Events planned for Business Appreciation Week in Dan River Region
The Danville Office of Economic Development, Pittsylvania County Economic Development and the Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce will hold a series of events next week as part of “Business Appreciation Week.”
The events will include a mix of workshops, networking opportunities and social activities designed to support and celebrate local businesses and manufacturers for choosing to locate, invest and grow in the region.
» Access to Capital and Business Loans: Monday, June 5, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., 527 Bridge St., Suite 200, Danville. Having capital to start or grow a business is essential, but access to capital, managing business finances, and navigating the sources of capital can be challenging. Ted Laws, commercial lender at American National Bank, shares information about financing options available to startups. Sponsored by The Launch Place. Breakfast provided. No cost, but please register with Regina Haynes at
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or 434-799-5491.
» Free Workshop: GrowthWheel — Make Decisions. Take Action: Monday, June 5, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., at the RCATT building, 121 Slayton Ave., Room 115, Danville. Learn how to design an action plan to grow your business while still keeping up with your daily business routines. Sponsored by the Longwood Small Business Development Center. No cost, but please register at
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» 4th Annual River District Association Scavenger Hunt: Tuesday, June 6, 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Danville River District, starting at JTI Fountain. Pick up a ’game sheet’ at the JTI Fountain, visit the merchants listed for a chance to win $500 in River District dollars! Drawing will take place at 7:30 p.m. Must be present to win!! Enjoy a live D.J., free ice cream and free drinks. Sponsored by Middle Border Forward, PATHS, Solex Architecture, Daniel, Medley, & Kirby, P.C. Attorneys at Law, YMCA, Meredith Gravely School of Dance, River District Lofts, Vintages by the Dan, Danville Regional Medical Center, HD Web Design, Elliott Electric, Piedmont Printing & Graphics, Alliance, Danville Public Schools, All-Virginia Title & Escrow Inc., and BB&T Scott & Stringfellow.
» Networking and Appreciation Breakfast: Wednesday, June 7, 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. (floating) at the Noblis Center for Applied High Performance Computing, 527 Bridge St., Suite 310, Danville. Learn more about RASMAS, the Noblis healthcare recall service, and see the Cray XMT2 Supercomputer. Sponsored by the Southern Piedmont Technology Council (SPTC). No cost. REGISTER
» Tap into Danville: (invitation only) Thursday, June 8, 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Ballad Brewing, 600 Craghead St., Danville. Local Industries can connect and network with other managers in the River District’s newest brewery.
Institute debuts new Inspiration Lab
Danville’s Institute for Advanced Learning and Research unveiled a new mobile lab Thursday morning, which Don Merricks, chairman of the Institute’s board of trustees, hopes will be a “game changer for the whole region.”
The mobile lab serves eight localities in the Dan River Region encompassing more than 4,000 square miles.
The Inspiration Lab will replace the old mobile lab, which will be used by Patrick Henry Community College, according to Julie Brown, director of advanced learning at the Institute. The mobile lab has travelled more than 60,000 miles over the last seven years, according to Merricks, and served more than 52,000 people.
“IALR provides a great number of opportunities right here at this site, but when it comes to the needs of our school systems, we go to them,” Merricks, a former Virginia delegate, said.
Institute Foundation President Kris Willard thanked sponsors from the Community Foundation of the Dan River Region, Mid-Atlantic Broadband and the Verizon Foundation.
“The Inspiration Lab alleviates the need for school systems to invest thousands of dollars in providing on-site high tech labs,” Willard said. “While the amount of technology and 3D printers are impressive, the wheels are the most important part, because the Inspiration Lab can be anywhere at any time.”
“We wanted the lab to have the same effect as this building does,” Brown said. “We wanted it to have that wow moment.”
It can serve as a mobile computer lab and a natural sciences lab.
“That flexibility was really important to us, and I think you’ll see that reflected in its design,” she said.
The lab was three years in the making, and was completed with $140 leftover in the budget, Brown said jokingly.
An exterior monitor shows what is happening inside the lab and has a tablet attached to it so that visitors can plug in a flash drive and have a design 3D printed and pick it up later.
“We think this might be the first example of ‘Netflix 3D printing’ in the country outside of a research facility,” Brown said. “Think of the access it would give our rural communities. It’s tremendous.”
The lab focuses on additive manufacturing, which is a fancy term for 3D printing. Designing, coding and printing can all be done in the mobile lab.
“We want to bring a one-on-one 3D printing experience to every middle schooler in the region,” Brown said. “That’s our goal.”
Currently in the lab, there is a fuse-deposition modeling printer and a flash forge unit, so users can use the type that is best suited for their design.
Interested users can find out where the lab is on Twitter by following @IALR_Lab. The lab will be travelling all over the region.
