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This year, 113 Fairfax County-based companies, along with 72 companies located in additional Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance jurisdictions, made the Inc. 5000 list of the nation’s 5,000 fastest-growing privately held companies. Ranked by three-year average growth, the top 25 Virginia companies on the 2022 Inc. 5000 list include the following businesses in Fairfax County: (listed by number on Inc. 5000 list)

• 76:   Integrated Management Strategies, 5,271 percent growth (Alexandria)
• 105: Bonnie and Pop, 4,141 percent growth (Fairfax)
• 111:  OneZero Solutions, 3,948 percent growth (Alexandria)
• 129: PingWind, 3,522 percent growth (Annandale)
• 221: Chexout, 2,403 percent growth (Tysons)
• 270: Epigen, 2,008 percent growth (Tysons)
• 326: GreenBrilliance, 1,756 percent growth (Herndon)
• 357: Bent Ear Solutions, 1,635 percent growth (Alexandria)
• 457: Sierra7, 1,362 percent growth (Annandale)
• 687: ThinkTek, 911 percent growth (Fairfax)
• 698: Gridiron IT Solutions, 895 percent growth (Reston)
• 720: West 4th Strategy, 878 percent growth, (Springfield)
• 731:  VRTL Space, 863 percent growth (Tysons)

Across the state, Virginia companies on this year’s list had a median growth rate of 192 percent over the past three years and brought in $19.6 billion in total revenue. They collectively added 31,171 jobs, and 167 are repeat winners. Virginia Business has more.

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FCEDA ramps up in-person business engagement with Indian companies exploring U.S. opportunities

This summer, Fairfax County Economic Development Authority’s (FCEDA) international business investment team ramped up in-person engagement with Indian businesses here in the United States and in India. FCEDA has maintained offices in India since 2004 and has served as a go-to resource for companies interested in expanding into the U.S. market. Nearly 30 Indian companies already have a presence in Fairfax County and are part of the dynamic and diverse business community here. These companies include Granules Pharmaceuticals, HCL, Hexaware, Newgen, and Tata Communications.

“Fairfax County’s strategic location and proximity to Washington D.C. gives Indian companies an unparalleled combination of easy access to markets, the U.S. federal government, diplomatic institutions, and superior quality of life at a more reasonable cost than other tech hubs in the United States,” said Juhi Naithani, assistant director of international business investment, FCEDA. “FCEDA India team stands ready to assist companies interested in learning more about working and living in Fairfax County.”

Click here to read more.

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Weekly Business News Digest

New space regulations: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris announced on August 12 at Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland, California, that the United States plans to update commercial space regulations by working with the commercial space industry, Via Satellite reported. The companies represented at the event included Herndon-based HawkEye 360, Falls Church area-based Northrop Grumman, and Maxar, which maintains Chantilly and Herndon locations. Bloomberg has more.

Global recruitment: Tysons low-code software company Appian opened a product development center in Chennai, India, and is hiring across the company, CEO Matt Calkins told the Washington Business Journal in an article for subscribers. Calkins said the company is hiring “everywhere, but especially in sales, engineering and recruiting.” The newly opened office in Chennai will focus on product development, according to the company’s website, and the firm said staffing up that location accounts for about 10 percent of its global recruitment effort. More than 2,000 people work at the firm today, Calkins said, up from less than 1,900 in January. Calkins said he’ll continue to hire “as fast as ever” in the Greater Washington region but said the office in Chennai will allow Appian to tap into a rich pool of talent in India. He added that the firm is looking to build offices in other countries “in order to get the talent we need.”

HBCU satellite campus in NoVa: Two historically Black colleges in southern Virginia are in talks to open a joint satellite campus in Northern Virginia, according to Virginia Business magazine. Virginia State University and Norfolk State University’s satellite campus would be the first HBCU in the state north of Richmond. While the discussions surrounding the plan are in early stages, the schools are looking to meet to discuss possible locations for the campus with the Northern Virginia Economic Alliance in the fall, said FCEDA President and CEO Victor Hoskins. Anna Nissinen, vice president of marketing communications at the FCEDA, expressed the organization’s enthusiasm to work with the schools as they plan to expand. “Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, along with the Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance, is honored to support HBCUs as they consider establishing a presence here in Northern Virginia,” Nissinen said. “These highly respected colleges and universities would bring rich history and stellar programming to our region, and the contributions of these organizations to our higher education ecosystem would benefit our community and our economy,” she added. Fairfax County Times has more.

A new record: Herndon data analytics company HawkEye 360 said Wednesday that two more “clusters” of its satellites are now in operation and that it now has a total of 15 satellites orbiting the globe collecting radio frequency data for its government and commercial clients, the Washington Business Journal reported. HawkEye launched its fourth cluster of three satellites in April and a fifth cluster of three in May, both from Cape Canaveral aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The fifth cluster began collecting data about 10 weeks after it was launched — “a new record,” according to Chief Operating Officer Rob Rainhart.

Tracking dark ships: Tysons-based Spire Global and Ithaca, N.Y.-based Ursa Space Systems teamed up to merge their capabilities and help U.S. federal agency clients track illegal activity in the maritime domain, ExecutiveBiz reported. Spire will provide automatic identification system data and combine it with synthetic aperture radar imagery sourced by Ursa Space to help detect and monitor “dark” ships that may be involved in illegal fishing, piracy and other illicit behavior. “Illegal maritime activity has far-reaching implications on national security, economics, human rights and more – but for a long time it was hard to prevent due to the lack of transparency on the open oceans,” said Chuck Cash, vice president of federal sales at Spire.

Tech partnership: Tysons-based Booz Allen Hamilton partnered with Dublin, Calif.-based AEye to productize and drive adoption of AEye’s technology for aerospace and defense applications. Booz Allen has developed a client toolkit for assessing the performance of machine learning and artificial intelligence, fusing data from multiple sensors – including lidar, camera, and radar – and virtualizing perception data for optimized mapping onto embedded processors to fully support situational awareness for the military. This toolkit accelerates AEye’s Intelligent Sensing Platform time-to-market into the aerospace and defense markets, Intelligence Community News reported.

New store: Amazon.com is advancing another Amazon Fresh grocery store in Fairfax County, this time at the Fair Lakes Center, according to public documents and contracting leads, reported the Washington Business Journal. The 19,685-square-foot space is currently occupied by World Market. Construction is scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2023, per the general contractor’s website. This would be the fourth Fairfax County Amazon Fresh store — two are open now, at Franconia and Lorton, and another is under construction in Baileys Crossroads.

Mission-critical portfolio: GI Partners acquired a handful of Northern Virginia buildings occupied by the biggest names in defense contracting as part of its strategy to add mission-critical facilities to its portfolio, Bisnow reported. The San Francisco-based firm bought the five-building, 860,000 square foot portfolio from a joint venture of Turnbridge Equities and Fundamental Advisors for $220 million. Consisting of properties in Fairfax, Herndon, Chantilly and Sterling, the portfolio is 96 percent leased, with its tenants including Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Boeing and Northrop Grumman.

Highly desirable location: Venture X, a co-working company, will open its first co-working location in Fairfax County, in Merrifield, on Jan. 2, 2023, the company announced. The site will offer private offices, shared desks, virtual office space, conference rooms, and a community and cafe area. This will be Venture X’s fourth Virginia location, including one that opened in Arlington last year, and the second owned by Richie and Charissa Parsons, who also own a location at One Loudoun in Ashburn. “After being open less than 10 months, our first location is almost at capacity,” Richie Parsons said. “So, we’ve been looking at options for expansion. When presented with the opportunity to open a Venture X in a highly desirable location next to Mosaic District, we knew this would be the perfect spot for our second location.” FFXnow has more.

Advancing internet access: Reston-based Internet Society Foundation opened applications for its second round of grants aimed at advancing internet access and connectivity in communities where current technologies are unavailable or inaccessible. The organization’s Building Opportunities/Leveraging Technologies (BOLT) program awards $200,000 for projects lasting up to 12 months that support “innovative solutions to internet connectivity.” Applications are open through September 2. Potomac Tech Wire picked up the release.

Affordable housing: The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved $33.3 million to acquire roughly four acres in Tyson’s urban center to support the development of 450 affordable housing units by SCG Development Partners. County supervisors set a goal of 10,000 affordable housing units by 2034 and have been steadily making progress, InsideNoVa reported. Supervisor Dalia Palchik praised the move, saying income should not determine opportunity or outcome in the county. “Our commitment to affordable housing in Fairfax County is characterized by a resolve to build livable spaces, full of engagement and opportunities for all residents – regardless of race, income, or ZIP code – to live their best lives,” Palchik said.

Bringing the vision to life: A major piece of the Town of Herndon’s vision for development around the Herndon-Monroe Metro Station has officially been approved, FFXnow reported. The Herndon Town Council unanimously voted to approve Lerner Enterprises’ proposal for the Parkview development, which would bring a little over one million square feet of development to the north entrance of the Herndon-Monroe Metro Station. Town of Herndon Mayor Sheila Olem said she was confident that the project brings the town vision for its transit-oriented core to life. The plan includes three buildings that could take two possible forms: a mixed-use development with two residential towers and an office tower or three office towers. Northern Virginia Magazine has more.

Increasing supplier diversity: Local entrepreneurs now have a direct line to do business with Fairfax County, FFXnow reported. On Aug. 1, the county launched an online portal that allows businesses to pitch a business idea, product or service to county agencies, departments and Fairfax County Public Schools. County agencies and departments can in turn take advantage of pitches that have already been vetted within the portal. Wendy Lemieux, marketing coordinator for the Fairfax County Department of Economic Initiatives, says the program — which had a soft launch at the beginning of the month — is intended to increase supplier diversity. “By providing a consistent, business-friendly point of entry, organizations can now share information about their products and services with county agencies that may be potential customers,” Lemieux said.

Ah, might as well jump, jump: Dozens of rappellers will descend down the side of the Hyatt Regency at Tysons Corner Center on August 27 for a charity fundraiser to support the nonprofit Helping Haitian Angels, which runs a school and orphanage in Haiti, according to FFXnow. Now in its second year, the event is a partnership between the nonprofit and Over the Edge, an adventure company that was also behind a rappelling fundraiser at the Hilton in Arlington. That raised over $200,000 for the local nonprofit New Hope Housing in May. “Hyatt Hotels has a long-standing history of supporting local nonprofit and global organizations,” said Jon Davenhall, the hotel’s general manager. “Hyatt Regency Tysons Corner Center is excited to be the Presenting Sponsor and help make a lasting impact in the lives of children who are left vulnerable without the care of loving parents.”

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Contract Wins

Science Applications International Corp. (Reston) received a $319 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to provide weapon system sustainment services in support of air operations centers across the globe. ExecutiveBiz

MAG Aerospace (Fairfax) won a $258 million contract to provide a U.S. Army program executive office with systems engineering technical assistance. GovConWire

CACI Technologies, an operating subsidiary of CACI International (Reston), secured a $31.3 million contract from the U.S. Navy to handle Naval Force logistics services for the U.S. Fleet Forces Command. ExecutiveBiz

LMI (Tysons) received a three-year contract to support the logistics and medical component of the Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense. ExecutiveBiz

September 8 — Virginia Talent Resource: Virginia Values Veterans. Join us for “Virginia Talent Resource: Virginia Values Veterans” as we provide an in-depth look into the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) Program. The V3 Program is a Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Veterans Services Program committed to educating Virginia employers on how to recruit, hire, train and retain Veterans. Click here to register.