Fusion frames, a special type of operator-valued frames, are central to many applications in distributed sensing and processing. We leverage the construction of matrices with the restricted isometry property for the design of fusion frames with desirable properties. We show that certain RIP matrices, viewed as tight frames satisfying the restricted isometry property, give rise to nearly tight fusion frames which are nearly orthogonal and hence are nearly equi-isoclinic. We also show how to replace parts of the RIP frame with orthonormal systems while maintaining the restricted isometry property. This talk is based on work with Pete Casazza and Jameson Cahill.