By Ava Rash / Fox 11 / July 10, 2023

Helicon Chemical was welcomed to the West Virginia Regional Technology Park in South Charleston Monday morning.

Helicon works to develop upgraded propellant binder to improve the performance of missiles, rockets and much more.

Wes Naylor, Helicon CEO, said the company plans to add four initial hires and then grow about 20 positions over the next 18 months. 

He said the company picked this location for a reason.

“Helicon Chemical has some very unique needs. Frankly, there are not many locations in the country that have the infrastructure that can be built on to do that,” Naylor said. “The regional technology park offered a solution that’s been here for decades and needed to be revitalized. And we thought it was the right time for a new age company and materials to come in and partner with that.”

The collaboration between Helicon and the Tech Park is expected to foster an environment of cross-industry collaboration and drive economic development in the region.

The company plans to use existing infrastructure to manufacture the binder, which will help bring jobs to the area and improve national security.

The West Virginia Regional Technology Park is a hub for innovation, science and technology in the state. Originally established to support the chemical industry, the park has since evolved into a multi-tenant campus fostering cutting-edge technologies across various fields.