East Central Florida

ECONOMIC LIFE

Aviation/Aerospace/Defense

• Continuing to grow its footprint in Brevard County, Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer will construct the new Embraer Aero Seating Technologies manufacturing facility in Titusville; 150 new jobs are anticipated.
• French aeronautics supplier Vision Systems celebrated the grand opening of its new manufacturing facility in Melbourne in 2014; 40 new jobs were created.
• The Federal Aviation Administration has selected Melbourne-based Harris Corporation to design and implement a system that will disseminate real-time, comprehensive weather pictures to aviators across the National Airspace System in an effort to reduce weather-related flight delays and cancellations.
• Orlando-based Engineering & Computer Simulations has won a $29-million contract to provide education and training for U.S. Air Force healthcare providers and patients on the medical modeling and simulation products it has provided to the military for more than a decade.
• In its largest military order to date, Port Orange-based Raydon Corporation has landed a nearly $100-million contract to produce virtual-reality training simulators for the Army National Guard.

Tourism

• With 19.3 million visitors in 2014, Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando again remained the most visited theme park in the world, followed closely by its sister parks Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. In 7th place worldwide, Universal Studios Orlando, which debuted the Harry Potter-themed “Diagon Alley” to record crowds in 2014, once again posted the biggest year-over-year attendance increase — a whopping 17%.

Coming in 2016:

• At Walt Disney World: A ride based on the movie “Frozen” at Epcot and the nighttime show “Rivers of Light” at Animal Kingdom.
• At Universal’s Islands of Adventure: “Skull Island: Reign of Kong,” providing an up-close-and-personal encounter with the iconic ape.
• At SeaWorld: A 200-foot roller coaster that will be the tallest in Orlando (at least until the 570-foot Skyfall vertical coaster opens on International Drive in 2017).
• Elsewhere, the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame will move to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex and add a new 3-D interactive exhibit “Heroes and Legends,” focusing on Mercury and Apollo astronaut heroes. And at Daytona International Speedway, the $400-million “Daytona Rising” redevelopment project, promising 101,000 wider, more comforable seats, twice as many restrooms and triple the concession stands, remains on schedule for a July 2016 completion.

Business/Financial Services

• Viewpost, a financial services firm specializing in cloud-based electronic invoicing and payments, will expand its presence in Maitland, creating 262 new programming and software development jobs over three years.
• Virginia-based professional services and technology firm NeoSystems Corporation has opened its first-ever Managed Accounting Services and IT Operations Center in Orlando, bringing 37 new jobs.
• Space Coast Credit Union is expanding its Melbourne-based headquarters to better serve its customers in 14 counties. Founded as Patrick Air Force Base Credit Union in 1951, the firm is today Florida’s third largest credit union.

Manufacturing

• VOXX International will expand its automotive components production facility with a new manufacturing center and corporate headquarters in Orlando; 134 new jobs are anticipated.
• Dixon Ticonderoga Company, manufacturer of the writing instruments and art supplies used by more than 50 million students nationwide, will expand its company headquarters in Lake Mary, adding 20 new jobs over three years.
• Hernon Manufacturing, maker of adhesive sealants and dispensing equipment, is expanding its current site in Sanford by 27,000 square feet and adding 20 new jobs.
• Nautique Boats in Orlando plans to expand its central Florida facility and add 200 new jobs. Nautique was named Florida’s “2014 Manufacturer of the Year” by the Manufacturers Association of Florida.
• Luxury yacht builder Merritt Island Boat Works will increase the size of its manufacturing facility in Brevard County and create 380 jobs.
• Construction is under way in Osceola County on the 100,000-sq.-ft. Florida Advanced Manufacturing Research Center, a joint venture of the University of Central Florida, The Corridor (formerly Florida High Tech Corridor Council), Orlando Economic Development Commission and Osceola County. Slated for completion in 2016, the center will house R&D facilities for the highly advanced sensors used in next-generation computers, appliances, smartphones and communication devices.

Technology

• The German software firm ITyX Solutions, a leader in developing artificial intelligence email and text recognition software, will establish its first U.S. office in downtown Orlando, creating 15 jobs.
• Advanced IT Concepts will expand its corporate headquarters in Winter Springs and bring 50 new jobs to Seminole County.
• The Spanish agricultural technology firm Agromillora Group has opened a laboratory in Sumter County to produce rootstocks that are tolerant to citrus greening, a conditon currently affecting Florida’s citrus production.
• Website and mobile app software developer Solodev plans to expand its Orlando-based headquarters and add 25 jobs.

Life Sciences/Healthcare

• At Lake Nona Medical City, construction is nearly complete on the Guide Well Innovation Center, a 92,000-sq.-ft. biotech incubator for emerging life sciences and technology companies to be jointly managed by University of Central Florida and University of Florida. Scheduled opening: late 2015.
• The Orlando VA Medical Center — the first new VA hospital built in the U.S. in 20 years — celebrated its grand opening at Lake Nona in May 2015. The 134-bed inpatient hospital features an advanced diagnostic center and a 60-bed rehabilitation/recovery center for homeless veterans.
• Altamonte Springs-based BookThatDoc.com will expand to downtown Orlando and add 43 jobs over three years. The free service helps patients find medical providers, book appointments and access health information online.

Tags: Business Florida