lant in Johnstown,
Pennsylvania in part because of the lower costs for the Roanoke facility.
Recently though, the company laid off its Roanoke employees and said it plans
to temporarily close the plant. The corporate office of Virginia Transformer
Corporation (the leading transformer manufacturing company of USA) is situated
in this city. General Electric and TMEIC GE manufacture large drive systems for
electrical generation stations and factories at their joint facility in Salem.
ITT manufactures night vision goggles at its plant in Roanoke County, and some
of its employees have started other firms such as Optical Cable Corporation.
The proximity of automotive assembly plants in the South has attracted
manufacturers including Dynax, Koyo, Metalsa, and Yokohama, formerly Mohawk
Tire. Roanoke's location allows for delivery within one day to most markets in
the southeast, northeast, mid-atlantic, and Ohio Valley, which has made it a
distribution center for such companies as Orvis, Elizabeth Arden, and Hanover
Direct. United Parcel Service (UPS) maintains a major facility at the Roanoke
Regional Airport. While the city of Roanoke has lost population, suburbs in
Roanoke County, southern Botetourt County, and areas of Bedford County and
Franklin County near Smith Mountain Lake have grown.
Kroger operates its Mid-Atlantic regional
offices at 3631 Peter's Creek Road NW in Roanoke
