Celanese Corp. said this morning it will spend $150 million to convert the boilers that power its Giles County factory from coal to natural gas.

Reporter Jeff Sturgeon has more details here.

Devils Backbone Brewing Co. was named Small Brewpub and Small Brewpub Brewer of the Year at the Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup earlier this month in Boulder, Colo.

The company, which is headquartered in Nelson County and has a second production facility just north of Lexington, also won eight medals, including two gold and two silver.

Here is a press release from Devils Backbone with more details about the awards: Read more »

Dabney S. Lancaster Community College has been designated an Accredited Training and Education Facility by the National Center for Construction Education and Research.

The center is a nonprofit foundation that offers training curricula in more than 60 craft areas, as well as assessment exams.

Here is the full press release from the college:

Dabney S. Lancaster Community College (DSLCC) has been designated an Accredited Training and Education Facility (ATEF) under the auspices of the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER). The announcement was made by Tom Cecere, Apprenticeship Related Instruction Specialist with Workforce Development Services for the Virginia Community College System. The VCCS is an authorized training sponsor for NCCER.

NCCER is a not-for-profit education foundation originally created to develop industry-driven standardized craft training programs with portable credentials to help address the critical workforce shortage facing the construction industry. NCCER currently offers training curricula in over 60 craft areas and offers over 70 assessment exams to meet emerging workforce needs. Read more »

FedEx Ground broke ground this morning on a new 103,000-square-foot distribution center in Roanoke.

The facility will be able to process 50,000 packages per day, up nearly 30,000 from the current FedEx regional facility in Salem, the company said. Eighty trucks a day will be dispatched from the center. Read more »

Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte was named one of the 2013 Best Law Firms in Roanoke by U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers.

Here is the press release from  Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte.

Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte has just been named one of the “2013 Best Law Firms” in the Roanoke area by U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers®.  The firm received the highest level, Tier 1, rankings in three practice areas including Labor and Employment, Litigation – Real Estate Litigation, and Real Estate Law.  The firm also received a Tier 2 ranking for Commercial Litigation, Corporate Law, and Public Finance Law.  These high rankings reflect a special distinction that signals a unique combination of excellence and breadth of expertise.

A 3-D rendering of the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory's latest robot, T.H.O.R. or tactical hazardous operations robot .

Virginia Tech’s Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory is leading an international team project to build a adult-sized robot to be used in disaster relief efforts by the U.S. Department of Defense. The goal is to design a robot that can drive a vehicle, clear debris, enter a building, locate and fix valves or connections, climb a ladder and use a power tool to break through a concrete wall. An estimated $4 million grant will be given to Virginia Tech’s robotics team to design the tactical hazardous operations robot . The Robotics Challenge project is estimated to be complete by the end of 2014.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 25, 2012 – Virginia Tech’s Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory is leading an international team of academic and private corporate robotics experts in developing humanoid robots designed for intense disaster relief as part of a new U.S. Department of Defense-sponsored Robotics Challenge that lab founder/director Dennis Hong calls the “greatest challenge of my career.” Read more »

IRS tax workshops for small and medium-sized nonprofits will be offered in southwest Virginia through Continuing and Professional Education at Virginia Tech. Workshops will be from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at The Roanoke Higher Education Center on Nov. 13 and Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center on Nov. 14. Each workshop will be $50. For registration information, visit www.cpe.vt.edu/irsnonprofit.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 24, 2012 – Continuing and Professional Education at Virginia Tech will offer five IRS Tax Workshops for Small- and Medium-Sized Nonprofit Organizations at various sites around the commonwealth from November through January. Read more »

Virginia Tech has qualified for Internet2′s InCommon Bronze and Silver Identity Assurance program. Tech is the first university in the nation to become a certified provider of greater assurance to online resource providers such as federal agencies, nonprofits and universities. Internet2 provides security and privacy services to its participants.

Here is a press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 23, 2012 – Virginia Tech is the first university in the country to become a  — federal agencies, universities, nonprofit organizations, and private companies alike — of the identity of those seeking access to financial and other sensitive information. Read more »

Dean Richard E. Sorensen

Cindy King, Nike’s North America brand account director, will be the keynote speaker at the Atlantic Regional Conference of Business Fraternity Pi Sigma Epsilon at  Virginia Tech. Networking, seminars and contests will be part of the two-day conference taking place Oct. 26-27 at the Holiday Inn in Blacksburg. Pamplin College of Business Dean Richard E. Sorensen will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the conference.For more information, contact  Virginia Tech PSE president Kelly Shields via email skelly09@vt.edu or call (434) 250-9687.
Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 22, 2012 – Nike’s North America brand account director Cindy King will discuss, “Strategic Brand and Retail Partnerships,” as the keynote speaker at the Oct. 26-27 Atlantic regional conference of business fraternity Pi Sigma Epsilon at Virginia Tech.

Pamplin College of Business Dean Richard E. Sorensen, the Virginia Tech chapter’s founder and mentor, will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award during an evening celebration. Read more »

The National Tire Research Center will house a force and moment tire test machine designed for passenger-car, light-truck, and motorsport tires. The machine can test tires to 200 mph and provides data on torque and braking capabilities, including on wet road conditions.

A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held Wednesday at the National Tire Research Center in Halifax County. The center was created through a collaboration with the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute and Virginia Tech Department of Mechanical Engineering, the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research, General Motors, and the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission. Wednesday’s celebration will showcase the  renovated facility and its custom built equipment used for tire testing and development

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

DANVILLE, Va., Oct. 19, 2012 – The National Tire Research Center, located in Halifax County adjacent to the Virginia International Raceway, will have a ribbon cutting on Oct. 24 for its renovated facility and to display the custom-built equipment that economic development leaders and Virginia Tech officials say they hope make the Southern Virginia region the one-stop destination for global tire testing and development.
Read more »