Company news information may be sent to brice.w@thecityjournals.com.
AEROSPACE
• Safran Defense & Space Inc., through its Salt Lake City-based Space Solutions business unit, has been selected by AstroForge to manufacture and deliver two EPSX00 electric propulsion systems for the company’s upcoming Vestri asteroid mission, scheduled to launch in early 2026. AstroForge, a California-based startup, focuses on extracting valuable resources from asteroids, such as platinum group metals, including platinum, palladium, rhodium and iridium. Based in Virginia, Safran DSI will provide two complete EPSX00 systems, each comprising the PPSX00 thruster, a power processing unit, and a fluid management system. The propulsion systems will support AstroForge’s mission to rendezvous with and analyze a target asteroid in deep space.
BANKING
• TAB Bank, based in Ogden, funded growth for 218 companies in the second quarter, with loans totaling $66 million. Companies signed with TAB Bank for working capital, cash flow management through factoring, equipment purchases and small-business lines of credit. Businesses in the manufacturing, transportation, health care, food, fintech and toy/game industries selected TAB Bank as their financial partner. The largest deal was $8 million for an Ohio company focused on global sourcing, supply chain management, manufacturing and nearshoring. TAB also provided equipment financing to 140 companies, with a combined value of $15.2 million, during the second quarter. TAB also funded 55 small to medium-sized businesses.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Business intelligence analysts are the Utah professionals most worried about being replaced by artificial intelligence, according to a study by outplacement and career development firm Careerminds and based on an employee survey. They are followed, in order, by copywriters, compliance officers, loan officers, paralegals, executive assistants, legal researchers, SEO specialists, insurance underwriters and sales development representatives.
Details are at https://careerminds.com/blog/panicked-professions.
• Two Utah locations are on an “art district hotlist,” compiled by printing provider Rivers Art and based on a survey of art lovers about the districts they most want to visit in 2025. They are The Blocks Art District in Salt Lake City, ranked No. 99 nationally, and No. 100 Granary District, also in Salt Lake City. The top-ranked location overall is Wynwood in Miami, Florida. Details are at https://www.riverswallart.com/blogs/art-surveys/popular-art-districts.
• Three Utah locations are on a list of “top wild swimming spots” in the U.S., compiled by photo book company Mixbook and based on a survey of local people. They are Meadow Hot Springs near Fillmore (No. 54 nationally), No. 96 Upper Calf Creek Falls in Grand Staircase-Escalante, and No. 138 Toquerville Falls near St. George. The top location overall is Uluwehi Falls in Kaua’i, Hawaii. Details are at https://www.mixbook.com/inspiration/secret-swims-americas-favorite-wild-swimming-spots.
• Utah is ranked No. 17 among states for “social cohesion,” a list compiled by the Utah Foundation. That is the second-highest among states in the Mountain States region. The foundation defines social cohesion as “the foundational commonalities that allow a population to function effectively as a group and open the way for individuals to participate in that whole.” The foundation’s Social Capital Index project analyzed four indicators: middle-class strength (Utah is best in the nation), limited English language proficiency among children (Utah is 19th-lowest), limited English language proficiency among adults (Utah is 28th-lowest), and population born in-state (Utah is 19th-highest). Utah’s level of social cohesion decreased slightly from 2021 to 2025, typical in many Mountain states and the nation.
• Three Utah locations are on a list of “most coveted active vacation destinations,” compiled by nursing career and education platform BetterNurse.org and based on a survey. They are Bryce (Bryce Canyon National Park), ranked No. 20 nationally, No. 29 Moab (Moab and Arches National Park) and No. 50 Springdale (Zion National Park). The top-ranked location overall is Yosemite National Park in California. Details are at https://betternurse.org/coveted-adventure-travel-destinations/.
• Four public buildings in Utah are on a list of “ugliest public buildings in the U.S.,” compiled by the New Jersey Real Estate Network and based on a survey. It asked people to weigh in on everything from state capitols to post offices, court buildings and city halls. The results highlight a surprising variety of concrete-heavy, boxy, and occasionally brutalist designs, that haven’t aged as gracefully as their architects may have hoped. Ranked Utah public buildings are Logan City Hall, No. 52 nationally; No. 62 Salt Lake County Government Center, No. 92 Provo County Administration Building, and No. 94 Francom Public Safety Center. The ugliest overall is the City of Flint Municipal Center in Michigan. Details are at https://www.newjerseyrealestatenetwork.com/blog/ugliest-public-buildings/.
• Salt Lake City, at No. 224 nationally, is the highest-ranked Utah location on a list of “Best Cities for Urban Gardening,” compiled by LawnStarter. The lowest-ranked Utah location is No. 471 South Jordan. The top-ranked location overall is New York City. Details are at https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-cities-urban-gardening/.
• Salt Lake City, at No. 373 nationally, is the highest-ranked Utah location on a list of “Top Cities for Tree Huggers,” compiled by Lawn Love and using 14 metrics. The lowest-ranked Utah city is No. 462 Lehi. The top city nationally is Nashville, Tennessee. The No. 468 city is Sparks, Nevada. Details are at https://lawnlove.com/blog/best-cities-for-tree-huggers/.
EDUCATION
• Starting this year, Weber State University will begin offering students in some disciplines a way to earn bachelor’s degrees within three years. With recent approval from WSU’s accreditation body, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, the university can now offer bachelor’s degrees that require around 90 credits versus 120 credits, which for decades has been the standard to earn a “four-year” degree. Starting this fall, WSU will offer a Bachelor of Applied Politics, Philosophy & Economics, which requires 90-91 credits. Pending accreditor approval, WSU plans to offer an accelerated bachelor’s degree in sound production and recording that requires 93-94 credits. The university expects several more programs to offer accelerated bachelor’s degrees within the next couple of years.
ENERGY
• Waterford School, a liberal arts college preparatory independent school for students in preschool through high school in Sandy, is believed to have the first commercially approved flywheel energy storage system at a school in the U.S. The Torus hybrid flywheel/battery energy storage system has been installed outside Waterford’s Murray Science Center. The system provides harmonic smoothing for 45 geothermal shafts beneath the adjacent turf field that sustainably heats and cools the building. The 38,500-square-foot Murray Science Center opened in August 2023.
HEALTH CARE
• The federal government has reinstated the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, after expiring over a year ago, and Intermountain Health’s Downwinders Clinic wants the community to know it is available to help families impacted by nuclear testing. The RECA statute provides family compensation for health issues encountered from radioactive fallout during the federal government’s nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site decades ago. The Downwinders Clinic is located in Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital’s Cancer Center and provides education, health care assistance and help applying for RECA. The newly expanded version of the RECA compensation program’s guidelines includes all of Utah now being included as an affected area. Previously, it was just select portions of the state and nothing north of Fillmore and Richfield. There is no charge for the help that the Downwinders clinic provides. Details are at 435-251-4760.
HOUSING
• The Salvation Army Ogden Corps has announced that the new Silvercrest Senior Residence, subsidized housing for low-income seniors 62 years and older, will open for tenants at 2655 Grand Ave. in October. The senior housing consists of 52 one-bedroom apartments, each with a kitchen, bath and living quarters to encourage independent living. Residents pay only 30 percent of their income for housing, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development pays the difference. The housing will offer on-site activities such as case management/service coordination, social gatherings, recreational activities and educational workshops. The residence includes seven open lounge areas, a large community room, a library, a wellness room, an exercise room, a private gathering room, a laundry room, a garden area with raised planter boxes for tenants, outdoor patio and an on-site surface parking lot with 43 stalls. Details are at ogden.salvationarmy.org.
INDUSTRIAL
• Turner Industries, based in Louisiana, has opened an operations facility at 3096 Davis Drive, Salt Lake City. The new office will serve as a strategic hub, allowing Turner Industries to expand its turnkey industrial services, including rope access and nondestructive examination and inspections, to both new and existing clients. The facility will also support ongoing site and project operations while serving as a center for hiring and training initiatives. For over 60 years, Turner Industries has provided turnkey industrial services and solutions to the companies that produce fuel, energy and materials. It focuses on heavy industrial construction, maintenance, turnarounds, pipe and module fabrication, equipment, rigging and specialized transportation, and associated specialty services. It operates 15 facilities and has more than 20,000 employees, including more than 100 working at industrial facilities in the Salt Lake City area and a core team opening the office. The Salt Lake City facility is Turner’s first permanent location in Utah.
NONPROFITS
• Ken Garff’s Success in Education, a philanthropic organization, has changed its name to Ken Garff for Good. It made the move, it said, “to better reflect the organization’s history, mission and vision.” For more than two decades, it has connected Utah students to over $100 million in scholarships. The organization’s programs are currently used in all 41 school districts across the state. Ken Garff for Good is a philanthropic entity of Salt Lake City-based Ken Garff Enterprises.
PARTNERSHIPS
• Qualtrics, an experience management company with headquarters in Provo and Seattle, has announced an expanded collaboration with Stanford Health Care to create AI agents that translate predictive insights into timely, targeted actions, reducing the administrative and coordination burdens placed on health care providers. Built on the Qualtrics XM Platform and developed in collaboration with Stanford Health Care, these agents aim to address challenges, including translating unified patient and operational data into timely, targeted actions that improve access, coordination and engagement. Operating under human supervision, the agents interact with patients and care teams in ways that are precise, proactive and context-aware.
PHILANTHROPY
• A team of three women from Springville won Bank of Utah’s third annual “Where’s the Wallet Cash Quest,” with the team winning $10,000 and the team donating another $10,000 to the Utah Kids Foundation. Using weekly social media clues, the women found the wallet on the Yellow Fork Trail in Herriman. The Utah Kids Foundation is a nonprofit organization supporting Utah’s special needs families and caregivers by providing medical supplies, support programs, disability-friendly events and an online support forum.
REAL ESTATE
• FranklinCovey, a company focused on organizational performance improvement, has signed a lease for the top floor of five-story Minuteman Plaza V at 13937 S. Minuteman Drive, Draper. The lease spans approximately 26,000 square feet in a space formerly occupied by Acima Credit. Brandon Fugal and Chris Kirk of Colliers represented FranklinCovey and Josh Smith and Angela Kroneberger of Colliers represented the property owner, LD Bowerman Investments, in the transaction.
RESTAURANTS
• Bubbakoo’s Burritos, a Mexican-fusion concept, has opened its first Utah location at 37 W. University Parkway, Orem. The new location is locally owned and operated by Loco Rico LLC, a multi-unit and multi-brand operator with over 40 years of experience in the QSR space. This Orem restaurant will be the first of more than five to open in the state over the next three years. Bubbakoo’s Burritos was founded in 2008 and now has more than 100 locations across the United States.
TECHNOLOGY
• Orion, a Nebraska-based provider of wealthtech solutions, has relocated an office from Provo to Lehi. The company said the new office is designed to foster collaboration and well-being, offering adaptive workspaces and communal areas, a pickleball court, bike shed, fire pit and on-site showers.
TRANSPORTATION
• CW Flight, a Salt Lake City-based private aviation company, is now operating out of Salt Lake City International Airport and Provo Municipal Airport. It offers Salt Lake’s only Cirrus Certified Flight School, along with services that include aircraft management, pilot support, sales, maintenance, and curated flying adventures.
VOLUNTEERISM
• More than 600 volunteers from throughout Salt Lake City will join in unity to pack 170,000 meals in observance of 9/11 Day, the federally-recognized Sept. 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance. All of the meals will be donated to Utah Food Bank for distribution to individuals and families in need in Salt Lake City. The service project will be held at the Jon M. Huntsman Center from 9 to 11 a.m. In its inaugural year, the Salt Lake City Meal Pack for 9/11 Day is one of 24 large-scale volunteer service projects being organized throughout the nation by the nonprofit 9/11 Day, which began the observance in 2002. Across the U.S., more than 30,000 people are expected to volunteer at 9/11 Day’s signature Meal Pack events, assembling more than 9 million shelf-stable meals for food-insecure Americans. The 9/11 Day Meal Pack Program is being sponsored nationally by the federal agency AmeriCorps, which oversees national service programs throughout the United States.