| |
Manufacturing Relationships
Congressman, Manufacturers & Chamber – A Winning Combination
By Mike Monahan
During the Congressional summer recess, Congressman Gus M. Bilirakis (Florida’s 9th Congressional District) spent a day visiting with the Upper Tampa Bay Manufacturer’s Council and touring manufacturers’ facilities.
The purpose of this council is to provide an industry-oriented networking forum for manufacturers, as well as an opportunity for manufacturers to hear topics of interest presented by resident experts. One of the council’s major goals is to provide services that will ultimately translate into increased local business to business opportunities between local manufacturers.
Topics presented at the forum include: OSHA safety, economic incentives, job fair opportunities, human resource issues, and tax concerns. Also included are meetings and briefings with government agency representatives and elected officials at the local, county, state and federal levels.
Some successes are tax credits and rebates for some manufacturers, safety information updates, recruitment of employees, and business networking opportunities. Furthermore, the chamber’s coordination of such a manufacturer’s council ultimately enhances the economic development of our communities by contributing to the manufacturers within our communities, with resulting benefits for the entire Tampa Bay Area.
When Congressman Gus Bilirakis became aware of the council, he asked to visit. Thus, the chamber planned a day for him to address the council meeting, spending the rest of the day visiting manufacturers throughout the Tampa Bay area, escorted by Chamber officials. Genesis Electronics Manufacturing President and CEO, Scott Mauldin, hosted and arranged for this particular meeting, accommodating the large number of manufacturers and visitors who attended.
Congressman Bilirakis, who had just been appointed to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Subcommittee on Europe and Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia, had just returned from a visit to Iraq and related the importance of America’s high quality manufactured products and the effect these products have had in assisting the military’s efforts in Iraq.
Afterwards, Scott Mauldin provided Congressman Bilirakis with a tour of Genesis, during which he pointed out examples of local business to business success stories. Genesis is a key supplier to Nielsen Media and Goodrich Lighting Systems. Genesis’ work in the area of defense includes circuit boards for ‘an advanced ground penetrating radar’ that is effectively used in combating Improvised Explosive Devices (IED’s).
Another manufacturing firm visited was Haller Industries in Hillsborough County. The owner and president is Leigh Ann Haller, president of the Bay Area Manufacturer’s Association (BAMA). Haller Industries is working on projects that will assist the NASA space program for future decades. As the Congressman toured, he was made aware of local manufacturing business concerns, one pertaining to education and the quality of the workforce; the other was affordable housing needs.
Crossing the bay to Pinellas County, the first stop was QTM, Inc.
Dick Peck, president and CEO (and a previous BAMA president) met the Congressman and had arranged for a conference call to discuss the Manufacturers Extension Partnership (MEP) with a representative from the northeastern United States. This program is designed to help small and mid-sized manufacturers survive and grow by leveraging a vast array of public and private resources available to every manufacturing enterprise within the state. One of the ultimate goals of MEP’s throughout the U.S. is to strengthen the global competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers.
Peck pointed out that Florida was one of the only states not using federal dollars offered through the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Congressman Bilirakis also learned that manufacturers in Florida contributed over $33 Billion to Florida’s overall economy in 2005 and paid an average wage of $42,423.
The next stop was BryCoat. Headed by president Mike Smith, BryCoat is a family-owned company on the high end of the technology scale, providing precision thin film coating. Some of the products produced there are components used in the F-22 Raptor aircraft and the Advanced Joint Strike Aircraft. (Before leaving office, Governor JEB Bush visited and paid special tribute to Mike Smith and his BryCoat family for their high technology manufacturing.)
At the following visit, to On-Demand Printing, Jim Ronecker, owner and president who is also mayor of Oldsmar, pointed out that there is federal legislation under development for a Do Not Mail provision within the Postal Reform Bill. Ronecker expressed concern that such legislation could have an adverse impact on the printing industry, which happened to have the largest number of manufacturers within the state.
Prior to departing On Demand Printing, a golden statue of Benjamin Franklin caught the congressman’s eye. In 2005, competing with over 5,500 projects, On Demand Printing won the award, which recognizes the single best printing project internationally.
At the final stop, the Lockheed Martin plant in Oldsmar, General Manager Steven Hill provided briefings and tours. Congressman Bilirakis addressed a group of several hundred workers, praising the work of the manufacturing community, thanking them for their tremendous economic and community support.
Congressman Bilirakis commented on how valuable and informative the day had been and how much he appreciated the professionalism and skill level of our manufacturing community. He also stated he was impressed with the efforts of the Upper Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce in putting together the highly successful manufacturer’s council.
Editor’s Note: There is no cost to manufacturers to attend The Upper Tampa Bay Manufacturing Council meetings. The monthly, one hour morning meetings are the third Thursday of each month and are open to all manufacturers in the Tampa Bay Area. For more details contact them at mmonahan@utbchamber.com or call 813-855-4233.
|
|
