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Trump’s pause on $3T in federal funding could impact Va.
Update, 7:30 p.m. A federal judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s freeze on federal spending until at least Feb. 3, but the White House did not immediately respond to the judicial order. On Monday, Trump ordered a freeze on more than $3 trillion in federal financial assistance, including grants and loans backing economic development and […]
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[...]
Manufacturing 2023: KOEN KNIPPENBERG
A longtime Volvo Group employee, Knippenberg moved from his home country of Belgium to become vice president and general manager of the New River Valley Volvo Trucks plant in April 2022. Before that, he was vice president for the company’s plant in Ghent, Belgium, as well as managing director for Volvo Group Belgium for five […]
Electric avenue
Electric trucks still have some shortcomings — including difficulties covering long distances, and the fact that it’s taken manufacturers as long as five years to deliver on some vehicle orders — but Virginia trucking companies are nonetheless forging ahead. For instance, in addition to its 22 diesel trucks, Camrett Logistics in Wytheville received two electric […]
German auto parts maker revamps Salem GE plant
Most everyone in the Roanoke Valley either worked at the former General Electric Co. facility in Salem or knew someone who had, says Renée Turk, the city’s mayor. “On some level, it meant a lot to the entire community,” she says of the manufacturing plant, which opened in 1955. After employing more than 3,000 workers […]
Charging up
Virginia Del. Richard “Rip” Sullivan Jr. is one of the General Assembly’s biggest advocates for electric vehicles. But when the Fairfax County Democrat went to buy a car in 2018, he started feeling anxious about the electric cars on offer — particularly their relatively limited range, given the lack of electric vehicle (EV) chargers in […]
German auto parts maker to build $38M Wythe County factory
German auto parts manufacturer STS Group AG will invest $39 million to establish its first U.S. manufacturing operation in Wythe County’s Progress Park industrial park, creating 120 jobs, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday. Located near Wytheville, the new facility, operating as a subsidiary of STS Group North America, will supply Volvo Trucks in Pulaski […]
Volvo electric trucks to be produced at NRV plant in early 2021
Volvo Trucks North America’s plant in Pulaski County will manufacture its new battery-powered VNR Electric truck model starting early next year, the company announced Thursday. The largest Volvo truck plant in the world, the Dublin facility currently employs close to 3,000 people and builds heavy-duty trucks of multiple models. The Volvo Class 8 VNR Electric […]
