Global shifts and geopolitical unrest, not to mention new U.S.
industrial policy, mean it makes more sense than ever to produce here,
writes Harry Moser, founder and president of the Reshoring Initiative.
“I take umbrage at the judge’s thoughts,” says one top state official
about a recent ruling striking down a key component of the $1.5 billion
incentives package offered to Rivian for its $5 billion plant east of
Atlanta. Plus: Investment highlights from Asia and Europe.
Startup Genome, the organization behind the annual Global
Startup Ecosystem Report, last week released a “Blue Economy Edition” that examines
startup activity and investment through a lens defined as
“the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth,
improved livelihoods and job creation while preserving the
health of the ocean ecosystem.” Singapore is No. 1, Silicon
Valley is runner-up and the European locations of Oslo,
Amsterdam-Delta and London fill out the top five. From H1
2020 to H1 2022, the global number of Blue Economy Series A
deals grew by 80%, says Startup Genome.
After passage of key incentives by the Mississippi Legislature, Fort
Wayne, Indiana–based Steel Dynamics, Inc. last week announced the
selection of Columbus, Mississippi, as the location for the company’s
previously announced greenfield state-of-the-art, recycled aluminum flat
rolled mill. “Columbus is strategically located within the targeted
Southeast market, bringing numerous competitive customer, recycled
material and renewable energy advantages to the project,” the company
stated. “Our customers are excited for us to enter the aluminum flat
rolled market, as we have been discussing plans for several of them to
co-locate onsite with us, said Steel Dynamics Chairman, President and
CEO Mark D. Millett. Site advantages cited by the company include
synergies with its flat roll steel division’s operations next door;
logistics assets including Class I rail and access to the
Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway; and existing, mature, and dependable
natural gas, water sources, and access to ample renewable power. The
mill will serve the sustainable beverage packaging, automotive, and
common alloy industrial sectors.
The Cultivated B (TCB) is investing in a new bioreactor facility in
Burlington in its quest to “enable scalable and sustainable protein
production by high quality bioengineering.” The company, launched in
September, is investing in facilities in Germany and North America and
is associated with Germany-based InFamily Foods Group, whose three
protein divisions operated more than 10 facilities. “The technologies
developed by an international scientific team over the last year and a
half have the potential to enable cellular agriculture on an industrial
scale,” says Raphael Heiner, CEO of TCB. Ontario Genomics is partnering
on the creation of an innovation hub at the site. “This facility in
Canada is more than just a production site. Alongside the development
and production of pioneering technology and bioreactors, we want to help
other enterprises in the cellular agriculture and pharmaceutical
industry flourish,” says Hamid R. Noori, co-founder and co-CEO of The
Cultivated B.
A competitor takes part in the welding competition in Cleveland, Ohio,
in mid-October as part of the global WorldSkills
Competition 2022 Special Edition. After WorldSkills Shanghai
2022 was canceled in May due to the pandemic, WorldSkills partners and
members put their heads together and organized 62 skill competitions to
be hosted in 29 events in 26 cities in 15 countries and regions between
September 7 and November 26. More than 1,000 competitors representing 57
countries and regions are taking part in everything from tiling and
flooring to additive manufacturing and optoelectronics, often alongside
career or trade fair event. Germany is hosting a total of nine skill
competitions in six different cities, while Salzburg, Austria, alone
will host seven skill competitions — including bricklaying, concrete
construction work, and electrical installations — that are in especially
high demand within the Austrian economy.
