Photo caption: Michael Sahady (left), Chairman/CEO of AVID Medical, Inc. and Rick Setian (right), President/COO of AVID Medical, Inc., accept the Captain John Smith Award at James City County's Tenth Annual Celebration of Business. |
The James City County Board of Supervisors, Economic Development Authority (EDA), County Administration, and Office of Economic Development hosted the County's tenth annual Celebration of Business Wednesday evening, September 4, at Jamestown Island. About 90 guests participated in the salute to the County's major industrial, technical, and business service companies.
AVID Medical, Inc. received this year's Captain John Smith Award, presented for outstanding business achievement.
Bruce Goodson, Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman, made the presentation on behalf of the County and its EDA. AVID was established in James City County in 1999. The company assembles sterilized disposable surgical supplies such as plastic basins, sponges, gauze, syringes, towels, gowns, and drapes into 2,500 custom surgical trays per day.
Construction and outfitting of its 40,000-square foot facility involved an initial capital investment of $2.25 million. The original workforce of 60 grew over four years to over 200. Work is now underway to double the facility size, with an additional capital investment of $3.5 million. AVID's employment is also expected to double over the next few years.
Two other special awards were presented in recognition of the event's tenth anniversary. County Administrator Sandy Wanner presented Colonial National Historical Park Superintendent Alec Gould with a proclamation noting the nationally significant business purpose played by the original Jamestown Island settlement nearly 400 years ago. EDA Chairman Skip Campana presented Brian McNelis, Plant Manager of the Anheuser-Busch Williamsburg brewery, with a proclamation recognizing the brewery's long-standing economic and civic influence on the County and surrounding area.
