New investment announced for Danville

A manufacturer of high-performance cutting tools is establishing a North American technology and strategic manufacturing hub in Danville.

KYOCERA SGS Precision Tool Inc. will spend $9.5 million to open an operation in Cyber Park, which is owned by the Danville-Pittsylvania County Regional Industrial Facility Authority. The investment will create 35 new jobs.

The operation will be called the KYOCERA SGS Tech Hub LLC.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe met with company officials during the 2015 Paris Air Show and a 2016 marketing mission in Europe.

“Under the encouragement of Governor McAuliffe, KYOCERA SGS Precision Tool visited the state of Virginia and the city of Danville, where we instantly connected with a location and a population of people that are in the early stages of a renaissance that perfectly aligns with our own internal evolution,” Alan Pearce, CEO of KYOCERA SGS Tech Hub, said in a statement. “…The history of the Danville area and its people, coupled with the high level technical skill development and engineering advancement efforts driving Virginia into an industrial leading position in the future, is the essence of why the KYOCERA SGS Tech Hub is being created in Danville, Virginia.”

KYOCERA SGS Tech Hub has joined the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (CCAM) as an organizing member, the highest level of membership.

“As a strategic supplier to Rolls-Royce and an organizing member of CCAM, we are confident that the company can serve as a hub to attract additional local machine tool operators and suppliers operations to the region,” McAuliffe said.

McAuliffe approved a $200,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund, and the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission approved $350,000 for the project.

The company is eligible to receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program. Funding and services to support the company’s employee training activities will also be provided through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

KYOCERA SGS Precision Tool, was founded in Ohio in 1951 as SGS Tool Co. and is now a wholly owned division of KYOCERA Corp., which is based in Japan.

“We are excited to forge the next chapter of our future success alongside our new home of Danville, Virginia,” said Jason Wells, chief technical officer of KYOCERA SGS Tech Hub. “The support and investment the elected officials have demonstrated complement the emphasis they have placed into developing a skilled workforce starting at the high school level, networking world class University level engineering programs, and supporting industry changing research at facilities such as CCAM and the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.”