June 1, 2005
Vital signs are good for Valley life sciences industry
Top research institutions, existing companies in the field, a pro-business stance, and an affordable standard of living help make the Tennessee Valley a fertile region for growing and attracting companies in the life sciences industry, according to a recent TVA study. Completed in February 2005, the study was designed to help boost recruitment of the industry to the region. TVA commissioned Fluor Global Location Strategies of Greenville, SC, to facilitate the research as an independent source. Fluor GLS is a life sciences consulting firm with global expertise.
“The life sciences industry is a growing market, and by targeting this sector we hope to increase visibility and attract more jobs and investments to the Valley,” says John Bradley, TVA’s Senior Vice President of Economic Development. The region features a strong research base that includes Vanderbilt University, the University of Tennessee statewide system, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The life sciences industry already has a presence in the area with companies specializing in medical devices, generic drugs, and product distribution.
“From a competitiveness standpoint, the TVA region has many hidden strengths and is well-positioned to compete and support future growth in targeted segments of the life sciences industry,” says Fluor GLS Managing Director Jim Kupferer. The study evaluated eight population clusters in the Valley for their potential to attract the life sciences industry: Chattanooga, Knoxville/Oak Ridge, Memphis, Nashville, and the Tri-Cities in Tennessee; Huntsville/north Alabama; southwest Kentucky; and north Mississippi. Each region will receive an assessment of its individualized strengths and opportunities from Fluor GLS and will use the information to market its amenities and assets to companies seeking new partnerships or a new location.
TVA is finalist in ED awards
TVA Economic Development was a finalist in the innovation category of the 2005 CoreNet Global Economic Development Leadership Awards. CoreNet Global is the world’s leading professional association of real estate executives. The awards recognize leadership, best practices, and innovation in economic development.
TVA earned the recognition for its new site selection tool, TVAsites.com. The site provides information on more than 1,600 properties, extensive mapping capability, and immediate access to a wide array of business and demographic information related to each property. Studies show a 98 percent reduction in the time it takes to gather information on a site, and savings of over $1,500 for each search compared with the manual process.
CoreNet recognized 12 finalists out of a record-number 29 nominations. The other finalists in the innovation category included Wayne County, Indiana, and the Pennsylvania Department of Economic and Community Development. CoreNet Global’s 7,500 members manage $1.2 trillion in worldwide corporate assets totaling 700 billion square feet of owned and leased office, industrial, and other space. It operates in five global regions: Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and North America, including Canada.
Be sure to check out these time-saving features of TVAsites.com:
• Search by multiple types of site at one time
• View and sort sites by clicking on listing column headers
• Export files to Microsoft Word, Excel, and Acrobat
• Compare saved properties
• E-mail business reports as links.
Third and fourth megasites certified
The Wellspring Project in northeast Mississippi is the third industrial site—and the second in Mississippi—to be certified in the Megasites program as suitable for major automotive manufacturing. Created by the PUL Alliance, a partnership of Pontotoc, Union, and Lee counties, the site is located 10 miles west of Tupelo and 76 miles southeast of Memphis International airport. It is adjacent to I-22 and U.S. 78.
The 1,200-acre rectangular-shaped site has been engineered for a six million-square-foot building with interstate, rail, and utility infrastructure available. The site meets all minimum criteria for certification, including size of at least 700 to 1,000 contiguous acres, land availability, transportation access, and labor capacity.
“The PUL Alliance-Wellspring Project is located in the midst of the geographic area that has attracted a clustering of U.S. automotive assembly and manufacturing plants over the past decade,” says Randy Kelly, executive director of the Three Rivers Planning and Development District. “The area’s labor force is heavily oriented towards manufacturing and the quality of the workforce is considered excellent.” Learn more about the site at www.wellspringproject.com.
And in a very recent development, Enterprise South Industrial Park has become the fourth megasite to be certified, and the first in Tennessee. The Chattanooga-Hamilton County site has over 1,600 acres, dual rail and industrial facilities, and a direct interchange off I-75. It offers access to a workforce of a million people.
Megasites are certified by McCallum Sweeney Consulting, an internationally known site consultant firm. TVA launched the Megasites Certification Program in March 2004 in response to a growing need for large industrial properties appropriate for automotive manufacturing facilities. TVA has learned that several major manufacturers may locate additional automotive plants in the Southeast during the next decade.
Tennessee’s Hispanics: a growing economic presence
Tennessee’s Hispanic population grew by 350 percent from 1990 to 2002 — four times the rate of Hispanic growth in the U.S. as a whole and 19 times greater than overall population gains in the state. Those findings come from a new report prepared by TVA Economic Development Technical Services at the request of Greg Rodriguez Jr., president of the Tennessee Hispanic Chamber. The report details the growing influence of the Hispanic population on the state’s demographics and economy.
“This report will help us demonstrate to businesses that focus on the Hispanic market that there are opportunities to increase their market share in Tennessee,” says Rodriguez. “While this market may not be as big as those in some other states, it is growing, and that offers these businesses an opportunity to be in the right position to win more customers as the population expands.”
Technical Services Economist Christy Valerio wrote the report, which is available in English and Spanish. “The report contains basic demographic information about Tennessee’s Hispanic community,” Valerio says. “It is a means for better understanding the underlying demographic trends that have led to the group’s economic progress.” It also may be valuable as a recruiting tool for ED to use when businesses are seeking to expand their operations in areas with significant Hispanic populations.
“The numbers of Hispanic-owned businesses are increasing rapidly across the United States, and their revenues are growing quickly as well,” says Jeff Taylor, TVA Economic Development Target Market Specialist. “Some of these expanding businesses look for labor forces similar to those near their locations in other states and countries. The report will help our recruiting efforts by allowing us to demonstrate that the Tennessee Valley has suitable expansion locations when firms seek these labor-force requirements.”
While the Hispanic population has been growing, so have its contributions to the state’s economy. In 2002, Hispanic residents are estimated to have spent almost $3 billion in Tennessee on retail and service-sector products.
From zero to 60 in 30 days
Two weeks after training 50 volunteers who interviewed 60 local industries in 30 days, the Industrial Development Authority of Winston County, Ala., had current data on the needs of existing local industries. Grady Batchelor, executive director of the IDA, will use the data to help companies in Haleyville, Ala., retain their current employees and expand to create new jobs. The IDA was able to compile and analyze so much data so quickly thanks to the eSynchronist® system, made available by the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama and TVA. The software tool and interview methodology helps identify the strengths and needs of companies.
The IDA, along with the chamber of Commerce, Cullman Electric, and Alabama Power, launched an initiative called From Zero to 60 in 30 Days, targeting industries in the Haleyville area. The volunteers were recruited through the local newspaper and trained to interview companies using eSynchronist’s 45-question survey, which helps determine a company’s value to the community, satisfaction with the community, risk of leaving or downsizing, and growth potential. “Literally within 15 days of entering data, we were immediately able to analyze the data, when it might have taken six months to a year for an expert or university to do it,” says Batchelor. “A little community like ours wouldn’t have been able to accomplish this in the short time frame without EDPA, TVA, and the eSynchronist software.”
The next step for the IDA is to review all Winston County industries with more than 25 employees. In six months, the IDA will revisit surveyed industries to continue building relationships and monitor the evolving businesses. “eSynchronist is a valuable tool that will ultimately help us retain and recruit quality industries to Winston County and our region,” says Batchelor. “Although this software system is a fairly substantial investment, the return on investment is tremendous.”
For more information about the Synchronist program, go to www.TVAed.com/synchronist.htm.
A winning proposal
Making a good first impression is a critical business skill, and communities attempting to market their assets to new businesses and industries are gaining that all-important know-how with help from TVA Economic Development. “A community must be ready to answer every question, provide information in a timely manner, and be prepared to market the assets that best meet the needs of the project,” says Heidi Smith, General Manager of Marketing Development for TVA. She advises communities to be prepared well before the arrival of an expansion or prospect. The Proposing to Win workshops help communities prepare competitive proposals that emphasize their strong points backed up by all the relevant data.
One recent workshop participant was Carol Farris, executive director of the Itawamba County Development Council in Mississippi. “We have started the process of updating our older ‘automatic response information’ based on the tools we learned,” Farris says. “The council will continue to implement methods taken from the workshop.”
Helping communities sell themselves
Although small communities often have the right stuff for business growth, they may not know how to take advantage of their strengths. They might be lacking leadership, teamwork, and a plan, for example. That’s where TVA’s Community Preparedness program comes in. Offered in partnership with the distributors of TVA power and state and regional development organizations, the program helps community leaders develop a sales team, understand the site location process, work with industrial prospects, and assemble the pertinent data to market their community effectively. The program consists of two workshops scheduled several weeks apart. The first provides information and an analysis by a site location consultant, and the second focuses on action planning.
For more information on TVA’s assistance to relocating or expanding industries and its community development projects, go to www.TVAed.com.