The Prospect
Office of Economic Development Publication
ISSUE 11 May 2012
this issue
What Factors Impact the
Local Economy P.1
Made in Danville P.2
New Commercial
Property for Sale P.3
The Role of Automation in
Manufacturing P.5
News & Updates P.6
STAFF
Jeremy Stratton, CEcD
Director
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Anne Moore-Sparks
What Factors Impact the Economy? Written by C. Teague
Project Manager
Follow Anne on
As stated in the January issue of The Prospect, the POLICOM Corporation offers short, educational videos that focus on building a local economy. The videos explain what a local economy
is, how it works, what quality economic growth is, and more.
Linwood Wright
Consultant
Recently, I watched its series about economic impact. The speaker started off the series by
Follow Linwood on
explaining what influences the economy in positive and negative ways. He broke it down into
three categories – business, events, and government activity.
Corrie Teague
The three categories are then measured by the following:

The total employment of the event or business

The increase or decline of personal income

Capital investment made, in other words adding to the wealth of the community

Gross transactions

The effect it has on real estate values

The effect that is has on local government taxes
Marketing & Research
Manager
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Kimberly Custer
Special Projects Assistant
(continued on page 4)
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Made in Danville Written by: C. Teague
The Southern Virginia region historically has been known for
manufacturing. Everyday household brands, such as Dan River,
Stanley Furniture, Corning, and Tultex, produced popular products and employed thousands in the region.
is made from a mixture of sand, soda ash, limestone, and recycled
Even after these industries closed, manufacturing still holds
Essel Propack – Every time you pick up a tube of Crest brand
strong in this region, employing just under 20% of its workforce.
toothpaste, you are using a product that is made in Danville. Essel
In the city of Danville, approximately 17% of its workforce re-
Propack opened its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Danville in
mains in manufacturing. Instead of the traditional furniture and
2002. Essel is the largest specialty packaging company in the
textiles, products that you will recognize and more than likely use
world, manufacturing laminated and seamless tubes, caps, and
on a daily basis are made right here in Danville. This article will
closures for products in the toothpaste, cosmetics, pharmaceuti-
give you a brief overview of several of these items and the com-
cal, food, and industrial sectors. Its first client in the Danville facil-
panies that make them.
ity was Proctor & Gamble.
Nestlé USA – The next time you bite in to a delicious Toll House
Swedwood Danville, LLC and EBI — Have you ever shopped at an
cookie, remember that it was produced right here in Danville,
IKEA store? If so, several items that you see in the store are made
Virginia. In 1988, Nestlé USA opened its Airside Industrial Park
in Danville. In 2008, Swedwood cut the ribbon to its first North
facility to make Buitoni refrigerated pastas and sauces. In 1999,
American manufacturing operation in Cane Creek Centre. This
Nestlé added its Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough
Swedish company produces a variety of wood-based products for
products to this operation.
IKEA, including bookshelves, coffee tables, side tables, and enter-
glass. Today, this facility manufactures over two million bottles a
day for customers such as Coors, Anheuser-Busch, and Miller.
tainment systems. Also in 2008, EBI announced that it would open
O-I (Owens Brockway Glass Company) – In 1978, Brockway Glass
Company (now O-I) opened its plant in Ringgold to produce glass
bottles for the Miller brewing facility in Eden, North Carolina.
According to a Register and Bee article, 60% of the final product
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a manufacturing facility on Kentuck Road in Danville. This Polish
company produces mattresses and upholstered furniture for IKEA.
New Commercial Property Listing from the
City of Danville, Office of Economic Development
527 Main Street
Danville, Virginia 24541

Sale Price: $250,000

Parcel ID: 22130

Size: 3,200 sq ft (1st and 2nd Floor)
Links
Photos of 527 Main Street
Additional Site Information
Tax Assessor’s Website
Additional square footage is available
in the basement.
This Industrial Development Authority
owned property is located in the heart
of the Downtown Historic District. The building was constructed in
1896 and has recently gone through extensive renovations (2012).
This brick building features two floors with separate entrances for
each. Each level is also metered separately. Four designated parking
spaces come with the property.
The property is also located in an enterprise zone. A potential
Downtown Enhancement Grant or a low-interest loan could be
available to a qualified applicant.
The City of Danville is currently undergoing a major streetscape improvement
project that will transform Main Street.
To read more about the plan, please click here.
The Industrial Development Authority of Danville, Virginia is taking serious
offers only for 527 Main Street; Danville, Virginia 24541. Buyer must be the
end-user.
For more information, please contact Corrie Teague at (434) 793-1753 or
cteague@discoverdanville.com.
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What Factors Impact the Local Economy?
Business - In economic development, our job is to recruit and
retain businesses in the area. We are focused on creating a
strong economy through a variety of industries – such as advanced manufacturing, research and development, information
technology and data centers, and back office and shared services.
Even with Danville’s current unemployment rate being just over
10%, we are not looking to recruit companies that will only employ a large amount of people —they must also offer a living
wage for their employees. The higher the wages and number of
jobs, the more on an impact it has on the overall economy. By
looking at our most recent list of announcements, it shows that
we are recruiting businesses that will have a larger impact on our
local economy. (Noblis – average wage $125,000, Web Parts LLC
– average wage $65,000)
Events – Events, such as weather, can have an effect on the economy. For instance, when hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans it
had a negative effect on its economy. We are very fortunate that
we live in an area with very little history of natural disasters.
Government – The speaker stated that all government activities
impact the economy in a positive or negative way. Let’s look at
the River District as an example.. For years the buildings in this
district, which is comprised of the Historic Downtown and Tobacco Warehouse Districts, have been left abandoned and run
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(Continued)
down. Many were in need of major repair or needed to be demolished. Approximately two years ago, the City, through the Danville
Industrial Development Authority, started purchasing and renovating these buildings. The end goal is not to make a profit, but rather
create an opportunity for the private sector to purchase or lease
the buildings for their businesses. Such successes include the Old
Belt No. 1 facility that houses LiFeBATT and Noblis, as well as the
former Dimon Headquarters building where the Danville Regional
Foundation and two of Averett University’s educational programs
are now located. Through the local government’s investment, we
are now starting to see life and growth in this district.
Even though the City has gone through tough economic times, like
many rural parts of the country, Danville is taking the right steps
towards having a stronger and more diverse local economy. These
steps are seen through the exciting, new developments in the
River District and the growing number of industrial and technological prospects that are announced.
We’ve Gone Social!
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Development on Facebook, Twitter, and
Blogger!
The Role of Automation in Manufacturing Written by: C. Teague
Recently, there has been a lot of buzz about advanced manufacturing and its effect on the global economy. A lot of people still
wonder what the difference is between advanced manufacturing
and traditional ways of manufacturing. Compared to previous
methods of manufacturing, advanced manufacturing uses more
automation and technology throughout its process.
An example of how automation has significantly changed the
manufacturing and distribution industries can come from my
previous job. One of our clients had a distribution center that
shipped out hundreds of packages every day. It was a pretty neat
operation to watch. An order would come in, the item would be
picked from its rack, and then sent down a conveyer belt to its
appropriate packaging station. Corrugated boxes in a variety of
sizes were already at this station folded and ready for an item to
be placed into it and then shipped off.
The focus of my example should not be placed on the entire process, but rather one particular step – the folding of the corrugated
boxes. This company continuously had many employees standing
around tables folding boxes for shipments. This step was very
time consuming and rather expensive due to the amount of labor
involved.
They finally decided to invest in a box erecting machine, which is
a very expensive piece of equipment. Alone, this machine could
handle folding boxes exponentially faster than the group of workers. This company went from having anywhere between five to
ten people during its regular season fold boxes to having two people who operated the machine - saving the company time and
money.
For most people, this example may sound like a nightmare – automation and robots taking the place of individual jobs. However,
the reality is that heavy-labored, low-skilled manufacturing is now
a thing of the past. Manufacturing has become automated, more
technical, and has a much cleaner process. Instead of looking for a
low-skilled laborer, companies are now looking for a skilled workforce who can operate the machines and know how to troubleshoot in case any problems occur.
Adding automation to the manufacturing and distribution sectors
helps companies by making products at a quicker pace and more
efficiently. For employees, this gives them the chance to increase
their education and skill level, as well as have the potential to earn
higher wages.
Yes, job openings in automated manufacturing settings have become more competitive due to the decrease in workers needed.
That is why it is extremely important that we educate and train the
local workforce to be prepared for these new positions as new
companies are recruited to the region.
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News and Updates

3/19/2012—The city of Danville has won the 2012 Community Economic Development Award for communities with a population of 40,001 to 100,000. The award, given by the Virginia Economic Developers Association, recognizes outstanding communities in the Commonwealth for their efforts in advancing the economic viability of their community through economic and community development. The City of Danville’s Office of Economic Development submitted the winning application, focusing on the
River District revitalization effort and its impact on community development, business attractions, and community
involvement.

3/29/2012—Goodyear Plant Manager, Tim Noe, was presented with a $50,000 check for machinery and tools tax
rebate. This rebate is part of an incentive plan offered by
the City of Danville to industries that make an investment
that results in an increase in tax revenues, as compared to
the prior year.

4/4/2012—The City of Danville announced today that Jarrett Welding and Machine Inc. was the recipient of a Local Enterprise Zone Job Creation Grant. The
company, which is located on Goodyear Boulevard, manufactures custom-made
wrought iron and design-build structural steel for schools, industrial applications,
and homebuilders. It also offers full-service CNC machining from custom parts to
production runs. Jarrett is located in a Virginia Enterprise Zone and qualified for
the grant because of recent job creation in the city. The grant amount was
$18,500.

4/11/2012—Japan Tobacco International has made a $400,000 grant to the City of
Danville to be used to design and build a fountain that will serve as the focal point
for the entrance to the Tobacco Warehouse District. This very visible feature, at
the intersection of the Downtown District and the Tobacco Warehouse District, will highlight the renovated area along the Dan
River that is the lynch pin of the River District.

4/13/2012—Adam and Lauren Jones opened The Brick , a running and athletic shoe store, in the former Frances Kahn building located at 410 A Main Street. This store carriers over 70
styles of shoes catering to wide variety groups—from walkers
to joggers to Marathon runners. This company received a
$20,000 Downtown Enhancement Grant from the City of Danville.

4/23/2012—Danville Utilities was one of 176 of the nation’s
more than 2,000 public power utilities to earn Reliable Public
Power Provider recognition from the American Public Power
Association for providing consumers with the highest degree of reliable and safe electric service. The RP3 designation recognizes
public power utilities that demonstrate proficiency in four key disciplines: reliability, safety, workforce development and system
improvement.
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News and Updates

4/25/2012—Virdia, a leading developer of cellulosic sugars, announced the opening of its demonstration facility in Danville. The
facility is designed to demonstrate Virdia’s CASE ™ process in pilot scale, as well as produce commercially representative samples
of cellulosic sugars and lignin for use in the renewable chemicals, bio-energy, and nutrition industries. This company is located in
the Sustainable Energy and Technology Center (SENTEC), which is on the campus of the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR). SENTEC is comprised of 25,000 square feet of research laboratories, spaces and offices. The building itself has several sustainability initiatives implemented, including a vegetated rood, a rainwater cistern, recycled flooring, advanced HVAC systems, and other energy-saving features.

5/3/2012—Hybrid Vehicles of Danville, Inc. (HVDI) announced
plans to locate its new manufacturing facility and headquarters in
Danville. HVDI will initially hire 25 people with plans over a threeyear period to employ at least 150 people. The three-year capital
investment total is expected to be at least $1,500,000.

5/7/2012—The City of Danville’s Office of Economic Development
announced the availability of a new River District blog. The blog
has been created in order to keep downtown stakeholders and
the public informed of projects specific to the River District. The blog currently features information such as recent news releases,
new business announcements, special events, upcoming meetings, and specific project updates such as the impending demolition to the former Downtowner Motor Lodge and the upcoming Phase I of the Streetscape Improvement plan.

5/7/2012—The City of Danville received national attention recently at a broadband summit for its work in launching a public
“open access” fiber optic broadband network for use by businesses to deliver broadband services to customers. Organizers of the
2012 Broadband Communities Summit, which was held in Dallas, held up
Danville as a case study in how a small city can use telecommunications to
help recruit and expand businesses. (Register and Bee)

5/9/2012—Jan Brink of Unarco Industries, LLC was presented with a
$699.95 check for machinery and tools tax rebate. This rebate is part of an
incentive plan offered by the City of Danville to industries that make an investment that results in an increase in tax revenues, as compared to the
prior year.

5/9/2012—Galileo Magnet High School was named one of the top public
high schools in the Commonwealth by U.S. News &
World Report magazine. This school ranked 31st best
high school in Virginia and 1,113th in the U.S.

5/10/2012—The City of Danville announced that Web
Parts LLC has relocated its computer programming, applications and data center operation to Danville from
Guatemala. This company will start with 10 positions,
but it projects to provide 260 new jobs within three
years. The overall average wage of the jobs will be
$65,000.
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City of Danville
Office of Economic Development
427 Patton Street; P.O. Box 3300
Danville, VA 24543-3300
434-793-1753 ph
434-797-9606 fax
www.discoverdanville.com
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