Governor Northam Announces 49 New Jobs in the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County

Harlow Group to invest $8 million to establish its first U.S. manufacturing plant

DANVILLE—Governor Ralph Northam today announced that Harlow Group Ltd., a leading provider of precision engineered, fabricated, machined and 3D printed additive components, will invest $8 million to locate its first U.S. precision sheet metal fabrication plant, to be called Harlow Fastech, in the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County. The United Kingdom-based company will also establish a U.S. Training Center of Excellence, a new facility with a focus on additive manufacturing, which will be located in the Danville-Pittsylvania County Regional Industrial Facility Authority-owned Cyber Park. Virginia successfully competed against Alabama for this project, which will create 49 new jobs.

“With its pipeline of skilled talent and unmatched infrastructure, Southern Virginia has once again attracted a leading international manufacturer, and we are thrilled to welcome Harlow Group to this region’s impressive corporate roster,” said Governor Northam. “By locating its first U.S. manufacturing facility in the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County, the company will add 49 new jobs to an existing manufacturing labor force of nearly 18,000. Southern Virginia maintains a legacy of success in this industry, and we are confident that Harlow Group will flourish from its new home in the region.”

Founded in 1975 and based in the United Kingdom, Harlow Group offers a wide variety of services ranging from product design to the full production of engineered metal products. The company’s customer base includes such industry-leaders as GE, Pitney Bowes, Raytheon Safran, Sony, BF Goodrich, and Lotus. Harlow Group has chosen Virginia as the site of its first U.S. manufacturing plant in order to accommodate its projected growth and will also invest heavily in the development of a state-of-the-art training center.

“Harlow Group’s decision to establish its first U.S. manufacturing plant and state-of-the-art training center in Southern Virginia is a major vote of confidence in this thriving region and the Commonwealth,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball. “At the new facility in the Danville-Pittsylvania Cyber Park, the company’s production and training activities will benefit from close proximity to valuable partners such as the Institute for Advanced Learning and Technology and the Regional Center for Applied Technology and Training. There is no better place for an industry-leading manufacturer such as Harlow Group, and we look forward to the company’s future success in Virginia.”

“After a two-year process looking at a number of alternative possibilities to expand into the U.S., we are delighted to finally conclude our decision to invest in Danville, Virginia,” said Harlow Group CEO and Founder Alan Pearce. “Virginians have been amongst the most welcoming and friendly people and their appetite to make things work and overcome obstacles is second to none. The inspirational leadership of Troy Simpson has made the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research a world-leading education and technology center, producing highly motivated and capable students and stands as a beacon to the rest of the world to emulate. The ambition of Virginia to embrace new technology and invest in the future will keep the Commonwealth as the number one destination for expansion and business investment, and we are extremely proud to be associated with Danville and the Commonwealth of Virginia.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the City of Danville, Pittsylvania County, the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance, and the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission to secure the project for Virginia. The Harlow Group was introduced to Danville-Pittsylvania County through Invest Southern Virginia, which is funded by Mid-Atlantic Broadband as part of its economic development mission. Governor Northam approved a $147,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to assist the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County with the project. The Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission approved $315,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds for the project. Harlow Group is eligible to receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program, administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. Funding and services to support the company’s employee training activities will be provided through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

“We are pleased to welcome another UK company to our cluster of high precision machining businesses,” said Chairman of the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority Robert W. Warren. “The community’s vision of becoming a hub of automotive and aerospace suppliers is now reality. Pittsylvania County welcomes Harlow Fastech to the Cyber Park and looks forward to its growth and success as a member of our community.”

“We are delighted that the Harlow Group has chosen Danville and Pittsylvania County for its first U.S. manufacturing facility, to be called Harlow Fastech,”added City of Danville Mayor Alonzo Jones. “When this region made the commitment to invest in a state-of-the-art workforce training program with the facilities necessary to adequately educate our students to be world-class workers, we believed we would create a magnet to draw aerospace and automotive metal working companies from around the world. Our students and residents could be employed in jobs here in our home community that would be highly paid. It is so rewarding to see this vision becoming a reality.”

“Manufacturing has always been an important part of the economy in Southside Virginia,” said Tobacco Commission member Senator William Stanley. “In choosing to locate their first U.S. manufacturing facility here in Danville and Pittsylvania County, Harlow Group shows that we have the workforce and assets to compete for the high-tech manufacturing jobs of today and tomorrow. The jobs Harlow Group is creating, as well as the training they will offer at their training center, will be a boost to our economy for years to come, and I am pleased that the Tobacco Commission chose to support this project.”

“We are excited that Harlow Group has chosen our region for its first U.S. engineered metal products plant,” stated Delegate Danny Marshall. “This is especially good news because we have been preparing for companies like theirs for several years by investing in workforce training. There is a pipeline of workers already trained and others currently enrolled in precision machining, welding, and other skills that will provide a ready workforce. We appreciate the good jobs they are bringing and the investment in our area.”