Sign In
Free Newsletter
Roanoke, New River Valley organizations form tech alliance
The Valleys Innovation Council (VIC), the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council (RBTC) and the Regional Accelerator and Mentoring Program (RAMP) have formed an alliance called Verge. In July 2020, the three groups announced they were developing the alliance, which is aimed at supporting the region’s technologists, innovators[...]
U.K. software company acquires Blacksburg firm
Nottingham, England-based software company Ideagen plc announced Tuesday it has acquired Blacksburg-based Qualtrax. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This marks the 21st acquisition for Ideagen, which provides quality management software for aviation, financial services, life science, health care and manufacturing industries. Founded in 1993, Qualtrax provides software that helps companies with managing […][...]
Virginia Tech to lead DoD’s new Acquisition Innovation and Research Center
The U.S. Department of Defense has selected Virginia Tech as one of three schools to lead its new Acquisition Innovation and Research Center (AIRC). The AIRC is funded by the DoD and directed by the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The goal of the center (which also includes the New [&hell[...]
Va. Tech Transportation Institute director to step down
Tom Dingus, the director of the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) for the past 25 years, will step down from his position and return to the faculty, the university announced Monday. The endowed professor has been a driver safety researcher for the past 35 years and has had a keen focus on autonomous technologies for [...]
Roanoke Valley office occupancy increases by 1%
The Roanoke Valley office market saw a 1% increase in office occupancy in 2020, ending the year with an 88% occupancy rate, according to Poe & Cronk Real Estate Group’s 34th Annual Office Market Survey. These figures are a promising sign “in one of the most challenging years in recent memory,” Poe & Cronk states, […]
A diversified portfolio
From tea to trucks to technology, an eclectic blend of industries settled into the Roanoke/New River Valley region in 2020. Some companies brought new operations to the region, while others expanded existing facilities. Traditional Medicinals kicked off 2020 with its January announcement of a new facility in Franklin County, man[...]
Rolling forward
Once a big economic development is announced, it can be years before it comes to fruition. But that wasn’t the case with Mack Trucks Inc., one of North America’s largest producers of heavy-duty trucks, which took only nine months from announcement to starting full production of medium-duty trucks in the Roanoke Valley. In Ja[...]
Roanoke College taps alumna for resource development VP
Roanoke College announced this week it has appointed an alumna to become its new vice president of resource development. Kimberly P. Blair, a 1993 graduate, will join the college on May 22 and serve in President Michael C. Maxey’s Cabinet. Blair is currently Virginia Tech’s assistant vice president of advancement for[...]
First Bank to acquire The Bank of Fincastle
Strasburg-based First National Corp. (the bank holding company of First Bank) announced Thursday it will acquire The Bank of Fincastle. Financial terms of the transaction were not released, but the combined bank is expected to have approximately $1.2 billion in assets, $868 million in loans, $1 billion in deposits and 20 branch offices across Virginia. […]
SML Chamber names member relations, events manager
The Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce announced Tuesday that it has hired Erin Stanley as its member relations and events manager, effective March 1. Stanley has previously worked in advertising, marketing, sales and business development with The Roanoke Times, Laker Media and WSLS-10. In the chamber’s newly[...]
Virginia Tech Innovation Campus director named to National Academy of Engineering
Virginia Tech announced Monday that Lance R. Collins, vice president and executive director of the university’s Innovation Campus, was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for 2021. The former Joseph Silbert Dean of Engineering at Cornell University was named as head of Tech’s Innovation Campus in February 2020. He[...]
Virginia Tech professor named as engineering fellow
Virginia Tech announced Monday that biomedical engineering and mechanics professor Raffaella De Vita has been elected to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows. The institute’s membership includes more than 2,000 fellows who are recognized leaders in the medical and biologi[...]
