THE 2008 BEST TO INVEST RANKINGS

…Until now. Assembling this set of rankings calls to mind locations the editors have visited in recent years that deserve recognition of a different sort. Whether attending conferences, researching areas for investment profiles or participating in site-selector familiarization tours, the Site Selection editors have looked behind-the-scenes at dozens of locations around the globe through one filter: What should the Site Selection reader know about this place that he or she wouldn’t otherwise realize? Similarly, if this location were to make a short list for a new facility, what tidbit might the site selector have overlooked that might tip the balance in the location’s favor?

      What follows, therefore, is a set of location impressions that are meant to be of interest to readers considering sites in or near these locations – and readers just curious about them.

      1. Saxony-Anhalt, Germany: Labor & logistics powerhouse. Heavy investment in renewable and alternative energy production systems and agribusiness projects are no coincidence in this German state west of Berlin. The region’s work force redefines productivity, according to recent investors, and the area has enjoyed a roughly 30-percent cost advantage over comparable labor pools to the west. Proximity to growing economies to the east provides a logistics advantage, as well.

      2. Turkey: Zones of Opportunity. Two of Site Selection‘s editors in recent years have visited the Aegean Free Zone in Izmir, Turkey, which boasts several firsts, including a NASA space camp and comprehensive child care. Firsthand observation reveals that, like athletes, companies operating “in the zone” are performing at an optimum level. Turkey boasts 251 Organized Industrial Zones in 81 provinces, 127 of which are currently operational, while the remaining 124 OIZs are being constructed throughout Turkey. In addition, the republic boasts 30 Free Zones.

      3. State of Kedah and the Iskandar Development Region, Malaysia: Examples of Malaysia’s “dynamic stability”. As reported in a September 2007 editorial profile, significant investment has been made in the northern and southern parts of Malaysia in recent years to put in place the infrastructure and business climate most in demand by international facility investors. Kedah’s Kulim Hi-Tech Park, near Penang, and the Iskandar Development Region, including the Nusajaya urban complex, in the south are examples of that infrastructure.

      4. Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain: Very old and very new. A Roman-era metropolis complete with Colosseum ruins midway between Madrid and Barcelona. The city hosted the World Expo in 2008. Significant new infrastructure from that event and its location in northeastern Spain are transforming Zaragosa into a key logistics center for southwestern Europe.

      5. Liverpool, U.K.: From The Beatles to Biotech. The European Capital of Culture in 2008 (according to the European Commission), Liverpool’s inner city has been in renaissance mode of late with abundant cultural and commercial development. The region is also one of the U.K.’s leading clusters of life sciences development.

      6. Honduras: Platform for U.S. Markets. Industrial sectors ranging from textiles and apparel to automotive components have found this Central America nation to be a prime manufacturing beachhead.

      7. Lille and the Paris-Vatry Airport regions of France: Logistics and Distribution Crossroads. Northern France’s largest city, Lille, is located fortuitously between Paris and Brussels. High-speed trains provide access to Paris in under two hours. The Lille area is building on its long tradition of innovation in the biotech sector. Paris-Vatry’s air cargo center run by an arm of SNC-Lavalin boasts two business parks occupying more than 1,040 acres (422 hectares), hosting operations by such logistics companies as TNT, Geodis and Prologis, as well as a European distribution operation from Air Liquide Welding.

      8. Wales: Find your Technium. The network of 10 Technium incubator facilities throughout Wales stands out for its strong ties to growing industry sectors, and increasingly for a new collaboration project with fellow science parks in the German city of Ulm and the Korean enterprise city of Jeju; it’s looking for more such opportunities with science parks the world over. Technium currently supports 117 companies across its premises and was expected to have generated some 2,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities within the Welsh economy by the end of 2008.

      9. Brazil: A leading Latin contact center option. Multilingual skills among its large, diverse population make this country an option for customer service operations serving the Americas.