DataSite Orlando announced that it will invest $26 million to renovate an existing 130,000 sq. ft. facility into a 21st century data center that prioritizes energy efficiency. Located in Orange County's South Park on John Young Parkway, building features will include thermoplastic roof membrane, capturing rainwater for liquid cooling, ducted returns to remove warm air before it mixes with cold air and participation in an energy-efficiency program offered by Progress Energy.

In addition to an energy-saving facility re-fab that will put an important new technology infrastructure piece in place here in Central Florida, the project is expected to generate 39 new jobs averaging salaries of $70,000.

Owned by BURGES Property + Company, DataSite Orlando provides a secure facility serving high tech companies with varying needs in purpose-built data centers. The facility offers customizable space and true redundancy with fail-safe power from two independent utility feeds from separate substations.

Commuter rail. UCF College of Medicine funding. Film production incentives. Support for these, and many other issues vital to Metro Orlando's economic development success, are included among the EDC's list of 2009 Legislative Priorities, which was recently approved by the EDC Board of Directors. Click here for a summary of the EDC legislative priorities.

Throughout the coming months, the EDC's Legislative Committee will work closely with university, local government and industry trade association partners to help ensure that our delegations understand the importance of their support for priorities that help build and diversify our economy.

Companies and government agencies alike are all looking to cut costs right now. However, they don't want to sacrifice training for employees. The solution? Using virtual worlds for training purposes.

Virtual worlds provide a safe, secure and private training environment while reducing expenses incurred from traveling for conferences and other training.

Here is what three companies in Orlando are doing:

Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS) is in the process of designing a new virtual classroom which utilizes avatars for instructional delivery that will provide the Department of Homeland Security online/virtual world with 3D secure social network capabilities for training and education. Previously, ECS provided the National Guard Bureau will a virtual world called Nexus. And under a new contract with U.S. Army's RDECOM, ECS will adapt its Nexus virtual world program to train military medical professionals.

Forterra Systems, Inc builds distributed virtual world technology for defense, homeland security, medical, corporate training and education industries. The company's On-Line Interactive Virtual Environment (OLIVE) technology provides private, service-oriented virtual worlds for global collaboration, training, simulation and planning.

Lockheed Martin has created Virtual World Labs to shape the future of training with the creation of collaborative simulation learning and data visualization solutions for government, military and corporate sectors. The company utilizes tools that enable it to modify the virtual world capabilities to the customer's needs and to maximize human potential. The company's UltiSim platform can be used to develop rules-based learning scenarios, as well as true non-linear simulations using high-fidelity dynamic/physics based models.

Online Support Center to bring 750+ jobs to Orange County

Kaplan University, a leading provider of online higher education, announced this week they will open a new online student support center in a two-story, 124,000-square-foot space at 12650 Ingenuity Drive in the Central Florida Research Park. Slated for opening in January, the facility will house admissions advisors, financial aid officers, human resources and information technology representatives who will support Kaplan University's online students.

Kaplan has already begun hiring in Orlando. The University expects to employ as many as 750 people over the next four years. In announcing this location decision, Andrew Rosen, President of Kaplan University, said, "We looked at 20 different cities and decided that the Orlando site was the best fit for the University because of its affordable cost of living and great labor pool."

Kaplan has four other online student support centers in South Florida, as well as centers in Chicago and Phoenix. Kaplan University is part of Kaplan Higher Education, which serves more than 80,000 students through 70 campus-based schools across the United States and in Europe.

According to a recent report from the Pew Hispanic Center, one of the fastest growing regions for Hispanics isn't Miami, New York or Los Angeles... it's Orlando, Fla.

Hispanics currently make up 22 percent of the population in Metro Orlando and that percentage is growing. Between 2000 and 2007, the Hispanic community grew 4 percent in the U.S. while Metro Orlando experienced a 29 percent growth rate. In fact, Orange County, Fla., ranked 17th in the increase of Hispanic residents and Lake County, Fla., ranked 18th among the 25 fastest-growing Hispanic counties in the country during this same time.

This diversity is a competitive advantage when it comes to business and personal choices for relocation. Over 20,000 Hispanic owned businesses have chosen to locate their operations in Metro Orlando and many of the region's top businesses are led by Hispanics. From the personal side, one out of every six residents in Metro Orlando was born outside the United States, the majority of which (about two-thirds) are from Latin America.

The region's diversity was recently recognized by Forbes when they named Orlando as one of "America's newest immigrant capitals" and the #5 spot for immigrants. The reason? Forbes cites plentiful jobs. And while many know Orlando as a tourism destination, the region is also home to a vibrant $13.4 billion technology industry in fields such as photonics and optics, modeling and simulation, digital media and many others.

Orlando's access and proximity to Latin America is another reason the area is considered a top spot for immigrants. And with recent announcements for direct flights from Copa Airlines to/from Panama, Tam Airlines to/from Brazil and JetBlue to/from Colombia, access to Latin America is easier than ever from Orlando. Not only does this make travel more convenient for leisure and business travelers alike, but it also opens opportunities for companies looking to export products and trade with Latin America.

Building on the belief that a culturally diverse community makes good business sense, the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission (EDC) established a Minority Channel initiative aimed at encouraging minority owned and led businesses in targeted industries to consider Orlando as the site of choice for relocation or expansion. For more information on this initiative, contact us.