The complete Digital Edition of the entire September 2022 issue of Site
Selection is now available. Inside you’ll find signature
stories such as Canada’s Best Locations, the 2022 Top Utilities in
Economic Development and the Global Groundwork Index, as well as
international coverage of Mexico and Japan and industry reports on
logistics and plastics and chemicals. Interspersed among regional
reviews covering momentum in D.C., Asian investment in the U.S.
Southeast and a major redevelopment in the Upper Midwest, you’ll find
state spotlights on Texas, North Carolina, California, Pennsylvania,
Nevada, Arkansas and Idaho. Learn what’s up in Lima and the region from
the West Central Ohio Intelligence Report. And don’t miss our Investment
Profiles of San Bernardino County, California; Consumers Energy, Fort
Worth. Texas; Hoosier Energy; TeamCalifornia; Indiana Municipal Power
Agency; Maryland; Xcel Energy; and Tradepoint Atlantic.
PROJECT WATCH
Michigan
Hemlock Semiconductor Operations, founded in Hemlock in 1961, will build
on its position as the largest U.S. producer of high-purity polysilicon
and the only U.S.-headquartered manufacturer of the material by adding
170 jobs to its Thomas Township payroll of 1,350 with this expansion in
response to increased demand in the semiconductor and solar industries.
The expansion is being supported by sanitary sewer infrastructure
investments by Thomas Township and Saginaw Township that involved the
construction of two new lift stations and five miles of sewer mains.
That investment in turn has received Michigan Strategic Fund approval of
a $27 million Strategic Site Readiness Program (SSRP) performance-based
grant funded through the Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve
(SOAR) Fund. “This investment in local infrastructure supports HSC’s
ability to improve and expand our operations and helps us remain
globally competitive,” said Hemlock Semiconductor Operations Chairman
and CEO AB Ghosh. “Today’s announcement proves Michigan is serious about
prioritizing the growth of high-tech businesses.”
Sweden’s Mölnlycke is investing in this new plant in Kulim, Malaysia, to
meet future demand for high-quality surgical gloves, and is “partnering
with ENGIE for energy solutions and Veolia Water Technologies for
wastewater treatment solutions to ensure best-in-class energy and waste
water management at the new plant,” says the company. “The new plant is
a key part of our future plans for sustainable growth within the
surgical gloves business,” said Zlatko Rihter, CEO of Mölnlycke. “It
will enable us to expand production to meet projected demand. But the
best part is that we will achieve this in a less resource-intensive way,
while creating a state-of-the-art working environment for our colleagues
in Malaysia.” The company aims to reduce its operational carbon
emisisons by 50% by 2030 and become a zero-waste company by 2050. “Four
out of Mölnlycke’s 14 plants are already operating fully on renewable
electricity,” said the company, “and as of March 2022, additionally
three of the surgical gloves manufacturing plants in Malaysia could be
added to the list of factories fully powered by green electricity.” The
company also is constructing a new HQ at GoCo Health Innovation City in
Mölndal, Sweden, that it plans to occupy by the end of 2024.
Can an old dog learn new tricks? With a workforce training metamorphosis
and a few million dollars in aid, absolutely, and Illinois is all the
better for it.
Investment firm York IE in August published a Fastest-Growing Startup Cities
report that found Kirkland, Washington; Stanford,
California; and Madison, Wisconsin, in the top three spots,
followed by Birmingham, Alabama; Wilmington, Delaware, and
Ann Arbor, Michigan. The report highlights the 10 U.S.
cities below where company funding grew the fastest during
Q2 2022: “If you’re not playing the Silicon Valley
growth-at-all-costs game of chasing vanity metrics on a
fundraising hamster wheel,” said York IE CEO Kyle York,
“you’ll be able to find there is a ton of capital available
to you from many committed partners.”
CITY
GROWTH
FUNDING
ROUNDS
Kirkland, Washington
1,724%
$298,628,474
8
Stanford, California
1,033%
$116,463,641
7
Madison, Wisconsin
793%
$299,195,995
7
Birmingham, Alabama
480%
$47,041,175
11
Wilmington, Delaware
257%
$828,736,753
20
Ann Arbor, Michigan
229%
$184,649,998
7
Cleveland, Ohio
166%
$102,525,000
7
Santa Barbara, California
150%
$155,233,337
6
Dover, Delaware
121%
$110,596,015
10
Denver, Colorado
116%
$1,143,980,774
27
Source: York IE
PHOTO OF THE
DAY
Site Selection Lead Designer Negin Momtaz made this photo today from the
Cliffs of Moher along the West Clare coast overlooking Galway Bay in
Ireland. A visitors website says the cliffs, which were formed over 320
million years ago, rise to over 700 feet at O’Brien’s Tower and run
along the coast for almost eight miles, forming part of the Burren and
Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark. “It is just breathtaking
all around,” Negin tells us.
