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Tag: Hampton Roads Alliance

Southwest Va. project will help manufacturers enter wind energy supply chain

Public-private campaign InvestSWVA announced Tuesday the launch of an economic development initiative designed to help Southwest Virginia manufacturers find entry points in the supply chain for wind energy equipment components.

The initiative, called Project Veer, will connect Southwest Virginia manufacturers with industry experts, public sector partners, the Hampton Roads Alliance, Dominion Energy Inc., Appalachian Power and GO Virginia Region One’s economic and workforce development organizations.

Construction on Dominion’s 2.6-gigawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project will begin in 2024. Dominion plans to build the 180 wind-turbine farm 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. Two turbines have been built as pilots.

“Dominion Energy Virginia is actively engaging business communities to bring offshore wind supply chain economic opportunities to all regions of the commonwealth,” John Larson, Dominion Energy director of public policy and economic development, said in a statement. “We look forward to working with Project Veer to tap into the strong manufacturing legacy of Southwest Virginia to help the region capitalize on the growing wind energy industry.”

Project Veer builds on recommendations from a study conducted by the Hampton Roads Alliance that exposed gaps in the supply chain and defined how manufacturers could fill them. The alliance worked with Aberdeen, Scotland-based energy consulting firm Xodus Group Ltd., which is part of the project team, and Carlsbad, California-based BW Research Partnership to assess the offshore wind supply chain and conduct a gap analysis for the Hampton Roads metropolitan area and Southern Virginia.

“Renewable energy developers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) need partners who produce quality components and deliver them on time,” Will Payne, managing partner of Coalfield Strategies and project lead for InvestSWVA, said in a statement. “We have partners who fit this bill in Virginia’s Southwest. Now we have some infrastructure to help them explore their entry into the burgeoning wind energy market, while leveraging the energy industry experience many of them already possess.”

The project received funding from the GO Virginia Region One Council, the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission and Coalfield Strategies.

InvestSWVA is a public-private business research, attract and marketing campaign launched under the umbrella of the Virginia Tobacco Revitalization Commission, a 28-member body created by the General assembly in 1999 to promote economic growth and development in tobacco-dependent communities using proceeds of the national tobacco settlement.

Norfolk software company to expand, create 37 jobs

A Norfolk-based software company will expand its operation and create 37 jobs, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday.

SVT Robotics, a company that accelerates the deployment of industrial robotics, will invest $101,400 to expand in the Ghent area of Norfolk.

The company will build a lab to house robotic equipment used to demonstrate its proprietary platform capabilities for clients and industrial robotic manufacturers, according to a news release from the governor’s office. Virginia competed against California and Texas for the project.

SVT Robotics launched in 2018 and develops products that expedite and streamline the deployment of industrial robotics in the manufacturing and warehousing industries. SVT’s platform allows companies to connect and integrate their systems to any robot or automation in days or weeks instead of months or years. Richmond-based venture capital firm New Richmond Ventures invested in the startup.

“We are thrilled by the ongoing efforts from the commonwealth of Virginia and the city of Norfolk to create an environment that is extremely friendly to tech startups,” A.K. Schultz, CEO and co-founder of SVT Robotics, said in a statement. “The … jobs grant will make it easier for SVT to create tech jobs right here in Virginia. The ability to recruit the best technical talent is the lifeblood of tech companies and we applaud Virginia’s efforts to create strong tailwinds for firms like SVT.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the city of Norfolk and the Hampton Roads Alliance worked together to secure the project and will support the company through the Virginia Jobs Initiative Program, which provides consultative services and funding to companies creating jobs. The program reduces the number of HR costs of new and expanding companies.

“It has been a privilege for our team to work with SVT Robotics and the city of Norfolk and to watch SVT’s tremendous growth from a 757 Accelerate program graduate to a nationally-recognized robotics software developer,” Doug Smith, president and CEO of Hampton Roads Alliance, said in a statement.

Offshore wind coworking space opens in Norfolk

The growing offshore wind industry in Hampton Roads caught another gust Wednesday with the opening of a coworking and networking space in Norfolk’s World Trade Center.

The hub, called the Virginia Offshore Wind Landing — or the Landing, for short — is a joint venture of Old Dominion University’s OpenSeas Technology Innovation Hub, the Hampton Roads Alliance and the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy, the groups announced this week.

The goal is to develop a cluster of offshore wind companies and foster the growth of Hampton Roads and Virginia as an innovation and supply chain hub for offshore wind industry, according to the announcement.

ODU has been increasing efforts as a catalyst for such growth. Nancy Grden, who serves as the university’s point person on the issue, was named executive director of the Hampton Roads Maritime Collaborative for Growth & Innovation in September.

ODU’s OpenSeas hub works with people and businesses seeking innovative solutions to problems in the maritime and coastal arenas, it says.

The president and CEO of the Hampton Road Alliance, Doug Smith, cited Dominion Energy’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project and Avangrid Renewables’ Kitty Hawk Offshore Wind projects as examples of growth.

“The commonwealth is also a natural fit to become a supply chain hub for the offshore wind industry with our best-in-class port infrastructure, a centrally located and capable workforce and a supportive business and regulatory climate,” Smith said in a statement.

Founding members of the Landing include Atlantic Wind Transfers, Avangrid Renewables, AZCO, Burns & McDonnell, Crowley, Dominion Energy Inc., Nexans and Seaway 7.

757 economic recovery plan focuses on cooperation

At a Thursday news conference, Hampton Roads regional leaders unveiled a new economic recovery plan for the next two years that focuses on cooperation and resiliency.

Hampton Roads Alliance President and CEO Doug Smith presented a report detailing multiple goals for the region to help it recover financially after the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting job and business losses. It is based on input from more than 200 nonprofit, government and business leaders who participated in meetings with the organization during the past six months.

The 757 Recovery & Resilience Action Framework focuses on the following broad goals: building regional unity; growing new jobs; growing, retaining and attracting talent; building resiliency and advancing regional infrastructure.

With a self-set deadline of October, the group hopes to recruit 1,000 “757 Champions” — a diverse group of leaders who will volunteer to promote different business sectors and create a more welcoming atmosphere, especially for minority business people. So far, Smith said, more than 100 people have indicated interest. Another goal to meet by October is the launch of the “Did You Know” regional marketing campaign, which will include a free app that can be used to award prizes to participants who answer quiz questions about the region. Smith noted that to encourage cooperation and local pride, residents need to know more about the full 757 region and its 17 localities.

According to the framework, the group will focus on the following goals this year: attracting young professionals to participate in the 757 recovery project; building a performance dashboard; attracting new companies and increasing productivity and growth of target industries; cultivating new industries, including offshore wind; and providing diversity and inclusion education and business-model training.

In 2022, the group’s goals will include growing the region’s startup ecosystem, as well as creating a business approach to energy and sea-level rise issues and attracting talent from outside the region, focusing on tech industries. In the longer term, the group hopes to address systemic problems that have held the region back.

Smith noted at the start of his presentation that the Hampton Roads region took more than eight years to fully recover from the 2008-09 recession, about three years longer than comparable communities, and its 2019 average per capital income of $52,011 and GDP of $50,609 is behind other regions, including Columbus, Ohio, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Smith and others say the region needs to bounce back faster this time.

More information on the 757 recovery plan is here.

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