Executive insights
Virginia Business asked six Hampton Roads leaders to discuss how their organizations are contributing to the region’s success and meeting challenges such as sustainability, regional cooperation and workforce training. LAURA HAYES CHALK Executive director, Virginia Beach Vision, Virginia Beach Virginia Beach Vision is partly focused on resiliency and sustainability — what do you hope to […][...]
Electra.aero names new CEO
Electra.aero has named B. Marc Allen its new CEO, succeeding founder John S. Langford, who will remain chairman, the Manassas-based aviation startup announced Thursday. Allen spent the bulk of his career, nearly two decades, at Boeing, which is headquartered in Arlington County. Since 2020, he served as chief strategy officer an[...]
Amazing race
Virginia is reaping thousands of jobs and huge tax revenues as Amazon.com revamps its U.S. delivery network. The e-commerce giant is opening major distribution centers and sorting facilities across the commonwealth as part of its nationwide strategy to get goods to consumers faster and stay one step ahead of competitors like Wal[...]
Fed’s Fifth District shows modest economic growth
The economy in the Federal Reserve’s Fifth District (a multistate region including Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland) grew modestly in recent weeks, according to the latest edition of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released May 29. Published eight times per year, the Beige Book [...]
Rock and a hard place
The global shipping industry is currently juggling crises taking place more than 7,000 miles apart: Houthi rebels’ attacks on ships in the Red Sea, and a drought that has slashed ship crossings in the Panama Canal. And those came before the East Coast was hit with additional supply chain stresses following the collapse of [...]
Gas exchange
Alternative fuels such as hydrogen and compressed natural gas are attracting interest from trucking companies as the federal government prepares to reduce emissions limits by 2027. The Environmental Protection Agency’s new rules on heavy-duty diesel engine standards starting with 2027 models includes stricter standards aim[...]
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, w[...]
Spies in the sky?
High-level federal concerns over Chinese-made ship-to-shore cranes ramped up in February after President Joe Biden issued an executive order addressing cybersecurity and espionage risks the cranes pose at U.S. ports. Then in early March, a congressional investigation revealed cellular modems had been found on some Chinese crane [...]
Crisis in Baltimore
Since the March 26 container ship collision that collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, ships previously bound for the Port of Baltimore have been diverted to other ports, including the Port of Virginia. The Singapore-flagged container vessel Dali hit the Key Bridge at about 1:30 a.m. March 26 after issuing a mayda[...]
Metro passes $4.8B budget for FY25
Metro’s board of directors on Thursday passed a $4.8 billion capital and operations budget for fiscal year 2025, which avoids massive service cuts, although fares will increase by 12.5% beginning July 1. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which oversees the Metrorail and Metrobus public transportation syst[...]
Fed’s Fifth District economy grows slightly
The economy in the Federal Reserve’s Fifth District (a multistate region including Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland) grew slightly in recent weeks, according to the latest edition of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released April 17. Published eight times per year, the Beige Boo[...]
HRBT expansion’s first tunnel boring is complete
Mary, the tunnel boring machine that has been paving the way for the expanded Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, hit a milestone Wednesday when she finished the first of twin tunnels that are part of the bridge-tunnel’s expansion. Launched from the HRBT’s South Island a year ago, the $70 million custom-built tunnel boring[...]