Minnesota-Wisconsin region under consideration for European wind turbine expansion

The region of northwest Wisconsin and northeast Minnesota has emerged as one of two final sites currently under consideration by a European wind turbine manufacturer seeking a new location for its North American headquarters and production facilities.

“APEX proactively approaved this company abotu 12 months ago,” says Rob West, president and CEO of the Area Partnership for Economic Expansion (APEX), the entrepreneurial development organization representing the region.

West says the region offers a good fit for the company. “Foremost, we have the most active and largest internaitonal seaport on the Great Lakes. Secondly, we also offer proximity to the largest windfield in North America."

Wind fields have been identified throughout the North American Plains, including southern Ontario, southwest Minnesota, Iowa and the Dakotas.

“There is enough wind potential in North and South Dakota to run the entire United States on wind power,” says West. “Few people are aware of that fact.”

West also notes that the region also boasts work force advantages, from overall productivity to low turnover.

“Our region’s average, annual turnover is about three percent, compared to about 15 percent nationwide,” he says. “Should this company select our region, we estimate potential job creation of about 1,300 positions. Based on that number, we estimate we can save this employer $720,000 a year on training costs, simply due to lower turnover rates. Our work force has the hard skills, but also the soft skills companies are looking for.”

The region’s proximity to both the University of Wisconsin and the University of Minnesota are also a key selling point. The University of Minnesota-Duluth offers a top-notch engineering program that could complement the work force of such a business.

“And with the companies we already have in place, we’re able to show that this is a work force that is accustomed to building ‘really big stuff,’” says West, citing Superior’s Exodus Machines and Genesis Equipment and Manufacturing as examples.

Last July, APEX Director of Business Development Lisa Heyesen traveled to the company’s European headquarters to discuss the competitive advantages of the region; in return, company representatives visited the Twin Ports of Duluth/Superior and engaged a site selection firm.

An APEX-led delegation, which included representatives from Iron Range Resources and Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development, met with the unnamed company in Atlanta in February and was able to position the area as one of two final sites still under consideration for the expansion.

“We went from 40 to 10 to two or three,” says West of the competition. “We’ve offered a very competitive incentive package, but just as they’re doing their due diligence, so are we. We’re managing our expectations.”

APEX, as well as other business leaders in the region should have their answer soon. The company is expected to make a final decision by the middle of April as to where it plans to establish its North American presence.

MOVERS

>> Ruder Ware LLSC has added Attorney David P. Knaff to its Wausau office.

>> Ken Payne, P.E. has joined Clark Dietz’s MEP group as a senior mechanical engineer.

>> St. Croix Economic Development Corp. has honored Hudson banker Ken Heiser of Associated Bank with the inaugural EDC Directors Award.

>> Access Security Corporation of Chippewa Falls has added Tami Severson as director of sales and marketing.

>> Jamie Radabaugh has been hired as a development associate for Commonweal Development Corp. based in Eau Claire.

>> Charter Bank has promoted David B. Pokrandt to senior vice president and Kimberly L.S. Novotney to vice president. Dennis Zacho has been named chairman of the bank’s board of directors.

>> Michael Ojibway has been named the diversity and equal opportunity specialist, and the nontraditional occupation coordinator at Chippewa Valley Technical College.

BUSINESS BRIEFS

MENOMONEE: Recent graduates from the University of Wisconsin-Stout shrugged off the effects of the worst recession since the Great Depression, with nearly all securing employment, according to a new Annual Undergraduate Employment Report. The report, compiled by the Career Services office, showed that 97 percent of the students who graduated in December 2008, May 2009 and August 2009 were employed. Despite the poor national economy, the employment rate for UW-Stout students actually increased slightly; the employment rate for the previous year was 96 percent. UW-Stout has an average placement rate of 97 percent for graduates the past 10 years.