million, 200-job deal to create a customer-experience track in 2014 and a $38 million, 32-job deal to build a related facility in 2015. The layoff announce- ments weren’t tied to economic overreach, but to a decline in demand for commercial trucks across the entirety of the North American market. Charlie Jewell, executive
director of the New River Valley Economic Development Alli- ance, says Volvo’s recent invest- ments will continue despite the layoff announcement and may contribute to its eventual rebound. Indeed, maintaining busi-
nesses through difficult times often eventually leads to expan- sion announcements. In the case of Montgomery
County’s Hubbell Lighting, its $6 million, 100-job expansion signaled the addition of a new product, LED lighting, which helps to broaden the company’s markets even as it contributes to regional economic diversifica- tion as well. In Salem, Yokohama Tire
agreed to invest $15 million in its tire-manufacturing plant in return for a series of local tax breaks, basically amounting to a holding action to retain an 800- job employer the same year that it opened a new, $300 million commercial plant in Mississippi. Deals like this not only preserve existing jobs but often pay off in future announcements. Bristol Compressors, for
example, struggled through the early 2000s, closing its plant in Allegheny County, N.C., and laying off hundreds from another plant in Washington County. At one point in 2006, the Virginia plant was put up for sale, but governmental action, including investment by Wash- ington County and the Virginia
Tobacco Indemnification and Revitalization Commission, kept it open, saving 1,000 jobs. This year, Bristol Compres-
sors announced it would invest $1 million to expand its opera- tion and create 110 jobs. “We once thought they were going to go out of business, and now they just added 100 new jobs,” says Rob McClintock, vice president of research for the Virginia Economic Development Part- nership. “It was a big deal to get them back on solid footing.” In Smyth County, Utility
Trailer Manufacturing Co., which located there in 1988, announced it would expand, creating 200 jobs. Two big expansions came in
Wythe County. Coperion Corp., which makes compounding systems, bulk materials systems and components, announced it would invest $3 million and create 22 jobs. Schaffner MTC Transformers, which makes specialty electronics, announced it would invest $3 million and create 79 jobs. David Manley, executive
director of the Joint Industrial Development Authority, says an additional 20 businesses opened in Wytheville as part of its downtown revitalization. “Being able to not be mar-
ried to one thing forever and to acknowledge when industries change has been important for Southwest Virginia,” Manley says. “No matter what you think the economy is married to today, history has shown that that can change quickly. I think part of Southwest Virginia resilience, beyond its history of being a resilient people, has been the willingness to adapt.” In Washington County,
Qore Systems, which makes antimicrobial hand sanitizer, announced it would spend
nearly $13 million to move from Arizona and create 140 jobs in Highlands Business Park. Qore is opening on a pad that had been occupied previously by a company that closed after a 2011 tornado. Washington County Manager Jason Berry praised the opening as the gateway into nanotech, a sizzling sector that other regions, includ- ing the New River Valley, are seeking to develop as well. Roanoke’s biggest 2015 job
announcement came from one of the valley’s more underrated employers — banking giant Wells Fargo. Its operations cen- ter on Plantation Road — the bank’s low-key counterpoint to
the Wells Fargo tower down- town — will hire 500 workers as part of an expansion. Last year Wells Fargo
issued layoffs at the operations center as part of a contraction in the home-equity section. Now it’s seeing growth in other sections, including credit cards, personal loans, and wholesale and commercial banking, says Chris Lee, a senior-level man- ager. Those jobs will include entry-level office positions as well as a higher-level career path. It’s one brick in a region
that’s working to build a resil- ient, stable economy out of an increasingly diverse set of build- ing materials.
Southwest Virginia’s recent deals Company
Location
Wells Fargo TeleTech
Utility Trailer Manufacturing Co.
Qore Systems
Bristol Compressors International
Hubbell Lighting Inc. Oak Hall Industries Inc. Dhiyo House Inc.
Roanoke County Scott County
Smyth County
Washington County Washington County Montgomery County
Grayson County Wise County
Schaffner MTC Transformers Wythe County AT&T Wireless
Source: Virginia Economic Development Partnership
Major employers by number of jobs Company
Carilion Clinic Virginia Tech Wal-Mart
Volvo Trucks Kroger
Location Roanoke
Blacksburg Russell County
# jobs 500 300
200 140 110 100
100 80 79 60
# jobs
11,300 8,000+
Throughout region 1,000-2,999 Pulaski County
Throughout region 1,000-2,999
HCA Virginia Health System Throughout region 1,000-2,999 Wells Fargo Bank Radford University Advance Auto Parts Norfolk Southern
Throughout region 1,000-2,999 Radford Roanoke
1,000-2,999 1,000-2,999
Throughout region 1,000-2,999 Source: Roanoke Regional Partnership, New River Valley Economic Development Alliance
www.VirginiaBusiness.com VIRGINIA BUSINESS 29 1,000-2,999
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