Here’s a round-up of business news from around Southwest and Southside. Send items for possible inclusion to news@cardinalnews.org.
BWX to create research and development center in Campbell County
BWX Technologies has announced plans to create a manufacturing and research and development center in Campbell County. The new center, called the BWXT Innovation Campus, will sit on an 11-acre property adjacent to the company’s existing facility.
An announcement from Gov. Ralph Northam said the project is expected to create 97 jobs “with an average expected salary of more than $115,000 per year.”
Headquartered in Lynchburg, BWXT is a Fortune 1000 and Defense News Top 100 manufacturing and engineering company. With approximately 6,700 employees, BWXT has 12 major operating sites in the U.S. and Canada. In addition, BWXT joint ventures provide management and operations at more than a dozen U.S. Department of Energy and NASA facilities. The company currently has three locations in Central Virginia and employs 2,630 workers across those facilities.
BWXT plans to relocate 150 employees from nearby facilities to the new campus, as well as its Nuclear Services Group and research, development, and production center for new microreactors and nuclear fuels designed for space exploration and national security. The governor’s release said that “when fully developed, the Innovation Campus will serve as an exhibit of the company’s ‘factory of the future’ for visiting customers that include NASA, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Energy.”
The project involves a $400,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund and a performance-based grant of $700,000 from the Virginia Investment Performance Grant.
Radford gets grant to hire three police officers
The U.S. Department of Justice has awarded $375,000 to the City of Radford for the hiring of three law enforcement officers through the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program. The announcement came from Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, and U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both D-Virginia.
Virginia Tech announces new graduation schedule
Virginia Tech has announced a new way of of holding graduation, organizing ceremonies by college “to accommodate growing classes and their family and friends.” Here’s the new schedule:
The university commencement ceremony will be Friday, May 13, at 8:30 a.m. College specific ceremonies will take place between Saturday, May 7, and Sunday, May 15. Most ceremonies will take place in Lane Stadium unless otherwise noted.
Previously, ceremonies were held in venues across campus, some at the departmental level.
By moving the events to Lane Stadium, space for graduates and those celebrating them will no longer be limited. Capacity limits for commencement ceremonies will adhere to public health guidelines.
Saturday, May 7
- 9 a.m. Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (Roanoke)
Wednesday, May 11
- 3:30 p.m. Graduate School Commencement
- 7 p.m. Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (Public Health) Ceremony
Thursday, May 12
- 8:30 a.m. Pamplin College of Business
- Noon Pamplin College of Business
- 3:30 p.m. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- 7 p.m. College of Natural Resources and Environment
Friday, May 13
- 8:30 a.m. University commencement
- 3:30 p.m. College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences
- 7 p.m. Corps of Cadets Graduation and Joint Commissioning Ceremony (Burruss Hall)
- 7 p.m. Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) Ceremony (Moss Arts Center)
Saturday, May 14
- 8:30 a.m. College of Architecture and Urban Studies
- Noon College of Science
- 3:30 p.m. College of Engineering
- 7 p.m. College of Engineering
Sunday, May 15
- 1 p.m. Graduate School Commencement (Washington, D.C., Metro Area)