< Previousand sensory systems is then removed which harnesses the brain’s ability to self-correct and heal.”In Other NewsIntroducing Caregiver Inc. provides a full range of services for more than 2,500 Texans with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The company’s recent innovations include its use of telepsychiatry, video-based therapy that offers patients easily accessible mental health services in a convenient and affordable way.STATinMED, a company making news in analytical and consulting health economics outcomes research services in such areas as meta analysis and medical writing, has recently moved its headquarters to Dallas.Healthcare giant McKesson, which offers solutions to biopharma, moved its headquarters from San Francisco to Las Colinas in April, allowing it to expand on its presence in the Dallas area where its Las Colinas campus is already a key hub for the company. “The ultimate goal of the Medical Innovation Collaborative is to foster a new ecosystem for bioscience discovery in North Texas, where there is a dynamic life science community ready to advance and transform the future of healthcare.”— Harold Strong, CEO, Medical Innovation Collaborative 154 T E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DET E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DE 155here’s no doubt about it, technology companies want to be part of the Lone Star State’s exciting business scene. Data centers, tech and IT firms are flocking to Texas because of the state’s reputation for innovation and foresight. It’s also affordable and is known as one of the most business-friendly states in the country. Add to that, a fantastic pool of qualified young candidates who are graduating from Texas colleges — some of the best in the country — and you have the perfect recipe for big success in the technology field. by KEITH LORIATBig Tech in TexasD A T A C E N T E R S , S O F T W A R E & I TPhoto: Getty ImagesBuilding a Name in TexasAmong the companies making a presence in Texas is CloudConnect, a cloud service provider that is preparing to implement a new data center in Dallas, which CEO Michael Guigli says will mirror its center in Boston. “Our stack allows for hundreds or thousands of virtual machines to be spun up at once, which provides one of the most stable and scalable solutions in the industry,” Guigli says. “Really, it’s all about helping companies with legacy applications migrate to the cloud, as well as helping people like MSPs provide a valuable solution to their client’s technical needs.” Expanding to Dallas, he says, is a result of the ongoing growth of Data Centers in the U.S. “Texas is exploding in this regard,” he says. “In 2017, the area of datacenters being constructed in Dallas was outshined only by Northern Virginia, which has been a hub for years. With this expansion in Dallas, it proves to be a wise business decision to implement another stack.” Serving Businesses Around the NationHomebase is a growing tech company in Houston (with offices in San Francisco) that helps more than 100,000 businesses across the United States with employee scheduling, hiring, and time tracking. “Homebase has expanded pretty dramatically in Houston in the past couple of years, going from a small team of customer success representatives working from home to now our largest office, with members of the engineering, product, data science, and marketing teams there,” says Rushi Patel, co-founder and COO of the company. He adds that Homebase is doubling down in Houston for several reasons, including the lower cost, more space for expansion, and the city’s impressive talent pool. “We’re able to recruit qualified candidates much faster in Houston,” Patel says. “We find that even employees we’re recruiting straight out of college are electing to relocate to Houston over San Francisco.” Another factor is Texas’ reputation as an outstanding state for business is growing.“We know we’re not alone, either,” Patel says. “We recently surveyed 1,000 of our small business customers, and Texas was rated the most “We find that even employees we’re recruiting straight out of college are electing to relocate to Houston over San Francisco.” — Rushi Patel, co-founder and COO Homebase156 T E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DE158 T E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DEsmall-business-friendly state in the country.” More Expansion Is ComingConor English, vice president of operations at National Networks, a Texas-based IT company, noted two major projects in Texas, including Apple’s recently announced a $1-billion, 133-acre campus expansion in the Austin area. “It could potentially provide an additional 15,000 jobs for its already 6,200 workers in the area, making Apple one of the largest employers in the Austin area,” English says.The other project is Walmart’s New Tech Incubator in Austin. “Austin was Walmart’s choice for this technology incubator because it is recognized as one of the top cities in the world for technology,” English says. “This is due to the availability of skilled workers, and lower costs of doing business.” STACK Infrastructure recently announced it’s building a hyper-scale data center at AllianceTexas. Located in Fort Worth, AllianceTexas is home to five data centers including Facebook’s fifth global data center campus and four other FORTUNE 500 users. Late last year, EdgeCore invested in 30 acres of land to build a 900,000-square-foot data center campus in Richardson. Among Texas’ strength, the company cited, are its position as the largest communication hub in the south central U.S., its independent power grid, and local and state tax incentives. A G R I B U SIN E S S & F O O D P R O C E S SIN G T E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DETexas looks upward in new farming venture.by CAROL CARTERT E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DE ong known as a leader in agribusiness, Texas is home to a brand new type of farming and is increasingly adding to its credentials in food processing.Dallas-based Eden Green Technology, which describes itself as a next-generation farming company, grows produce vertically. Last year, the company introduced in Wal-Mart stores, Crisply, its line of locally grown, freshly picked le uces that are non-GMO and pesticide-, herbicide- and chemical- free.In March 2018, Interamerican Foods Corp. opened a La Moderna plant in Cleburne, the company’s fi rst operation in the United States. Mexico’s largest pasta manufacturer built a $50-million plant that spans 150,000 square feet and includes a production, manufacturing and distribution facility. With a capability of producing 4,000 tons of pasta per month, the plant created 100 direct and 300 indirect jobs.Texas Gov. Greg Abbo said the La Moderna plant represents more than an economic investment. Rather, he said, it is an investment in the Texas-Mexico relationship. “It is because of investments like this that the Texas economy continues to be the envy of the nation for economic growth and job creation,” Abbo said. The chairman of the board at La Moderna, Luis Miguel Monroy, described the facility as one of the most high-tech and self-suffi cient factories in the history of food manufacturing. Also in March of last year, private equity fi rm Lionchase Holdings Inc. announced plans to build a 200,000-square-foot cold storage facility at TexAmericas Center in metropolitan Texarkana. The facility is projected to create as many as 100 permanent jobs and bring a minimum $20 million investment. Eric Voyles, executive vice president and chief economic development offi cer for the TexAmericas Center, has even bigger plans that begin with the new cold storage facility. “Our next step will be to market the available cold storage space to businesses and highlight our concept for a 500-acre TexAmericas Center Food Processing Park,” he said.Another food-related investment occurred in October 2018 when Plastipak announced plans to expand its Garland manufacturing site with a $10 million investment, mostly in enhanced machinery and equipment. The 400,000-square-foot Garland facility provides rigid plastic containers for companies including Dr. Pepper, PepsiCo, Kra Heinz and Procter & Gamble. The investment will add six new jobs to the company’s current workforce of 273 positions over the next three years. The company also maintains nearly 500,000 square feet of warehousing and distribution space in two other locations in Garland. “We opened our Garland facility over 20 years ago to be close to our customers,” said Sco Ratzman, regional operations manager at Plastipak Packaging. “The operational support that we’ve received from the city, Garland Power & Light, and the local community college for our various training needs has been terrifi c.” Another Garland project approved in October 2018 fi nds Revolving Kitchen developing a large-scale commissary kitchen facility. Revolving Kitchen is investing more than $2 million in a 60-year-old industrial site. When the project is complete at the end of 2019, the Revolving Kitchen will off er 25 commercially outfi ed kitchens for use by food trucks, bakeries and caterers. Whether new on the Texas scene or a brand that has operated in the state for decades, companies routinely fi nd that the Lone Star state is good for business. “The La Moderna plant is an investment in the Texas-Mexico relationship.” — Gov. Greg AbbottLVertical farming is on the rise.Image courtesy of Eden Green Technology T E X A S E C O N O MI C DE V E L O P M E N T G U I DETexas offers an unparalleled quality of life that attracts people from all over the world.by SAVANNAH KINGexas off ers an unparalleled quality of life that a racts people from all over the world. In fact, Forbes recognized Texas as the best in the nation for talent a raction in 2016. Texas’ population grew more in 2017 than any other state for the 12th year in a row. U-Haul ranked Texas the No. 1 Growth State in America for the third consecutive year according to the company’s data analyzing U.S. migration trends. With so many people moving into the Lone Star State, Texas has become one of the most ethnically and racially diverse TThe TexasT E X A S Q U A L I T Y O F L I F EPhotos by Shay La’veeNext >