BRIEFLY IN BUSINESS

Tourism bureau takes marketing honors

The Costa Mesa Conference & Visitor Bureau has won two silver awards and one bronze for public relations and Internet marketing at the annual Adrian Awards Competition hosted by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Assn. International on Jan. 30 in New York City.

The bureau was honored for its Fly/Drive & Dine on Us promotions, which are aimed at leisure travelers residing within an eight-hour drive or two-hour flight of Costa Mesa ? an area that includes most of California and parts of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Nevada.

The campaign included an e-mail campaign that invited 3,000 previous visitors to return to Costa Mesa during the holiday season. The promotions drew visitors with dining certificates and airfare or gasoline reimbursements.

“We are honored that our marketing programs have been recognized by this prestigious travel organization,” said bureau President Tom Smalley in a recent news release.

Lender promotes Moses to VP of Operations

Secured Funding, a Costa Mesa retail and wholesale lender specializing in second mortgages, promoted Michele Moses to the position of vice president of operations. Previously the director of capital markets for secured funding, Moses is now responsible for building internal operations and developing the company’s banking capabilities for both retail and wholesale divisions.

Moses has more than 23 years of experience in the mortgage banking industry. Prior to joining Secured Funding, she held executive positions with Fort Worth, Texas-based Amaximis Lending and Richmond, Va.-based LandAmerica Financial Group.

Acacia locks up defense deal

Acacia Research Corporation announced last week that its CombiMatrix group has established a development agreement with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory for the development of a biological monitoring device.

Under the deal, the pair will develop a personal health monitoring system using CombiMatrix’s CustomArray technology. The goal of the program is to develop a miniaturized device capable of analyzing multiple biomarkers ? either DNA or protein ? to monitor the health of military service personnel before, during and after deployments where they could be exposed to unhealthy toxins.

“Our technology continues to gain credibility with our military, as indicated by this new relationship with the U.S. Air Force,” said Amit Kumar, president and chief executive of CombiMatrix in a recent news release.