The state of Illinois has so many built-in advantages - its central location in the Midwest, its easy access to the Atlantic Ocean via the Great Lakes, and its progressive, well-educated work force - that any programs it creates to encourage economic growth seem like icing on the cake. And what great icing it is.

Medium-sized companies form the foundation of Illinois' economy, and the state goes to great lengths to ensure the success of these companies and to give them reasons to stay. The "Illinois Economic Development for a Growing Economy" (EDGE) program provides tax credits to qualifying businesses that create new jobs and invest new funds in the state. By offering EDGE tax credits, Illinois makes its companies' operating costs lower than they would be in other states.

Illinois' Industrial Training Program (ITP) also helps lower costs by providing companies - mostly medium and large manufacturers - with state training funds. Between July 2000 and June 2001, 50,178 workers in the state received nearly $500 worth of training each through the ITP program.

Companies use programs to help expansion

The EDGE and ITP programs, designed to attract and retain investment, have been successful in that regard.

Eagle Wings Industries Inc. is among the recent investors in Illinois eligible for both of the programs. The company will invest $8.5 million to transform an existing building into an automotive component manufacturing plant and create at least 50 new jobs in Olney.

Other companies recently declared eligible for both the EDGE and ITP programs include Reunion Industries Inc., a manufacturer of metal and plastic products that is relocating a cylinder manufacturing facility to Libertyville and creating 40 new jobs; and United Asset Coverage Inc. (UAC), a provider of integrated telecommunications and data networking maintenance services.

UAC outgrew its corporate headquarters in Naperville and decided to move to a larger location - in Naperville. The expansion will double the company's space and create 80 new jobs over the next two years.

Corporate headquarters, such as UAC's in Naperville, are a prime target of Illinois' economic development efforts. The state ranked fourth as the headquarters to 39 of the nation's largest companies on the Fortune 500 list.

In fact, Illinois Gov. George H. Ryan recently signed the Corporate Headquarters Relocation Act, which channels state incentives in the direction of large companies that relocate their headquarters to the state.

The Boeing Co. is among the first to benefit from the new legislation. After considering sites across the country, Boeing chose Chicago as its new global headquarters.

Though they worked hard to attract Boeing, state leaders felt sure that Boeing would come. Their confidence is undoubtedly based on the huge advantages the state can boast. O'Hare International Airport is among the world's busiest, and was recognized as the best airport in North America by international passengers surveyed by Business Traveler magazine; 13 port districts in the state provide direct links to the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico; and the state's six foreign trade zones offer low-cost production and warehousing facilities.

Quad Cities an outpost of activity

Deere and Co., the prominent agriculture equipment manufacturer, has its headquarters and research, manufacturing, and distribution facilities in the Quad Cities, where Illinois is joined to Iowa at the Mississippi River.

As a distribution center, the Quad Cities are an ideal location. Within a day's drive are 36.6 million customers in such major markets as Minneapolis, St. Paul, Kansas City, Omaha, and Chicago. The Quad Cities also benefits from major east-west and north-south interstate highways, Mississippi River barge activity, rail service, and the Quad Cities International Airport, which, for a community of 370,000, provides excellent service.

Interestingly, the Quad Cities has developed an intermodal barge-rail system, and is currently working on developing an intermodal rail-truck operation. Distribution will then become just that much more streamlined.

Sitting astride two states is a unique advantage in the area. Covering two states, the four-city region enjoys two of many things, including school systems, community colleges, regional shopping centers, state governments, major hospitals, and telecommunications systems. A strong sense of competition is alive and well there.

The Quad Cities refers to itself as a progressive regional center where diverse options offer increased choice for personal and professional development. That says it all.

Distribution facilities thrive

Illinois' great location and intermodal transportation systems make it a great location for manufacturing and distribution facilities. Illinois is home to nearly 18,000 manufacturing plants, with about three-quarters of them located in the Chicago metropolitan area.

Elk Grove Village's Elk Grove Business Park is one reason why so many manufacturers like Chicago. The five-acre business park, which sits within the Chicago metropolitan area, is the largest of its kind in North America.

It's home to 3,600 companies - many of them manufacturers and distributors - that, in some ways, form a community of their own. New companies that move into the park join an instant community of customers and suppliers. With 85 percent of its revenue coming from the business park, the city of Elk Grove Village is very supportive. Many Elk Grove companies feel as though a permanent welcome mat has been set out just for them.

Rollex, a manufacturer of aluminum siding, has been in Elk Grove since 1956 and is in the process of renovating its third building. Tritech is also working on its third building in Elk Grove. The company manufactures robotics and finds many suppliers and customers close to home.

Like Elk Grove, Arlington Heights is in the Chicago metropolitan area and is home to nearly 4,000 businesses. The community was originally built in 1887 around a train station and railroad tracks, and today, transportation is still a big advantage. Arlington Heights also offers corporate parks, industrial buildings, and much office space.

Foreign firms find homes in Illinois

A growing segment of Illinois' economy is its foreign investment. Illinois has been working hard to increase its global position by opening new trade offices and attracting foreign investment. NDK America, Inc., a subsidiary of the Tokyo-based Nihon Dempa Kogyo Co., is a good example of recent foreign investment.

The company decided to locate a new manufacturing, research, development, executive office, warehousing, sales and marketing facility in Belvidere. The facility will produce synthetic quartz crystals to be used in the telecommunications industry, watch manufacturing, and computer hardware production.

NDK will invest $12.5 million and create at least 50 new jobs.

"The cooperation and assistance we have received from Belvidere and the state of Illinois was instrumental in our final decision to locate this facility in Belvidere," said Michael Walczak, president and director of NDK.