SeaLandAire Technologies, Inc. team members pose in front of the company’s Jackson headquarters.
(April 6, 2023 10:16 AM ET) Three Jackson County companies are among the 2023 Michigan Celebrates Small Business Award winners to be honored during the 19th annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business Gala on May 2, 2023. The event will host over 800 guests at the Breslin Center in East Lansing to celebrate the achievements of this year’s award recipients.
SeaLandAire Technologies, Inc. will be honored with the APEX Accelerator Best Small Business Award. SeaLandAire Technologies, Inc. offers engineering research and development services concentrating on small, unmanned vehicles and sensor systems deployed in remote, rugged environments.
SeaLandAire Technologies, Inc., is a privately-owned small business founded in Jackson in 1997. SLA has more than 25 years of experience in conducting cutting edge engineering research and development, primarily for the Department of Defense. The company employs approximately 60 personnel who design, develop, and build products tailored to assist their customers in collecting information from any environment, focusing on small unmanned vehicles and sensor systems.
With a history in developing unmanned sensors for the U.S. Navy’s Airborne Anti-Submarine Warfare mission, as well as unmanned craft capable of operating in the air, on land, and at sea, SeaLandAire employs engineers and technicians across electrical/electronics, systems, and mechanical engineering, acoustics, signals processing, and software development disciplines. The company envisions a future where SeaLandAire products are regularly chosen to collect the data necessary to make responsible, world-impacting decisions.
SeaLandAire Technologies, Inc., is led by company president David C. Sparks.
“We feel very honored and privileged to have received this year’s Small Business of the Year nomination from APEX Accelerators (formerly PTAC of South Central Michigan),” said Sparks. “They have been a key partner with SLA for more than 20 years, assisting us with navigating new opportunities, researching business improvements, and networking with other local organizations.”
Sparks credits the Jackson community for contributing to their success. “We are also privileged to call Jackson home. Its location in the center of Michigan’s manufacturing industry affords SLA access to high-tech prototyping partners, a highly capable workforce, and extensive community support,” Sparks told JTV News. “Through our support of Jackson High School’s successful youth robotics team, we are encouraged that STEM opportunities abound here and that the workforce of the future will continue advancing our high-tech heritage.”
Mike Hindenach, Program Manager with the APEX Accelerators of South Central Michigan, said, “We are excited and we celebrate SeaLandAire’s Michigan small business award. They continue to create innovative technologies in Jackson.”
MCSB says the past three years have been a challenging landscape for business owners, but small businesses like SeaLandAire Technologies have learned to become nimble and innovative in order to accomplish their goals. The 2023 awards gala will put Michigan’s small businesses in the spotlight and give them a chance to share their success stories with the supporters who helped them get to where they are today.
“MCSB has always prided itself on its spirit of collaboration and celebration,” said Jennifer Deamud, MCSB board chair. “We love seeing our awardees celebrating one another’s success and sharing in this amazing moment in each awardee’s journey. It’s true— success is best when it is shared.”
The other two Jackson County businesses to be honored are Bearex with the SmartZone Best Small Business Award and R.J.’s Metropolitan Ice Cream Co. with the SBDC Best Small Business Award.
Additional information about the awards gala and ticket information can be found at MichiganCelebrates.org.
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