Last week, Governor McAuliffe celebrated the opening of Volvo Trucks’ new Customer Experience Track with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Dublin, Va.

The 1.1 mile track features two paved lanes, straight-a-ways and eight percent super-elevated curves to simulate highway conditions. There is also an off-road portion to replicate more challenging conditions, showcasing the range of the company’s Class 8 vehicles.

The track is located on the company’s nearly 300-acre New River Valley campus, which contains the largest Volvo Truck manufacturing facility in the world at 1.6 million square feet. The plant is certified to ISO 500001 energy, ISO 9001 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards.

The company drew from the expertise of its advanced manufacturing workforce to design and build the track. Employees even had a role in naming it the Twin Oaks Track after deciding to keep two oak trees in the center of the course.

Market demand has made significant strides since the recession, with the plant employing more than 2,500 workers. Earlier this summer, the company invested $69 million to add state-of-the-art equipment and redesign the facility to further improve efficiency and product quality, creating 200 new jobs in the process.

The track will likely draw additional customers to the New River Valley region to visit the plant and test drive potential Volvo Truck purchases.

It also augments Virginia’s thriving automotive industry which includes assets like the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, National Tire Research Center, SoVA Motion, National Crash Analysis Center, CCAM, C-CARE and the Virginia Modeling and Simulation Center, to name a few.

To learn why more than 150 automotive companies call Virginia home and have announced $1.1 billion in capital investment over the last 10 years, click here.

Governor McAuliffe takes a test drive on Volvo Trucks’ new Customer Experience Track in Dublin, Va.

Phoenix Packaging recently announced plans to invest $20 million and create 100 new jobs to expand its Virginia operation in Pulaski County. This represents the second expansion in less than two years, bringing the company’s total announcements to $58 million in capital investment and more than 400 new jobs.

Part of Virginia’s New River Valley region, Pulaski County also serves as the company’s North American Headquarters. Phoenix Packing is a subsidiary of Grupo Phoenix, a leading Latin American manufacturer of packaging products targeting the food and disposable consumer product industries.

Seeking closer proximity to its U.S. customers, the company first selected Virginia in 2010 from more than 40 other possible sites. Virginia competed against Arizona for this latest expansion project and has successfully competed against Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, California and Nevada over the last three years. 

After investigating options overseas, Phoenix Packaging’s decision to remain and grow its Virginia operation illustrates just how well the Commonwealth competes on a global level.

Virginia’s strategic location, premier transportation infrastructure, skilled workforce, world-class higher education institutions, and competitive operating costs were all leading factors in the company’s multiple decisions for Virginia.

In addition, Virginia’s growing food and beverage industry, a primary market for Phoenix Packaging, proved to be an attractive asset. With names like Kraft Foods, Nestle and Hershey, Virginia boasts more than 550 food and beverage manufacturing companies that have invested $1.9 billion in the Commonwealth over the last decade. In fact, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, one of Phoenix Packaging’s customers, announced last year it would invest $180 million to establish a production and distribution facility in Isle of Wight County, Va.

To learn why Virginia manufacturers continue to find success in the Commonwealth, investing more than $13.8 billion over the last decade, click here.