The following development organizations are recipients of Expansion Solutions Magazine's 2008 Awards of Excellence in the *** Advanced Manufacturing*** industry category. These awards recognize organizations who have demonstrated exceptional progress and potential development for their areas -- by successfully recruiting, retaining and growing businesses. The winners below are listed in alphabetical order and are reflective of our top 5 picks.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Broome County Industrial Development Agency
Binghamton, NY
www.bcida.com
Ranked alongside Cambridge, San Jose and Austin, Binghamton (in upper New York state) is one of the strongest areas for innovation in the country. And, that's just one of the reasons site consultants representing advanced manufacturing clients need to take a good look at this area. Well-known companies such as Lockheed Martin, Rockwell Collins, BAE Systems, L-3 Communications, IBM and others have found Binghamton to be a haven for high technology. The city's university recently opened the Center for Advanced Microelectronics Manufacturing -- a partnership involving Binghamton, Endicott Interconnect Technologies and Cornell. The center will create a new generation of electronic components with a variety of military, homeland security, and energy applications
With major highway systems intersecting in Binghamton, the area has become known as the crossroads of the Southern Tier. The Southern Tier Expressway, NY Route 17 (future I-86), crosses the area in an east-west direction and places Binghamton on a direct, limited access route between New York City and major Midwestern cities, including Chicago and Cleveland. The North-South Expressway, Interstate 81, ties the region to Canada, central New York, Pennsylvania and points South. Interstate 88 links Binghamton directly to Albany, New York State's capital, and to other important northeastern markets, including Boston and Montreal.
To find out more about expansion/relocation possibilities in Binghamton, contact the Broome County Industrial Development Agency (BCIDA), The Agency offers companies services including needs assessment, site selection, financial incentives, and access to other public-sector programs. And, it owns and manages a 600 acre corporate park in Conklin, NY, as well as more than 1.2 million square feet of real estate in the community -- including the L3 Link Simulation & Training building in Kirkwood, NY and the BAE Systems building in Johnson City, NY.
The Quad Cities Region, a metropolitan area of 400,000 people along the Mississippi River in western Illinois and eastern Iowa, has long been a manufacturing center. From the time John Deere located his first factory here in 1848 to today when Spanish blade maker, Bellota, just recently announced its first location in the United States, manufacturers know the economic advantages of producing their goods here.
Four major drivers include: 1) access to a $40 billion market within 150 miles, 2) a proven productive work force from an ever-changing skills development support system, 3) an unparalleled transportation system including highway, rail, air as well as water and 4) a US Customs Office and Foreign Trade Zone. A sampling of recent expansions there include such large and small domestic manufacturers as John Deere, ALCOA, MMS Thermal Processing, LLC and PCT Engineered Systems, LLC along with global companies like Finland's KONE, Ltd, Sweden's SSAB and Switzerland's Nestlé Purina Pet Care.
While regional leaders continue to engineer the infrastructure and economic development programs to provide the most efficient, profitable and high-performance location in North America, the region's businesses continue to engineer their businesses to adapt and compete more effectively in today's global economy. For example, Alcoa has invested more than $500 million in technological improvements in the past decade to make the Davenport Works the aluminum industry's leader.
The communities' pro-business attitude delivers unique incentives along with an ever-changing business support system. Currently, a unique Intellectual Property Management Institute is being developed with support of a number of local industries.
Round Rock Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Partnership
Round Rock, TX
Round Rock, TX has been busy collecting awards. It was voted among the top 10 best cities to live in America by Money Magazine. According to a report by the Milken Institute and Greenstreet Partners, the region ranked 20th as one of the "Best Performing Cities," in 2007. It was considered to be one of the safest cities in the United States according to a national crime survey. Round Rock ranked number 4 among the best large metros for public schools and number 5 on the list of best cities for relocating families. It was also listed as one of the 50 hottest metros for business expansions and locations. All of these awards were issued by various national magazines.
With all the recognition, it is no surprise that Round Rock, TX has found its way onto our radar screen by being named one of the top 5 cities in the United States for Advanced Manufacturing companies. Their abundant, highly skilled and educated workforce, pro-business climate, supportive city government, excellent public schools, newly established healthcare/education complex, prime location (just 15 minutes north of Austin), and the outstanding quality of life, makes Round Rock an enviable location for economic development projects in Texas. Dell and Toppan Photomasks have located their corporate headquarters in Round Rock. Samsung, Intel, AMD and Hewlett Packard have also invested in the region. The region continues to grow as more high-tech startups locate to the area, adding to the bright future of Advanced Manufacturing in Round Rock.
St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association
St. Louis, MO
St. Louis has long been heralded as one of the premier hubs for the advanced manufacturing sector. The high concentration of manufacturing experience produces a highly educated and productive work force, with a rate of manufacturing sales per worker 27 percent higher than the national average. Workforce development is the key to St. Louis's successful advanced manufacturing program. Programs have been developed at St. Louis Community College, specifically catering to Engineering Manufacturing. The region fosters a pro-growth business culture which landed Missouri the Fourth best Corporate Income Tax Index from The Tax Foundation. The St. Louis area offers excellent support for advanced manufacturing. It is rich in high-end machining and metal working firms and in IT talent. The central location of the area saves time and money as it offers fast access to domestic and international markets earning it the Second best ranking on Logistics Today's "Top 10 Logistics Metros." The area has a high concentration of engineers and scientists. It also has plentiful and reasonably priced supplies of water and energy.
St. Louis is a center for high-tech electronics manufacturing and is home to Belden, Emerson, Graybar Electric, and MEMC Electronic Materials. The St. Louis area is home to a General Motors full-size van assembly plant and Chrysler assembly plant. It is also the headquarters for Boeing's Integrated Defense System's unit, DRS Sustainment Systems, GKN Aerospace and has an extraordinary base in Food related companies such as Anheuser Busch, Bunge North America, Monsanto, Nestle Purina, Ralcorp, and Solae.
Valdosta - Lowndes County Industrial Authority
Valdosta, GA
Valdosta, Georgia was recently selected as ESPN's Titletown USA. This honor was bestowed on Valdosta because of the city's unprecedented athletic achievements. The city, aptly nicknamed "Winnersville," is most notably known for football at the high school and college level, but they are proving to be winners in recruiting business as well.
After recognition as the third best metropolitan statistical area for industrial recruitment and expansion as well as being recognized as one of the top 5 locations by Expansion Solutions Magazine last year, Valdosta-Lowndes County has been selected as a Top 5 location for Advanced Manufacturing businesses this year. The community's pro-business climate, the success they have had at recruiting advanced manufacturing companies, retaining the businesses already established in the community through their existing industry program, workforce training and location, were some of the key factors which contributed to the presentation of the award.
Valdosta was the only city in Georgia to make the list of "recession proof" cities in a report by Mark Hovind, business consultant and president of JobBait.com. Using data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Hovind compared job expansion in a number of key industries and workforce growth in various metropolitan areas. He came up with a list of about two-dozen areas where jobs outpaced the workforce during past recessions and last year. Valdosta once again found itself at the top of the list.
The Authority recently established aggressive plans to attract over 3,000 new jobs and $250 million of new investment by 2012. The board is off to a great start with the recent announcement that Steeda Autosports is joining companies like True Flight, manufacturers of Tiger Aircaft, and Martin's Famous Pastry Shoppe in moving its corporate headquarters, distribution and manufacturing facilities to Valdosta. These projects combine to bring in 407 jobs and $43.8 million dollars in capital investment over the next three years.
|
