New $50-plus million campus to eventually house 2,500 jobs in Loudoun County
Loudoun County - Governor Jim Gilmore today announced the decision by Orbital Sciences Corporation to expand its satellite engineering, manufacturing and operations facilities adjacent to the company's headquarters in Loudoun County. The $50-plus million expansion will create up to 1,500 new jobs over the next three years and allow the company to consolidate its five existing Northern Virginia locations to a single integrated site.
"The Commonwealth of Virginia is committed to maintaining a business climate that encourages world-class companies like Orbital to expand their operations and create job opportunities," said Governor Gilmore. "Already, Northern Virginia has one of the country's greatest concentrations of high-tech companies including Oracle, Baan, Iridium and America Online. With companies like Orbital leading the way, Virginia is well-positioned to aggressively compete in the new technology-focused global economy of the 21st century."
Orbital Sciences Corporation is a $600 million space and information systems company with over 4,000 employees and operations in eight states and several international locations. The company designs manufactures, operates, and markets a broad range of affordable space infrastructure systems, satellite access products and satellite services. The new construction will increase Orbital's office and industrial space to 750,000 square feet and will be completed in two phases. The new facilities, scheduled to begin opening in September 1999, are located approximately four miles north of Dulles International Airport.
"The expansion of our manufacturing and support facilities reflects the tremendous success we have experienced over the past several years," said David W. Thompson, Orbital's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Virginia has now been our corporate home for over 15 years and we are very grateful for the receptive business climate the Commonwealth has maintained."
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership and the Loudoun County Department of Economic Development assisted Orbital with its decision. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will provide workforce training services.
"Orbital has been recognized as a true aerospace leader in Virginia," said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Barry E. DuVal. "The state's proximity to governmental and military establishments as well as its growing high-tech, computer and software industries makes Virginia an ideal location for aerospace firms."
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