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| Business Intelligence for Virginia's Entrepreneurial Economy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In This Issue... Expansions, Relocations & Launches, Who's Hot, Who's Not, Who's Winning Business, Innovations, Partnerships & Collaborations, R&D / Intellectual Property, Trends, Other News, Commentary, Events, Click here to forward to a friend or colleague who might like this newsletter. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Expansions, Relocations & Launches  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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STIHL to Invest $78.4 Million in Virginia Beach Expansion VIRGINIA BEACH--STIHL Incorporated, a German-based manufacturer of chainsaws and other handheld power equipment, will invest $78.4 million to expand its facility in Virginia Beach, creating 150 new jobs. According to Gov. Mark R. Warner, who had met with senior STIHL executives during a 2003 trade trip, the projects marks "the largest single investment in the history of STIHL." Said Fred Whyte, president of STIHL's U.S. subsidiary: "We are pleased to be able to continue to add jobs here in support of the local and national economies in lieu of outsourcing. Although we export to more than 80 countries, the United States is still the largest single market for our products. Consequently, expanding manufacturing in Virginia Beach has repeatedly proven to be a sound business decision." More. Wolseley to Invest $30 Million in North American H.Q. NEWPORT NEWS-Wolseley plc, a distributor of plumbing and heating products and building materials, will invest more than $30 million to build a 220,000-square-foot North American headquarters facility in Newport News. This new location eventually will add more than 400 new jobs to the area. The Wolseley North America organization includes Ferguson Enterprises, a Virginia-grown company based in Newport News, plus units based in Raleigh, N.C., and Burlington, Ontario. More. Digicon Crosses Potomac to Herndon HERNDON--Digicon Corporation, a network engineering, software and telecommunications services company, has relocated its corporate headquarters to Fairfax County after being based in Montgomery County, Md., for 20 years. With the relocation of headquarters staff, the company now employs more than 80 professionals in Fairfax County, more than 100 at other locations. Company President John Wu said Digicon moved its headquarters to Fairfax County to improve access to customers and partners. "We have a lot of commercial opportunities here as well as government contracts," Wu said. "We have increased partnership activities with software, security and telecommunications companies." More. U.S. Home Consolidates Wood Deck Manufacturing in Woodbridge WOODBRIDGE-Dallas-based U.S. Home Systems, Inc., will consolidate the wood deck manufacturing operations of its USA Deck operations at its facility in Woodbridge, as part of its merger of USA Deck with another subsidiary, U.S. Remodelers, Inc. Said CEO Murray H. Gross: "We ceased manufacturing wood decks in our Glen Mills, Westborough and Bridgeport facilities. … We will recognize some economies of scale and will more efficiently control and balance our operating expenses as a result of this consolidation." More. Allegro Moves to Larger Offices GLEN ALLEN-Allegro, an IT professional services firm, is moving into larger office space at Virginia Center Commons in order to accommodate increasing demand for its Open Source services. Said President Doug Lucy: "Many firms are reducing costs with Open Source and .NET, especially with self-service web interfaces. Since these 'free' solutions still need expert support, we've been adding more staff and services to keep those [technologies] affordable and eliminate the risks for SMBs." In Brief... ALEXANDRIA-Avineon, a provider of IT, geospatial and engineering services, has opened an expanded, state-of-the-art facility in Hyderabad, India, to accommodate rapid growth of its Indian workforce. More. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Who's Hot... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Cuisine Solutions Cooks Up Rapid Growth ALEXANDRIA--Cuisine Solutions, Inc., a provider of premium frozen foods, grew 1Q 2006 revenues 69.5 percent, capping two years of growth at more than 30 percent annually. The company, which utilizes the "Sous-Vide" slow-cook, vacuum-sealed technology, also has negotiated an increase in its line of credit from $2.5 million to $5 million. More. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Who's Not... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Independence Air to Discontinue Flights DULLES--FLYi, Inc., parent of low-fare airline Independence Air, will voluntarily discontinue all scheduled flights planned to depart after 7:00 p.m., January 5. The company is seeking bankruptcy court approval to refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart beyond that time. Said Kerry Skeen, CEO of the bankrupt airline: "There has not been a firm offer put forward that meets the financial criteria necessary to continue operations as is. Therefore, we are voluntarily discontinuing scheduled service." More. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Who's Winning Business... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Plateau Lands "Virtual University" Gig with DIA ARLINGTON--Plateau Systems, a developer of human resource management software, will provide the learning system infrastructure for the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency's virtual university. DIA employees and civilian contractors can choose from a mixture of more than 300 courses, including distance-learning modules, on topics ranging from counterterrorism to asymmetric threats. Courses are taken online from their students' desktops via secure networks. Instead of traveling to a central classroom to listen to hours of lecture, a student can gain access to virtually the same instruction, at any time, and for practically no cost. More. In Brief... FALLS CHURCH--Harris Corporation has been selected as a technical services subcontractor by NCI Information Systems, Inc., for an $804 million engineering and integration services contract to support the United States Army Information Systems Engineering Command and other federal agencies worldwide. More. ALEXANDRIA--VSE Corporation and its subcontractor ManTech International Corporation have won a contract task order potentially worth $351 million over two years to provide maintenance and logistics services in support of U.S. Army equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan. More. RESTON--ZyEdge LLC, has been engaged by Herndon-based PCCW Global to handle all of its U.S.-based VoIP deployments. More. RICHMOND-Allegro has won business potentially worth $2 million over four years to provide experts in Defense Travel System deployment and training to the U.S. Air Force. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Innovations | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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At Last, Something Useful You Can Do with that Video-Enabled iPod You Got for Christmas RICHMOND-Consumers will be able to get a sneak peak at the newest electronics products thanks to Circuit City Stores, Inc., which will webcast reports from this year's Consumer Electronics Show. The features, which will be downloadable from the Circuit City website beginning Jan. 6, will focus on the latest advances in digital TV, home theater, digital satellite radio, GPS navigation and personal computers. Accompanying blog reports will offer personal insights gleaned from one of the world's largest trade shows. More. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Partnerships & Collaborations | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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TotalVid Licenses Content to Handheld Entertainment NORFOLK-TotalVid, a subsidiary of Landmark Communications, has licensed its video content to HandHeld Entertainment, of San Francisco, developer of a mass-market portable media players at mass-market prices. TotalVid , which offers a massive library of extreme sports, anime, martial arts, travel and how-to videos, will expand the content available to HandHeld's ZVUE video download store. "The ZVUE is great because it gives its users the ability to do things like watch a new skateboarding trick at the skate park and then try it moments later," TotalVid founder Karl Quist. "When you couple the mobile ZVUE with mobile entertainment from TotalVid, you have a hit on your hands." More. USA Today Partners with ShermansTravel NEW YORK-USATODAY.COM has formed a content and advertising partnership with ShermansTravel, of New York, N.Y., an online publisher of travel deals and advice. ShermansTravel will publish a co-branded Top 25 deals e-newsletter and will also power the travel specials section of USATODAY.com. More. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | R&D / Intellectual Property | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wahoos Top Surpass $300 Milllion in R&D CHARLOTTESVILLE-University of Virginia researchers topped $300 million in grants and contracts during the 2004-2005 fiscal year, a milestone in the University's drive to upgrade its research enterprise. When the final numbers are tallied, the total amount of research support could reach as high as $313 million. Said R. Ariel Gomez, vice president for research and graduate studies: "The University has made substantial investments in research, and we have plans for the short- and long-term future that involve the retention of our best faculty, attracting outstanding internationally recognized scientists and the best students, coupled with the construction of the most modern research facilities available today and the upgrade of our existing ones." More. Platinum: Not Just for Jewelry RICHMOND--Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University's Massey Cancer Center have created a new platinum-based, anti-cancer agent able to overcome acquired drug resistance. The findings may help researchers design a new generation of anti-cancer drugs that selectively target cancer cells, reduce resistance and side effects and expand the range of tumors that can be treated by platinum. More. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Trends | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Chmura Economics & Analytics |
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 Richmond entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurial activities are an important measure of health for a state, local, or regional economy. The above chart displays the number of firms with ten or fewer employees that entered or exited the Richmond economy from 1991 through 2004. With the exception of 1999, the number of new firms has been higher than exiting firms each year since 1991. In 2004, 3,697 new small firms opened in Richmond while 3,135 exited. For the latest analytics on labor market and workforce trends across Virginia, click here, or call (804) 649-1107. Breaking Stock News: Donald Trump Wants Your Penis Patch Here are AOL's Top 10 global spam subject lines for 2005: 1) Donald Trump Wants You - Please Respond 2) Double Standards New Product - Penis Patch 3) Body Wrap: Lose 6-20 inches in one hour 4) Get an Apple iPod Nano, PS3 or Xbox 360 for Free 5) It's Lisa, I must have sent you to the wrong site 6) Breaking Stock News** Small Cap Issue Poised to Triple 7) Thank you for your business. Shipment notification (77FD87) 8) (IMPORTANT) Your Mortgage Application is Ready 9) Thank you: Your $199 Rolex Special Included 10) Online Prescriptions Made Easy More. Baby Boomers: The Spirit Is Willing but the Flesh is Weak RICHMOND--Baby Boomers over the age of 50 know they need to exercise and eat right to stay healthy, but the New Year's resolution they are most likely to keep entails nothing more ambitious than drinking plenty of water and taking vitamins. Only 21 percent of Boomers over 50 said they exercised regularly, and only 28 percent said they eat a balanced diet, according to a recent survey conducted by the Southeastern Institute of Research/Boomer Project Boomer Trend Report. "Boomers over 50 may be healthier, wealthier and better educated than any previous generation of 50-year-olds in American history," said Matt Thornhill, president of the Boomer Project. "But they also may be poised for a big fall if all they do to stay healthy is drink designer water and pop vitamins all day long." More. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Other News | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In Brief... HARRISONBURG-Rockingham Memorial Hospital has received approval from the Virginia Department of Health to provide open heart surgery services. More. RICHMOND--The Merge Computer Group, Inc., has been designated an Authorized Training Center for SumTotal Systems' ToolBook, an e-learning development suite. More. RICHMOND-Acorn Sales Company, Inc., a distributor of notary supplies, corporate kits, rubber stamps and embossers, has re-launched its website with upgraded electronic commerce capabilities. More. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Commentary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Caught Between Extremes Developers and environmental activists have one thing in common: a willingness to use government power to affect land use. Consumers are the losers. More. |
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Roads and Reason Virginia is evolving toward a market-driven transportation system. Let's pick up the pace. Here's what an economically rational funding system would look like. When some future scholar chronicles the history of Virginia, the Warner administration may be best remembered for its decisive break with past transportation policy. Abandoning a century-long tradition of relying primarily upon state government to finance, build and maintain Virginia's roads, Gov. Mark R. Warner has pushed the state sharply in the direction of a market-driven transportation system. More. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Back To Top | Events | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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