SACRAMENTO — California is funding two companies to develop prototypes of innovative firefighting technology over the next few months in four counties, including Butte County.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the projects Wednesday. They are part of a new procurement process established in January that is designed to spur innovation in government contracts. Since the spring, Cal Fire, the California Department of Technology and the Department of General Services received 131 proposals for cutting edge technology in wildfire management, detection, prediction and notification.
Two of those ideas will be developed further into a proof of concept by the end of the year. The goal is to have the technologies ready for the next fire season.
Technosylva, Inc. will receive $383,000 to develop a prototype to predict the path of a wildfire in real-time. The technology will consider vegetation, weather and topography to model current fire behavior. The information is meant to help local officials make decisions about evacuations and deployment of firefighting resources. The company, based in San Diego and Spain, specializes in wildfire technology.
Northrop Grumman, an aerospace and defense technology company based in Falls Church, Virginia, will receive $1.6 million to create an early wildfire ignition detection system using remote sensors in the sky. The system is aiming to be quicker than a 9-1-1 caller reporting a new emergency. It will be connected directly to local dispatchers so first responders can act more quickly and efficiently.
The two projects will be developed in Monterey, Butte, San Luis Obispo, and Napa counties by the end of December. They may be expanded statewide after that.
