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Northern Region Poised to Grown the Composites and Aerospace Industry

Thursday, June 19, 2014 - 8:15am

June 20, 2014

R E V I S E D

Regional Effort to Promote Composites and Aerospace Industry in Northern Utah

Ogden, Utah – Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, ATK, ENVE Composites, Goode Ski Technologies, Luxfer Utah, American Valley Aviation, Composites Coatings International… these are just a few of the 30+ composites and aerospace companies that have made Northern Utah their homes for production. With this sound industry base, northern regional economic development departments have partnered together to launch a campaign to capitalize on this industry, help expand existing assets, and bring other composite and aerospace businesses to the area.

Ogden City, Brigham City, Davis County, Weber County and Box Elder County  have all partnered together to create an organization called Composites and Aerospace of Northern Utah (CANU), a  regional approach to strengthening our already robust aerospace and composites industries in Northern Utah. Weber Economic Development Partnership (Weber edp) Director, Douglas Larsen, states, “There are over 30 advanced composites and aerospace companies residing within a 25 miles radius along the Wasatch Front within Box Elder, Weber and Davis Counties. This rich concentrated environment of aerospace, composites, and related industry assets clearly demonstrates the region’s ability to deliver on workforce, effective supply-chain opportunities, transportation access, and infrastructure needs of the industry.”

The Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCUtah) has recognized this partnership and praised CANU members for their comprehensive approach to building this industry. Jeff Edwards, President and CEO of EDCUtah remarks, “We at EDCUtah are very pleased to see this region of the state organize to take advantage of their unique strengths in advancing materials and aerospace. This kind of collaboration gives Utah a distinct advantage as we work to recruit new companies to the state and enhances our reputation in the global marketplace.”

It is rare for competing cities and counties to join together in a team like CANU; however, by building the industry cluster regionally, individual communities obtain advantages in business recruitment and retention they may not realize otherwise. “CANU is a prime example of regionalism and a true cooperation between counties.” states Marlin Eldred with Davis County Community and Economic Development. The CANU team realizes that they can make a greater impact working together and attract larger, more sustainable industry and strengthen the overall workforce in the Northern Region. Eldred describes it as celebrating each other’s wins which impacts the economic pie as a whole. According to Eldred, “Being unified in all aspects allows Northern Utah to be a large fish in a growing pond versus individual small fish fighting for what’s left.” 

Marshall Wright, Business Development Director from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) also agrees with this regional marketing strategy stating, “This collaboration shows that the geographic diversity of the locations of Utah’s advanced materials and aerospace industry partners and the statewide commitment to seize opportunities to grow this industry.”

Spencer P. Eccles, Executive Director of GOED also notes, " The Governor's Office of Economic Development has worked for many years to support the strategic industries of Aerospace and Defense and the key partners in the composite industry by recruiting major companies who help to strengthen the supply chain in Utah. The regional approach that the Composites and Aerospace of Northern Utah (CANU) association is taking will further strengthen their ability to grow these important sectors of our economy."

With this support from the state and a grant from EDCUtah, the five entities of CANU have all pledged resources, time, and budget into building this initiative to grow the composites and aerospace industry.  Please visit compositesutah.com for more information. 

June 16, 2014

Regional Effort to Promote Composites and Aerospace Industry in Northern Utah

Ogden, Utah – Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, ATK, ENVE Composites, Goode Ski Technologies, Luxfer Utah, American Valley Aviation, Composites Coatings International… these are just a few of the 30+ composites and aerospace companies that have made Northern Utah their homes for production. With this sound industry base, northern regional economic development departments have partnered together to launch a campaign to capitalize on this industry, help expand existing assets, and bring other composite and aerospace businesses to the area.

Ogden City, Brigham City, Davis County, Weber County and Box Elder County  have all partnered together to create an organization called Composites and Aerospace of Northern Utah (CANU), a  regional approach to strengthening our already robust aerospace and composites industries in Northern Utah. Weber Economic Development Partnership (Weber edp) Director, Douglas Larsen, states, “There are over 30 advanced composites and aerospace companies residing within a 25 miles radius along the Wasatch Front within Box Elder, Weber and Davis Counties. This rich concentrated environment of aerospace, composites, and related industry assets clearly demonstrates the region’s ability to deliver on workforce, effective supply-chain opportunities, transportation access, and infrastructure needs of the industry.”

Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (EDCUTAH) has recognized this partnership and praised CANU members for their comprehensive approach to building this industry. Jeff Edwards, President and CEO of EDCUTAH remarks, “We at EDCUTAH are very pleased to see this region of the state organize to take advantage of their unique strengths in advancing materials and aerospace. This kind of collaboration gives Utah a distinct advantage as we work to recruit new companies to the state and enhances our reputation in the global marketplace.”

It is rare for competing cities and counties to join together in a team like CANU; however, by building the industry cluster regionally, individual communities obtain advantages in business recruitment and retention they may not realize otherwise. “CANU is a prime example of regionalism and a true cooperation between counties.” states Marlin Eldred with Davis County Community and Economic Development. The CANU team realizes that they can make a greater impact working together and attract larger, more sustainable industry and strengthen the overall workforce in the Northern Region. Eldred describes it as celebrating each other’s wins which impacts the economic pie as a whole. According to Eldred, “Being unified in all aspects allows Northern Utah to be a large fish in a growing pond versus individual small fish fighting for what’s left.” 

Marshall Wright, Business Development Director for EDCUTAH also agrees with this regional marketing strategy stating, “This collaboration shows that the geographic diversity of the locations of Utah’s advanced materials and aerospace industry partners and the statewide commitment to seize opportunities to grow this industry.”

With this support from the state and a grant from EDCUTAH, the five entities of CANU have all pledged resources, time, and budget into building this initiative to grow the composites and aerospace industry.  Please visit compositesutah.com for more information.

 

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