COVER STORY: Editors’ Location Picks

By Business Facilities Staff
From the September/October 2012 issue

The time has come for Business Facilities to once again shine our economic development spotlight on locations that have caught our eye during the year and impressed us with the scope of their efforts. As always, the task of winnowing the field to those who deserve special attention and picking the cream of the crop was tougher than singing the praises of our showcase selections.

This year’s Location Picks are a diverse group of communities which have successfully planted their flag on the battlefield for new growth sectors. The locations we have chosen present a bevy of forward-thinking programs that deserve a closer look.

Every one of the locations honored here has embraced the imperative of regional cooperation as a driver of nearly every successful growth strategy. Maximizing resources also is a critical key to success. Whether it’s leveraging a vibrant system of higher education, investing in infrastructure improvements or ensuring that a skilled workforce will continue to be available to new businesses that arrive on the scene, our Location Picks are ready to hit the ground running once an expansion, relocation or new facility comes their way Business Facilities congratulates this year’s selections for a job well done and offers a tip of the hat to the runners-up.

Pittsburgh: Healthcare Hub
Pittsburgh, PA perennially makes our list of the most livable cities in the nation. The city that rose on three mighty rivers in western PA is home to a number of industrial powerhouses, including aluminum giant Alcoa, U.S. Steel, financial services titans Highmark and PNC Financial Services, and food processing behemoth H.J. Heinz.
Pittsburgh has Pittsburgh has set its strategic sights on five growth sectors: advanced manufacturing (including robotics), health care/life sciences, financial/business services, information and communications technology and energy. [For a list of the top Fortune 500 companies with major facilities in Pittsburgh, see chart below.]

*Revenue for Fortune 500 is generally done by calendar year, and some companies’ fiscal years do not align with the calendar year. (Source: Fortune; last updated: May 7, 2012.)

A burgeoning health care industry drives the regional economy in Pittsburgh. Two of the leading employers, UPMC and West Penn Allegheny Health System, together account for more than 50,000 jobs. The federal government also has a major output in Pittsburgh: federal agencies employ 18,600 people in the city.

Pittsburgh, PA

As a top receiver of National Institutes of Health R&D funding, the region boasts assets like the pioneering transplantation techniques of Thomas E. Starzl and the jointly established Carnegie Mellon/University of Pittsburgh Computational Biology Graduate Program.

Key centers of innovation and collaboration in Pittsburgh include Innovation Works, the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse (PLSG), Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC), Pittsburgh Technology Council and the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Institute.

Innovation Works (IW) plays a vital role in Southwestern PA’s technology economy, investing capital, business expertise and other resources into high-potential companies with the greatest likelihood for regional economic impact. IW is the single largest investor in seed-stage companies in this region and one of the most active in the country; it has invested $52.3 million in more than 152 start-ups.

The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse (PLSG) provides capital investments and customized company information and business growth services to the region’s life sciences enterprises. PLSG supports biosciences companies with promising innovations in the following concentrations: Biotechnology Tools, Diagnostics, Healthcare IT, Medical Devices and Therapeutics. The Greenhouse accelerates technology commercialization with seed and early-stage companies; connects investors with its Investment Portfolio companies; expands established life sciences ventures and relocates biomedical companies to Pennsylvania.

Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) provides university, government, and industrial researchers with access to several of the most powerful systems for high-performance computing, communications and data-handling available to scientists and engineers nationwide for unclassified research. PSC advances the state-of-the-art in high-performance computing, communications and informatics and offers a flexible environment for solving the largest and most challenging problems in computational science.

The Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center is a joint effort of Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh together with Westinghouse Electric Company. Established in 1986, PSC is supported by several federal agencies, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and private industry, and is a leading partner in XSEDE (Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment), the National Science Foundation cyberinfrastructure program. PSC works with its XSEDE partners to harness the full range of information technologies to enable discovery in U.S. science and engineering.

Since 1983, the Pittsburgh Technology Council has been the principal point of connection for companies from four primary clusters of the technology industry that are represented by a critical mass of businesses in southwestern Pennsylvania, including the Advanced Manufacturing/Materials, Green Technology, Information Technology and Life Sciences sectors.

The Council aligns itself with key organizations and initiatives in order to improve the regional economic climate and build tech industry growth. It has partnerships with key developmental organizations, including the 3 Rivers Connect (3rc).

3 Rivers Connect is a nonprofit agency that helps individuals, educators and community leaders use information and technology to make the best possible decisions about the allocation of resources and delivery of services. 3rc works with a variety of community-oriented organizations ranging from schools and social services agencies to government and environmental groups. Through projects such as the Information Commons, 3rc is unifying community information in a way that will give everyone a better understanding of the issues and a data-driven foundation for planning and analysis.

Fort Lauderdale: A Public-Private Success Story
Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance has forged a powerhouse collection of area CEOs into a driving force for growth. The winner of the new Achievement in Public-Private Partnership Award has set the standard for best practices in this dominant new economic development model.

The mission of Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance is to lead Broward County in building a stronger and more diversified economy by promoting increased public/private sector collaboration, delivering business development initiatives focused on new investment and job growth, enhancing the competitiveness of Broward’s business climate and driving regional initiatives.

The CEO Council of Greater Fort Lauderdale recently has been involved in several high-profile initiatives that are raising national awareness for the region. A TV commercial produced by Zimmerman Advertising has featured CEO Council members Wayne Huizenga, Mike Jackson, Roy Krause and Keith Koenig along with County Administrator Bertha Henry and NFL Hall of Famer Dwight Stephenson. The TV ads, which aired for six months in the NY/NJ/CT and Boston markets and on JetBlue’s in-flight TV, conclude with Huizenga’s memorable tag line: “Hey, it’s not what you make, it’s what you keep.” The top execs also appeared in print display ads.

Greater Fort Lauderdale is home to a number of established, strong and growing industry clusters. From aerospace and aviation to cloud technology, biotechnology and life sciences, marine and international trade and logistics, the area offers a strong infrastructure to support these growing industries. Additionally, Greater Fort Lauderdale is home to a highly trained and skilled workforce that ensures these industries continue to grow and prosper.

Technology companies find Greater Fort Lauderdale provides a stimulating environment for business success. The region’s assets include a readily available base of skilled knowledge workers, a warm climate for creative activities, convenient access to world markets, and a cooperative spirit that helps turn research discoveries into commercial products.

South Florida has deep roots in the technology sector, including the distinction of being the birthplace of IBM’s PC in the early 1980s. Today, the technology landscape continues to attract global companies, along with successful “home-grown” businesses and innovative start-ups. Greater Fort Lauderdale’s IT/telecom companies employ more than 50,000 people, according to recent surveys. Overall, the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area is one of the nation’s Top 100 Tech Centers as defined by bizjournals.com, with a recent ranking of 62.

Fort Lauderdale-based Citrix Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of virtual computing solutions that help companies deliver IT as an on-demand service. Founded in 1989, Citrix combines virtualization, networking, and cloud computing technologies into a full portfolio of products that enable virtual workstyles for users and virtual datacenters for IT. The $1.6 billion company serves more than 230,000 organizations in 100-plus countries.

On the up-and-coming side of the spectrum is Pompano Beach’s ServusXchange, LLC, which was ranked No. 17 on the Forbes inaugural ranking of “America’s Most Promising Companies.” The IT company’s flagship product is MyOnlineToolbox, a community platform that brings business innovations to contractors who repair and remodel homes.
Other Greater Fort Lauderdale IT companies include Microsoft Latin America; Cbeyond, Inc., a Miramar managed services provider to small businesses; and Blue Frog Solutions in Pompano Beach, a leading provider of middleware solutions for life insurance carriers, underwriters and their distributors and agents. DataBridge Corp. in Oakland Park is a computer engineering consultancy that develops turnkey computing solutions for its clients.

In the online sector, Saveology.com is a national consumer comparison-shopping provider, while eDiets.com, Inc., is a leading provider of convenient at-home diet, fitness and healthy lifestyle solutions. eStockIt.com in Hollywood is an online retailer of restaurant, janitorial and office supplies.

Motorola Mobility, Plantation, FL

As worldwide demand grows for “smart” handheld devices with powerful new applications, Greater Fort Lauderdale is home to a strong and growing cluster of wireless technology companies serving consumer, business and governmental customers. Key players include Motorola, which has a facility in Plantation that employs 1,700 and developed an advanced two-way portable radio for use by police, fire rescue and other first responders; Research in Motion, with 400 employees in Sunrise, a worldwide designer and manufacturer of wireless communications devices and services, including the famous BlackBerry family; and General Dynamics C4 Systems, also in Sunrise, which makes wireless communications and mobility information systems for military, homeland security and business customers.

After more than 18 years of planning, work finally began in late January on a new, 8,000-foot-long runway at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. The huge $791 million South Runway Expansion Project should be completed and ready for landings and takeoffs in September 2014.

Runway 9R-27L, located on the south side of the airport and running parallel to Griffin Road, is now being rehabilitated and lengthened. In its old configuration, the runway was only 5,276 ft. (1,608 m) long and was deemed unsuitable for the increasing amount of air traffic coming into the airport. It was closed on April 17 and construction of the new landing surface is going on top of it

The fact that the new runway will be elevated more than six stories above ground level at its eastern end makes it one of only a few elevated runways in the U.S. and only the second runway in the country to span a federal highway.

Little Rock, AR: Regional Growth Center
Little Rock, AR is a center for several major employers in a variety of industries including healthcare, service, government and agriculture.

Little Rock, population 193,524, is located in the center of the country and in the second fastest-growing region of the United States, with 40 percent of the nation’s population and buying power within a 550-mile radius. Little Rock is where ‘America Comes Together’—located at the crossroad of Interstate 30 and the most heavily traveled Interstate in the nation, Interstate 40.

Competitive wages and Arkansas’ right-to-work environment provide an excellent workforce environment for businesses. Twenty-eight Fortune 500 companies operate within the Little Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The Little Rock National Airport, less than three miles from downtown, is Arkansas’ largest commercial service airport, serving approximately 2.1 million passengers annually. The airport attracts passengers from a large part of Arkansas, as well as a number of surrounding states. There are more than 120 flight arrivals and departures at Little Rock each day, with non-stop jet service to thirteen national and international gateway cities, making Little Rock truly one stop away from the world. Little Rock National is served by American Eagle, Continental Express, Delta, Delta Connection, Northwest, Northwest Airlink, Southwest and US Airways Express. The Little Rock National Airport is operated by the Airport Commission, whose members are appointed by the Little Rock City Board of Directors.

The Arkansas River runs past downtown Little Rock and is part of the McClellan-Kerr Navigation System, one of the largest projects of the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The system provides a 448-mile navigation channel for barge traffic from the Mississippi River northwest to fifteen miles east of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Port of Little Rock, on the Arkansas River is a designated Foreign Trade Zone and a United States Customs Point of Entry. This status allows goods to be stored and processed there without custom duties or bonds being paid until products are finished and sold, or moved out of zone.

The City of Little Rock has seen a steady increase in economic development activities, which is due in large part to an active private sector and the strong leadership of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce. In addition, manufacturing, transportation and service sector employment are growing at a steady rate. Little Rock is one of the top fifteen aggressive development markets in the nation and has doubled in the past thirty years, with projections indicating it will double again in during the next twenty years.

Government leaders are committed to retaining, creating and expanding job opportunities for the service, retail and industrial sectors of the community. As a result of this commitment, Little Rock is experiencing unprecedented development and expansion in the downtown corridor. Since 1994, projects totaling $968,579,951 have been completed in the downtown area, with $175,894,720 worth of projects in progress and an additional $194 million worth of proposed projects. The River Market has resulted in new businesses throughout the River Market District, including a $7.5 million renovation and development of the Museum Center Building, which houses the Museum of Discovery, restaurants and commercial information technology enterprises. In addition, the $165 million William J. Clinton Presidential Center opened its doors in November 2004, and since opening, the Center has hosted over 300,000 visitors.

The City’s Economic Development Office administers local ‘Advantage Arkansas’ Programs and visits businesses to determine eligibility for the former Enterprise Zone Program to secure endorsements of various businesses regarding economic development programs, zoning requirements, special tax provisions and related economic incentives and information. In addition, the Economic Development Office serves as the City’s representative for the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce Briefing Center, analyzes new business proposals, prepares developer packages and presents information to encourage business location. Decommissioning closely with this office is the Office of Minority Economic Development which was established in 1994 as a result of FUTURE Little Rock.

Skilled Workforce Ready In Greater Omaha
Greater Omaha continues to attract business from a variety of growing industries. And it’s no wonder. The eight-county region offers many qualities key to economic success, including: a solid, hard-working and educated workforce; available Omaha commercial real estate in a variety of specifications and locations; lower costs and available incentives for business; and a decidedly pro-business environment.

Access to an educated, skilled and motivated workforce is one of Greater Omaha’s key assets because it draws business to the area and spurs economic growth. Every year, there are more than 9,000 new graduates from area high schools and 10,000 from area colleges and universities. These individuals stay in Greater Omaha because opportunities are plentiful—both professionally and personally—and the area offers a superior quality of life.

The Greater Omaha community places a high value on the contributions businesses make to their economy and quality of life. This is why you’ll find that Greater Omaha and the state of Nebraska have been instrumental in developing incentive programs designed to increase business, investment and employment in the entire region. Available to businesses of all sizes and a wide variety of industries, these incentives benefit business in many ways, including reduction or elimination of property, payroll, income and/or sales tax liability; customized job training; and special financing, grants and loans
Greater Omaha is home to the headquarters of nine Fortune 1000 companies. Those include five on the Fortune 500 list—Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., Union Pacific, ConAgra Foods, Peter Kiewit Sons, Inc. and Mutual of Omaha.

With the nation’s largest privately held bank (First National Bank of Nebraska) and three Fortune 1000 financial services companies (Berkshire Hathaway, Mutual of Omaha and TD Ameritrade), Greater Omaha’s financial services clusters have one of the highest densities in the country.

Greater Omaha is home to Offutt Air Force Base which houses United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), U.S. Air Force Weather Agency and the 55th Wing of the U.S. Air Force. As such, Greater Omaha has a global reach, emphasizing key components of the base’s core missions—including deterrence, space, cyberspace global weather, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

With its central location and outstanding infrastructure, Greater Omaha is home to key transportation companies and is a logistics center. In fact, two of Greater Omaha’s Fortune 1000 companies are in this sector, Union Pacific and Werner Enterprises.
Greater Omaha has low utility costs, a central U.S. location and excellent transportation access. Thus, Greater Omaha’s manufacturing sector has continued to thrive in areas such as agriculture-related hardware, value-added agricultural products, chemicals/fuels and finished goods.

Greater Omaha’s information technology businesses continue to flourish with numerous companies creating or opening key technology operations in Omaha. Greater Omaha has grown to be a high-tech haven with a diverse mix of technology and a highly trained IT workforce.

Airbus Lands In Mobile
Mobile, AL already is a hub for heavy manufacturing. Its largest manufacturers include shipbuilding giant Austal USA (2,500 employees), ThyssenKrupp Steel USA (1,700), ST Mobile Aerospace (1,300) and BAE Systems Southeast (850).

Joining that powerhouse lineup is Airbus, the European aircraft manufacturing giant. Airbus is preparing to build a new facility in Mobile, AL to produce commercial airliners. According to Adam Buck, a spokesman for the mayor of Mobile’s office, the $600 million facility will generate 1,000 permanent jobs.

Airbus is putting a commercial aircraft assembly line in Mobile.

This will be Airbus’ first manufacturing plant in the western hemisphere; it will be located on the site of a former Air Force base, where Airbus already has an engineering facility.

The Alabama governor’s office states that the plant will construct the company’s A320 line of single-aisle aircraft. Planes in the A320 family seat between 107 and 220 passengers, and are used “from very short-haul airline routes to intercontinental segments,” Airbus says.

“The time is right for Airbus to expand in America,” Airbus President & CEO Fabrice Bregier said in a statement. “Mobile is now becoming part of Airbus’ global production network, joining our successful and growing assembly lines in Hamburg, Toulouse and Tianjin.”

Airbus chief operating officer John Leahy told CNNMoney that having a U.S. manufacturing presence would help the company compete for new business as American airline companies replace their aging fleets.

“All things being equal, even if we have a better product, they tend to stay with a U.S. manufacturer,” Leahy said. “A good way to get a bigger place in that replacement market is not just to have the best airplane, but to have the best airplane built in America.”

Construction of the facility will begin next year, with aircraft assembly projected to begin in 2015. By 2017, the plant is expected to churn out between 40 and 50 planes per year.
Some analysts believe the Mobile facility will also allow Airbus’ parent company, EADS, to compete with Boeing for U.S. defense contracts.

The Alabama State Port Authority is in the midst of a five-year plan that is spending $360 million to improve infrastructure at the Port of Mobile. Improvements include land acquisition, new rail and inter-modal yards, cargo terminal improvements and enhancements to improve servicing of deep-water oil and gas field vessels and equipment.

Since 2000, the Port Authority has undergone nearly $500-million in capital improvements and expansion projects to serve containerized, bulk and break bulk commodities. Improvements include a new rail ferry terminal, steel terminal to service ThyssenKrupp Steel USA’s $4.6 billion steel facility in Calvert, AL, new warehousing, a new container terminal, and expansions at McDuffie.

The Port of Mobile has an estimated statewide economic impact approaching $8 billion annually.

Mobile is a picturesque city located at the mouth of the Mobile River along Mobile Bay, leading to the Gulf of Mexico. More than 590,000 residents live in the metropolitan area covering 2,828 square miles.

As one of the oldest cities in the U.S., Mobile combines Southern tradition, beauty and charm with all the elements of a fast-growing, successful community. Rich in history, Mobile was founded by French explorer Jean Baptiste LeMoyne of Bienville in 1702. French, English, Spanish and Native American influences have blended to create a unique culture influencing everything from the annual celebration of Mardi Gras to food and architecture. In 30 minutes you can be on the sandy-white beaches of Dauphin Island in south Mobile County, or ferry from there across Mobile Bay to Gulf Shores in a few minutes more. The mountains of northern Alabama are within a few hours drive.

Metro Atlanta: A Biomed Sector Keeps Growing
Gov. Nathan Deal, Baxter International Inc. chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert L. Parkinson, Jr., and other dignitaries recently broke ground for a new manufacturing facility for biological medical treatments that Baxter will locate east of Atlanta near Covington. The facility will employ approximately 1,500 people, and total investment by the company will exceed $1 billion. Around 200 local leaders and public officials were present at the ceremony.

“Georgia supports Baxter’s mission to save lives, and this occasion is one of many milestones we look forward to celebrating with the company as it establishes a presence in Georgia,” said Deal. “Baxter’s decision to build a facility here is a watershed event for the state, not only in our goal to establish Georgia as a hub for global health, but in our mission to provide high-quality jobs for our citizens.”

Baxter announced in April its plans to build a facility in Georgia that will manufacture plasma-based therapies that treat chronic and life-threatening illnesses. The company will also locate warehouse and plasma testing laboratory facilities at the Stanton Springs site. Construction is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2013, and completion of construction of the first manufacturing buildings is planned for 2015. Additional construction will continue into 2016 and the plant is anticipated to begin commercial production in 2018. In addition to the manufacturing facility, Baxter will locate plasma collection centers in a number of communities around the state.

“Today we begin the work to construct a new state-of-the-art biotechnology facility. In a few years, Baxter team members working in facilities located on the ground where we are standing today will produce lifesaving biologic treatments for patients around the world,” said Parkinson.

In addition, Stanton Springs will also be home to a biotech training center that will provide a workforce pipeline for Baxter and other members of the state’s bioscience industry. The training center will be owned by the state and operated by Georgia Quick Start, the top-ranked customized workforce training program in the country.

“Our entire region is excited about Baxter’s arrival and joins together in extending a warm welcome to our newest corporate citizen,” said Alan Verner, chairman of the Joint Development Authority (JDA) of Jasper, Morgan, Newton and Walton counties. “We realize Baxter could have chosen any location in the world, but its decision to settle in this community means quality jobs will be available not just for us, not just for our children, but for our children’s children and generations thereafter.”

“Georgia and Baxter share the goal of building and maintaining a world-class facility operated with a Georgia workforce that will help the company provide top-quality care to patients in need,” said Chris Cummiskey, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development.

With strong talent, a spirit of collaboration and access to the world, Georgia is at the crossroads of global health. The state offers robust public-private partnerships in bioscience, including the Georgia Research Alliance, through which the state’s six research universities collaborate with businesses to create, improve and grow science- and technology-based companies.

Additionally, Georgia boasts a strong talent pool and one of the largest state university systems in the country, graduating 44,000 students each year. Its bioscience industry cluster includes more than 320 multinational firms, consisting of many small- and medium-sized companies that include the full scope of the bioscience sector.

Georgia’s life sciences industry and university research, plus the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have a $23 billion annual economic impact on Georgia and employ more than 105,000 people, according to statistics from the 2011 “Shaping Infinity” report, released by Georgia BIO. The bioscience industry in Georgia created $19.5 billion in output and contributed $7.5 billion to the state GDP as well as $496 million in tax revenues for state and local governments.

Cincinnati Has Lowest Cost Of Doing Business
Cincinnati’s low costs for facility leasing, transportation and property taxes contributed significantly to its ranking as the least-costly location to do business in the United States among the 27 largest metro areas (all with populations exceeding 2 million), according to a study by KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm.

Cincinnati skyline

Atlanta was the second most cost-competitive location in the large-cities category, followed by Orlando, Tampa and Dallas-Fort Worth, which ranked third, fourth and fifth respectively. Other locations that performed well were Baltimore, St. Louis and Cleveland.

In our 2012 Metro Rankings Report, Cincinnati also was ranked ninth in Economic Growth Potential (less than 450,000 employment), seventh in Best Quality of Life and sixth among Top 10 Manufacturing Cities.

KPMG’s Competitive Alternatives study provides a thorough biennial comparison of more than two dozen large metropolitan area business locations in the United States, offering a comprehensive guide for companies considering sites for their business operations. The KPMG study is particularly valuable for its measurement of significant factors that contribute to business operating costs and which often vary by location, including costs associated with taxes, labor, facilities, transportation and utilities.

KPMG’s 2012 Competitive Alternatives study measured 26 significant cost components in each market, including labor, taxes, real estate and utilities, as they apply to 19 industries over a 10-year analysis horizon. Information is also provided on a variety of non-cost components. The study enables companies to perform a “quick scan” of locations to determine which markets can offer an advantageous business environment.

The KPMG study reveals that Cincinnati had a cost index of 95.9, representing business costs 4.1 percent below the U.S. national baseline of 100.0. Cincinnati was followed closely by Atlanta at 96.2, Orlando at 96.3, Tampa at 96.4 and Dallas-Fort Worth at 96.5.
After a very extensive search in both Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky, Medpace, Inc., an international drug development services company, decided to relocate their new corporate headquarters to the former NuTone site on Red Bank Road within the City of Cincinnati. Medpace anticipates they will occupy 350,000 sq. ft. of new office space by 2014. The company will continue to maintain a presence at their Norwood location until their final lease ends in 2013.

Medpace will move employees to the new Cincinnati campus over five years with approximately 1,339 jobs occupying the entire 350,000-square-foot space by 2014. The new corporate campus will include three separate office buildings of between 110,000 to 130,000 square feet each. The average salary for employees will be $70,192.

The City’s Economic Development Division has estimated that through incentives Medpace will save approximately $7.5 million in taxes over eight years. In return, approximately $41.7 million in new corporate profits tax and local income taxes will be generated by Medpace, Inc. for the benefit of the city during the 16 years the company must remain in Cincinnati under the agreement.

Meyer Tool, Inc. is investing $2 million in a new 30,000 sq. ft. facility at 3154 Spring Grove and will expand its existing facility at 3055 Colerain Avenue in Camp Washington. The company will create 50 full time positions and retain 586 employees. The expansion allows Meyer Tool, Inc. to handle increased work volume over the next few years.
Meyer Tool, Inc. is a maker of turbine engine components and test stands for aircraft engine manufacturers. It also offers technology, multi-axis precision hole drilling, laser machining, material joining, engineering and tooling, and quality services.

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor campus

Sparking New Development In Ann Arbor, MI
The Pure Michigan campaign featuring Ann Arbor as a destination for business growth recently launched.  The four-minute video, a result of a collaborative effort between Ann Arbor SPARK, the Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the Ypsilanti Area CVB, features Ann Arbor business leaders talking about the benefits of locating a company in the region. It is prominently displayed on the Pure Michigan website as well as the sites of its tourism and travel partners.

“The launch of this video propels Ann Arbor SPARK’s efforts to market our region as a destination where innovative businesses thrive,” said Donna Doleman, Ann Arbor SPARK’s vice president, marketing, communications and talent. “By showcasing global brands and startups alike, juxtaposed with scenes from downtown and our natural spaces, the Pure Michigan video tells a compelling story of ‘Why Ann Arbor’. We are thrilled to have this marketing asset as a tool in attracting businesses to consider the Ann Arbor region as a destination for location and expansion.”

The promotion features Ann Arbor SPARK’s president and CEO Paul Krutko, Patrick Doyle of Dominos Pizza, Sean Heiney of Barracuda Networks, Michael Miller of Google, Rich Sheridan of Menlo Innovations, Jan Garfinkle of Arboretum Ventures, and Mark Sutter of Terumo Ca