"We are tremendously excited by the competitive
advantages provided by our new site in Abilene, Texas," said Zsolt Rumy, chairman
and CEO of Zoltek Companies Inc.
St. Louis, Mo.,-based Zoltek is building a $56 million carbon fiber manufacturing
facility in Abilene. The 140,000 square foot plant will consist of three continuous
carbonization lines and will open this summer.
"As a result of our agreement with the Development Corp. of Abilene, we expect
to meet the schedule that we announced for increasing capacity and assuring customers
that we will be able to respond to demand for a reliable source of large quantities
of low-priced carbon fibers."
Zoltek also plans to simultaneously install two identical lines at its facility
in Budapest, Hungary, which manufactures and markets acrylic fibers, nylon products
and industrial materials to the European and Asian markets. The company plans 11
new production lines in 1998 to be installed in its Abilene and Budapest manufacturing
facilities. The Abilene site consists of 50 acres of land to accommodate future expansions.
Zoltek selected the Abilene site after a year-long search of possible locations,
most of which were in the Southwest.
The economic incentives the company received included tax abatement, ample room
for future expansion, and the provision of low-cost, immediately available facilities
that will significantly reduce the set-up costs for the new manufacturing operation.
Plenty of available land
Fort Worth's Alliance Airport development has become a major draw for companies
needing lots of land, infrastucture and transportation facilities for large-scale
manufacturing and distribution operations.
The biggest deal in the last year involves Intel Corp., which is building a $1.3
billion advanced logic computer chip manufacturing complex at the Alliance development.
The 800,000 square foot facility will initially employ 800 people, with a potential
of up to 5,500.
"Chip fabrication facilities require a sophisticated infrastructure,"
said Michael K. Berry, senior vice president of the Alliance Development Co. "Large
volumes of power, water and wastewater are needed. The master planning behind the
Alliance development anticipated such needs, including dual-feed, dual-source power.
Alliance's infrastructure is capable of handling Intel's needs today and in the future."
The 745 acres adjacent to the Intel site and within the Advanced Technology Center
will be targeted for the numerous technology-related companies expected to locate
near the chip maker's facility.
Intel follows JC Penney, BF Goodrich Aerospace, Maytag, CompUSA, Kraft Foods,
and Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America, to name a few of the companies that have moved
into the Alliance development during the past year.
JC Penney's $140 million catalog distribution center will be located near the
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Intermodal Center. The 900,000 square foot facility
will service the company's 1,238 department stores in North and South America.
Kraft Foods 650,000 square foot warehouse and distribution center will receive
finished products from Kraft manufacturing facilities across the country and process
them for shipment to retail grocery customers.
Crossroads of Texas
Aviation Technologies, which overhauls and repairs jet engine thrust reversers
for U.S. military aircraft and commercial carriers throughout the world, has selected
San Antonio for a new jet engine equipment repair and service facility.
"We considered several other cities and other states, but found that San
Antonio best matched our requirements for this new facility," said Manuel Nieves,
president of Aviation Technologies. "San Antonio presented a unified team effort
to attract us to the city, which made the location process much easier."
Earlier this year, Southwestern Bell established a 400-person corporate call center
in San Antonio. The center began operating in February to assist customers with questions
about Southwestern Bell products and services throughout a five-state region.
"We chose San Antonio as the location for this center because it offers top-notch
educational institutions from which we can recruit, as well as a large, diverse pool
of highly-skilled -- and in some cases, bilingual -- individuals," said Royce
Caldwell, president of Southwestern Bell Operations.
Pennsylvania-based Green, Tweed & Co., a leading manufacturer of high performance
sealing products and technologies used in the semiconductor industry, is building
a 30,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Selma, just outside San Antonio.
"We looked at several different cities, but were convinced by [local officials]
that the San Antonio area best matched our needs for this manufacturing facility,"
said Phil Paino, president of Greene, Tweed & Co. "An available work force,
competitive land prices, and proximity to the semiconductor markets in both Austin
and San Antonio were the major factors in our decision to locate a facility in Selma."
According to Paino, the new facility will mold O-ring seals for use in microcomputer
chip fabrication equipment. The process requires the use of a cleanroom to ensure
the purity required in the production of semiconductors.
Labor-intensive vs. capital intensive
The southeast Texas city of McAllen, nine miles north of the border with Mexico,
is the third fastest growing metropolitan area in the U.S.
McAllen takes advantage of its border location to offer manufacturers something
unique. Together with its sister city, Reynosa -- just across the border in Mexico
-- manufacturers are able to take advantage of the relative strengths of the two
countries to meet their particular needs. Generally, labor-intensive operations set
up in Reynosa, while more capital-intensive operations usually choose McAllen.
But not always.
Siecor Corp., the world's leading manufacturer of fiber optic cable, recently
opened a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Reynosa, Mexico, just across
the border from McAllen. Siecor is owned jointly by Siemens Corp. and Corning Inc.
Operations at the 270,000 square foot facility began in mid-November. The Reynosa
plant manufactures telecommunications hardware products for voice, video and data
operations.
One of area's biggest advantages is the McAllen Foreign Trade Zone (MFTZ #12),
originally established in 1965 as the first inland port to be approved by the U.S.
Department of Commerce.
Located just three miles north of the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge --
and within six miles of two other bridges to Mexico -- overland shippers can be in
Monterrey in less than two hours. A satellite trade zone is located three miles away
at the McAllen Miller International Airport, and operates under the same rules.
Plain dealing
The economy of the West Texas plains has long been dependent upon agriculture
and petroleum, and both still play a major role. But the region has become much more
economically diverse over the past decade.
St. Louis, Mo.,-based Purina Mills is expanding its operations in Lubbock with
a new $14 million feed mill. The new plant will increase production capacity by about
25 percent. The company received a 10-year property tax abatement valued at $700,000.
NTS Communications, one of the nation's largest regionally-based long distance
companies, is building a $4 million corporate headquarters in Lubbock. The company
will move into the 60,000 square foot facility this fall.
Two telemarketing companies also have moved into Lubbock so far this year.
American Transtech Inc., a subsidiary of AT&T, is building a $5 million facility
that will eventually employ about 1,000 people. The 68,000 square foot center will
be up and running this summer.
Omaha, Neb.,-based West TeleServices Direct is opening a 25,000 square foot service
center that will employ over 500 people.
That's not to say that Lubbock doesn't have its share of high tech facilities,
though. In fact, Texas Instruments has operated a semiconductor manufacturing facility
there for a number of years.
The region also is taking advantage of the presence of Texas Tech University and
its strong programs in science, engineering and medicine. Tech, along with South
Plains College, also participate in programs to provide worker training to local
and incoming businesses.
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