Wyndham Vacation Ownership - a member of the Wyndham Worldwide family of companies - is expanding their presence in South Orange County with a $24.7 million capital investment in the 300,000 square foot former Harcourt-Brace building.

The company plans to hire 231 new jobs over the next three years in positions including executive management, marketing, sales and administration.

The EDC has worked closely with Wyndham Vacation Ownership over the last several months, assisting them with information on our business climate and workforce; analysis of key location factors - real estate costs, labor market conditions and operating costs; and incentives facilitation.

Orange County, the State of Florida, Enterprise Florida and Workforce Florida have been important partners in this successful corporate expansion project.

"We are thrilled that SunRail has received its final approval from Governor Rick Scott," said Rick L. Weddle, President and CEO of the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission.

"Beyond the thousands of jobs and billions in economic impact this project will bring, it will also be a tremendous asset for the region in terms of economic development. When businesses are looking to expand or relocate, the number one thing they look for is highway accessibility and transportation issues. Having the SunRail system in place will allow Metro Orlando to more effectively compete for the jobs of tomorrow."

Team Cymru, a specialized Internet security research firm that helps organizations identify and eradicate criminal activity online and in their networks, announced this week that they will relocate their corporate headquarters from Illinois to Metro Orlando.

EDC business development representatives Brian Walters and Tracy Turk were in Chicago late last week, along with EDC board member Bill Vogel, superintendent of Seminole County Public Schools. They met with the company's 25 headquarter employees and their families, most of whom will relocate to Central Florida. Company operations are expected to be up and running here by August 1st, with the move completed by the end of the year. Negotiations are underway for a location in Seminole County.

Relocating with Team Cymru will be a talented team of individuals who have experience in systems development, IP network engineering, security architecture, systems and network administration, network and hard drive forensics, malware analysis, penetration testing, and a variety of other areas.

Together, this Team delivers some of best security insight and services in the industry, including many no-cost services offered for the benefit of the Internet community. In addition to its headquarter employees, the company also has researchers based in the UK; Poland; New Zealand; Australia; Arizona; Washington D.C.; New York; Missouri; and California. The company has announced plans to hire an additional six employees immediately, and expect to make additional hires within the next two years.

In fact, it is the ability to recruit the skilled UNIX system engineering and development talent that attracted Team Cymru to this market. "We've assured our clients of two things," says company CEO Rob Thomas. "In the short term, we can and will accomplish this move with no disruption to their or our business. In the longer term, the move will permit our company to grow. We are confident that the Orlando market gives us access to a plethora of candidates with the skills we need, as well as the ability to recruit and retain the best and brightest talent."

Though Team Cymru specializes in sophisticated computer security applications, they say that the most frequent question they answer is this: "What is Cymru?". Pronounced "kum-ree", it is the Welsh word for the country of Wales. The company name, along with its distinctive dragon logo, is a nod to two of the Team Cymru founders, who have strong ties to Wales.

Economic development occurs in a variety of ways. While the attraction of new companies to the region generally grabs headlines, the expansion of existing local companies, especially expansions that result in additional jobs, is equally important to economy building. Two recent EDC project announcements reflect economic development success on both of those fronts.

New corporate headquarters coming to town. The American Academy of Optometry (AAO), an international association of optometrists and vision scientists headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area, has announced plans to relocate their association headquarters to Metro Orlando in 2012. The relocation is expected to create 10 new jobs within the next three years. The EDC has worked on the AAO headquarters relocation since 2009. When their move is complete, AAO will become the newest in a growing number of associations that have chosen to call Central Florida home, including; American Automobile Association (AAA), Institute of Internal Auditors, Association of Corporate Contributions Professionals, and Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), among others.

Winter Park company acquires South Carolina competitor. Wheeled Coach Industries, Inc., the world's largest manufacturer of ambulances and emergency-rescue vehicles, headquartered in Winter Park, has purchased a competing company from South Carolina. The acquisition will result in the merger of operations at the company's Orange County facility, a move expected to eventually result in 105 new manufacturing jobs and over $2 million new capital investment here in Central Florida. EDC representatives worked closely with the growing local company, coordinating incentive support from Orange County and the state of Florida.

At last week's meeting of the Orange County Board of Commissioners, county leaders approved an incentive package designed to help a growing high-tech company remain and expand in the Central Florida Research Park. The county incentive, which is expected to be matched 80:20 by the State of Florida, will allow DSCI, a defense simulation and optics/photonics company, to consolidate out-of-state offices and grow their presence in our region. Within the next three years, the company plans to add 40 new employees to their current workforce of 31; jobs that pay an average wage of more than $80,000, which is double the county's prevailing wage.

This isn't the only EDC client to announce expansion plans in recent weeks. Tecport Optics, an Orlando-based optics company that designs, manufactures, sells and services state-of-the-art thin film vacuum deposition systems, recently expanded into a larger facility and announced plans to double its workforce over the next three years. The EDC has worked with Tecport for several years, providing general assistance and introductions to incentive and grant opportunities, such as the UCF-based GrowFL economic gardening program. As a result, Tecport received an Economic Gardening Business Loan - to be used for working capital purchases, employee training, or salaries for newly created jobs - which will enable the company to bring more of its manufacturing operations to Central Florida.

And in Seminole County, Industrial Lighting Products - a manufacturer of high efficiency lighting and energy-efficient fixtures - recently expanded into a new 40,000-square-foot location in Sanford. The company expects to create 59 new manufacturing jobs over the next two years. The EDC assisted ILP with a refund for sales tax paid on utilities and introduced them to the GrowFL program, as well as other local resources. This growing company is one of 1,723 manufacturers, who together employ 37,000 here in Central Florida.

Thanks to the author and chief sponsor of Florida's revamped film and entertainment incentive, Representative Stephen Precourt, Florida's film, television and commercial production industry has been sizzling. And the news of the 'game changing' incentive is being well documented. Just take a look at the cover story in the current issue of Texture magazine. And now, P3 magazine, a monthly internationally-distributed trade publication, has named Florida a top 10 U.S. film location, citing the state's newly revamped incentive program, diverse locations and deep infrastructure.

As the news continues to spread, film professionals are taking advantage. "Transformers 3" was recently in Central Florida to film at Kennedy Space Center and other locations throughout the state, including Orlando International Airport's Signature Jetport.

Stay tuned for the next wave of exciting productions that will be heading to Florida. To stay up with the latest, become a fan of Film Orlando on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

To attract, retain and grow jobs for Metro Orlando. That is the mission of the Metro Orlando EDC; and it is what our community is most concerned about in today's economy. So we are pleased to share news of companies throughout our region who have announced plans to expand and add jobs. Your EDC has worked with each of these companies, and though the economic impact won't be realized immediately - companies provide anticipated job creation and other impact numbers over three to five years - their plans bring welcome signs of optimism.

In Seminole County, software company EZYield.com plans to add 75 new jobs at their Winter Springs facility over the next three years. Working with the EDC and Seminole State College, the company, which provides online distribution software to the hospitality industry in 92 countries, has qualified for a QRT training grant to assist with their expansion plans. And, Longwood-based Calvert Manufacturing has announced plans to expand their existing facility and create 18 new jobs over the next three years. Calvert, which is a leading heavy equipment manufacturer that has served the U.S. plywood industry since 1946, specializes in new and rebuilt "green-end" equipment.

In Lake County, Visions@Work has announced plans to add 97 new jobs within three years. This Clermont-based company links e-business with information systems for healthcare organizations. Their new product launch of "Prefer" allows doctors, hospitals and medical labs to more efficiently manage the medical referral process. They have recently opened a second office in Downtown Orlando and entered into a partnership with NIIT Technologies to headquarter their worldwide Health Information Technology operations in Central Florida.

In Orange County, Utah-headquartered Innovative Medical Device Solutions (IMDS) has announced plans to establish their "co-innovation headquarters" in the Central Florida Research Park. The company, which was originally referred to the Metro Orlando EDC through a member of our bioOrlando Council, chose this region based on its growing life sciences cluster, world class airport and quality of life. IMDS, which specializes in medical device development and manufacturing, indicates that they will bring 35 jobs, mostly in engineering and production, to Central Florida within three years.

With the help of fast-track permitting from the City of Orlando, nutraceutical sales company Xymogen, based in Central Florida since 1991, will expand their business and build a 72,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on Kingspointe Parkway near John Young and the Turnpike. This fast growing company, which has experienced over 22 percent growth annually, has also announced plans to add 58 new jobs within three years. The company is developer of the patented XYMOGEN® line of professional formulas, which are distributed exclusively to licensed healthcare providers.

Fast-growing, Orlando-headquartered Intelligent Global Pooling Systems (iGPS) has announced plans to expand its operations into a larger 23,000 sf facility in downtown Orlando. With this expansion, the company also intends to hire 75 new employees over the next three years, adding to their current workforce of 79.

iGPS is a global logistics company that has revolutionized the pallet rental industry by installing radio frequency identification tracking devices in their plastic pallets so that goods can be traced throughout the entire transportation process. These innovations have led to the company's rapid growth over the last few years. After considering relocation to Dallas, where iGPS also has an office, the decision was made to expand here in Orlando.

Together with the City of Orlando's economic development department and Enterprise Florida, the EDC worked with iGPS to ensure the company remained in the region and worked with them through the Qualified Target Industry (QTI) incentive process.

The Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission (EDC) has announced that Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon company, will expand their operations in Lake Mary, Florida.

Pershing currently has over 450 employees at their Lake Mary facility and will now add 300 new jobs over the next three years. The company will also add an additional 23,000 square feet to their existing footprint in Colonial TownPark with an expected capital investment of $4.5 million. Pershing is headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey and has operated in Lake Mary since 2006.

Richard Brueckner, chief executive officer of Pershing LLC, said "After exploring other domestic and international locations, Pershing committed to expansion in Lake Mary as an optimum location to grow our business. The BNY Mellon enterprise will continue to realize benefits in support of our business in Lake Mary and the greater Orlando region through our collaboration with local agencies and by leveraging the skills of the local workforce. We look forward to strengthening our partnerships in support of the local community."

The Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission (EDC) provided assistance with Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund (QTI) and Quick Response Training (QRT) applications. The company will receive $900,000 in QTI tax refunds from Seminole County and the State of Florida. QRT is still in processing.

"We were pleased to work with Pershing to help ensure they stay and grow their operations here in Metro Orlando," said Ray Gilley, president and CEO of the Metro Orlando EDC.

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Pershing LLC (member FINRA/NYSE/SIPC) is a leading global provider of financial business solutions to more than 1,150 institutional and retail financial organizations and independent registered investment advisors who collectively represent approximately five million active investors. Located in 20 offices worldwide, Pershing and its affiliates are committed to delivering dependable operational support, robust trading services, flexible technology, an expansive array of investment solutions, practice management support and service excellence. Pershing is a member of every major U.S. securities exchange and its international affiliates are members of the Deutsche Börse, the Irish Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange. Pershing LLC is a BNY Mellon company. Additional information is available at www.pershing.com.

Several local companies working with the EDC have announced expansion plans that are expected to generate new Central Florida jobs.

Sanford-based Roses Southeast Papers will add 65,000-square-feet to their existing facility in Seminole County. This will allow the manufacturer, which specializes in tissue paper and napkin production, to add converting operations, enabling them to complete the finishing process locally rather than shipping rolls to their New Mexico headquarters for processing. The expansion will cost nearly $7.2 million and company executives indicate that they plan to add 50 jobs over the next two years. The EDC worked closely with the company to facilitate their Jobs Growth Incentive (JGI) application process and approvals with the city and county.

The DiSTI Corporation, a defense simulation and training company located just outside Orange County's Central Florida Research Park near the University of Central Florida, has announced that they will remain in Central Florida and that they plan to add 30 new jobs within the next 36 months. Though courted by communities in other states, the EDC recently helped the tech company secure a Qualified Targeted Industry (QTI) incentive that will assist with their expansion here in our market. According to Joe Swinski, DISTI President: "Central Florida is a great location for our business. We're able to leverage our close vicinity to US Army PEO STRI and NAVAIR Orlando to gain a competitive advantage, and to draw from resources and talent at Kennedy Space Center."

On Monday, February 15, an independent feature film, "Homecoming", will begin shooting in Celebration. Produced by About the Logo, LLC, "Homecoming" is a story of an Army medic who is home on leave from Afghanistan. During her time home, she has to deal with changing relationships with her family, friends and community.

The film will be shooting February 15 - mid-March at locations mainly in Celebration but also in Kissimmee.

The film industry is very competitive and is largely driven by incentives. And as the Florida Legislature prepares to return for the 2010 Session, film industry professionals are focused on working to convert the current statewide incentive into a tax credit. For more information, visit http://filmorlando.com/Resources/hb697.stml.