By Jim Skeen Valley Press Business Editor

PALMDALE - Symvionics, a small company providing "vital" services for Edwards Air Force Base and other military customers, celebrated the opening of its Palmdale location.
Symvionics conducted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday afternoon for what it calls its new IADS commercial center at 190 Sierra Court, Suite A-2. IADS is short for Interactive Analysis and Display Software.
IADS is a tool for display screens at mission control centers, such as the ones at Edwards Air Force Base, that allows engineers to conduct analysis from test missions immediately, rather than waiting until after a flight. IADS' development was spurred by Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards and was initially used top provide data for structural engineers.
"It allows engineers to do analysis in real time," Said Pat Mattingly, vice president of Symvionics. "It allows engineers to clear test points quicker."
IADS is in use at Air Force, Navy and Army flight test centers and is being used by major contractors, such as Lockheed Martin.
" You are a vital part of our aerospace industry," Norm Hickling, field representative for Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, said at the ceremony.
Hickling noted that Symvionics had worked on the B-2 stealth bomber program, a program on which he worked during his days with Northrop Grumman.
Among the programs for which IADS is being used include the F-22 and F-35 fighter programs. F-22 program officials reported and 80% improvement from IADS over previous display tools, Mattingly said.
The Palmdale facility has 18 workers. Work there includes software development work, shipping and training for customers. The facility has a training room equipped to serve up to 12 students.
Headquartered in Arcadia, Symvionics provides support services, including engineering and scientific, technical and management and operational support. Its work for the Air Force has included providing flight simulation support for the F-16, F-22, B-1 and C-17 programs. The company also provides support for Edwards electronic air warfare simulator. The company has roughly 100 employees including a total of approximately two dozen workers in the Antelope Valley. "We're very agile." said Richard Weeks, company executive vice president. "We make things happen."