byline: Virginia Business

Blue Bird Resins in Pulaski is expanding to more than double its leased square footage, according to company owner Dan Oberlander. The plastic recycling company, which occupies more than 40,000 square feet of a former furniture plant, has begun moving into surplus property of Jefferson Yarns in Pulaski. Oberlander predicted his company’s work force would grow from 15 to 22 full-time employees to 25-30 workers this year. (The Roanoke Times)

Corvesta Services, a Roanoke-based dental benefits administration and health informatics company, has changed its name to Revolv. Company officials said the new name better reflects the products and services it has introduced since its founding in 2010. The company said it provides specialized customer services and advanced claims processing systems with real-time claims adjudication capabilities. It also offers ancillary services such as benefit-consultation, business analytics, quality assessment and integrity tools. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Cycle Systems, a family run metals recycling company based in Roanoke, has been acquired by Gerdau, an international steel producer based in Brazil. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Gerdau’s North America division operates a steel mill in Petersburg, and according to the company website, it also has mills in Tennessee, North Carolina and Kentucky, as well as other locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. (The Roanoke Times)

LewisGale Hospital Alleghany now offers an inpatient treatment service for people with severe drug or alcohol addictions. The New Vision program, operated by St. Louis-based SpecialCare Hospital Management Corp. in partnership with the hospital, will stabilize adult patients who are going through withdrawal or have become incapacitated due to substance abuse. The New Vision program will be the first of its kind for the Alleghany Highlands. The service initially will be available to two or three patients at a time. (The Roanoke Times)

Norfolk Southern Corp. will discontinue regional railcar classification operations at its Roanoke Terminal hump yard, a railroad yard used to separate cars to one of several tracks. One hundred and forty jobs will be eliminated. Systemwide, Norfolk Southern expects to hire 850 to 1,150 employees in 2013 to keep up with attrition. These positions will first be offered to employees affected by the Roanoke change and employees furloughed at other locations. Norfolk Southern, which currently employs about 1,870 in Roanoke, said it will continue its presence in the area. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op plans to open a second store at the Roanoke farmer’s market in April. The 1,225-square-foot store will nr in the former Thomas Market space. The store will offer grab-and-go foods prepared daily at the co-op’s Grandin Road store. The downtown store will carry items similar to those offered at the Grandin store but with a smaller selection. (The Roanoke Times)

Bristol-based Strongwell Corp. announced an agreement with Canadian-based Redwood Plastics to be its authorized distributor in western Canada for Strongwell’s structural shapes, molded grating, and pultruded grating. Redwood Plastics, based in Vancouver, has seven branches located throughout western Canada and the Northwest and Southeast in the U.S. (News release)

Texas-based Blue Bell Ice Cream will serve markets through distribution operations in Richmond and Suffolk. From these locations, Blue Bell will serve a total population of nearly 2.5 million that includes Charlottesville, Fredericksburg, all of Hampton Roads and Elizabeth City and Nags Head in northeastern North Carolina. The Richmond branch will have a staff of 15 to 20 employees, and the Suffolk transfer station will have a staff of eight to 10 employees.
(VirginiaBusiness.com)

Cox Media Group will sell four of its Richmond radio stations to Summit Media. Stations to be sold are 103.7 The River (WURV), Hot 100.9 (WHTI), K95 Richmond (WKHK) and Rock 96.5 (WKLR). According to industry website Inside Radio, Summit Media is a newly formed group led by former Heftel Broadcasting executive Carl Parmer and 16-year Cox Birmingham market manager David DuBose. The sales are expected to close during the second quarter after receiving regulatory approval. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc. is giving $4 million to the Virginia Commonwealth University athletics department as part of a partnership to enhance athletics facilities. The partnership will make each of the university’s athletic facilities part of an HDL, Inc. Athletic Village. The March announcement came just a week after a $3 million pledge by MeadWestvaco Corp.  to help build a $14 million to $16 million basketball practice complex next to the Siegel Center, site of the VCU home basketball games.
(Richmond Times-Dispatch)

The University of Virginia will build a 30,000-square-foot, $25-million medical center building in Charlottesville. University officials outlined plans for the structure, which will be called the Education Resource Center. It also will house an outpatient pharmacy and imaging center. The project is one of the final pieces of massive renovation and construction at the U.Va. Medical Center. (The Daily Progress)

U.Va. ranked as No. 1 among public colleges in the nation by the Princeton Review’s “2013 Best Value Colleges” list. The annual rankings are based on data collected from fall 2011 through fall 2012. The criteria used in the rankings include affordability, academics and financial aid. The Princeton Review chooses 150 colleges each year as “Best Value” colleges. (Examiner.com)

The Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corp. (VBHRC) has been formed to increase the commonwealth’s standing in life sciences. The VBHRC will be funded at $5 million for 2013-14 from the state’s general fund. There will be five founding schools: Eastern Virginia Medical School, George Mason University, U.Va., Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia Tech. An 11-member project management and oversight panel also will be recruited. VBHRC is currently seeking a president/CEO who will report directly to the board of directors. (News release)

A groundbreaking ceremony was held in Richmond for a new $10 million summer training camp for the Washington Redskins. The facility is being built as part of an economic development deal between the city and Bon Secours Richmond Health System. Bon Secours agreed to be the major sponsor of the training camp. In exchange for $6.4 million in naming rights and lease fees, the city of Richmond will lease a former school site to Bon Secours for an expansion of its nearby St. Mary’s Hospital. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

McLean-based Capital One Financial Corp. has reached an agreement to sell its Bet Buy co-branded and private label credit card accounts to Citi. The sale of the credit card accounts, with loan balances of about $7 billion, is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2013. Capital One expects that proceeds will be close to the book value of the accounts, and will result without a gain or loss. Capital One and Best Buy also have agreed to end their contractual relationship early. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

The Environmental Protection Agency will not appeal a federal district court’s ruling declaring it is illegal for the EPA to regulate storm water as a pollutant as it flows into Virginia waterways. A federal judge ruled Jan. 3 that the EPA illegally overreached its authority in attempting to regulate water as a pollutant by imposing rules on the flow of storm water into Fairfax County’s Accotink Creek. Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli estimated the ruling would save Virginia taxpayers nearly $300 million.
(The Washington Post)

Fauquier Hospital, one of just a handful of independent hospitals remaining in Virginia, is seeking a partnership with Tennessee-based LifePoint hospitals. The two have entered into a memorandum of understanding for LifePoint to take over the operations of Fauquier (The Free Lance Star)

SAIC, McLean, announced the names of the two companies after its planned separation later this year. The $4 billion government technical services and enterprise information technology business will retain the SAIC name. The $7 billion national security, health and engineering business will be named Leidos, derived from the word “kaleidoscope.” (VirginiaBusiness.com)
Herndon-based ITT Exelis has completed its $16.8 million acquisition of C4i Pty. Ltd. (C4i) from the Longreach Group Ltd. C4i, based in Melbourne, Australia, provides advanced communications software that supports mission-critical communications for a range of applications including air traffic management, defense, public safety, mining and homeland security. Company officials said the acquisition does not materially impact Exelis financial results for the full-year of 2012 or the first quarter of 2013. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Peter Chang’s China Café is expected to open in Fredericksburg’s Central Park shopping center in May or June. The 4,000-square-foot restaurant will open at 1771 Carl D. Silver Parkway. Chang also runs popular self-named Chinese restaurants in Richmond, Williamsburg and Charlottesville. (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)

Reed Smith launched an office in Houston with 12 partners. Houston marks the firm’s 14th US office and 25th worldwide. Practice areas include energy & natural resources, commercial litigation, life sciences health industry, labor & employment, financial industry, and intellectual property groups. Reed Smith has Virginia offices in Falls Church and Richmond. (News release)

Arlington-based Rosetta Stone will offer its language-learning platforms to members of the International Air Transport Association. The program will give members of the association access to the company’s TOTALe PRO solution, which is available in 20 languages and includes mobile applications, live online tutoring and group-based interactive learning games. The association includes more than 240 member airlines, 75,000 travel agents and more than 20,000 college students who want to work in the aviation industry. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

SAIC, McLean, announced the names of the two companies after its planned separation later this year. The $4 billion government technical services and enterprise information technology business will retain the SAIC name. The $7 billion national security, health and engineering business will be named Leidos, derived from the word “kaleidoscope.” (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Home builder companies Stanley Martin Homes in Reston and Piedmont Realty & Construction in Crozet have agreed to merge. Piedmont Realty & Construction will be integrated into the Stanley Martin Homes’ operational and accounting systems. For the near term, the two companies will conduct business under their respective brand names. Stanley Martin Homes and Piedmont Realty & Construction focus on building single family homes and townhomes, with current offerings ranging in price from $199,500 to $1.6 million.  (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Reston- based TNS Inc. has been acquired by investor group Siris Capital Group LLC, New York, for $862 million. Siris announced in December that it had agreed to acquire TNS for $21 per share in cash. The transaction closed after approval from TNS stockholders and the receipt required regulatory approvals. TNS provides data communications and interoperability solutions. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Reston-based electrical contractor Truland Systems has signed a lease to occupy a 115,000-square-foot office and industrial facility in the Ladysmith area of Caroline County. Truland will use the facility at 16517 Bull Church Road as a distribution center. The company will move in around June 1, said Johnson Realty Advisors President Fitz Johnson, who brokered the deal with Andrew Ferguson of Colliers International. (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)

Herndon-based Washington Gas Energy Services Inc. has entered a five-year secured supply arrangement with Shell Energy North America (US) LP. Under this arrangement, WGES will be able to buy the majority of its power, natural gas and related products from Shell Energy in a structure that reduces WGES’ cash flow risk. Washington Gas Energy Services Inc. is one of the largest competitive providers of electricity and natural gas in the mid‐Atlantic region. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Armed Forces Reunions Inc. in Norfolk, which plans and manages military events nationwide, has won the U.S. Navy Reserve’s $5 million returning warrior workshop contract for the second time. The workshop program is designed to help reservists readjust to civilian life and cope with feelings of stress, isolation and other psychological disorders and injuries. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

The College of William & Mary, named the fourth best value public college for 2013 by The Princeton Review. Selections were based on data collected by The Princeton Review through institutional and student surveys. The Princeton Review weighted more than 30 data points covering academics, costs and financial aid. They also considered the percentage of graduating seniors who borrowed from any loan program and the average debt those students had at graduation. (The Princeton Review)

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has leased two buildings totaling 202,004 square feet of space in Copeland Industrial Park in Newport News. HII designs, builds and maintains ships for the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard and provides after-market services for military ships around the globe. Cushman & Wakefield|Thalhimer handled lease negotiations on behalf of Huntington Ingalls as well as the landlord, Newport Mail Order LLC. According to Thalhimer, HII plans to use the space for storage. (VirginiaBusiness.com) 

Liebherr Mining Equipment Newport News, a manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, will create 174 jobs in a $45.4 million expansion of its operations in Newport News and Hampton. The company is an operating division of Liebherr Mining Equipment SAS, a member company of the Switzerland-based Liebherr Group. The Virginia location serves as the North American headquarters for four operating companies. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Shenzhen Superwatt Power International Co., a Chinese company that makes generators, has chosen Suffolk as its first manufacturing location in the United States. Its U.S. subsidiary, Grandwatt Electric Corp., will employ 30 people within three years, its sales manager, Skila Hsiun, said in an email. The jobs will include mechanical and electrical engineers. Shenzhen Superwatt Power International Co. makes generators for telecommunications, mining, railway and other businesses. (The Virginian-Pilot) 

Towne Insurance Agency, a division of Hampton Roads-based TowneBank, has acquired Clement Cos., a Greenville, N.C.-based insurance agency. Company officials said the move continues Towne Insurance’s expansion into North Carolina. Clement provides a variety of risk management and insurance products to customers from Eastern North Carolina to Raleigh. TowneBank operates 26 banking offices in Virginia and North Carolina. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Virginia Beach-based Valkyrie Enterprises has been named to Forbes’ list of “America’s Most Promising Companies.” The company, which provides systems engineering and technical support for the U.S. Navy, was No. 65 and the only Virginia company on the list of 100 companies. Valkyrie was founded in 2007 by CEO Gary M. Lisota, a former Navy lieutenant commander who spent 11 years serving on cruisers and destroyers. The company has 200 employees and had revenue of $23 million last year. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Whole Foods announced plans to build a store in Newport News, months after opening a location in Virginia Beach. The 35,000-square-foot natural foods supermarket is expected to open sometime in 2015 and planned for the corner of Oyster Point Road and Jefferson Avenue.  (Inside Business)