“At least 75 percent of economic development is retention – helping existing businesses succeed and possibly expand their operations to provide jobs and a tax base that improves our county’s quality of life,” says Marcia Bailey, director of the Champaign Economic Partnership (CEP).
That’s why she and the CEP Board of Trustees created a team that visits local businesses to learn more about them, including what’s working for them and what challenges they face in reaching their goals. So far, the JOBS (Jobs, Opportunities, Buildings and Space) team has visited Honeywell Aerospace, Bundy Baking Solutions and the Hall Company. The JOBS team is available to visit any type of business – not just manufacturing. Businesses wanting a visit may call the CEP at 937-653-7200. The CEP is a partnership of local government and business created in 2015 to promote economic development, workforce development and job retention and creation in Champaign County. The JOBS team varies from one visit to the next, but generally consists of Bailey; a county commissioner; a city and/or village administrator; an education representative, from Urbana University, Clark State Community College and/or Ohio Hi-Point Career Center; and a workforce development representative, from Ohio Means Jobs Champaign County or the Champaign County Department of Job and Family Services. During the visits, the team learns about each business: · Their products, services, markets and history · Local companies they do business with · What they like about doing business in Champaign County · What they think would make doing business easier · Plans, such as expansion, new products or markets, and what they’ll need to make it happen, such as more land or building space, additional utility access, more employees or training for existing staff “Our JOBS team visits enable us to see how the CEP and our partnerships with private businesses, local government, education, workforce development, and regional and state economic development agencies can boost local businesses,” Bailey says. “And our visits help businesses learn about the resources the CEP and our partners have to offer. They learn that we’re ready to help.” She adds, “From these visits I’ve learned a lot about our local businesses. I’m impressed by the quality of the products they produce, the skill and technology that goes into making them and the high regard they’ve earned in markets across the country and around the globe.” In the visits the businesses have cited as advantages good relationships with the city of Urbana, utilities and local suppliers; a relatively good cost of doing business; and the Grimes Field airport. Challenges that they’ve cited include upcoming retirements and meeting current workforce needs, including machinists and entry-level positions. A need for more space to increase business capacity was also mentioned at one of the visits.
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Ten monitors will be placed in public areas – one each at the five Champaign County high schools; in the villages of Mechanicsburg, North Lewisburg and St. Paris; Urbana University; and Ohio Hi-Point. The monitors will be installed beginning in late August. Content shown on the monitors will be generated by the CEP.
Urbana University and Ohio Hi-Point Career Center are providing funds to purchase the monitors and associated equipment, while DP&L and FASTLANE are assisting with funding for ongoing media service to broadcast content on the monitors. CEP Director Marcia Bailey added that Berry Digital Solutions is helping the CEP manage the project and that Weidmann Electrical Technology Inc. funded the original monitor at the CEP. The purpose, she said, is to inform students and other county residents about local career opportunities and education and training available to prepare students for the workforce “I’m a strong believer in the education-workforce ecosystem. And the CEP is leading the way to organizing education and employers, preparing talent to meet the needs of our employers,” said Christopher Washington, executive vice president and CEO of Urbana University, a branch campus of Franklin University. The monitors are the ideal way to deliver the information, he adds. “Kids today are digitally wired and pay attention to what’s on the screen.” Kelsey Webb, Ohio Hi-Point director of communications and marketing, said, “We’re participating because this is completely in our wheelhouse to prepare students for career or college. We’re excited to help spread the message that there are great opportunities here for students.” The company, the oldest continuously owned and operated fire apparatus manufacturer in the U.S., is establishing a new Service, Parts and Refurbishment Center at 49 N. Ludlow Road, Urbana. The company is recruiting service technicians and will initially provide 22 jobs at the Urbana facility. The new location gives Sutphen room to expand its parts inventory and focus more on refurbishing fire engines, a side of the business with promising growth potential, says President Drew Sutphen, the fourth generation of his family to lead the 128-year-old company. Sutphen recently attended a Champaign Economic Partnership (CEP) Board of Trustees meeting with Todd Winnenberg, general manager of the company’s Service and Chassis Divisions. Winnenberg said the new Urbana facility will enable the company to expand chassis assembly operations at Sutphen’s Springfield site. He added that the company will also use the new Urbana site to launch Sutphen University, a new program for training and educating customers. Cooperative Effort “We’re so excited to welcome such an established and growing business to Champaign County,” CEP Director Marcia Bailey said. “And we’re grateful for the cooperative effort that has made this possible.” She gives special credit to Terry Howell of Howell Brothers Development, which originally built Sutphen’s new Urbana location in 2012 for Pioneer DuPont. Howell has worked with Sutphen to modify the facility to accommodate the company’s specialized needs. Howell said: “I really appreciate the County Building Regulations Department working with us and providing guidance in the project. It’s a great use of the facility, and Sutphen is a great company to have in Champaign County. “They will be the largest employer, besides the schools, for the Triad school district – just a great addition to the community.” Growing Business Winnenberg said: “We are working hard to grow the service and parts piece of the business. It’s a good feeling to know that we have grown to the point where we need additional space and employees.” He added that the new location offers space for future expansion. “In a time when we see so much change within manufacturers in the industry, it is refreshing to know that Sutphen is here. Still family-owned, still strong, stable and committed to the fire service, and continuing to grow,” Sutphen said. “We have seen consistent growth in sales, and as a result of that, we can expand the business in ways that will allow us to continue to put out a great product and meet the increased demands we are seeing. It’s all about building a better experience for our customers, and that is what we are committed to.” Sutphen, which is headquartered in Dublin, also is experiencing growth at other locations: * Last year the company announced a new manufacturing facility in Scranton, Pa. * The company’s Hilliard manufacturing facility recently created a new and improved customer final inspection area. * Sutphen’s Dublin manufacturing facility will repurpose an existing building for pumper body assembly to meet demands and increase custom pumper output.
To complete clinical requirements, students may be placed outside of the Beavercreek area and will but that will depend on the availability of positions.
The college hired a new faculty member for the program and is providing a new, eight-bed laboratory with manikins that can be used as part of simulations, according to the school. The lab can accommodate 20 students and Grandview Hospital in Columbus donated the eight laboratory beds. Clark State has already selected its first group of students for the program at its satellite location, according to the school. Prospective students can submit applications for the fall 2019 semester from December through February. The community college also offers programs in paramedic to RN, Practical Nursing and Medical Assisting at the Beavercreek building, according to Clark State. The registered nursing program has long been “an in-demand major” at the Beavercreek location, said Gwen Stevens, director of nursing programs for Clark State. Wright State University, which is just a mile or so away from Clark State’s Greene Center, offers a bachelor’s of science nursing degree. “For several years, Registered Nursing has been the number one major at the Greene Center at the Beavercreek campus,” Stevens said in a prepared statement. “Students have been able to complete the general education requirements at the Greene Center but would take classes in Springfield once accepted into the nursing program. BOTKINS – Koenig Equipment Inc., a John Deere dealer based in Botkins, is acquiring the assets and operations of the Cahall Brothers Inc. Amelia location. With this addition, Koenig Equipment will operate 15 dealership facilities, including one in Urbana, serving customers in southwestern Ohio and southeastern Indiana.
“Koenig shareholders and family are honored that Cahall would choose us to serve the customers, geography and employees they have developed over the last 65 years,” said Koenig CEO Aaron Koenig. “In addition, we appreciate the confidence John Deere has shown in Koenig by choosing our dealership to represent their product in the Cincinnati market. Most importantly, we could not have reached this point without our fantastic customers and employees, both past and present.” To learn more about Koenig Equipment and the products and services provided, please visit the company website at http://www.koenigequipment.com/ and follow the company on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About Koenig Equipment Founded in 1904 by John C. Koenig, now in its fourth generation as an employee-owned business, Koenig Equipment is a farm and turf equipment dealer proudly serving local agricultural communities, residential property owners, landscapers and contractors. With 15 locations across southwestern Ohio and southeastern Indiana, Koenig specializes in high-quality brands including John Deere, Honda and Stihl.
The lab, which was delivered to Marion Technical College in Union County late last year, will be on display throughout much of the day at Triad during the job fair. The project’s primary goal is to provide a mobile training area for manufacturing firms throughout the region, Bailey said. In Champaign County, companies like KTH Parts Industries, Inc., Rittal and Bundy Baking Solutions contributed to the project, Bailey said.
“It’s meant to be shared with those employers for incumbent worker training,” Bailey said. But it can also be used to give local students hands-on experience to encourage them to take a closer look at careers in the industry. Technical colleges in Central Ohio submitted a proposal for a state grant several years ago to fund a portion of the project, said Robert Haas, chief strategy officer at MTC. The partners combined that grant and various other funding sources to pay for the lab. One reason it took several years to get the lab running was manufacturers throughout the region were asked to provide input on the kinds of equipment the lab should offer. Instead of training equipment, it was clear the companies wanted real equipment typically used in a manufacturing environment, he said. The lab includes a CNC milling machine, six control units at which students can learn to program the mill, room for nine students and an instructor and enough power to allow some electrical training. The training can be customized to a business’ needs. “They tried to make it as broad as they could to cover different types of industries,” Bailey said. “The Hall company might not do robotic welding but they may have a need for CNC.” Faculty from MTC will be able to provide the training, or companies with qualified staff can conduct the training on their own. Haas said the goal now is to make businesses more aware of the lab. He estimated it will be used for training about 80 percent of the time with the rest used to promote manufacturing careers for students. “It’s meant to be an asset that can be used across the state, not just the Marion area,” Haas said. The lab will be on hand at Triad most of the day on Tuesday. A job fair open to high school seniors in Champaign County will take place from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the high school. A second job fair, open to the general public, will take place from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the high school. The Springfield News-Sun will continue to provide unmatched coverage of jobs and the economy in Clark and Champaign Counties. For this story, the paper previewed a job fair scheduled at Triad High School and explained how a new mobile lab will be used to train local workers. If you go: What: Two job fairs at Triad High School Where: 8099 Brush Lake Roa, Woodstock What: A job fair open to high school seniors in Champaign County, followed by a separate job fair for area residents. When: A job fair for local students will take place from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the high school. A second job fair, open to the general public, will take place from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the high school.
By Matt Sanctis - Springfield News-Sun Staff Writer
Nursing and truck driving are the most in demand jobs in the region that includes Clark and Champaign counties, with jobs in retail also near the top of the list, according to a state report. The report from OhioMeansJobs provides a snapshot of online job ads posted in a one-month period for six different Ohio regions. It provides an indication of the most in-demand occupations and a list of regional employers doing most of the hiring in a given area. The results were not a surprise, said Amy Donahoe, director of hiring and employer services for the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce. She said many companies, both locally and nationally, continue to struggle to find and retain qualified truck drivers. Clark State Community College has a program to train drivers for the industry, she said, and the chamber is working with partners to find better ways to promote in-demand jobs in the region. “We do recognize there is a need there and Clark State has a great program,” Donahoe said. “We also need to figure out how to engage the schools so they can help educate students about it becoming an option for them. If parents understand what kinds of opportunities there are and what kind of pay is involved, it’s a good place for some graduates to start.” The report showed a total of 16,658 online job openings from Jan. 14 to Feb. 13 this year for a region that includes, Clark, Champaign, Montgomery, Greene and Miami counties.That’s an increase of about 700 job postings compared to the same time last year, and an increase of about 1,300 postings from the previous reporting period. Kettering Medical Center was the highest number of job ads in the region with just more than 1,000 ads, the report says. Mercy Health, the biggest employer in Springfield, was also near the top of the list with 131 postings. The report shows a little less than half the ads posted, about 44 percent, require at least an Associate’s degree. About 30 percent required a high school diploma or GED only and about 23 percent required a Bachelor’s degree. In Champaign County, local officials have developed Community Job Connect, an online job site specifically for Champaign County businesses and residents. Many of the ads posted on that site include construction and manufacturing positions. “Every employer is using every mechanism available to them to find employees,” said Marcia Bailey, economic development coordinator for the Champaign Economic Partnership. With a low unemployment rate, Donahoe said industries such as retail will likely continue to see a gap between the number of applicants and available jobs as workers look for higher-paying work. “When other businesses are hiring, you see a lot of people from retail go into manufacturing for instance,” Donahoe said of entry-level positions. “The pay could be a little more at times and sometimes it’s just equal. But there are also greater opportunities for upward mobility.” Unmatched coverage The Springfield News-Sun provides award-winning coverage of jobs and the economy in Clark and Champaign counties, including recent stories tracking local unemployment rates and expansions at Topre America and Silfex. By the numbers: 16,665 — Online job ads from Jan. 14 to Feb. 13 in the region that include Clark and Champaign counties 1,305 — Increase in job ads from previous reporting period 722 — Increase in job ads compared to same time last year 44.5 percent — Jobs requiring an Associate’s degree Source: Ohio Means Jobs
No plans have been finalized, Bailey said. But local economic development leaders plan to meet with potential local investors as early as next month.
The study estimated the project could generate between 15 and 20 new jobs, depending on the size of the hotel, if it’s built. “This meeting is just to generate the interest of other community leadership,” Bailey said. Champaign County has rooms available for overnight stays, including a downtown bed and breakfast and businesses like the Econo Lodge Inn and Suites and the Logan Lodge Motel. But the county hasn’t had a new hotel in years. Elton Cultice, airport manager at Grimes Field in Urbana, has told the News-Sun he often reserves rooms in Springfield for events at the airport because of the few options available in Champaign County. That means less business for local restaurants and other businesses in Champaign County. The CEP hired a consultant from Core Distinction Group to conduct the feasibility study. Staff from that company couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. The study was based on interviews with area businesses and local attractions that typically draw visitors overnight, as well as traffic studies from 2011 and 2014 provided by the CEP. That included staff from local tourist attractions like the Ohio Caverns. The study also consulted with other entities that might draw residents for overnight stays or business purposes, including Urbana University and a small number of manufacturing firms. The total tourism impact in Champaign County resulted in more than $47 million in sales and enables the employment of more than 350 people in the county, according to a 2013 study by Tourism Economics. Along with as many as 70 to 80 rooms, the Core Distinction Group’s report also recommended the potential hotel provide meeting areas with space for about 50 guests, a pool and a workout area. In the end though, all those decisions, including how many rooms are included in the final plans, will be determined by any investors who push the project forward, Bailey said. The hotel would be built within Urbana city limits, she said, but it’s too early to discuss any specific locations for the property. If and when the project might move forward is still unclear, Bailey said. But if a decision to build the hotel is finalized this year, she said it’s likely the project could ramp up as early as 2019. Bailey said the hotel would likely be a name-brand chain.
Melanie Ziegler, a spokeswoman for the company, said the project is on schedule and no delays are anticipated.
The medical group will also host a groundbreaking open house event and ceremony at Memorial Hospital in Marysville as part of a separate project. The company is undergoing a $50 million expansion and renovation of Memorial Hospital. That project involves construction of two buildings, both an inpatient pavilion and an outpatient pavilion on the main campus at 500 London Ave. in Marysville. |
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