Energy Storage Safety Products International (ESSPI), based in Newlab Detroit at Michigan Central, has launched Med Hawk, a new division of the company focused on bringing its ground-based transportation monitoring system to the skies.

With this launch, ESSPI will provide drone operators with insight and analytics when aircraft are transporting medical supplies beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS).

“The drone industry has built the foundation for incredible unmanned aircraft, but now ESSPI is working to demonstrate how we can make those same drones work for us,” says Ron Butler, CEO of ESSPI. “Using Med Hawk’s real-time data and monitoring systems, we are able to help ensure that medical supplies are delivered quickly and safely, ultimately helping to save lives.”

Med Hawk has partnered with Brighton autonomous drone logistics company Blueflite to demonstrate its drone battery monitoring and data logging capabilities and is utilizing the Michigan Central AAIR to replicate deliveries in real-world deployment scenarios.

“Blueflite is excited to work with ESSPI in flight testing their innovative and unique cold storage solution for medical logistics,” says Andrew Zeimen, program manager at Blueflite. “We are looking forward to flying with a Michigan designed and manufactured product on our mission to continue making drone delivery accessible to those that need it, where and when they need it most.”

ESSPI technology is built on the understanding that batteries often exhibit measurable environmental changes before catastrophic failure, the company says. Designed through three years of collaborative development with the U.S Department of Transportation, ESSPI’s DNOC framework — Detection, Notification, Operation, and Communication — allows Med Hawk to provide real-time visibility, data logging, and alerts so drone operators can take action before issues escalate.

Advanced aerial mobility is expanding access to medical deliveries, improving emergency response capabilities, and driving efficiencies across logistics and supply chains. Michigan Central and the Michigan Department of Transportation created AAIR to help scale these technologies, providing 28 square miles of dense, urban environment for testing and scaling new drone technologies into market-ready solutions.

“The diversification of ESSPI’s market offering showcases the transition we’re seeing many companies make, identification and commercialization of products which will make aerial mobility a viable platform to scale their business, while providing solutions for communities that better serve their needs,” says Matt Whitaker, director of the mobility innovation platform at Michigan Central. “What we are seeing with ESSPI and Blueflite is exactly what the Michigan Central ecosystem was built for. To create the foundation for talent and inspiring collaboration between member companies, leading to the next generation of advanced mobility innovation being born in Detroit.”

The collaboration is said to reflect broader momentum across Michigan Central’s aerial mobility ecosystem, which has supported more than 1,200 drone flights and multiple BVLOS deployments focused on logistics, infrastructure inspection, public safety, and delivery applications.

For more information about ESSPI, visit esspi.com/.

For more information about blueflite, visit blueflite.com/.

For more information about Michigan Central AAIR, visit here.

Vice President JD Vance will be in Milwaukee on July 8 at the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 128th Air Refueling wing, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman Brian Schimming said.

It will be an official event, Schimming told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

The Republican vice president was last in Wisconsin about four months ago, when he spoke at Pointe Precision in Plover on Feb. 26, two days following President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address. That visit was part of a campaign by the White House to put the president and top administration officials in front of voters in battleground districts.

In August 2025, Vance visited La Crosse to promote provisions of the Trump administration’s sweeping tax and spending law.

And he made multiple stops in Wisconsin during the 2024 campaign.

The White House has not yet released details about Vance’s visit.

In his farewell column, Souhan credited a long list of Star Tribune colleagues and editors, including Patrick Reusse, Rachel Blount, Julie Engebrecht and Curt Brown, for shaping his career.

He described the decision to leave as “for reasons more personal than professional.” Souhan wants to be closer to his family, including his first grandson, and to support his wife’s career in education.