RIDC's Don Smith: Building Pittsburgh's Tech & Manufacturing Future

What do a shared-use SCIF, autonomous driving test track and one of Pittsburgh's top advanced manufacturers have in common? They are all currently under the wing of the Regional Industrial Development Corporation (RIDC).

Jonathan Kersting sits down with Don Smith of the RIDC for a wide-ranging update on the projects reshaping Pittsburgh's tech and manufacturing landscape.

At Mill 19 on Hazelwood Green, RIDC is building a $10 million shared-use SCIF — a hyper-secure facility where companies can engage with classified government projects from the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, and beyond. Partnering with Parallax on an accelerated build-out, the SCIF gives Pittsburgh startups a home-field advantage for defense procurement — no more driving to the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, Hellbender is bringing manufacturing back inside the city limits with plans to scale to 500 jobs — potentially the largest manufacturing deal in the City of Pittsburgh in decades.

Don and Jonathan also cover:

The evolution of Lawrenceville from NREC's early robotics hub to today's thriving ecosystem Neighborhood 91 at the airport, where a 108,000 sq ft spec building is under construction ReBuild Manufacturing's rapid ramp-up at the former Alcoa site in New Kensington The PennSTART dual-use test track — a two-mile facility for autonomous vehicle testing and first-responder training, opening in 2027 RIDC's 70-year history of transforming stranded industrial sites into modern innovation spaces Why Pittsburgh's robotics, AI, and defense ecosystem is attracting companies from around the world The Pittsburgh Technology Council produces TechVibe to explore Pittsburgh's technology and innovation economy.