Onward NRV Hosts Media Tour

Onward NRV hosted a media tour for national journalists with the help of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership on April 16.

The tour focused on Advanced Manufacturing in the NRV and consisted of quality programming to provide story ideas for journalists. The writers in attendance were Catherine Sbeglia (Manufacturing.Net & Mfgnet; Manufacturing Business Technology; Industrial Maintenance & Plant Operation; Industrial Distribution; Food Manufacturing; and Chem.Info) and David Cohn (Digital Engineering).

The first stop was the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute for lunch and a regional presentation from Charlie Jewell, followed by presentations by Andy Schaudt, Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, and Tombo Jones, Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership.

Guests were then given a tour of the Virginia Smart Road, a unique 2.2 mile test track that allows corporate partners and researchers to test vehicles in real situations, including all types of weather.

The next stop of the tour was a tour of both Aeroprobe and MELD in Christiansburg.

Aeroprobe create systems that provide air measurement data to products in industries such as aerospace, automotive, wind turbine, and more. MELD is a unique solid-state process, meaning the material does not reach the melting temperature during the process. It offers a wide range of capabilities, including additive manufacturing, coating applications, component repair, and more.

The final stop was a tour of Korona Candles in Dublin. Korona makes tealights, votive candles, and candles in various containers made of glass, metal, or ceramics. The current production consists entirely of private label collections, reaching the largest customers worldwide.

Onward NRV: Onward NRV is a public/private, regional economic development organization whose mission is to attract and retain world class jobs, investment, and talent in Virginia’s New River Valley. It’s also a movement where leaders from business, government, and higher education work together to promote the economic vitality of the region.