Comings & goings: Maryland governor visits Hitachi during Hagerstown stop

Gov. Moore checks out Hitachi Rail's progress in Washington County

The Hitachi Rail factory under construction south of Hagerstown hosted Maryland Gov. Wes Moore last week, giving the new governor a look at progress made on the site.

Moore was accompanied by Alistair Dormer, executive vice president of energy and mobility for Hitachi as he toured the facility Wednesday, according to an email from Hitachi spokesperson Yinka Robinson.

Ground was broken on the $70 million factory in October during a visit by Moore's predecessor Larry Hogan. The 307,000-square-foot facility is being build at the west end of Halfway Boulevard, which the county plans to extend to Greencastle Pike (Md. 63). The 41-acre site also will include an 800-foot test track.

Since the groundbreaking, the site has a completed external structure and poured concrete, and the preliminary structure for the testing track has been installed, Robinson wrote.

Related:'Transformative' new factory on track to open in 2024, employ 460 people

"Once completed in early 2024, the factory will sustain up to 1,300 direct and indirect jobs for the region, in addition to stimulating the local economy and transit mobility for the region," she said.

The factory's first order will be building 256 new 8000-series railcars for Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro). The contract, announced a year ago this month, includes options for building up to 800 cars.

Before visiting Hitachi, Moore was at Eastern Elementary School near Hagerstown where he read to a class of fourth-graders as part of Read Across America.

Clark Computer Services welcomes new president

Lee Janes recently took over as president of Clark Computer Services, according to a news release from the company that offices in Hagerstown and Frederick.

As the organization continues to expand, former president and owner Darren Clark is taking on the role of CEO, according to the release.

Joining Clark in 2008, Janes has been instrumental in managing and growing the business into its present form.

"Starting out as a technician when it was only he and Darren working out of their cars, as Clark Computer Services grew, Lee took on the Director of Operations role, where he developed our business processes and trained employees to embrace our customer-first culture, ensuring responsive, professional, and friendly service with every client, every time," the release states.

Janes has served as vice president of sales for the past years, where he fueled year-over-year growth, bringing in new clients from businesses all over Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and southern Pennsylvania, according to the release.

ValorExcel gets state grant to boost business incubator

ValorExcel recently announced that it had received funding from the Maryland Department of Commerce to support the Xcel Launch Business Incubator Program, according to a news release from ValorExcel.

The Rural Maryland Economic Development Fund seeks to fund infrastructure projects to support economic development activity, stimulate private investment, and grow jobs in the state's rural counties, according to the release. 

The Xcel Launch Program assists individuals with starting, running or growing a small business by offering coaching, specialized training, and development services that ensure successful outcomes, the release states.

The incubator is in the E.M. Tobias Family Center, 324 E. Antietam St., Suite 204B, in Hagerstown, one block off the Dual Highway. Tenants and their customers or clients have access to an on-site Walgreens and SILT Coffee Shop. Qualified program participants can receive up to one year of free shared workspace — including a desk, phone, mail service, internet access, printers/copiers, meeting or training space, and more, according to the news release.

"Starting a company can be intimidating for the first-time entrepreneur or nonprofit director," said Lori Wriston, ValorExcel's CEO, in the news release. "There's a lot of hard work, self-discipline, uncertainty, and obstacles -- some critical to the enterprise's success. Our training sessions will focus on topics that will give business leaders the information they need to begin or improve their operations. They'll also learn practical and time-saving strategies from people who have already done it, overcome the temptation to quit when the times get tough, and find success."

For more information, call 240-329-9387, email info@valorexcel.com or go to www.valorexcel.com/xcel-launch.

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If you have details on a business coming or going in Washington County, Md., or Franklin County, Pa., email us at news@herald-mail.com.