More Actions Demand More Options

Midwest organizations adopt various strategies to take land from available to occupied.

A new advanced manufacturing facility will take the place of this legendary arena in Cincinnati.

by ADAM BRUNS

Whether an industrial site is certified through one of the nation’s many formal programs or not, taking any steps at all to shorten a corporate prospect’s construction timeline is a good thing. Three announcements from the Midwest this spring highlight different paths to that goal.

In Cincinnati, the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority (The Port) — a quasi-public agency that is the principal real estate development and finance agency serving Hamilton County and the City of Cincinnati — had tried in the past to recruit Messer Construction to its Patient Capital Note program that helps fund the agency’s industrial site acquisition. But according to an April 3 release from the Port, Messer Construction President and CEO Tim Steigerwald had a better idea.

“Tim countered with a more intriguing offer to one day build speculatively on the site,” said The Port’s President and CEO Laura Brunner. So The Port announced in early April it would sell one-third of its development-ready industrial site in the Bond Hill neighborhood — formerly home to the Cincinnati Gardens sports arena opened in 1949 — to Messer so it could partner with Terrex Development and Construction to build a 73,000-sq.-ft. building that will be ready for an advanced manufacturing occupant by next year.

As part of the property purchase agreement with The Port, Messer and Terrex said they accept the job creation and wage goals for the future tenant, and will adopt The Port’s Economic Inclusion policy. The project team also includes BHDP Architecture, Colliers International and Fifth Third Bank. And even though it’s a speculative project, the City of Cincinnati is considering it for property tax abatement.

The Port said there is strong interest in locating in Hamilton County by regional and national manufacturers, but the region often cannot respond to these projects because it lacks an inventory of qualifying sites. So The Port’s Board of Directors in 2015 unveiled a strategy to redevelop 500 acres of underperforming industrial real estate to attract advanced manufacturing and create higher-wage jobs. In July 2016, The Port had purchased the 19-acre former Cincinnati Gardens property, demolished the Cincinnati Gardens after it hosted its final event featuring the Cincinnati Rollergirls roller derby team, and remediated and prepared the site for new investment, completing the work in 2018 with the help of funds from the City of Cincinnati and JobsOhio.

On the very same day, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation announced the Michigan Site Readiness Program. From a total of $1.5 million, MEDC will provide up to $100,000 in grant funding to a community or other public entity to assist with the development or enhancement of industrial sites to make them more competitive during the site selection process. Applications were due May 1.

A key component of the program is the establishment of what MEDC calls “Vetted Site Standards,” a voluntary resource that provides a roadmap to helping Michigan sites achieve “shovel ready” status. These standards include appropriate planning and zoning, boundary survey and proper soil and environmental conditions, among others.

In Indiana in March, the town of Yorktown and the Muncie-Delaware County Economic Development Alliance announced the certification of the 72.5-acre McKibben site by the new Verisite Certification Program created and administered by advisory firm Ginovus, Veridus Group and Plaka. As in Cincinnati, local leaders said a rise in demand for industrial sites was not being met with adequate supply.

“The energy of the U.S. economy has created a surge for elite industrial sites,” said Pete Olson, town manager for Yorktown. Now Verisite joins some 27 existing certification programs nationally to meet that demand.

Wisconsin Manufacturing: Rich History and Continued Innovation Attracts Companies From Around the Globe

Wisconsin is home to some of the world’s most recognized and forward-thinking brands, including Kohler, SC Johnson, Harley-Davidson, and Briggs & Stratton. Each a leader in its respective industry, these companies collectively have a track record of more than 500 years of innovation. They are among the manufacturers that have helped solidify Wisconsin’s reputation as a state with a legacy of leadership in the industry.

Today, staying on top of — and even driving — trends such as Industry 4.0 is what keeps these and other Wisconsin manufacturers at the forefront of production and sustainability practices.

Printing company Quad, for example, actively supports and promotes the responsible management of forests and incorporates sustainability into every aspect of its business. InSinkErator, the world’s largest manufacturer of garbage disposals, recently completed the development of a new headquarters with a work environment designed to optimize productivity. The building, which incorporates enhanced research capabilities including a sound-testing chamber and 3D printing capabilities to rapidly produce prototypes, is designed to achieve base certification in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

With Wisconsin’s success in helping companies keep pace with the ever-changing business landscape, it’s no surprise the state continues to attract attention from global companies looking to achieve operational excellence.

For instance, internationally renowned companies Foxconn Technology Group, HARIBO and Komatsu recently committed to building manufacturing sites in Wisconsin.

The Foxconn project represents the largest corporate attraction project in U.S. history and one of the largest greenfield investments by a foreign-based company, as measured by jobs.

Plans for Komatsu Mining Corp.’s $285 million, 2.5-million-square-foot campus call for advanced machine, heat treat and fabrication shops, as well as state-of-the-art technology, research and development, and robotics labs.

HARIBO’s $242 million, 500,000-square-foot site will be its first manufacturing facility in North America and will be among the three largest confectionary plants in the U.S.

Wisconsin cultivates collaboration to become a manufacturing leader

A strong manufacturing reputation is not built overnight, or on innovation alone. The Wisconsin educational system is universally admired for its excellence in workforce training. The state currently hosts 17 engineering-related schools, and there are more than 100 different manufacturing programs within the University of Wisconsin System.

What’s more, Wisconsin was the first state in the nation to develop a technical college system, which fosters an integral part of the Wisconsin manufacturing ecosystem: collaboration.

SC Johnson, for example, partnered with Gateway Technical College to expand its integrated Manufacturing and Engineering Technology (iMET) Center. The center supports the growth and needs of Wisconsin employers through advanced training in Industry 4.0 careers. It also houses a fab lab to allow K-12 and college-level engineering, design and skilled trades students the chance to further develop their innovations and advanced manufacturing skills.

“Gateway Technical College is positioning itself to lead in internet-of-things workforce training, adding new courses in smart manufacturing, cybersecurity, advanced robotic systems and predictive data analytics,” said Bryan Albrecht, president of Gateway Technical College. “In partnership with innovative companies, our students are transforming the future of work and Industry 4.0 integration.”

Meanwhile, UW-Milwaukee’s Connected Systems Institute (CSI) combines the efforts of industry and academia to make discoveries that lead to greater productivity. CSI’s immediate focus is industrial internet-of-things (IIoT), specifically in manufacturing, and features physical test beds for research and development projects as well as training programs. The test facilities give industry partners the means of experimental validation using different views of the IIoT space and to prepare a skilled workforce. CSI is a multidisciplinary collaboration with Rockwell Automation, Microsoft, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) and other industry leaders.

Wisconsin offers companies support for evolving their manufacturing capabilities

In Northern Wisconsin, the UW-Stout Manufacturing Outreach Center works with small and mid-size manufacturers to improve processes, develop products, train workforce and improve financial results.

The Transformational Productivity Initiative (TPI), a program of the Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership, helps manufacturers do more with existing resources, through technological advancements as well as eliminating waste and maximizing efficiencies. TPI offers a set of tools and delivery systems to help manufacturers assess and prioritize actions to increase their productivity via basic process improvements and management best practices as well as the integration of automation and digital technologies.

“Our deep experience in essential sectors like food, water and energy allows us, and the companies we partner with, to respond to today’s market-driven needs,” says Jela Trask, business and investment attraction director for WEDC. “It’s one thing to have manufacturing capabilities, but we also help companies to be more efficient, to get to market quicker and to be more globally competitive.”

The pace of technological advancement only continues to accelerate, and companies that tap into the Wisconsin manufacturing ecosystem will be well equipped to achieve the operational excellence that is critical for future growth and competitiveness.

More information on Wisconsin’s manufacturing industry can be found at InWisconsin.com.

Adam Bruns
Editor in Chief of Site Selection magazine

Adam Bruns is editor in chief and head of publications for Site Selection, and before that has served as managing editor beginning in February 2002. In the course of reporting hundreds of stories for Site Selection, Adam has visited companies and communities around the globe. A St. Louis native who grew up in the Kansas City suburbs, Adam is a 1986 alumnus of Knox College, and resided in Chicago; Midcoast Maine; Savannah, Georgia; and Lexington, Kentucky, before settling in the Greater Atlanta community of Peachtree Corners, where he lives with his wife and daughter.