CLAY BUSINESS PARK
SYRACUSE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
AMERICAN GRANBY NEW FACILITY
GE SUBSIDIARY BUILDING IN SKANEATELES FALLS
TESSY PLASTICS EXPANDS AGAIN

Land in This (Green)field and Put 80 Million Customers on Your Rolodex
The Clay Business Park is Ready for You!

An entire region's worth of customers-the surging Northeast, to be specific-can be yours instantly. How? Simply expand your business into the Clay Business Park, a 250+ acre greenfield site owned by the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency, and you'll have an incredible customer base and ready-made infrastructure at your disposal.

The site, located in the northern Syracuse, N.Y. suburb of Clay, is rectangle in shape, basically flat, and has infrastructure to match. An electric substation is adjacent, which means that redundant, available power will not be a problem. Water? There's a 54-inch main. Medium-pressure gas is on site, as well, with a high-pressure distribution line nearby, and telecommunications fiber is out front.

And how will you transport your product to those 80 million customers within a one-day's drive? The answer is: easily! The Clay Business Park is located in the middle of two interstate highways, a CSX track is at the corner, and the Syracuse Hancock International Airport is only nine miles away for passenger and cargo traffic.

The Clay Business Park is zoned “industrial,” and its host-the Town of Clay-is a business- and expansion-friendly community, close to the labor force of today and tomorrow. Plus, a number of engineering studies have already been completed to facilitate your new expansion.

Looking for a large site to reach the Northeast? Look at Clay Business Park. Opportunity has never looked better!

Excitement Builds as Symposium at Syracuse's Center of Excellence Points the Way towards Tomorrow's Technologies

Since its inception in 2002, the Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems has helped propel Syracuse into a leadership position for technological innovation-specifically in the rapidly growing field of improving health, productivity, security, and sustainability in built and urban environments.

Recently, the Syracuse Center of Excellence–a federation of more than 70 businesses, organizations, and academic and research institutions-held the 2006 Symposium on Environmental and Energy Systems. For the multitudes that attended, it was a real eye opener: the latest research and development in air quality, thermal comfort, lighting, sound, water quality, and renewable and clean energy were presented. Attendees from all over the country heard from speakers on the leading edge of three major topics:

High-performance buildings: Advances in technologies and materials, Design elements, intelligent building systems and design.

Environmental systems research and development: Human health and productivity, urban ecosystems, including air and water quality, and indoor air quality.

Energy systems research and development: Renewable sources and biomass-based fuels, integrated heating, cooling, and on-site power generation.

The Willis H. Carrier Award–given to an individual who has made significant and sustaining contributions to the enhancement of the human environment-was given to Rick Fedrizzi, the founding chairman and current president and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council. (Willis Carrier, of course, was one of the prime movers in Syracuse's great history of environmental and energy innovation, having invented the basics of modern air conditioning technology and moving his company to Syracuse in the 1930s.)

What's it all means for businesses looking to relocate or expand in Syracuse? A lot. The Syracuse Center of Excellence Office for Industry Collaboration (OIC) is focusing on the environmental and energy industry clusters in a 12-county region at the center of Upstate New York. These clusters have been identified as possessing significant growth potential, and the OIC is building on several economic initiatives designed to increased investment and employment in the region. This will push Syracuse to the undisputed center of excellence in New York State.

Stay tuned.

American Granby Makes a Move-to Move Faster

They saw a need at American Granby: to be as fast as they can be. No, it's not the first line of a limerick, just the first step in a process that culminated in a newly constructed, faster-moving and more spacious distribution center for their products.

Based in Liverpool, New York (just outside of Syracuse) for the last 35 years, American Granby has been the premier distributor of water systems accessories to wholesalers in the Pump & Well, Pool & Spa, Turf Irrigation and Plumbing & Heating markets. Problem was, the company was too good, and it needed a way to fill orders even faster. Growth can be expensive, but the company likes its workforce and wanted to stay here.

What to do?

To grow, American Granby looked two places: upward, and to New York State. Upward, because company executives knew they needed higher ceilings to more efficiently pick orders; growing outward only meant longer picking times. And they knew the state had some incentives available to help businesses like theirs.

The results have been impressive, both for the company and its customers. Aided by a $200,000 grant from New York State and a sales tax exemption on the building and the equipment to furnish it, American Granby opened its 114,000 sq. ft. office and distribution center in the neighboring Town of Clay, complete with ceilings that are twice the height of its old building. The new, custom-designed facility allows for production tailored exactly to the company's needs, and offers twice the storage space. Combine that with new technologies- like a wireless/paperless warehouse management system using handheld scanners-and American Granby's order fulfillment process doesn't become just quicker, but super-fast: In a short time, it will be able to fill orders in four hours, versus 48 before-a huge advantage for them and their customers who depend on this one-stop wholesaler.

“We are extremely happy about our ability to remain in Central New York with the help of the county and the state,” says Gary Palley, vice president, sales & marketing. Adds Denise Gerould, vice president, finance & administration, “Both the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency and the Town of Clay were extremely helpful in keeping the approval process moving. Timing was critical to our project, and the whole project-including the construction of the building- was accomplished in less than 9 months.”

Due to the expansion, the company will hire more employees, and now has the opportunity for further growth on the additional 13 vacant acres it now owns.

American Granby. Just another example of New York State helping a company be all it can be. (And that is the first line of a limerick . . .)

Gee, Did You See That? GE is Building a Visual Imaging Facility

We already knew GE had seen the light . . . but that's another division. GE Inspection Technologies, however, has seen opportunity, and it's in the form of a brand new, 60,000 square-foot building on the appropriately named Vision Drive in Skaneateles Falls, just west of Syracuse. The proposed facility will focus on remote visual imaging in industrial applications; for example, the development of a small camera scope viewer that can penetrate crevices in aircrafts that are too small for human hands to reach.

To create 50 new jobs and retain its 153 current employees, GE also saw incentives from New York State. Based on the company's plans to invest $6 million to construct the plant-including furniture, fixtures and building costs-and its commitment to remain in New York and create jobs, GE is eligible to apply to Empire State Development for a capital grant of up to $500,000 for equipment.

“This is a great opportunity for Central New York workers,” said Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Onondaga. “GE has made a significant investment in our community, demonstrating that our region-with the strength of its workforce-can compete in this global economy.”

Compete and win.

Ever Seen Plastic That Could Stretch to Infinity?

Neither have we, but the Syracuse area does have a plastics company that seems to be doing just that. Tessy Plastics Corp., headquartered in nearby Elbridge, New York, will be investing about $6 million for new equipment and a warehouse addition at its local facility. (Tessy also has a 65,000-square-foot facility in Shanghai, China, and a 50,000-square-foot plant in Lynchburg, Va.)

If you've been reading these periodic updates about business activity in Syracuse, you might think you've read this before. In a sense, you have: this addition is the third that Tessy has built onto their Elbridge facility. (The company added 60,000 square feet in 2003 and an additional 40,000 square feet in 2004.)

Why the need for all the extra space? Tessy needed more manufacturing space to keep up with increased demand. Tessy has been enjoying steady growth of around 20 percent a year-particularly since it began focusing on the medical market several years ago-while the Syracuse area has enjoyed the custom-injection molding company's steady investment in our people. And the company's prospects look great: According to President Roland Beck, Tessy really focuses on high-tech complicated pieces that aren't easy to have produced overseas.

And what products does Tessy have? None! It actually creates and manufactures products for others, like Johnson & Johnson, Gillette, and Goulds Pumps. “The customer pretty much designs the product, and we manufacture it in high volume,” Beck says.

Fortunately for the Syracuse area, it's about to get higher.

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