What Nova Research does

Lumina Corps, which appears to operate under or relate to the firmographic record of Nova Research, is a U.S. professional services firm founded in 1986 and headquartered at 1010 Wayne Avenue, Suite 570, Silver Spring, Maryland. The company provides integrated strategic communications and event support services to health and biomedical agencies and organizations, with a stated focus on national and international public health initiatives. Its core service offering centers on strategic communications, public information dissemination, science writing, outreach, and event planning delivered to clients whose missions advance public health.

The firm's go-to-market is sales-led and procurement-driven, operating as a prime contractor on long-term federal contract vehicles — specifically NIH's Public Information and Communication Services II (PICS III) and the NIH Conference, Administrative, and Travel Services III (NIHCATS IV) vehicle held through the General Services Administration. The business model is managed services under multi-year government contracts, with pricing handled via quote-based task order awards rather than publicly disclosed rates. The firm holds no disclosed patents, technology platforms, or productized software; the offering is fundamentally human-delivered professional services supported by deep domain expertise in the health and biomedical sector.

In 2025, Lumina Corps merged with CommunicateHealth, another health communication specialist, signaling a strategic consolidation move intended to broaden the combined organization's service offering and competitive positioning in health communications. The firm employs 51-100 people, is privately held with no disclosed parent company or institutional investors, and reports no public revenue figures. Concentration is high, with NIH named as the primary customer through the PICS III and NIHCATS IV vehicles.

Name

Nova Research

Legal name

Lumina Corps

Website

https://novaresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Lumina Corps is a U.S. professional services firm providing strategic communications and event support to health and biomedical agencies. It holds NIH contract vehicles (PICS III, NIHCATS IV) and merged with CommunicateHealth in 2025 to broaden its health communication capabilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Communications Services

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Medical Affairs Scientific Communications (MSL Support/Scientific Response) (HLAGALAF)

Keywords

• Health communications services
• Event management
• Public information services
• Biomedical outreach
• Science writing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Silver Spring

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Communications Contracts: Lumina Corps generates revenue through long-term government contracts with health and biomedical agencies, providing public information, communication services, conference support, administrative services, and travel services. Revenue appears to be contract-based, recurring through held vehicles like PICS III and NIHCATS IV.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Nova Research provides full-service offerings in information technology, communication, outreach, science writing, and event planning. The firm delivers best-in-class integrated communications and event support to biomedical and public health agencies and organizations, implementing effective communications and event strategies to advance client missions.

Product overview

Lumina Corps offers a single unified service offering centered on integrated communications and event support for health and biomedical organizations. The core service encompasses strategic communications and event strategies designed to advance client missions, with a focus on national and international public health initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Integrated Communications and Event Support Best-in-class integrated communications and event support services for biomedical and public health agencies and organizations. Services include strategic communications, event strategies, public information dissemination, conference support, administrative services, and travel services delivered through long-term government contract vehicles such as NIH PICS III and GSA NIHCATS IV.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• CommunicateHealthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLumina Corps and CommunicateHealth announced a merger to strengthen health communication impact. This strategic combination merges two health communication specialists to create a more comprehensive service offering for health and biomedical clients.
• General Services Administration (GSA)coreOthersLumina Corps holds contracts under GSA vehicles for NIH Conference, Administrative, and Travel Services III (NIHCATS IV), enabling access to federal government health agencies through established procurement channels.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Edelman Health: Largest global communications firm with a dedicated health practice serving public health agencies, pharma, and biotech — overlaps with Lumina Corps in federal health communications and behavior-change work.
• ICF International: Global consulting and digital services firm with a sizeable public health practice supporting HHS, NIH, and CDC on communications, research, and program implementation — competes for federal health communications vehicles at greater scale.
• Ogilvy Health: Large global health communications network within WPP, serving pharma, biotech, and public health clients with strategic communications and behavior-change campaigns — competes for the same federal health communications scopes at a much larger scale.
• BCW (Burson Cohn & Wolfe): Global communications agency with a sizable healthcare practice serving pharma, biotech, and public health clients — competes for federal and commercial health communications mandates through a much broader global network.
• Ketchum Health: Global communications consultancy with a dedicated health practice serving pharma, government health agencies, and NGOs — provides overlapping health communications and public affairs services to federal clients.

Direct peers

• CommunicateHealth: Health communications specialist focused on plain-language health communication, behavior change, and federal health agency work — Lumina Corps' merger partner in 2025 and its closest direct peer by mission and customer base.
• GCI Health: Dedicated health-focused public relations and communications agency serving healthcare, pharma, and public health clients — comparable service offering (strategic communications, patient/provider engagement) with broader commercial health footprint.
• Westat: Employee-owned research and consulting firm with a substantial health communications and survey research practice supporting NIH, HHS, and other federal health agencies — competes for similar government contract scopes and shares the Rockville/Maryland federal contractor ecosystem.
• IQ Solutions: Rockville, MD-based health communications and IT firm that has long supported NIH and other federal health agencies on communications, outreach, and evaluation contracts — directly comparable niche, geography, and government contract-based GTM.
• FINN Partners: Independent global communications and public affairs firm with a dedicated health practice serving federal health agencies, providers, and patient advocacy groups — directly comparable mid-size competitor for federal health communications work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/luminacorp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nova Research