Valador, Inc. - Information Architects -

March 16, 2010 - Valador to Present Game Technology White Paper at the 2010 Spring Simulation Interoperability Workshop

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 09:13:14 -0400

Valador to Present Game Technology White Paper at the 2010 Spring Simulation Interoperability Workshop

Orlando, FL - March 16, 2010 --Valador has been chosen by the Simulation Interoperability Standards Organization (SISO) to present Zombies and LIDAR a white paper submitted for the 2010 Spring Simulation Interoperability Workshop (SIW).

Zombies and LIDAR: Interoperable High-Fidelity Modeling for Real-Time Use discusses the technologies used to create two interactive synthetic environments within a highly constrained development schedule. Valador, Inc. has worked previously with NASA, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs to produce synthetic environments to provide situational awareness and increase community collaboration. Through the continued use of game development software to display three-dimensional data, Valador has learned to quickly produce complex synthetic environments for real-time use.

The SISO conference will be held April 12-16, 2010 in Orlando Florida. For more information click here.

About Valador

Headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, Valador, Inc. is a Certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business that delivers powerful solutions for collecting, maintaining, visualizing, and protecting its clients’ information. The company focuses on four key business areas — Information Assurance, Management Consulting, Modeling and Simulation, and Software Engineering. It employs innovative solutions such as automated standard operating procedures and 3D immersive visualization to address its clients’ complex challenges, such as decision support, strategic planning, risk management, safety and reliability, assessment of alternatives, and information security.

For more information visit our website at www.valador.com.

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

January 20, 2010 - Valador Releases Moundsville Slammer a Left 4 Dead Campaign to the Public

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:23:35 -0500

Valador Releases Moundsville Slammer a Left 4 Dead Campaign to the Public

Herndon, VA - January 20, 2010 -- Valador announced that Moundsville Slammer, a free two-level campaign for Valve’s Left 4 Dead software, is now available for public download at http://games.valador.com.

Moundsville Slammer represents research and development software created with geometric data previously obtained for the 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary. Artificial Intelligence, game scripting, and immersive storytelling have been used to create an engaging zombie horror survival scenario.

Moundsville Slammer has been downloaded over 1,500 times within the first four days of release. Planned updates include additional levels, a port to Left 4 Dead 2, and modifications based on community responses on the Moundsville Slammer Facebook Fan Page and Moundsville Slammer Twitter Stream.

The campaign is available free of charge and is compatible with Left 4 Dead for the PC.

Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 are registered trademarks of Valve Corporation.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

November 23, 2009 - Valador Vice President Joe Fragola To Testify Before the House Committee on Science and Technology

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:31:35 -0500

Valador Vice President Joe Fragola to Testify Before the House Committee on Science and Technology

Herndon, VA - November 23, 2009 -- Valador Vice President Joseph Fragola has been invited to testify before the House Committee on Science and Technology Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics which will be holding a hearing on “Ensuring the Safety of Human Space Flight” on December 2nd at 10:00 am EST. For more information on the hearings at SpaceNews.com click here.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

October 6, 2009 - Valador Awarded FAA eFAST MOA

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:57:37 -0400

Valador Awarded Electronic Federal Aviation Administration Accelerated and Simplified Tasks Master Ordering Agreement (FAA eFAST MOA)

Herndon, VA - October 6, 2009 -- Valador, announced today that it has been awarded the Electronic Federal Aviation Administration Accelerated and Simplified Tasks Master Ordering Agreement (FAA eFAST MOA) to provide support in the areas of Research & Development (R&D), Engineering Services (ES), Computer/Information Systems Development (CSD), and Computer Systems Support (CSS) services. The competitively awarded MOA contract has a five-year base period and two one-year options with a combined total ceiling amount of $2 billion dollars.

This MOA enables the Federal Aviation Administration to support its operations for 2010 and beyond by providing a broad range of comprehensive professional and support services for the FAA and, on a limited basis and when in the best interest of the Government, all other Federal government agencies, nationwide. This is the first generation of the eFAST program, which will be the successor to the FAA’s former Broad Information Technology and Telecommunications (BITS) II program.

“We are very excited to receive an award under the eFAST MOA,” stated Danny Davis, Valador’s Vice President of Strategic Programs. “This award provides us with a critical vehicle to expand our business base into the FAA and beyond.”

"We are looking forward to working with Valador’s newest partner, the Federal Aviation Administration,” stated Kevin Mabie, Valador’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “This opportunity allows us to further demonstrate our commitment in providing the highest level of technical and professional services available to our government clients.”

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

August 24, 2009 - Valador Becomes ISO 20000 Certified

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:31:05 -0400

Valador Becomes ISO 20000 Certified

Herndon, VA, August 24, 2009 -- Valador, inc. has received International Standards Organization (ISO) 20000 certification. ISO 20000 is a customer-focused international standard that contains the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practices for information technology (IT) service management, for the most cost-effective and efficient service delivery. The ISO 20000 Standard promotes an integrated process approach to deliver managed service in order to meet requirements. Valador was presented with a Certificate of Registration for ISO 20000 and now holds Certificate Number: ITMS 549749. With this, Valador becomes the 35th Company in the U.S. to attain this certification. We are now the 1st Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business and one of very few Small Businesses to have this certification.

To gain certification, Valador was required to pass a challenging evaluation of our management practices conducted by an independent auditor. Valador's ISO 20000 initiative began in early 2009, and was led by Rebecca Filardo. Less than a year after beginning preparation, Valador passed the formal assessment which was conducted by BSI Management Systems America, Inc.

"Our ISO 20000 certification was a definite milestone for Valador and reaffirms our unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction and continual improvement,” said the company's President and CEO, Kevin Mabie. "With a strong management team, capable employees, excellent training, and a dedication to delivering quality services, Valador has earned a well-regarded reputation among customers for outstanding performance of their mission-critical systems."

The ISO 20000 certification confirms that Valador’s management practices and processes are tightly controlled and applied consistently. Because Valador procedures are developed with customers in mind, IT Service Management System standards play a critical role in the quality of services provided. The quality of service delivered to our customers is enhanced and improved through the reduction of process inconsistencies, and customer feedback becomes paramount to decisions made by Valador management in the future direction of what the organization can provide. Implementation of ISO 20000 brings with it many benefits and advantages including:

Alignment of information technology services and business strategy.
Creation of a formal framework for current service improvement projects
Provides a benchmark type comparison with best practices
Creates competitive advantage via the promotion of consistent and cost-effective services.
By requiring ownership and responsibility at all levels, it creates a progressive ethos and culture.
Supports 'interchanging' of service providers and staff by virtue of the creation of inter-enterprise operational processes.
Reduction of risk and thus cost in terms of external service receipt
Through the creation of a standard consistent approach, aids major organizational changes.
Enhanced reputation and perception
Fundamental shift to pro-active rather than re-active processes
Improved relationship between different departments via better definition and more clarity in terms of responsibility and goals.
Creation of a stable framework for both resource training and service management automation.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

August 4, 2009 - Valador Awarded BPA from the USDA FSIS

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:21:33 -0400

Valador awarded BPA from the USDA FSIS

Herndon, VA - August 4, 2009 -- Valador Inc., announced today that it has been awarded a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) from the US Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) for Project Management Support Services and Project Initiation through Requirements Definition Support Services. This BPA has a five year period of performance with a ceiling of $22.5 million. Valador was one of only two contractors to be awarded this highly competitive procurement.

This BPA will allow the FSIS to meet their on-going need for an array of Information Technology (IT) services related to the systems development lifecycle (SDLC) from concept to design through implementation and beyond. Specifically, tasks will include those professional services associated with Project Planning & Management and System Requirements Assessment & Specification. The scope of the BPA is broad enough in order to be suitable for use in supporting any current and future IT systems deployed by the agency. In addition, tasks will cover direct support to the maturation of a PMO.

"This is a great win for Valador”, stated Kevin Mabie, Valador’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We are pleased to have the opportunity to leverage our years of professional services experience to support the USDA FSIS and look forward to the Task Orders that will follow this award.”

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

July 8, 2009 - Valador Awarded VA VR&E Contract

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 14:11:05 -0400

Valador Awarded VA VR&E Contract

Herndon, VA - July 8, 2009 -- Valador Inc., announced today that it has been awarded a contract from The Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Benefits Administration's Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) titled the VR&E Longitudinal Study Project Management Plan. This contract is to develop a project management plan outlining logistics and procedures for collection and analysis of data elements that VA must report for each year covered by the longitudinal study. Section 334 of The Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-389) requires the Secretary to conduct a longitudinal study of a statistically valid sample of three groups of individuals over a period of at least 20 years. Valador will be developing the plan for the longitudinal study and developing a data collection tool to collect and store the data from the three cohort groups over a period of 20 years.

"We have been supporting the VA for over 6 years and as a Service Disabled Veteran it is an honor to provide the foundation for this necessary longitudinal study for VR&E.” stated Kevin Mabie, Valador’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “This study will provide the required long-term data to allow better policy and management decisions for both the VA and Congress resulting in better care for our Veterans in need of help.”

About Valador

###

Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

May 15, 2009 - Valador Develops the 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary for the Mock Prison Riot

Fri, 15 May 2009 15:51:42 -0400

Valador Develops the 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary for the Mock Prison Riot

Moundsville, WV, May 15, 2009 -- Valador developed the 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary to support teams participating in the Mock Prison Riot held annually in Moundsville, West Virginia. Corrections and law enforcement personnel from all over the world converge on the retired West Virginia Penitentiary to participate in classroom instruction, live action training exercises, and test the latest advances in weaponry, armor, and technology.

The penitentiary began operation in 1876 and no detailed blueprints of the prison exist. Because of this, staff at the penitentiary would have to manually measure distances and attempt to verbally explain the layout of training areas so that trainees could attempt to plan training scenarios before traveling to the penitentiary. To solve this problem, Valador used advanced light detection and ranging (LIDAR) technology to produce detailed maps of the penitentiary training environments and then integrated these maps into PC game engine technology. The resulting 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary allows users to virtually walk around the penitentiary training environments, take measurements, and get a tactical overview of their surroundings, all from the comfort of their home or office PC.

Valador unveiled the 3D Model of the West Virginia Penitentiary at the 2009 Mock Prison Riot that took place between May 2nd and 5th. Trainees were excited to use the tool to get detailed information about the environments that they were going to be training in.

Michael Wilkerson from the WVHTC had this to say about the software: "It was great having you guys at the Mock Prison Riot. I’m excited that your outstanding work was well received [...] I'm eager to see you get the tools law enforcement/corrections need to those that need it."

A link to the YouTube video is available here.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

May 8, 2009 - Team Valador finishes first in NASA HQ Spring 2009 Golf Tournament

Fri, 08 May 2009 14:06:49 -0400

Team Valador finishes first
in NASA HQ Spring 2009 Golf Tournament

Andrews Air Force Base, MD, May 8, 2009 -- Valador participated in the NASA HQ Spring 2009 Golf Tournament at The Courses at Andrews Air Force Base. Team Valador finished in first place boasting an 11-under-par 61. The team was captained and led by Victoria Johnson and Kevin Conole, both Valador employees working on-site at NASA Headquarters in the Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation. Over 200 NASA employees and contractors participated in the tournament. Valador would like to thank both NASA and Andrews AFB for hosting the tournament.

Team Valador from left to right: Kevin Conole, Brad Johnson, Vicki Johnson and Tim Lang

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

April 23, 2009 - Dennis Bentley Attends Apollo 8 Crew and Support Staff Reunion

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 12:03:26 -0400

Dennis Bentley Attends Apollo 8 Crew
and Support Staff Reunion

Austin, TX, April 23, 2009 -- the LBJ Library in Austin, TX hosted a reunion of the Apollo 8 Crew and some of the many who supported Apollo 8. A panel discussion led by Jim Hartz, a former broadcaster, was taped by C-SPAN and will be aired at a later date.

Click Image to Zoom

Dennis Bentley of Valador managed the crew checklist for the Command and Service Modules. The checklist contained all of the procedures from Launch to SplashDown and Bill Anders named a crater "Dennis" on the back side of the moon during the flight.

In the included photograph, the second to back row includes: Jim Hartz, Chris Kraft, Vance Brand, Frank Borman, Ken Mattingly and Jim Lovell. Dennis Bentley is in front of and to the right of Frank Borman. Bill Anders has a yellow tie.

About Valador

###

Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

January 26, 2009 - Valador to Showcase Capabilities at RAMS in Ft. Worth, TX

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:35:23 -0500

Valador, Inc. Enters Into Industry Partnership Agreement with National Defense University, Information Resources Management College

Ft. Worth, Texas - January 26, 2009-- Valador will exhibit its modeling and simulation and visualization capabilities at the 55th Annual Reliability and Maintainability Symposium (RAMS) in Ft. Worth, TX from January 26 - 29. In addition to exhibiting, Valador representatives will be making presentations on technical work they have performed. Valador Vice President Joseph Fragola will teach a tutorial on “Human Reliability Analysis Methodology”, Blake Putney, a Valador Senior Scientist, will present his technical paper titled “Reliability Tool for Initial Quantified Functional Risk and Hazard Analysis”, and Ben Franzini, a Valador Systems Engineer, will present his technical paper titled “A Spectrum of Analysis Classes for Space Exploration Reliability Assessments”.

Using sophisticated modeling techniques and decades of experience to quantify risk and reliability of complex systems and events, Valador will showcase the analytical tools currently being used in multiple projects within NASA’s Constellation Program. Specifically, Valador will showcase the work being performed for the Lunar Lander Project Office, Lunar Architecture Study, and the Mars Architecture Study.

Combining modeling and simulation real-world data and video game engine technology, Valador will also demonstrate how users can visualize and interact with data in a 3D virtual environment. Valador’s demonstration will showcase a wide variety of applications that utilize this technology, including virtual building tours, analyses of ships maneuvering in space, and a 3D exploration of Mars using actual landscape telemetry data.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

January 5, 2009 - Joe Bycina Joins Valador as Director of DoD Programs

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 11:31:58 -0500

Joe Bycina Joins Valador as Director of DoD Programs

Herndon, VA - January 5, 2009 -- Mr. Joseph Bycina joined Valador in January 2009 with over 22 years of Engineering and Program Management experience in the Defense Information Technology industry. He currently leads Valador’s™ strategic move into new federal Department of Defense client markets with emphasis on the United States Army and Air Force.

Prior to joining Valador, Mr. Bycina was Director of Federal Programs for MPC Computers where he managed a portfolio of IT contracts and IT programs with the United States Army, Marine Corps, Defense Logistics Agency, Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Prior to joining MPC, Mr. Bycina spent over 5 years in various IT Program Management capacities at GTSI Corp.

Early in his career, Mr. Bycina worked as a Systems Engineer supporting and managing projects for the US Navy’s TACAMO E-6 Missions Avionics Program office. Before supporting the Navy, Mr. Bycina worked as an Industrial Engineer developing manpower staffing standards for various government agencies.

Mr. Bycina received his Associates Degree in Management Engineering form Erie Community College in Williamsville, NY and has a Bachelors Degree in Industrial Engineering from the State University of New York in Utica, NY.

About Valador

###

Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

October 3, 2008 - Valador, Inc. Enters Into Industry Partnership Agreement with NDU, Information Resources Management College

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:26:37 -0400

Valador, Inc. Enters Into Industry Partnership Agreement with National Defense University, Information Resources Management College

Herndon, Virginia - October 3, 2008-- Valador, Inc., a Government Professional Services company based in Herndon, VA announced today that it had entered into an Industry Partnership with the National Defense University, Information resource Management College (IRMC) in Washington, DC. The goal of the partnership agreement is to demonstrate the potential use of Valador Modeling and Simulation (M&S) technologies within IRMC’s classrooms and labs and to strengthen both parties’ professional network and information resources by facilitating knowledge sharing and collaboration.

As part of the agreement, Valador has installed its Distributed Observer Network (DON) within the IRMC Simulation Lab. Originally developed for users across the NASA Field Centers, the DON uniquely enables teams of engineers and analysts to view and collaborate on 3-D real-world representations of the environmental, design, and operational data from models, geometry, and actual telemetry. Based on modern game engine technology, the DON enhances the visualization of the results of the models and simulations and allows multiple users to connect securely using their desktop or laptop computers and view the simulation results from anywhere in the world. The DON allows each user to independently view and move within the simulation environment. The collaboration tools also facilitate real-time communication via Voice-Over IP (VOIP) and text chat, as well as long-term communication through saved notes.

For additional information, Valador produced a video presentation about the DON available online at YouTube.

About NDU /IRMC

The National Defense University is the nation’s premier center for joint professional military education and national security education. The University is an accredited graduate-level institution that prepares military and civilian leaders from the United States and other countries to address national and international security challenges through multi-disciplinary educational and research programs, professional exchanges and outreach. As a key component in NDU, the IRM College prepares leaders to direct the information component of national power by leveraging information and information technology for strategic advantage.

For more information the Information Resources Management College, visit www.ndu.edu/irmc.

About Valador

###

Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

July 30, 2008 - NASA Releases the Distributed Observer Network

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:07:09 -0400

NASA Releases the Distributed Observer Network

Kennedy Space Center, Florida - July 30, 2008-- NASA officials at the Kennedy Space Center announced the release of the Distributed Observer Network (DON) for users across the NASA Field Centers. Developed by Valador, the DON uniquely enables teams of engineers to view and collaborate on 3-D real-world representations of the environmental, design, and operational data from NASA models, geometry, and actual telemetry. The software allows multiple users to connect securely using their desktop or laptop computers and view the simulation results from anywhere in the world. The DON allows each user to independently view and move within the simulation environment. The collaboration tools also facilitate real-time communication via Voice-Over IP (VOIP) and text chat, as well as long-term communication through saved notes.

In his announcement, NASA’s William Little said, “To all of the folks at Valador, LaRC, and KSC who made this happen, thanks ever so much for all of your hard work. You have a lot to be proud of!”

Kevin Mabie, Valador President and CEO, stated “how pleased we are at Valador to be supporting the NASA Centers and Headquarters in advancing state of the art modeling & simulation technology throughout the Agency.”

Valador recently received an award from the NASA Inventions and Contributions Board (ICB) for the DON as a “creative development of a technical innovation.”

For additional information, Valador produced a video presentation about the DON available online at YouTube.

For authorized users, the new DON client software is available at the NASA DON intranet site.

About Valador

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Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail

July 16, 2008 - Fragola to Receive Honorary Doctorate Degree

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 15:30:08 -0400

Fragola to Receive Honorary Doctorate Degree

Glasgow, Scotland -- July 16, 2008-- Valador’s Vice President, Joseph Fragola, will receive an honorary degree of Doctor of Science from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. He has taught as a visiting professor in the Department of Management Science since 2001.

Mr. Fragola has over 35 years of experience working in reliability and risk technology in both the aerospace and nuclear industries. He is a Professional Engineer, and received his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Physics from the Polytechnic Institute of New York.

About Valador

###

Media Contact:

Thanh Dinh,
Marketing Specialist
Valador, Inc.
Telephone: 703-435-9155
Fax: 703-435-9655
E-mail