The Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program (CGEP) recently celebrated its 30-year anniversary at an event in Richmond, Va., hosted by CGEP and VEDP.

CGEP offers Master’s degrees and certificate programs for engineers and scientists seeking to further their education while remaining in the workforce. Students can pursue degrees in Computer Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Engineering Administration, Environmental Science & Engineering, and Systems Engineering.

What is most unique about the program is its distance learning model, which includes both online courses and televised courses offered at more than 25 sites across Virginia. CGEP uses the latest interactive video conferencing technology, allowing for two-way audio and video to provide an interactive classroom experience for students.

In addition, graduate students can personalize their program by taking advantage of courses offered by any of the five participating universities, which include George Mason University, Old Dominion University, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, and Virginia Tech.

During the 2011-2012 academic year, total enrollment in CGEP increased by 10 percent to 6,759 students. CGEP attributes this growth to increased offerings in online coursework, allowing busy graduate students to take classes anywhere, anytime.

CGEP is another example of the innovative programs offered by Virginia’s prestigious higher education institutions to ensure a solid pipeline of skilled employees is ready to fulfill industry needs. 

To learn more about CGEP or Virginia’s higher education offerings, click on the highlighted links.

Liebherr Mining Equipment Newport News Co. recently announced plans to expand its advanced manufacturing operation in Hampton Roads, Va., through a $45.4 million investment, creating 174 new jobs. 

The Liebherr campus is located in Copeland Industrial Park, which covers two Virginia cities—Newport News and Hampton.  

Liebherr, part of the Liebherr Group based in Switzerland, is known as a leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment. The expansion will allow the company to meet demand for its mining trucks as well as develop new models.  The company expects to produce 240-ton, 320-ton, and 400-ton models.

In addition to increasing capacity and adding production equipment, this investment also enables Liebherr to expand its office and warehouse space. The company plans to add a training center as well as augment its material flow process.

Established in the Hampton Roads region in 1970, the company’s 40-year history and decision to further invest in Virginia speaks to its positive experience with the Commonwealth’s skilled workforce and pro-business climate.

The Hampton Roads location also offers close proximity to the international Port of Virginia. The company’s equipment is shipped worldwide, and the Port of Virginia offers access to 250 ports in more than 100 overseas locations. In addition, it is the only port on the U.S. East Coast able to handle post-Panamax vessels as first port of call.

With its skilled workforce, low-cost environment, and premier logistics infrastructure, Virginia is home to more than 6,000 manufacturing establishments. To learn why manufacturing companies have invested more than $13.7 billion in the Commonwealth over the last decade, click here.

Secretary Jim Cheng addresses the crowd at the Liebherrr Mining Equipment Co. announcement event in Newport News, Va.

Last week, Governor McDonnell announced the establishment of the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Logistics Systems (CCALS) in Prince George County, Va.

This public-private alliance will focus on solving logistics challenges and bringing solutions to market more quickly by partnering Virginia’s leading universities and logistics companies. Founding members include Longwood University, UVA, VCU, VSU, Logistics Management Resources, and LMI.

The expertise of the founding members includes a variety of disciplines within the logistics industry, such as supply chain risk management, modeling and simulation, large-scale data management, enterprise system integration, and workforce development.

To foster a collaborative research environment, the CCALS facility is expected to include computation and large-scale data mining laboratories, as well as a production warehouse for advanced simulation experiments.

In addition to bringing solutions to market more quickly, CCALS will allow industry members to influence the curriculum and workforce development programs at participating universities, as well as obtain access to the quality pipeline of graduates entering Virginia’s workforce each year.

CCALS complements Central Virginia’s existing logistics hub, which already includes the U.S. Army’s Logistics University at Fort Lee, two Amazon.com distribution centers, and significant UPS and FedEx operations.

Virginia continues to build upon the reputation of its premier logistics network, which includes six interstate highways, nine commercial airports, 14 railroads, including two Class I lines, and the International Port of Virginia, which is the only East Coast location in the U.S. able to handle post-Panamax vessels as first port of call. 

To learn why companies have invested more than $1.8 billion in Virginia logistics projects over the last decade, click here.

Yesterday, Daikin McQuay announced plans to invest $9.2 million to expand its facility in Augusta County, creating 50 new jobs.

A subsidiary of Fortune 1000 company Daikin Industries, Daikin McQuay is the largest HVAC and refrigeration company in the world. The company designs flexible HVAC solutions for commercial, industrial and institutional markets with a focus on high energy efficiency.

The expansion will allow the company to better serve its global customers through the addition of a testing area to demonstrate the performance of its products using a variety of metrics.   

Daikin McQuay has found success in Augusta County for almost 60 years, tapping into the engineering and technical expertise of the local workforce. The center of the company’s industrial chiller operation is located at the Augusta County facility.

Governor McDonnell met with company officials during his Asia Marketing Mission in 2011, as well as during marketing trips to New York in 2011 and 2012 to tout Virginia’s premier business environment.

The Commonwealth continues to attract global leaders like Daikin McQuay due to Virginia’s unique combination of assets, which include a high-tech workforce, world-class logistics network, and competitive operating costs. To learn more, click here.

The Virginia Beach Economic Development Authority and Hampton Roads Partnership have joined together to launch the Virginia Beach Economic Gardening Initiative.

The economic gardening program will allow local entrepreneurs access to resources and information typically only available to larger, more established companies. 

Specifically, the Virginia Beach initiative will provide high-tech research tools so participating companies can analyze their strategy and market dynamics. The program includes access to advice from seasoned entrepreneurs through a partnership with the Service Corps of Retired Executives.

In addition, companies will receive 35 hours of support from a national team with expertise in marketing, data analysis, geographic information systems, and social media. The program is available to 10 companies each year, and the first three companies selected include Morphix Technologies Inc., Virginia Toy & Novelty Co., and Klett Consulting Group Inc.

Economic gardening is a growing trend in economic development circles. Holding to the theory that entrepreneurs drive local economies, adherents support these smaller business owners by providing resources in the community to help businesses grow. This grass-roots approach, popularized by MIT researcher David Birch, is a complement to the more traditional economic development model of recruitment and retention.

The Virginia Beach Economic Gardening Initiative is an example of the innovative, pro-business environment that exists across the Commonwealth of Virginia. To learn more about the resources Virginia offers to help businesses succeed, click here.

This week, the Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corporation (VBHRC) announced its establishment to foster scientific research and provide a venue for public/private partnerships with Virginia’s leading universities.

The five founding universities include Eastern Virginia Medical School, George Mason University, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia Tech. VBHRC will also include an 11-member Project Management and Oversight Panel as well as a 13-member Board of Directors.

VBHRC’s mission is to encourage industrial partnerships and increase corporate-sponsored research at Virginia’s universities to augment the Commonwealth’s growing biotech industry. VBHRC’s ultimate goal is to develop life sciences technology that can be used to start new companies and create jobs.

The research focus of VBHRC includes bioinformatics and medical informatics, point of care diagnostics, and drug discovery and delivery.

VBHRC joins a list of leading research institutes in the Commonwealth, including SRI International, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 11 Federally Funded R&D Centers, and 20 FLC Laboratories.

Virginia continues to gain recognition for its life sciences industry and was recently ranked the No. 2 Emerging Biotech Hub in Business Facilities’ 2012 State Ranking Report. With its central location in the mid-Atlantic life sciences corridor and strong technology and life sciences workforce, Virginia is home to nearly 800 biotech companies.

To learn why the private sector has invested almost $2 billion in Virginia’s life sciences industry over the last decade, click here.

Last week, Microsoft announced plans to invest $348 million to expand its latest generation data center campus in Mecklenburg County, Va., creating 30 new jobs.

Fueled by strong customer demand for its cloud services, this investment will allow Microsoft to construct two additional buildings on its existing Mecklenburg County campus. In 2010, Microsoft announced a $499 million investment to establish this facility, followed by a $150 million expansion in 2011, bringing Microsoft’s total investment in this location to almost $1 billion.

With its modular technology and advanced cooling mechanics, the Mecklenburg County location is one of Microsoft’s most advanced data centers. In addition, Microsoft is purchasing renewable energy credits to offset all carbon emissions at the site.

Southern Virginia’s ability to provide a world-class data center location is due in part to infrastructure developed by the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative (MBC). Established several years ago to support underserved areas, today MBC owns and operates more than 1,500 miles of fiber optic network in Southern Virginia as well as a long-haul fiber network.

Virginia continues to be a prime location for data centers—data processing was the dominant sector for investment in the Commonwealth in 2011, at more than $960 million. Offering companies both the advanced broadband infrastructure and highly-skilled technical workforce, Virginia is poised to continue its growth in this sector.

In addition, the Commonwealth’s favorable electricity rates and Retail Sales and Use Tax Exemption on computer equipment used in data centers provide a strong competitive advantage to companies.

To learn why more than 700 data processing and hosting establishments have selected a Virginia location, click here.