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Read July 2012 IssueIn late May, Intel announced the launch of the Intel Collaborative Research Institute for Sustainable Connected Cities in partnership with Imperial College London, University College London and the emerging Tech City cluster of East London.
Read Cover StorySome are forward-leaning. Some are futuristic or visionary. Some are private, others public. Some exist and thrive already. Others look pretty on paper so far. A few are outright mind-bogglers.
What a sampling of science park activity reveals most of all is a hunger for environments conducive to innovation.
Read Cover StoryOn the very same day in March, Texas announced a huge new Apple Inc. campus in Austin (notably without a quote from Apple), and Apple submitted revised plans for a new headquarters campus in its hometown of Cupertino, Calif., that would boast a Texas-sized capacity of 13,000 employees.
Read Cover StoryMore analysis, cloud computing and smarter buildings are among industry trends. Mobility of corporate real estate technology is a top priority these days as software developers rush to meet demand. Industry observers say there is still reluctance by corporate IT types to embrace the technology, but it will be widely deployed within a few years.
Health-conscious pet owners drive a trend that spurs expansion for a niche manufacturer. Americans are projected to shell out nearly US$21 billion on pet food in 2012, according to the American Pet Products Association. One of the fastest growing categories is pet treats, especially in the “healthy” category.
Manufacturing is on the way back in the U.S. Increasingly, it involves advanced techniques, equipment and processes, says a noted researcher of industrial issues in North America. But there is a catch to manufacturing’s comeback - an acute shortage of skilled workers poses a significant threat.
Openness to the climate and to new ways of thinking are among key data center location drivers. The unique climates and business climates of western North Carolina, central Oregon and Washington, Northern Virginia and Iceland are providing the most bang for the buck for major data center projects.
The U.S. wind industry supply chain anxiously awaits political resolution to the production tax credit issue. Acciona, a Spanish energy specialist, opened its first North American facility in the heart of U.S. wind country in West Branch, Iowa, in December 2007 with the plan of providing turbines to wind farms in North America, primarily those operated by Acciona Energy.
Q & A with John Gardner, Novelis’ chief sustainability officer
For the third year in a row, the Golden State leads the field in our annual index of sustainability. How territories and companies work together to manage resources and reduce their footprints while still remaining economically productive will determine whether that finding is prophetic or a catalyst for some very quick changes.
Entrepreneurs looking to fast track their enterprise to the commercialization and expansion levels will find the resources they need in abundance in eastern Tennessee — in the Knoxville-Oak Ridge Innovation Valley, specifically. The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), managed by (UT)-Battelle LLC (a joint venture of the University of Tennessee and Battelle Memorial Institute).
And companies adore the state’s infrastructure for talent, R&D and expertise. Overlay a map of the Empire State’s vast reserves of higher education and institutional firepower with a map of corporate and industrial R&D, and chances are you’ll see two things: a legacy of innovation, and an interwoven network ripe with opportunities for more.
Columbus is changing from a steady performer to one of the country’s most dynamic metro areas. The Columbus Region has been called the test market of the United States because of its diverse economic profile — part university town, a national logistics hub, a center of retail brands such as the Limited Brands and Wendy’s, and the second home of Chase bank, which happens to be the region’s largest employer.
The world’s largest facility for testing and developing carbon capture technologies was inaugurated in Mongstad, Norway, in early May. Technology Centre Mongstad (TCM) is a joint venture between the government of Norway, Statoil, Shell and Sasol.
North American Reports: Gotta Strat Somewhere; Full Speed Ahead in Halifax; Travel and Trade; Big Business in the Bluegrass; Eduring Attractions | Site Selection Online
Commerce between the United States and Mexico is one of the great — yet underappreciated — success stories of the global economy. In 2011 U.S.-Mexico goods and services trade reached the major milestone of one-half trillion dollars with virtually no recognition. The United States is Mexico’s top trading partner, and Mexico — which has gained macroeconomic stability and expanded its middle class over the last two decades — is the United States’ second largest export market and third largest trading partner.
Before the international banking crisis, the European Union represented a promised land for European outsiders looking in. Balkan countries, seeing a path to prosperity, scrambled to join. The lure was particularly strong for sovereign states emerging from war-torn Yugoslavia.
Buenos Aires embarked a few years ago on the creation of specialized business and industry districts, and they have been quite successful. Now this doesn’t sound like anything new, but there is an important difference. With far less going for them, as compared to other regions that have launched these types of projects, the Argentine capital has been able to do far more with far less.
Is social engineering good for business? Across the world’s markets, “economic empowerment” initiatives are emerging to help disenfranchised locals in the community contribute. Each market is different, but any business looking to establish in one of these markets needs to understand the impact on their business. In the United Arab Emirates, this is “Emiratisation,” and other markets in the region have similar mechanisms.
Thailand can’t seem to catch a break. To outsiders recently, it appears to be in a state of constant turmoil, with violent political protests and natural disasters making the news with regularity. Consider the most recent flooding, in late 2011, which was one of the worst in the past 50 years. The main river, the Chaophraya, literally was overwhelmed and changed its course to submerge much of the northern Bangkok metropolis.
It’s a time of great hope and great uncertainty in Egypt. Hope springs from the broadly successful arrival of democratic politics delivering a credible result in the presidential elections held at the end of May. President-elect Mohamed Morsi has called for unity after winning 51.7% of the vote. The next few months may see renewed tension between the President’s Muslim Brotherhood, the Army, which has decades of political, military and economic power under its command and the countless thousands of “Arab Spring” democrats whose protests brought down Hosni Mubarak, amid events that sparked protest in many Arab lands.
A St. Louis manufacturer explains the importance of Asia to his export business. Missouri ties Tennessee among the 50 states for sharing borders with the most states, with eight. But Missouri emerged as the clear leader in jobs created over its eight neighbors during the first quarter of 2012 with 27,500, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Helping drive this job creation are record-setting exports and reshoring in some manufacturing sectors.
Rail initiatives permit double-stack trains east-west and north-south. Virginia, the railroads and private businesses all benefit. Tunnels were re-shaped in some cases, tracks lowered or realigned in others. Norfolk Southern Corp.’s aim was the same: to permit double-stack intermodal trains to pass through mountain tunnels where necessary along the length of its Heartland Corridor rail route, which runs from the Port of Virginia to Chicago.
Louisiana has added more than two dozen facility locations in the forestry, wood, pulp and paper products and biomass sectors over the past two years.
Growing a corporate presence means tapping into a culture in Oklahoma. The model that Hobby Lobby has used successfully for many years in retail site selection is now being employed at its corporate headquarters in Oklahoma City.
West Virginia offered the right mix to land, Gestamp, a major automotive project for an idled plant in South Charleston.
Garden State projects focus on sustainability and clean technologies. BASF’s new headquarters in Florham Park, N.J., just west of Newark, was built as a model for sustainability.
Arkansas is surrounded by some business-friendly powerhouses. So it must try harder. And it’s doing just that, says a state business association executive. Bill Hannah is Chairman of Associated Industries of Arkansas (AIA), an association of Arkansas businesses that works with the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce and other organizations to foster a business environment in which companies can compete and succeed. He is also CEO of Nabholz Construction Services, based in Conway, Ark., which was founded in 1949.
A leading reason companies locate where they do is proximity to their customers. That’s well documented, and it’s why Osprey Backpacks, Sitka Gear, LMS Defense, Quality Bicycle Products and LUCID (shooting accessories) all have sited new facilities in the Rocky Mountain region recently.Rocky Mountain Region:
How Oregon is winning the competition for the next generation of secure data facilities.Silicon Valley has seen the future of data centers, and it resides in Oregon. That’s the conclusion of John Sheputis, CEO of Fortune Data Centers, a San Jose, Calif.-based company that’s opening a 240,000-sq.-ft. (22,296-sq.-m.) data center on a 15-acre (6-hectare) site in Hillsboro near Portland.