Economic Development in the Front Row: Brickyard 400 NASCAR at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Thursday, July 29, 2010 by Ron Gifford


For several years, our friends at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway have donated the use of one of the Turn Two VIP suites to the Indy Partnership, which we’ve used for entertaining business prospects, site consultants and local businesses.

It’s been a wonderful asset for us, particularly as we’ve hosted visitors who’ve never been to Indianapolis before. They’re always awed by the sheer size and majesty of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and from our vantage point, there’s nothing like sitting 10 feet away from the track as cars fly past at 200 miles per hour. 

... And sometimes, as shown by this short video of the first lap of this year’s Brickyard 400 (taken from our suite), we get the best seat in the house for some events. Our guests took home a bit of infield grass and debris in addition to their memories of this most recent race!

Don't Forget: Red Bull Indianapolis GP is coming up on August 29, 2010!

US-China Summit Brings New Deals and Opportunities to Indiana

Thursday, June 3, 2010 by Joshua Hall

Gov. Mitch Daniels walks with others to sign deal of EnerDel and the Wanxiang Group.The flurry of activity during the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race weekend included nearly 100 U.S. and Chinese auto executives and government officials coming together for the first U.S.-China Advanced Technology Vehicle Summit in downtown Indianapolis.

The event was produced by the Energy Systems Network (ESN), an initiative of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and a sister organization in Indiana economic development to Indy Partnership. ESN is focused on the development of the energy technology or “clean-tech” sector.

The weekend concluded with many signed deals, promising future partnerships and more business opportunities for Hoosier automotive companies.

Indiana participants in the Summit included:

  • Allison Transmission
  • Cummins
  • Delphi
  • EnerDel
  • Remy International
Participating Chinese companies included:
  • BYD
  • Chery
  • Dongfeng Electric Vehicle
  • Shanghai GM
  • FAW Group
  • Geely
PHOTO CAPTION: Gov. Mitch Daniels walks into the EnerDel plant for a press conference to announce the agreement between EnerDel and Wanxiang Group, with Charles Gassenheimer, Chairman & CEO of Ener1, Guoqiang Yang, Chinese Consul General and Pingyi Li, Department General Manager of Department of Development Wanxiang Group. The EnerDel-Wanxiang agreement was one of many agreements made at the Summit. 

Agreements made at the U.S.-China Advanced Technology Vehicle Summit include:

EnerDel & Wanxiang Agreement -- 3,000 new green jobs may emerge as the Indianapolis-based EnerDel and Wanxiang Group of China signed a joint venture agreement for EnerDel to provide advanced lithium-ion battery systems toWanxiang Group's china plant.

China Investment Promotion Agency and Indiana Economic Development Corporation signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen future trade and economic development opportunities.

Strategic cooperation agreements between Cummins and two Chinese companies, Guangxi Liugong Machinery and Zhengzhou Yutong Group were made.

Energy Systems Network, China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronics, and the China Association of Automotive Manufacturers agreed to conduct another U.S.-China Advanced Technology Vehicle Summit, next time in Beijing that will focus on the broader new energy technologies market.

Watch video from INside Indiana Business's Interview with Gov. Mitch Daniels about the Summit.
Read Forbes blog post on Summit and Indiana's business climate.

 

State of Indiana Is Key Focus of Federal Electric Automobile Funding

Tuesday, October 6, 2009 by Matt Waldo
A study appearing in the latest issue of Site Selection magazine shows that Indiana advanced manufacturing companies have received the second-highest amount of funding from the U.S. Department of Energy for battery and electric drive manufacturing. The companies are:
  • Allison Transmission
  • Delphi
  • EnerDel
  • Magna E-Car
  • Remy
Coincidence? Not likely. General Motors developed the first battery-powered auto (EV-1) in Central Indiana decades ago. Couple historic and current innovation with more than 150,000 central Indiana advanced manufacturing workers (15% of total employment) and two of the best engineering schools in the U.S. nearby (Purdue and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology), and you get a recipe for success in what appears to be the start of the next industrial revolution -- green technologies.   

Other alternative energy companies of note in central Indiana include Cummins, AltairNano, Bright Automotive, Brevini, Horizon, AlgaeWheel, and the list goes on. 

Read our report on the renewable energy assets in Central Indiana by clicking here.

You can see the map of federal projects from Site Selection here.

It's also worth noting that the Indianapolis Region is internationally known for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and its Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Indiana motorsports businesses employ more than 8,000 people at more than 400 companies in Central Indiana.

DOWNLOAD CLEAN-TECH ENERGY PRESENTATION  |  SITE SELECTION MAP

Staying Positive in Difficult Times

Thursday, August 13, 2009 by Rob Albright
The United States is a great country with many exciting and vibrant cities and regions. I happen to believe I have the best job in America because I get to "sell" the wonderful communities throughout the Indianapolis Region -- the place of my birth, my home for 40 years, and the greatest story I've ever told.

I am the director of corporate development for the Indy Partnership where I'm responsible for our funding and corporate partnerships. We are a privately funded organization and only exist because the corporate community in our region believes the business relocation services and economic development expertise we provide are valuable.

I think about relocation and wonder what my main criteria would be. From the perspectives of:
  • quality of life
  • sense of place
  • quality of people
  • low taxes
  • terrific business environment
  • arts and culture
  • sports (especially motorsports)
  • life sciences and quality health care
  • ever growing diversity
  • proximity to great universities
  • location in the country
  • availability of real estate
  • low cost of housing
  • and just a wonderful place to raise a family

... I just don't know how you beat the Indianapolis Region. 

I'm passionate about our region, and there may be no one more committed to its success. I get to tell our story every day, and I'm one of the lucky few who enjoys going to work every day. Sure, it's a tough time to be out there raising money, but when you believe in your work as I do (and as all of our investor partners do), the challenges only add to the joy and satisfaction that comes with success.

LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING AN INDY PARTNERSHIP INVESTOR

Economic Development Success from 'Good Decisions and Good Execution"

Friday, July 17, 2009 by Joshua Hall
Aaron M. Renn -- "The Urbanophile," a leading independent urban affairs thinker and strategist based in the Midwest, had a few compliments for Indianapolis Region economic development and clean-tech energy efforts in his blog today.
 
"Indianapolis is among the top performing Midwest cities on a number of measures. For example, it has the fastest population growth of any metro area over one million people and it is also among the best performers in terms of employment. It can be tempting to view this as a product of good circumstances or good luck - state capital, center of state, only large city in state, Eli Lilly, etc. And all of those are important to the city's success to be sure. But I think it misses a lot of the flat out good decisions and good execution that have contributed, particularly in the economic development space."

Renn goes on to talk about our saavy new Energy Systems Network initiative (also a sister organization of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership), citing our leadership in clean-tech energy components manufacturing potential as well as the numerous projects in the pipeline including hybrid electric batteries, "Hoosier Heavy Hybrid," and "Project Plug In."

Renn does seem to blast the trend of focusing on clusters such as life sciences and advanced manufacturing as "me too," and the Indianapolis Region certainly does its fair share of touting its business clusters. But I have a feeling Renn is directing these comments to regions that are reaching a bit too far. Surely he wouldn't fault Central Indiana for letting its visitors know that we are a bona fide, indepentently verified leader in six major fields -- life sciences, clean-tech energy, advanced manufacturing, logistics, information technology (specifically "measured marketing), and motorsports.

READ THE FULL URBANOPHILE POST
LEARN MORE ABOUT CLEAN-TECH ENERGY
INDIANAPOLIS REGION CLUSTERS

NEW Airport, NEW Business Asset

Tuesday, November 18, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff
Last week, the new Indianapolis International Airport opened for business. The $1.1 billion project is the largest development initiative in the City of Indianapolis’s history.

The world’s new gateway to the city is just a 16-mile non-stop drive from downtown. It is served by 10 major and 19 national/regional passenger airlines and has the nation’s second largest Federal Express hub.

The Indianapolis International Airport ranks as the eighth busiest cargo airport in the United States and the 20th largest in the world.



The new facility includes:

--A new, 1.2 million-square-foot, 40-gate terminal building featuring outstanding architecture, the ability to accept international arrivals, enhanced retail and dining opportunities and the capacity to handle growth from the airport’s current 8.2 million annual passengers.

--A new, five-story parking garage that can accommodate 5,900 cars and 1,200 rental cars.

--More than 17,000 parking spaces, including the garage and surface lots.

--Direct access from Interstate 70 just west of Interstate 465.

--The FedEx expansion will increase package processing capacity more than 30 percent, from 75,000 packages per hour to 99,000 packages per hour, at the second-largest domestic FedEx Express hub behind Memphis.

--The additional capacity is needed to meet forecast long-term package-volume growth, particularly for international shipments. FedEx operates international flights from Indianapolis to Europe, Asia and Canada.

--The expansion includes a 400,000 square foot expansion to the hub's existing sort facility and construction of a 175,000 square foot secondary sort building.

--Two maintenance buildings — including a 40,000 square-foot facility for aircraft maintenance and an 8,000 square-foot facility for ground support equipment — will push total hub growth by more than 600,000 square feet.

From an economic development perspective, the new Indianapolis International Airport is obviously of great benefit to the Indianapolis Region and its business clusters such as advanced manufacturing and transportation logistics. But its also beneficial to the other business clusters, such as life sciences, technology and motorsports because of the expansion of the FedEx hub (which is already the second largest in the world) and the improved ease of both commercial transport and consumer travel.

A few photos of the new Indianapolis International Airport provided by Rob Banayote of Banayote Photography (www.banayote.com):

Indianapolis International Airport










Indianapolis International Airport










Indianapolis International Airport















Indianapolis International Airport










Visit http://www.indianapolisairport.com/ to learn more.

IU School of Medicine researchers earn Susan G. Komen for the Cure grants

Thursday, October 30, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 28, 2008

INDIANAPOLIS -- Faculty members of the Indiana University School of Medicine have been awarded research grants from Susan G. Komen for the Cure. John Foley, David Gilley and Hiromi Tanaka are among recipients of an unprecedented $100 million in grants Komen awarded to American and international scientists.

Foley, assistant professor in the IU School of Medicine's Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology and a researcher with the IU Simon Cancer Center, received a $463,499 grant for his research in breast cancer cell resistance to drugs and how that may lead the cancer to develop elsewhere.

Komen presented Gilley, assistant professor in the IU School of Medicine's Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics and a researcher with the IU Simon Cancer Center, with a $600,000 grant to study breast tumor formation in cancer stem-like cells.

Hiromi Tanaka,of the IU School of Medicine's Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, was awarded a $450,000 grant for her research focusing on a simple blood test to identify genetic marker alterations for very early detection of breast cancer.

"Our researchers continue to contribute to national efforts to reduce the burden of breast cancer," said Dr. Stephen Williams, the director of the IU Simon Cancer Center and HH Gregg Professor of Oncology with the IU School of Medicine. "They are making discoveries in their laboratories, and in turn, are helping to make real differences in the care of patients here and elsewhere."

Komen's pledge represents the largest commitment to breast cancer research funding by a single non-profit organization and will be distributed among 81 universities and hospitals in 27 states and five countries. The grants will be channeled toward research efforts offering the highest likelihood of producing results for patients during the next decade.

The Indianapolis Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure played an integral role in raising funds to support the research initiatives. Through the local Race for the Cure and other fundraising events, the Indianapolis Affiliate contributed more than $800,000 toward the national research pledge.

"The Indianapolis Affiliate provides opportunities for everyone to help make a significant difference in the fight against breast cancer," said Dana Curish, executive director of the Indianapolis Affiliate. "Everyone who supports our work by volunteering or participating in an event like the Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure can feel good about meeting breast health needs within the community we serve while helping to move Susan G. Komen for the Cure closer to our mission of a world without breast cancer."

For more information, visit the IU News Room.

Source: Indiana University

Indianapolis Region Offers Low Cost of Living

Tuesday, October 28, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff

The Indianapolis Region, a 10-county economic development area in Central Indiana which includes Bloomington, Ind., provides incredible value to its residents. A study released last week by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) shows that the quarterly composite cost of living index scores for the Indianapolis MSA and the City of Bloomington are just 90.7% and 91.5% of the national average, respectively.  The composite index score incorporates metrics for housing, groceries, utilities, transportation, healthcare and miscellaneous services. 

"These data are continued positive news for companies considering relocating or expanding in the Indianapolis Region," said Matt Waldo, director of research for the Indy Partnership. "The Indianapolis economic development region offers numerous advantages for advanced manufacturing and logistics, life sciences, technology and motorsports industries among others, and the ability to extend a low cost of living to employees is critical."

The scores for each of the cost categories for Indianapolis and Bloomington, may be found on The Indy Partnership web site at

http://www.iredp.com/reportInterface/iw_p1.aspx?fsheet=qol&county=indianapolis%20region

Indianapolis Region Among MSN’s Nine Best, Livable Cities

Monday, July 7, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff

MSN Real Estate LogoIn a recent report for MSN Real Estate, Melinda Fulmer ranked the Indianapolis Region sixth on a list of “cheap places to live where the economy is strong, home prices are appreciating and the quality of life is good.” Putting it another way, Fulmer wrote that “you won't need to trade the good life for the boring” in Indianapolis.

Based on the criteria reported on MSN, it was no easy task to make it into this top nine “Best Bargain Markets” list. MSN asked Bert Sperling of Sperling's Best Places to evaluate the most affordable housing markets from the 100 largest U.S. metro areas and pinpoint the nine most livable areas: places where unemployment is low, commute times are short and there's enough interesting entertainment or recreation to keep most people busy. MSN defined affordability by the ratio of median income to median home price.

This is one of the most interesting quotes from the article: Moving to one of these cities could allow you to "sell your two-bedroom bungalow in Southern California … and buy a house on a number of acres and suddenly have a nest egg you've never had before," Sperling says.

Here are the highlights of what helped the Indianapolis Region make MSN’s Nine Best, Livable Cities:

·         Indianapolis has become a model for urban renewal

·         Diverse economic base ranging from agriculture to financial services to industrial automation and technology

·         Headquarters to pharmaceutical and research giant Eli Lilly

·         Downtown Indianapolis has undergone substantial renovation and now boasts attractive new buildings, pedestrian zones and a state-of-the-art sports arenas

·         Spectator sports, including the NBA Pacers, NFL Colts and a few minor-league franchises, are a huge draw

·         The venerable Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the Indianapolis 500, the Brickyard 400 and other events

·         Arts and cultural opportunities are abundant

·          Affordable residential neighborhoods spread out in all directions from the compact downtown

·         Higher incomes and affordable housing give city residents more buying power than most others around the country.


Of note: The Indianapolis Region scored very well in the evaluated categories including affordability, cost of living, median home price, commute time and home price appreciation.

"There's a ton of stuff to do here," says Brad Slack, a 35-year-old surgical supplies salesman who moved here from Walnut Creek, Calif., nine years ago. But, he says, it's also a city from which you can escape. "You can be out in the wilderness within a 20-minute car ride of the city."

For more information about the quality of life in the Indianapolis Region as well as detailed demographics and workforce data, please contact The Indy Partnership research or business development departments.

Cooper Tire Chooses Indianapolis Region for Lower Costs and Improved Service

Thursday, July 3, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff
As seen on IBJ Daily

Read the full story at IBJ Daily.

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., the Findlay, Ohio, tire manufacturer, plans to move a warehouse operation to Franklin from Dayton, Ohio. The 808,500-square-foot building will be located in Franklin Tech Park near Interstate 65, and open in 2011 with 60 workers, according to the Daily Journal of Franklin. Cooper has asked for $275,000 in local tax breaks and $469,000 in state incentives.

This story was published on July 3, 2008.

But what you might not know is the role that The Indy Partnership played in helping Cooper Tire arrive at its decision to relocate its distribution center to Franklin, Ind. in Johnson County.

The Indy Partnership first began working with the site consultants representing Cooper Tire as early as late-summer 2007, almost an entire year prior to today's announcement. The Partnership provided custom labor demographics and detailed information about available buildings and sites throughout the 10-county Indianapolis Region. The Indy Partnership business development and research teams continued to provide information and other support services to Cooper Tire's site consultants during their year-long decision-making process.

The end result? New construction and 60 jobs join the growing and thriving transportation, distribution and logistics industry in the Indianapolis Region.

According to a fact sheet released by Cooper Tire, the company conducted an analysis that indicated relocating to the Indianapolis Region would save Cooper Tire money and allow for improved customer service. 

About Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company is a global company that specializes in the design, manufacture, marketing and sales of passenger car, light truck, medium truck tires and subsidiaries that specialize in motorcycle and racing tires. With headquarters in Findlay, Ohio, Cooper Tire has manufacturing, sales, distribution, technical and design facilities within its family of companies located in 10 countries around the world.  For more information, visit Cooper Tire's web site at: www.coopertire.com.

Super Bowl Win a Touchdown For Economic Development

Wednesday, June 4, 2008 by Indy Partnership Staff

By: Ron Gifford - President & CEO, The Indy Partnership

In winning the right to host the 2012 Super Bowl, Indianapolis beat out some tough competition: Houston and Phoenix had both hosted the game before, and both offered the promise of sunny weather and plenty of financial incentives for the NFL.

As seen on Inside Indiana Business with Gerry Dick

Click to view column

Despite these advantages, the Indianapolis region scored a victory with a shrewd and aggressive strategy, selling three decades of experience and investment that has made our region uniquely suited to host major championship events.

Now take this three-city contest and expand it to include every metropolitan area in America – and in some cases, around the world. That’s economic development today, a dog-eat-dog competition for new jobs. In this battle, Indianapolis has built a similarly focused approach – combining our geographic advantages and competitive business climate with strengths in industries like the life sciences, advanced manufacturing, logistics, technology and motorsports.

As a football fan, I was happy to hear that Indianapolis landed the big game. But I’m even more excited about this event in my day job as the head of our regional economic development effort. I’m confident that winning the Super Bowl will help us score more victories in the broader competition for business opportunities.

First, there’s the marketing value. The Super Bowl will bring many of the nation’s most influential corporate executives to Indianapolis – a first-time visit for several of them. Why does this matter? Well, we see this phenomenon time and time again: We’ll host someone who’s never been here, and typically they don’t have much of an impression of the region. And then they get to experience first-hand all that our city has to offer, and they are uniformly blown away. “I had no idea what a great city this is,” is a common refrain. Almost nobody moves their company on the spot, but this exposure certainly builds relationships and lays the groundwork for future business relocations or expansions.

Showing our region at its best to the audience of millions who tune in for the game also provides an invaluable brand-building opportunity. My organization, the Indy Partnership, is a consortium of local economic development organizations from ten counties tasked with marketing the region. Funded by private investment, we engage in a program of advertising, public relations, tradeshow participation and personal outreach to site selection consultants and business leaders.

Our efforts have borne success; 2007, for example, saw relocation, expansion and retention projects committed to create nearly 13,500 new jobs and bring new capital investment of $1.36 billion to the region. We’ve won these competitions despite the fact that our leading competitors spend millions on mass advertising to shape public awareness. The Super Bowl erases much of this advantage, bringing a wave of publicity so significant it would be impossible to buy…and if the city manages the event with its typical aplomb and hospitality, the boost to Indianapolis’ image will give us a solid new foundation to build upon.

There’s also the race for human capital. Dynamic economies are fueled by concentrations of talented people – the regions with the most educated workforces also tend to rank high in per capita income and job growth. Today, the Indianapolis metropolitan area ranks above the national average in college graduates as a percentage of the adult population. But this position is threatened by a ‘brain drain’ that sees too many of our young people leave the state after earning their degrees.

To thrive in the knowledge-based economy, we have to attract and retain more educated workers – Richard Florida’s ‘creative class.’ We can’t offer mountains, beaches, or year-round golf weather to entice tomorrow’s workforce. But a steady diet of world-class sports and cultural amenities, with the excitement that comes with hosting high-visibility events like the Super Bowl, helps put Indianapolis on the map as a great place to live, start a career and raise a family.

The Super Bowl will certainly provide a short-term bonanza for our region’s economy, with more than $120 million in direct spending of the course of game week. But the long-term ramifications are even more powerful: If we take full advantage of this opportunity, we’ll be more than just a destination for football fans in four years – we’ll be further down the road towards being a prime destination for capital, new job opportunities and top talent.