JANUARY 2008

Articles | Events

Westinghouse’s Pittsburgh Region Expansion Named “National Economic Development Deal of the Year”
Pennsylvania, the Pittsburgh region and Westinghouse Electric Company share first place in the 2007 Business Facilities Economic Development Deal of the Year (EDDY) Awards. The national corporate real estate publication’s annual awards recognize “the locations and economic development agencies that landed the biggest, highest-impact and most challenging corporate expansions.” Westinghouse’s $140 million nuclear energy campus is under way on 80 acres in Cranberry Woods Office Park (Cranberry, Pa.) and will be the largest single-tenant site in Pennsylvania history upon completion in 2010. Read the January 2008 Business Facilities article.

The Pittsburgh Regional Alliance (PRA) partnered with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) to compile the award-winning submission to Business Facilities on behalf of the various partners that collaborated to ensure this regional ‘win.’ These include: the Cranberry Township Board of Supervisors, Butler County Board of Commissioners, Community Development Corporation of Butler County, Seneca Valley School Board and the Governor’s Action Team.

Lucas Systems Expands; Wins Motorola Innovation Award
Lucas Systems, a leading worldwide provider of voice-based software applications for warehouses and distribution centers, has expanded its headquarters in the Pittsburgh region. While growing its business with leading wholesale distributors, retailers and manufacturers, the company recently signed a five-year lease for 12,000 SF of office space in Wexford, Pa. Read the press release (PDF file).

Meanwhile, Lucas Systems and its partner, W&H Systems, were given the Motorola 2007 Partner Ecosystem Award – which recognizes the most innovative enterprise mobility solution developed collaboratively by two Motorola Enterprise Mobility partners in North America – for their implementation of a high-volume order fulfillment system that combines voice, barcode scanning and other technologies.

MEDRAD to Hire Hundreds at New Manufacturing Facility
MEDRAD, INC., a worldwide leading provider of medical devices and services that enable and enhance imaging procedures of the human body, recently celebrated the grand opening of a new manufacturing facility (Saxonburg, Pa.). Currently employing 70, potential employment is anticipated to reach hundreds of new jobs over the next several years, making it one of the largest single sources of new manufacturing jobs in Western Pennsylvania. The 120,000 SF facility at Victory Road Business Park went from groundbreaking to ribbon-cutting in just 10 months. This is the second major MEDRAD facility to open in the last year. MEDRAD celebrated the grand opening of its 125,000 SF Global Center (Warrendale, Pa.) in June 2007. Read more

LaBarge Inc. Doubles in Size; Hiring 100
Following a year of record growth, recognized leader in high performance electronics manufacturing, LaBarge, Inc., is hiring 100 people at its local plant (East Pittsburgh, Pa.), bringing the company’s total local workforce to more than 400 people, mostly in the technical manufacturing fields. Having hired 100 last year, St. Louis-based LaBarge also recently added 30,000 SF to its existing 140,000 SF local operation. Read more

Therapeutics Company Relocates to Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse (PLSG), recently announced its assistance to Cognition Therapeutics, Inc. (Cognition) in deciding to relocate to the Pittsburgh region. The startup studying treatments for Alzheimer's and other degenerative diseases received a $200,000 investment from PLSG, as well as assistance in establishing regional operations and gaining connections to additional capital and equipment sources. Cognition also received a $200,000 investment from Innovation Works. The company is occupying office space in the PLSG Incubator and laboratory space (Pittsburgh, Pa.).

Westinghouse Plans $13M Plant Upgrade
Westinghouse Electric Company recently announced that its Specialty Metals Plant (Blairsville, Pa.) will be fitted with new equipment to accommodate the company's new projects in China, and pending projects in the United States. Valued at nearly $13 million, the capital improvements will include the addition of two high-speed pilgers and a new vacuum annealing furnace. Read more

Ribbon Cutting for GAI Consultants’ Waterfront Expansion
Local engineering firm GAI Consultants, Inc. (Homestead, Pa.) recently hosted a ribbon cutting celebration at its newly expanded building. Its new three-story annex provides an additional 24,000 SF to its existing 85,000 SF main building to accommodate staff growth. Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the Pittsburgh-founded company grew from a small specialized engineering firm to a national, 600-plus, employee-owned multidisciplined engineering and environmental firm. Its Pittsburgh office currently employs 320 people and is the largest of GAI’s eight Eastern U.S. locations.

Region Adds 1,600 New Jobs in November 2007
A report recently released by the state said the Pittsburgh region's economy added 1,600 jobs in November, due mostly to gains concentrated in service-providing industries. Read the article

State Funds Support New Jobs at Gerome Manufacturing
Gerome Manufacturing Co. (Uniontown, Pa.) will receive more than $130,000 in state funding as part of a $550,000 expansion project that will create 26 jobs within three years and retain 100 existing positions. The company will receive a $25,000 opportunity grant, $53,200 in customized job-training funds and $52,000 in job creation tax credits. Read more

$35M State Investment to Bring 2,000+ New Jobs, $192M in Business to Pa.
Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell recently announced that 43 new economic development projects will create more than 2,000 new jobs within three years and retain some 7,300 existing jobs in 24 counties. The commonwealth’s $35 million investment in these projects is projected to generate a return of more than $192 million in additional business investment. Read more

540 Jobs Through $7.5M Allegheny County Economic Package
Allegheny County received a total of $7.54 million from the Commonwealth to assist 11 economic development projects in the form of loans, grants, job training and technical assistance. These projects are expected to create some 540 jobs in the region in the next three years. Three of the 11 companies will be relocating from outside Pennsylvania. See the list of companies

Lawrence County Enterprise Zone Extended
More land and facilities are now eligible for tax and other incentives during corporate expansion and relocation thanks to the recent extension of the Lawrence County Enterprise Zone (Newcastle, Pa.) boundaries to include zoned industrial areas in the Borough of Ellwood City and Wayne Township, formerly known as the Ellwood City Enterprise Zone. Lawrence County Economic Development Corporation (LCEDC) received approval for this extension from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).

Building Contract Values Rise
Among seven counties surveyed in the Pittsburgh region, the value of contracts for future residential and nonresidential construction jumped 64 percent (from $203.6 million to $334.5) between November 2006 and November 2007.

Ribbon Cutting Celebrates Allegheny County Airport Construction
The Allegheny County Airport Authority hosted a ribbon cutting event at Allegheny County Airport (West Mifflin, Pa.) to celebrate the opening of 18 new T-hangars, which are leased to private aircraft owners to house their planes. Read more

Top Travel Destination: Pittsburgh Region Makes Frommer’s International List
The Pittsburgh region made Frommer’s list of 13 domestic and international hot spots for travel in 2008. Particularly as the region celebrates its 250th anniversary this year, “visitors … will discover that Steel City USA has swapped out its rusting blast furnaces for a modern cityscape with a thriving local and international arts scene. It retains its past glory in its universities; ethnic neighborhoods; and supremely engineered and iconic bridges that span the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers criss-crossing the city.” Read more

Pittsburgh Rated No. 9 Most Literate (and Wired) City
Pittsburgh was rated America's ninth-most literate (and wired) city, and Pittsburgh has appeared within the top 10 every year since the Central Connecticut State University study began in 2003. The rankings focus on 69 U.S. cities with populations of 250,000 or above and are based on six key indicators of literacy. Read more

Venture Capital – Start-Ups Start Off Right In 2008
In addition to Cognition Therapeutics, Inc. mentioned above, which received $200,000 from both the PLSG and Innovation Works, a variety of start-ups received venture capital funding since the last quarter of 2007.

Innovation Works investments included:

• $300,000 to next generation wireless system creator Accipter Systems, Inc.;
• $300,000 to mine safety innovator Alertek;
• $320,000 to medical therapeutics expert Coventina Healthcare Enterprises;
• $250,000 to Peacemaker video game designer Impact Games; $300,000 to online financial tool creator Pertuity; and
• $150,000 to innovative online music and ticketing site founder ShowClix.

The PLSG also invested $100,000 in fertility treatment specialist ParentPlus. Read more

Fay-Penn loans $200,000 to local firms for expansion
The Fay-Penn Economic Development Council recently announced loans totaling $200,000 from its revolving loan fund to three area businesses. These include $50,000 to CJC Investments; $50,000 to Tim Grindle; and $100,000 to UH Structures to assist in the strategic purchase of commercial property for these companies. Read more

Pa. National Guard Readiness Center Moves Forward
The state Department of General Services (DGS) plans to build the new Pennsylvania National Guard readiness center on 18-acres at EverGreene Technology Park (Warrendale, Pa.), owned by the Greene County Industrial Development Corp. The $12.8 million, 38,000 SF armory is scheduled for completion in fall of 2009 and will be paid for through state and federal funding. Read more

New Nuclear Engineering Program Supports Worldwide Workforce Demand
As the global thirst for energy outpaces the ready supply, the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering is taking part in the resurgence of nuclear power as one alternative to fossil fuels through newly established graduate and undergraduate certificates in nuclear engineering – the only nuclear engineering tracks in Western Pennsylvania. The certificates are available through the Swanson School's recently established nuclear engineering program, part of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (MEMS). Read more

Local Centers of Excellence Join $30M National Scientific Collaboration
Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh recently joined the collaboration to build the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) and are now among the 23 universities, national laboratories and corporations involved in constructing the world's most powerful survey telescope. On January 3 it was announced that Charles Simonyi and Bill Gates had together donated $30 million to fund construction of the LSST's three large mirrors. Read more

University Receives $9.6M in NIH Funding for Autism Research
University of Pittsburgh's Center for Excellence in Autism Research, or CeFAR, was recently designated as an Autism Center of Excellence by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), garnering $9.6 million over five years for its groundbreaking research program, which seeks to enhance diagnosis and treatment of autism by deepening the understanding of its underlying causes and earliest symptoms.

Industryweek Deems MEDRAD Plant “Best”
MEDRAD’s Heilman Center electro-mechanical manufacturing plant (O’Hara Township, Pa.) has been selected as a 2007 IndustryWeek magazine “Best Plant” award winner. This award is issued annually to plants that are on the leading edge of efforts to increase competitiveness, enhance customer satisfaction and create stimulating and rewarding work environments. Read more

Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission Receives National Economic Development Award
The American Planning Association has announced that Project Region, developed by the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, is the recipient of their 2008 national award for Public Outreach in the planning process. The American Planning Association is the largest organization of its kind in the world with approximately 25,000 members working to advance best practices in urban and regional planning. Read more

Seton Hill University Performing Arts Development Receives $500,000
The directors of the Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation, Inc. have awarded a $500,000 grant to Seton Hill University (Greensburg, Pa.) in support of its University Center for the Performing Arts project in downtown Greensburg. As of today, the project has achieved gifts and pledges that total $19.3 million toward the projected $21 million goal.

EVENTS

Tuesday, January 29
Grow Your Sales Workshop
Learn how to evaluate potential foreign markets, find sales representation in foreign countries, access State and Federal assistance programs and more. Hosted by the Pittsburgh Technology Council’s Advanced Manufacturing Network. Cost: $30.
From 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. at the Regional Learning Alliance (Cranberry, Pa.)

Monday, March 24 – March 25
Cornerstones Symposium 2008: Transforming Cities Through Knowledge-Based Innovation
Featuring regionally and globally renowned experts and executives presenting thought/action-provoking findings regarding robust economic development. March 24 – Pre-symposium events and VIP reception, The Duquesne Club. March 25 – Symposium ’08, University Center, Carnegie Mellon University. Call Robert Johnston at 412.268.9554 or rj@andrew.cmu.edu for more information.

Sunday, June 22 – June 25
2008 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Join the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) in Pittsburgh for the 115th Annual ASEE Conference & Exposition. Promote your brand and enhance your recruiting efforts at the world’s largest gathering of engineering educators.