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Berks Economic Partnership Achieves IEDC Reaccreditation
Berks Economic Partnership (BEP) was recently reaccredited through the International Economic Development Council’s AEDO Program. The program recognizes the professional excellence of economic development organizations. AEDO status certifies that the accredited organization is a well managed leading authority on economic-related issues. As an AEDO, BEP joins an elite group of economic development organizations. AEDO status enables BEP to network with peers in the industry in ways that are unparalleled.
BEP is one of only 30 AEDOs in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. When BEP received its original accreditation three years ago, the organization was the first AEDO in Pennsylvania. Since that time, Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation has also earned the coveted designation.
Big Discounts for Small Business
PPL Electric Utilities small business customers can now take advantage of a new ePower program that could save them up to 75% off the cost of energy-efficient lighting or commercial refrigeration projects. The recently launched Direct Discount program is for GS1 or GS3 rate customers who use less than 400,000 kilowatt-hours a year in electricity. Qualifying businesses can participate regardless of whether they shop for their electricity supply. For more information, visit www.pplelectric.com/findtradeallies or call
1-866-432-5501.
Lehigh Valley Awarded $3.4 Million HUD Grant
A Department of Housing and Urban Development program grant called “Partnership for Sustainable Communities” has been awarded to the Lehigh Valley to pay for regional planning and three landmark projects aimed at returning jobs and decent housing to distressed sections of all three Lehigh Valley cities.
The grant application process was spearheaded by Holly Edinger, coordinator of Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation’s Land Recycling Initiative (LVLRI). Other partners on the application were the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, the Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley, the Lehigh and Northampton Transit Authority and others.
The plan hopes to answer questions; such as,
- how to shorten residents’ commutes
- how to broaden transportation choices
- which kinds of industry to attract
- how to build housing that is decent, affordable and close to where people work
- how those choices can improve the environment and make the region more livable.
PPL Participates in Chevrolet Volt Test Program
PPL is one of 28 utility companies participating in the three-year Volt test program sponsored by the Electric Power Research Group (EPRI), a trade organization of which the company is a member. In the three-year study, 64 Volts purchased by EPRI will be driven by utility company employees in the U.S. and Canada to help determine how rechargeable electric cars might affect aspects of the electric industry.
PPL obtained three of the 64 Volts purchased by EPRI. The vehicles will be provided to select PPL Electric Utilities employees for everyday use, generally for three weeks to a month, though the duration can vary. About 75 employees are expected to participate, recording their driving and recharging habits, opinions of the car and other data.
"Researchers are seeking insights into driving habits, actual operating costs and energy consumption, and how best to charge electric vehicles to minimize any negative effects on the electric grid," according to PPL officials. PPL had its cars painted to promote the testing, but the program is not intended as an endorsement of the Volt specifically.
Wilkes-Barre Innovation Center Welcomes New Tenants
The Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Business and Industry has announced three new tenants in its center city small business incubator, the Innovation Center @ Wilkes-Barre (ICWB)
- Appalachian Apps, LLC, a developer of custom software for wireless devices. They are currently developing and delivering several products specific to the global entertainment industry.
- BlueView Northeast, a full-service digital marketing agency focused on helping companies reach success in digital, social and mobile marketing in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey, using strategic, creative and technical capabilities across a wide range of businesses
- eCoCarts, whose mission is to leverage eco-friendly and online web innovation to connect people within the communities they live by providing online ordering and delivery of their favorite products by eCoCarts environmentally friendly fleet of vehicles.
Current ICWB tenant businesses employ over 100 people; and plans are underway to expand the incubator facility in the spring of 2012.
TMG Health Breaks Ground on Lackawanna County National Operations Center
TMG Health, a leading national provider of expert solutions to government-sponsored health plans, recently broke ground on its future National Operations Center in the Valley View Business Park. The facility will be a three-story, 150,000 square foot building with the opportunity to expand to 210,000 square feet. The company is expected to hire up to 1,500 local employees. The Verus Partners construction will be completed in the third quarter of 2012.
“SLIBCO and TMG Health have a history. We have worked with Jack Tighe, President and Founder of TMG Health, assisting in their location within the Scranton Enterprise Center and now their expansion into Valley View Business Park,” said Austin Burke, executive vice president, SLIBCO. “TMG is a true American success story and we are thrilled to have played a role in their growth as one of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s principal employers.”
Educational Opportunities Improve in Monroe County
I've never seen so many happy smiles," said Northampton Community College (NCC) President Arthur Scott, at the recent groundbreaking for a new full-service NCC campus.
Located on 72 scenic acres in Pocono Township, the campus will include science and computer labs, meeting rooms, a library, child-care center, food court and athletic fields. It will accommodate 5,000 students as well as provide space for cultural events, community meetings, and Horizons for Youth programs for youngsters in grades K-12. The old campus on Old Mill Road, Tannersville, will be used for corporate training and adult continuing education programs. The new campus will open to students in the fall of 2014.
C3I Leases Space in CenterPoint East
C3i, a leading provider of technology enablement and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services for the life sciences industry, has leased approximately 41,000 square feet of flex space from Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park East in Luzerne County.
The company will use the space as its international Hardware Depot Hub to receive, repair, and distribute computers used by life sciences professionals. C3i expects to begin operational set-up in January, 2012 and plans to hire approximately 75 workers.
C3i has 1,300 employees worldwide including 125 at its North American help desk operations center in the Corporate Center at East Mountain, Plains Township. C3i began local operations in November, 2007 in 25,000 square feet of office space leased from Mericle at 100 Baltimore Drive. The performance of the team of employees C3i hired locally was instrumental in its decision to open a second facility here.
Princeton Review gives nod to Misericordia
The Princeton Review has recommended Misericordia University in its "Best in the Northeast" section of its website feature, "2012 Best Colleges: Region by Region." The university is one of 220 institutions of higher education recognized as one of the top colleges and universities in the northeastern United States.
PPL to Build New Data Center
PPL has announced plans to build a 115,000 SF data and operations center in the Lehigh Valley that will house up to 150 employees. The facility will be located on 12 acres near Route 100 and I-78. Construction is scheduled for completion in late 2012.
The facility will house employees transferred from other PPL facilities in South Whitehall Township, Harrisburg and downtown Allentown.
Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. Acquires First US Based Packaging and Manufacturing Facility
Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. (DSI), has purchased a 140,000 square foot facility in Bethlehem Township, Pennsylvania from Amcor, a global packaging manufacturer. This acquisition, worth $10.25 million, enables DSI to leverage existing resources to more cost-effectively supplement its operations. The facility is expected to assume an increasing responsibility for packaging DSI’s entire line of marketed products in the U.S., as well as perform compounding operations for select products.
In welcoming the new company, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, said, “By creating approximately 80 jobs, continuing the productive use of a facility that would otherwise have been closed, and injecting more than $15 million in outside investment into the local economy, this project will have a definite positive impact on the Lehigh Valley region.”
DSI conducted a comprehensive national site search with McCallum Sweeney Consulting to identify an existing facility that mirrored the company’s packaging goals and specifications. The Governor's Action Team, Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation, the Northampton County and City of Bethlehem were invaluable partners in helping to make this milestone possible.”
Bath Fitter Becomes 27th CenterPoint Tenant
Bath Fitter, North America's leading acrylic bathtub, shower enclosure, and tub-to-shower conversion company, has relocated its local office, showroom, and distribution center to a Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services flex building in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park, in Luzerne County. The company has leased approximately 10,000 square feet of space and expects to add 10 to 20 workers over the next year.
“The opening of the Pittston location lets Bath Fitter better service the region by combining two isolated locations into one more centralized location with excellent interstate accessibility,” according to Ed King, the company’s Fleet and Facilities Manager.
Avantor Locates in Center Valley
Lehigh County lured an international chemical manufacturer away from the Phillipsburg, NJ area with a promise of nearly $4 million in public financing. Avantor Performance Materials, formerly known as Mallinckrodt Baker, moved 140 employees 25 miles west to the Stabler Corporate Center building once reserved for vaccine giant Sanofi Pasteur.
Avantor plans to hire 60 more employees over the next three years. The corporate jobs pay close to $80,000 a year. About 325 workers will remain at the Phillipsburg manufacturing, research and development plant.
The company first reached out to the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. over the summer, and the Governor's Action Team joined the effort a few weeks later, according to Pete Reinke, LVEDC's vice president for regional development.
United Bank Card Locates in the Lehigh Valley
United Bank Card, Inc. (UBC) has announced that it will be moving its corporate headquarters from its current location in Hampton, NJ, to the Lehigh Valley. The move will facilitate the company’s continued growth.
The company’s new 30,000 square feet facility offers full deployment facilities including a loading dock to support the distribution of the company’s electronic cash registers and Harbortouch POS systems. United Bank Card is one of the largest payment processors in the United States, UBC currently handles the merchant accounts for over 110,000 business locations nationwide.
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