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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Defense Firm ITT Exelis to Establish Headquarters in Fairfax County, VA, and Create About 100 Jobs

07/20/2011
ITT Defense and Information Solutions has announced it will invest up to $5 million to establish its new corporate headquarters in Fairfax County. This activity will occur after the firm completes its spin-off from ITT Corporation later this year, and is rebranded as ITT Exelis. The project will create 100 jobs in the next three to five years across all of its business operations in Virginia.

Presently ITT's Defense and Information Solutions has its headquarters in McLean, its Geospatial Systems division in Roanoke, and its Information Systems division in Herndon.

As a new, publicly traded company, ITT Exelis will provide technologies for worldwide military, government and commercial customers. Its products and services will include surveillance and reconnaissance systems, next-generation night vision, networked communications, integrated electronic warfare, radar, space-based satellite imaging, weather and climate monitoring, and much more.

David F. Melcher, currently president of ITT Defense & Information Solutions, who will serve as chief executive officer of ITT Exelis, said Virginia was "an ideal choice" due to its "economics, proximity to a number of our customers, and our existing relationship with the state."

Governor McDonnell said the selection of Fairfax for the new headquarters "is a win for our economy and a testament to our state's strong business climate. Our region offers access to one of the world's largest information-based networks for defense, and I am pleased that the new company will call Virginia home."

On the incentives side, Fairfax County was given a $100,000 grant from the Governor's Opportunity Fund to help make the project a reality. And the Virginia Jobs Investment Program will provide funding and services to support the recruitment and training needs of ITT Exelis.

Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, said the company's decision to choose Fairfax County "again validates the long-term, consistent effort to make this one of the best business locations in the world. [We] are proud to have this company as part of a dynamic business community that is an important part of the quality of life here."

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