over twenty-five years ago with one goal in mind:  to improve human performance through simulation.  Today over 2,500 government, academic and industry professionals are part of Team Orlando.   www.teamorlando.org.

Reported by Christine Webb

Over 16,000 people are taking part in the nation’s largest simulation show at the Orange County Convention Center.

Medical technology is one of the growing and booming businesses.

Mary Pigora, the senior principle investigator for ECS, showed News 13 the brand new simulation training program to help school leaders deal with swine flu.

It’s basically a computer software program that helps teach leaders how to handle the situation.

“Right now, I mean, as we speak, there are schools closed in the state because they’ve had so many cases that they’ve had to shut down, and this is something that we really haven’t seen before — at least not in many, many years, probably while many of these officials were in their current jobs. So right now is when the training is needed,” Pigora said.

Education leaders can go through different scenarios. For example, they can learn how to respond if they have to close schools and how to keep education going.

However, that’s not the only thing you can learn at the show.

From Baghdad to Orlando, we’re taking you through what the Army goes through to get ready for combat.

It looks real inside the medical simulation center. Army soldiers are firing their guns. People are injured and soldiers need to take action.

It’s all apart of medical simulation training, which is critical to teach soldiers how to respond and care for those injured in the battlefield.

“It is very important,” said Maj. Wilson Ariza. “A soldier gets to train hours before deployment. So we know that before they deploy they are 100 percent proficient in their skills.

From swine flu to the battleground, medical simulation technology is growing.

The bottom line is better training means more lives are saved, and that’s what people said counts.

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RDECOM STTC Media Contact: Michelle Milliner 407-620-9170

ECS Media Contact: Mary Trier 407-620-3357

CBCTS Chosen as Winner in Government Category and People’s Choice Award during I/ITSEC Serious Games Showcase Event

December 3, 2009. Orlando, Fla. The U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM) STTC and Engineering and Computer Simulations (ECS) announced today that “Computer Based Corpsman Training System” was chosen as the winner in the government category and the People’s Choice Award at the 2009 Serious Games Showcase & Challenge.  CBCTS, making history, as the first time a game has won in both categories.  The showcase occurs at the world’s largest simulation conference this week.  As a finalist, “Computer Based Corpsman Training System” was featured at the Serious Game Showcase & Challenge in the pavilion at the Interservice/Industry Training Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC).

The game, developed for the Marine Corps, builds on an earlier Army combat casualty care game.  The new game adds functionality and assessment and allows Marines to tailor missions, and create new scenarios to provide Marines realistic training.

“As a prototype game that has trained thousands of soldiers, we look forward to expanding the game”, said Beth Pettitt, the RDECOM STTC program manager.  “What we have provided today is an initial capability showcasing what can be accomplished for our warfighters.”

ECS President, Waymon Armstrong said, “Our team is delighted that CBCTS was selected as the winner for two such competitive awards.  We appreciate our 8-plus year partnership with RDECOM and look forward to enhancing our  future relationship.  This isn’t about us, it is about the warfighter, risking their lives daily for America’s safety.”

www.iitsec.org

www.ecsorl.com

About RDECOM STTC

The U.S. Army Simulation and Training Technology Center’s (STTC) mission is to conduct Simulation & Training Research and Development to enhance Warfighter mission effectiveness.  It is the STTC’s goal to be recognized as the preeminent world leader in research, development and engineering of systems whose hallmark is transitioning the right technology in the shortest time to our Soldiers.  Here in Central Florida, as part of Team Orlando and working with its sister services, academia and industry, STTC engineers are making a difference in the way Soldiers learn by developing simulation technology that provides critical capabilities that increase Warfighter battlefield readiness and performance.

About ECS
Engineering & Computer Simulations, Inc. is a software development and solutions company located in Orlando, Florida.  The core mission of the organization is to provide advanced learning technology solutions to clients within the Commercial and Government sector. The company’s exponential growth is a direct reflection of the superior training and simulation products and services that are being delivered to ECS customers.

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Media Contact:  Mary Trier, 407-620-3357/Terri Bernhardt, 407-883-5181

ECS to Provide Virtual World technologies to NATO Allied Command Transformation

December 1, 2009, Orlando, Fla. Engineering and Computer Simulations (ECS) announced today their partnership with NATO Allied Command Transformation (ACT) to develop their Virtual Worlds using ECS’ Nexus Platform.

NATO’s Allied Command Transformation is changing the way NATO prepares and assists future decision makers and leaders to employ joint operational art, understand the common operational picture, respond innovatively, and adapt quickly to our adversaries. Virtual worlds are engaging, stimulating spaces that can augment and enhance the existing NATO ACT capabilities by allowing individuals and groups to meet online for a range of collaborative activities including meetings, lectures, collaborative discussions, virtual field trips, joint problem solving activities, guided practice simulations, exams, and labs.

The responsibility of delivering knowledge through virtual worlds will take on many forms, including education, training, learning, and human expertise. It is the goal of the NATO ACT to make this information available anytime and anywhere, using a state-of-the-art distribution process to match Virtual World experiences with individuals and groups to improve operational efficiency. The Nexus Virtual Worlds platform delivers collaborative 3D environments and applications that integrate with an organization’s existing technology infrastructure using common architectures, interfaces and specifications.  This transcends the traditional boundaries of proprietary systems by providing a comprehensive environment for integrating new technology, tools and information and enables NATO Virtual Worlds to reach large numbers of people quickly, allow for the rapid tailoring of scenarios, and provides simulated experiences that transfer into critical thinking skills and high levels of performance.

NATO Virtual Worlds consist of learner-focused 3D environments linked together to allow users to interact with each other through representations of themselves called an avatar. Users from one nation may interact with users located across the globe through virtual worlds, virtual classrooms, and communities of practice.  These interconnected realms incorporate NATO ACT specific instructional activities, content, and tools that allow public and private communication between individuals and groups while providing access to a blended curriculum. The curriculum uses virtual, avatar-based environments to provide both synchronous and asynchronous learning opportunities that employ various types of instruction that augment traditional methods of training. These 3D scenarios supplement traditional training methods by providing contextual 3D environments where war fighters can work together to practice and understand the concepts that are being taught.

Other successful programs Nexus has delivered include: The National Guard Bureau NGB), Joint Training Directorate (J7), Department of Homeland Security – Office of Infrastructure Protection, US Army RDECOM-Simulation Training Technology Center, US JFCOM Joint Knowledge Development & Distribution Capability and Defense Acquisition University.

About ECS
ECS is a software development and solutions company located in Orlando, Florida.  The core mission of the organization is to provide advanced learning technology solutions to clients within the Commercial and Government sector. The company’s exponential growth is a direct reflection of the superior training and simulation products and services that are being delivered to ECS customers.   In 2009, ECS was named on Inc. 500’s prestigious list, the Deloitte Fast 500, Washington Technology Fast 50, as well as several other awards.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Mary Trier 407-620-3357

Engineering & Computer Simulations and CERES Technical Group form Alliance

November 30, 2009. Orlando, Fla. Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS) announced today that it has formed an alliance with Ceres Technical Group.  The alliance highlights ECS virtual and mobile technologies and combines with Ceres Technical Group’s live training technology experience to offer customers a strong team to deliver live and virtual simulation solutions to their customers.

Jack Collins, former Program Director with Unitech (a small company that focused primarily on live training), established Ceres Technical Group in early 2009.  “The alliance with ECS provides our government customers an outstanding solution to their live and virtual requirements,” stated Jack Collins, Ceres president.

ECS is a small business, established twelve years ago with strong qualifications in virtual and advanced learning technologies.  In 2009, ECS was named on Inc. 500’s prestigious list, the Deloitte Fast 500, Washington Technical Fast 50, as well as several other awards. “The ECS alliance with Ceres Technical Group,” said Waymon Armstrong, ECS president, “is an example of two great small businesses working together to bring innovative solutions to our customers.”  He added, “ECS has always been about innovation and customer focus – it is wonderful to align with another small business with the same dedication and culture.”

About ECS
Engineering & Computer Simulations, Inc. is a software development and solutions company located in Orlando, Florida.  The core mission of the organization is to provide advanced learning Technical solutions to clients within the Commercial and Government sector. The company’s exponential growth is a direct reflection of the superior training and simulation products and services that are being delivered to ECS customers.

About Ceres Technical Group

Ceres Technical Group was formed to provide a responsive, cost-effective, and agile means to develop, test, and deliver Live training devices, services, and systems.   The leaders of Ceres strongly believe that small business is an extremely effective way to provide high-value, low-cost capability.  Ceres personnel can boast remarkable past performance on multiple live training device programs and numerous USMC & US Army range programs and are dedicated to providing responsive solutions, recommendations and standards-based best practices focusing on:

• The creativity, flexibility and efficiency crucial to meeting the rapidly evolving training needs of the U.S. Military;
• A cradle-to-grave Life Cycle approach to training system development;
• The integration and execution of the latest commercial technologies, skills, and services;
• The employment of highly-skilled, educated, and motivated professionals with a history of successful accomplishments in their profession.

The CBCTS involves the creation of mission-driven scenarios to present learners with synthetic “casualties” generated from realistic visual, behavioral, and physiological models. Medics are expected to keep the injured warfighter alive and get them evacuated safely out of harms way. The corpsman trainee takes on the first person view of a corpsman attached to a Marine squad in Afghanistan. During the mission teammates are wounded and the corpsman must balance triage, treatment, and safety to successfully keep his people alive and prepare them for evacuation. The CBCTS implements skill building exercises that involve triage, treatment planning, safety, evacuation information, and trauma management. At the same time, the CBCTS requires an interaction with other members of your team so as to successfully complete each mission. Within each mission, every casualty can survive with the correct treatment applied within the critical period of time. If the player fails to assess injuries correctly or spends too much time treating one casualty, others casualties may die.

After each scenario, learners are presented with an After Action Review that analyzes and evaluates their decision-making skills. The AAR evaluates every critical measure of treatment on a casualty and provides an explanation of a learner’s performance and an assessment of that performance.  In this way, constructive and monitored progress can be measured.

The CBCTS can be implemented into a program of instruction in many different ways. Its Serious Gaming vignettes can be used to supplement live instruction, it can be blended with other instructional systems to provide synchronous or asynchronous learning opportunities, or can be used as the cornerstone of a stand-alone, online capability. In all cases, the CBCTS will help increase learner engagement, improve training efficiency and create an unparalleled return on investment for all government customers.

Our mobile content facilitates a “learning objects” approach to blend immersive, scenario-based simulations with other learning content to collectively guide the learners through the learning process. Our approach employs mobile learning technologies and a technology infrastructure to provide communication and collaboration between users, groups, applications and content through a common interface. These applications integrate with an organization’s existing technology infrastructure using common architectures, interfaces and specifications.  This transcends the traditional boundaries of proprietary systems by providing a comprehensive environment for integrating new technology, tools and information and enables mobile content to reach large numbers of people quickly, allow for the rapid tailoring of training, and provides experiences that transfer into critical thinking skills and high levels of performance.

In addition to learning content, one of the core principles behind our Mobile technologies is the development and incorporation of technologies, processes and methodologies that take effective practices from the commercial world and integrates them into a comprehensive knowledge network. These trends have the potential to change how people work and could become the preferred tools for some users to obtain the specialized skills needed for effective job performance. Specific trends that mobile technologies can address include:

• Dynamic knowledge creation – Organizations do not simply process information. Mobile technologies can also be used to create information and knowledge (e.g., best practices, lessons learned, FAQs, formal/informal knowledge transfer, etc).

• Personalized services and tools – Learners are expecting personalized services, tools and experiences.(e.g., search and discovery, customization, tailored content)

• Collaboration – Mobile tools, software, and policies for allowing small groups to work together towards common goals (e.g., communities of practice, social computing)

Whether in the classroom, or in the field, mobile learning applications developed by ECS help improve workplace performance and create employees that are better prepared. This product has the ability to not only to simply capture knowledge for the sole purpose of managing it, but will provide the capability for individuals to reach knowledge experts and meaningful content. This accelerates and enhances situational performance and decision-making