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Manufacturing 2025: JAIN, PRABHAT
Jain has been CEO of Virginia Transformer, the continent’s largest U.S.-owned power transformer manufacturer, since 1982 — 14 years after he arrived from India, mechanical engineering degree in hand. Over the past four decades, he has grown the company from 35 employees to more than 2,700 across six plants. Jain started as a machine shop […]
Manufacturing 2025: FRIEDRICH, KAI
Friedrich joined Liebherr’s U.S. operations in 2021 as its managing director. In February, the Swiss equipment manufacturer announced Hirohito Imakoji has also been named a managing director of Liebherr USA and that he will work jointly with Friedrich, who is also the company’s managing director and divisional director of earthmoving and material handling technology. Out […]
Salem manufacturers plan expansions
Three advanced manufacturing operations with roots in Salem recently revealed plans to expand facilities in the city. Integer Holdings, which has operated in Salem for 30 years, announced expansion plans in April. The Texas-based medical contract developer and manufacturer of medical devices and components has leased a 13,000-square-foot facility on Electric Road to manufacture catheters. [&hellip[...]
Reshoring manufacturing is one of President Donald Trump’s priorities
President Donald Trump wants manufacturing jobs to return to the U.S., but it's not as simple as that, experts say
New River and Roanoke Valleys see strong economic growth
The New River and Roanoke valleys posted major GDP gains in 2023, with growth fueled by advanced manufacturing, tech innovation, and workforce expansion.
Pittsylvania tapped as home for $1.5M+ training center
TECHnista, an education consulting company that develops curriculum for K-12 programs in defense and advanced manufacturing industries, will invest about $1.56 million to establish a National Training and Technology Center in Pittsylvania County, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday. The project, which is expected to create 15 jobs, will assist in the implementation of a five-year […]
Hand-built electric classic sports cars to be built in Danville
RBW Sports & Classics, a United Kingdom manufacturer of hand-built electric vehicles that have designs inspired by British sports cars from the 1960s and 1970s, plans to invest $8 million to establish a manufacturing facility at Cane Creek Centre in Danville, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Thursday. The project is expected to create 144 jobs. Those […]
Battery-powered tools are wave of future at Stihl
Stihl Inc., the U.S. affiliate of the global Stihl Group, has invested more than $60 million on battery manufacturing at its Virginia Beach facility since 2018, according to Stuart Morrison, the company’s vice president of assembly. Battery-powered tools — like pruners, trimmers and blowers — are expected to see the fastest growth of products in […]
Assembled with care
If you’re trying to visualize what powers manufacturing growth around Roanoke these days, picture 3D-printed helicopter blades and robotics, not old-style grommets. Also known as additive manufacturing, 3D printing produces objects by creating a series of consecutive layers, as opposed to “subtractive” manufacturing, which removes material to carve out an object. Advanced manufacturing c[...]
New IALR lab to feature ‘automagic’ manufacturing tech
Butch Kendrick once worked in a factory making plywood suitcase components. Each time he ran a strip of plywood through a planer, he heard a loud, screeching whine. “I would hear that noise in my head until I went to sleep,” Kendrick says. “And I’ve never forgot that. Anyone who works in manufacturing, if I […]
Richmond-Petersburg pharma coalition wins fed designation
Central Virginia’s pharmaceutical hub received a federal designation that could lead to millions in federal funding in the future, while a 3D printing consortium in the New River Valley and Danville won a $500,000 federal grant, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced Monday. A group of public and private sector partners conducting pharmaceutical research and […]
PharmaVille
A coalition of public and private sector partners is hoping to write a new chapter for Central Virginia — and ultimately the country — in its mission to fight drug shortages and create low-cost medications. Anchored by wet labs and research and development in Richmond and manufacturing in Petersburg, the Alliance for Building Better Medicine aims […]
