1. Motorcycle Company To Move Its Headquarters to Auburn
Minnesota-based Viper Motorcycle Co. plans to move its headquarters and production facility to Alabama, creating 100 new jobs here.
The high-performance motorcycle manufacturer will build a 63,000-square-foot facility in Auburn Technology Park West and create the new positions over the next two years.
“The Auburn facility and community support places us in a position to achieve our annual goal of 2,000 motorcycles and 2,000 aftermarket engines within five years,” said John Silseth, CEO of Viper Powersports, parent company of Viper Motorcycle.
Viper said the potential to create a relationship with Auburn University, expand its research and development capabilities and the diverse manufacturing base in the state made the deal attractive.
Viper manufactures high performance super cruiser motorcycles for the “affluent enthusiasts seeking uncompromising performance and cutting edge 21st century technology,” according to its Web site.
More than 80 percent of the motorcycle is made with parts designed and manufactured by Viper.
2. Lockheed Martin Opens Battle Management Test Facility in Huntsville
HUNTSVILLE -- A missile defense system developed by three nations can lead to jobs for Huntsville. Lockheed Martin opened its Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) battle management and test facility here in what Lockheed's John Holly called a "team effort with industry, government, customers and our community."
Germany, Italy and the United States have teamed on the system that will replace the Patriot and Hawk systems in Germany, the Nike Hercules in Italy and the Patriot in the U.S. Its operation is designed to be fully compatible with the U.S. and allies and is the only medium-range air defense system with full 360-degree coverage.
"This shows the best we have to offer in the 21st century," said Holly, Lockheed's vice president of missile defense systems and a retired Army major general. "This brings us new capabilities not on the battlefield today."
There are about 250 Lockheed employees working on the system (technically called the battle management, command, control, communications, computers and intelligence or BMC4I) out of the company's 800-person work force here, Holly said.
He said that there are other job opportunities available, too, at Lockheed. "And not just engineers," Holly said. There are about 100 positions for skills including finance, subcontract management and logistics and about 100 for engineers. "We want to take advantage of the intellectual capital that is here."
As nations pare their defense budgets, this system - which has more than 1,800 people for different companies worldwide working on it - is economical because of the trio of nations taking part, a NATO official said.
"It's affordable today by the countries sharing the cost," said Greg Kee, general manager of NATO Medium Extended Air Defense System Management Organization based in Huntsville.
The U.S. provides 58 percent of the MEADS funding, while Germany kicks in 25 percent and Italy the other 17 percent.
Brig. Gen. Roger Matthews said the concept of the system and the cooperation was "a great accomplishment." "This was a capability developed together," he said. "We couldn't have done it without them.”This puts the world on notice."
3. Alabama Universities Ranked Tops by U.S. News and World Report
Samford University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham were among five state schools ranked on U.S. News and World Report’s list of top national doctoral research universities.
The University of Alabama ranked No. 34 and Auburn University ranked No. 38 among the nation's public universities, according to the 2011 college rankings. Auburn Montgomery ranked No. 32 in the best regional universities.
In the magazine’s Best Colleges 2011 list, Samford was the highest ranked local university. The school rose 12 spots from last year’s listing to rank 104th among national doctoral research universities.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham was ranked 151st on the list and ranked 79th among public schools.
Auburn University was No. 85 on the national rankings and 38th on the public schools list. Birmingham-Southern College ranked 93rd among national liberal arts colleges.
In another study, Troy University was named the state’s leading institution of higher education by Forbes Magazine. In addition, Troy was also rated 16th on Forbes “America’s Best College Buys” list.
4. “Cyber Huntsville” Initiative Planned Based on City’s Expertise
HUNTSVILLE -- Many, if not most, of our nation's sophisticated air, missile and defense systems have been researched, developed, engineered, tested and managed by the unique team of academic, industry and government professionals in the Rocket City.
No one knows those systems better, said Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle. And there is no better place to locate a cyber security center where tools and techniques are developed to protect those missiles, radars and more from the growing threat of computer attacks.
Battle and Dr. Rodney Robertson, executive director of the Auburn University Research Center in Huntsville, outlined a "Cyber Huntsville" initiative during part of the 13th annual Space and Missile Defense Conference at the Von Braun Center.
Part of the vision is to make a multi-story "Cyber Systems Innovation and Security Center" one of the first secure buildings in the giant Redstone Gateway project to be located at the Research Park Boulevard entrance to Redstone Arsenal. "Our vision is to become a nationally recognized hub of expertise in cyber security, research, development, test and evaluation, engineering, experimentation and life cycle management," Battle said.
He pointed out the area is already a center of excellence in aviation, missiles and life cycle management. "We have the tools to do cyber," Battle said. "The goal of Cyber Huntsville is to concentrate and combine those capabilities so they can be harnessed to address regional and national cyber challenges."
Huntsville's role would not be to duplicate efforts going on in other locations, Robertson said. The focus here, among other things, would be securing weapons systems and the technology supporting them against computer attacks; allowing the systems to continue to fight, even in a "degraded" environment.
Enemies use cyber attacks to try co-opting our weapons systems, disrupt communications, command and control links and even simply interrupt the supply chain, he said.
"Cyber space is inherent in every aspect of a regional warfighters' capabilities, and understanding both the defensive and the offensive applications cyber space bring to the fight is critical to our military's success on the battlefield," Robinson said.
"How we meet this challenge is a critical mission," Robertson said, and one that he doesn't think can be executed anywhere else. "If we don't figure out how to keep these weapons systems fighting through a cyber attack, we're going to put soldier’s lives and the outcome of a conflict at risk."
5. Retail, Industrial Complex Moving Forward in Sylacauga
SYLACAUGA — A new industry and retail center may soon move from the idea stages to the beginning of construction in Sylacauga.
Jason Grimmett of Drinkard Development said negotiations for the project “looked good.” “We have made quite a bit of progress,” Grimmett said. “Hopefully, we are within a couple of weeks, maybe 10 days, of getting this thing signed and secured.”
He said a formal announcement could be coming at that time from the company.
A project officially announced was the IKO Shingles plant planned to be built on Fayetteville Road. Calvin Miller, director for the Talladega County Economic Development Authority, said representatives from IKO recently visited the city to interview construction companies. He said he expected permits submitted to ADEM to be approved by September, and the company to close on the property in October.
“They are looking at groundbreaking sometime in the fourth quarter of 2010,” Miller said. “During 2011 it will be mostly construction, and they should be in operation by the first part of 2012.”
Derek Fee, manager of corporate communications for IKO, previously said the new “state-of-the-art, high-performance shingle plant” should create about 50 new jobs in the area. He also said there was the possibility of additional expansion as the plant comes on line. The estimated size of the building was around 150,000 square feet, based on other IKO facilities.
6. Riley Helps Bush Hog in Selma with Road and Rail Improvements
SELMA — Lionel Melton, stock keeper at Bush Hog, has fewer worries at his job since the city council here voted in April to close the roads around the plant.
“We were afraid the company was going to leave because of the danger that was involved with the pedestrians waking the streets, trucks coming out in the streets and children on their way to school,” Melton said. “You don’t have to watch for that now. You can continuously do your job without being worried about running over someone or striking someone or someone even hitting you.”
Gov. Bob Riley visited Bush Hog to announce a $300,000 contribution to complete the $500,000 project to close roads around the plant, build a road extension over the railroad and install safety arms for the railroad crossing.
“This is a big deal,” Riley said. “Bush Hog is a cornerstone of this economy over here and I’m more than happy to come over and give them the recognition that they deserve and tell them again how proud we are to have them here.”
“Now we have all the funding so there is no adverse impacts to the neighbors at all, which was a big issue,” said Howard May, vice president of operations for Bush Hog.
Bush Hog also donated property to create a road to extend Helen Street at the end of Griffin Street. The new road will offer residents access J.L. Chestnut for what is about a 150-foot longer distance from the prior access on Vine Street. The new road will also have a new crossing station with crossing arms.
7. Spec Building Already Drawing Interest in Rogersville
Rogersville Mayor Richard Herston compares attracting industry to fishing. “It's like baiting a hook and trying to get a nibble,” Herston said. “You have to have something to lure the industry.”
The bait Rogersville is trying to use is a 40,000-square foot speculative building that was recently completed on U.S. 72 in the town's industrial park.
And the nibbles Herston has hoped for are coming.
“The building is an enticement, and you have to have something to offer industry to get them to locate in your area,” Herston said. “Companies that are interested in moving into an area want a building that is ready right now, not six months down the road. Having this spec building gives you an advantage over other sites.
“The spec building changes our image from having nothing to offer to having something very good to offer.”
Herston said he met with Shoals Economic Development Authority officials in 2009 to discuss the possibility of building a spec building in the town's industrial park. He said the city bought 40 acres in the Rogersville Industrial Park and deeded it over to SEDA, which paid for construction of the spec building.
Herston said the town's utility department also was heavily involved in the project.
“The building is ready,” he said. “It's ready for someone to come in and say we want it, and then the insides can be completed to meet their specifications.”
He said SEDA has been marketing the building, and it appears to be attracting interest.” We have been marketing the site and submitting information about it to people,” said Forrest Wright, executive director of the Shoals Economic Development Authority. “Questions are being asked and that's a good thing.
“The idea behind building it was to create attention, and that has certainly been achieved. The ultimate goal is, of course, creating jobs.”
Herston said it is good to know there is already interest being shown in the building. “That shows the spec building is doing exactly what we wanted it to do,” he said. “Without that building, we would not be getting these calls.
“SEDA has done a good job of promoting it and hopefully these calls will develop into more than inquiries. We believe this is something that will be very positive not only for the city of Rogersville, but the entire area. “That's the ultimate goal,” he said.
8. Huntsville Featured as “New Federal City” in Government Executive
HUNTSVILLE -- Government Executive magazine's August issue features a cover story on Huntsville titled, "The New Federal City: Huntsville, Ala., Is Becoming the Center of Gravity for Key Agencies."
The magazine, which gives an account of Huntsville's and Redstone Arsenal's growth, includes interviews with several families who have relocated here as a result of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission's shift of nearly 5,000 federal jobs from the Washington area to Redstone.
The article leads with an interview with Harvey Player, a retired Army colonel and special assistant to the executive director at the Missile Defense Agency, who said he had never intended to move to Alabama. Player and his wife visited the area in spring 2006, and relocated later that year.
Player says in the article, "The only regret I have is we didn't make the decision to move to Huntsville sooner."
In the article, Ethan Hadley, the vice president of economic development with the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce, calls the 2005 BRAC the "largest economic development announcement in Alabama history," with thousands of new, high-paying federal jobs coming to Huntsville. BRAC has resulted in a $500 million construction boom for new federal facilities, according to the article, and significant contractor expansion at Cummings Research Park is accompanying the new government activity.
The BRAC transition is also putting stress on military organizations overwhelmed by expanding missions, according to the article. The Army Materiel Command is moving its entire headquarters from Fort Belvoir, Va., to Redstone, the magazine states, "just as its work force handles some of the most complex logistical operations in recent history - withdrawing an array of equipment from Iraq and deploying more to Afghanistan."
9. Hyundai Leader, Riley Plan Partnership Boost in Alabama
Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group Chairman M.K. Chung met with Gov. Bob Riley recently to discuss plans to strengthen the partnership between South Korea and Alabama.
In the meeting, Chung expressed his appreciation to the state for fostering the growth of the company’s auto manufacturing plant in Montgomery.
“HMMA has been able to achieve the 300,000 unit production capacity goal of the Montgomery plant ahead of schedule due to the interest and the cooperation of the state government and the governor,” Chung said.
Riley says the company was able to grow because it produces quality products.
“The growth of Hyundai that I have seen so far is very astonishing and I can’t help but show my respect for that,” he said. In the first half of the year, the Korean automaker has produced 154,000 units at its Alabama location and according to the release, is on track to reach 300,000 by the end of the year.
Overall, through the first half of this year, Hyundai and Kia sold 425,852 vehicles (Hyundai 255,782, Kia 170,070), recording a 20.9 percent increase over the same period last year.
In May, the company announced that it would bring production of the Elantra to Alabama in April 2011 as Santa Fe production will shift to the company’s Kia plant in Georgia.
10. Wells Fargo Adding More Jobs in Alabama Sooner than Expected
Wells Fargo & Co., which operates Wachovia Bank in Alabama, plans to add 50 more jobs this year than earlier anticipated, the company's chief executive told Birmingham business leaders.
"Alabama has earned the right to have more people here," said John Stumpf, chief executive of San Francisco-based Wells Fargo, the nation's fourth-largest bank, with $1.2 trillion in assets.
The company's main Alabama employment base is in Birmingham, where it has 2,000 workers at branches and an operations center. Wells Fargo bought Charlotte-based Wachovia Corp. in 2008, two years after it had purchased Birmingham's SouthTrust Corp., and employs 3,000 people statewide.
The visit from one of the nation's top bankers and a man who has the ear of famed investor Warren Buffett packed the house for the Downtown Rotary Club's weekly lunch meeting. More than 400 people crammed into the Harbert Center, the largest crowd of the year, according to Rotary officials.
Stumpf said he visited with some of Wells Fargo's Alabama customers and said there is plenty of business here for the bank, which is why it will need more than the 200 new people thought necessary when a bank official announced initial hiring plans in June. Stumpf said the company has made $800 million in new loans in Alabama so far in 2010.