Economic Development - Expansions and Relocations

[KJHburg]

9 minutes ago, Reverie39 said:

Steele Creek seems like a seriously big industrial park. But I don’t really have a reference. Wonder if it’s considered a major park by people in the know.

the Westinghouse Blvd corridor is indeed the largest concentration of industrial and warehousing properties in the region and perhaps in the entire state of NC.  Anchor by the Siemens plant on one end and the Frito Lay plant closer to 77 this is indeed Charlotte's industrial and warehouse "downtown" for sure. 

Thousands of jobs are in this area.  According to JLL report 2Q22 the area has 42,000,000 sq ft of manufacturing and warehouse space.  Breakdown 3.5 M sq ft of industrial and almost 39 M sq ft of warehouse space. By far the largest such concentration in the region.  

 

[KJHburg]

went to the Cabarrus Economic Development Summit where Cabarrus County just came off their best 2 years in their history of economic development.  Top topic was the new Eli Lilly $1 B plant in Concord on part of the old Phillip Morris site.   Remember this is the LARGEST econ development project in the last year in the entire Charlotte region.  

https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/projects/eli-lilly-parenteral-products-facility-concord/

additional facts I learned tonight.  600 jobs that is the minimum expect this to grow.  This will be the largest Eli Lilly manufacturing plant in the  world and the largest warehousing operation, total square footage 1.2 Million.   Largest  Eli Lilly facility in the world. 30 acre solar farm on site.  Will be Eli Lilly's greenest plant in the world.   300 total acres. Will have daycare center, onsite fitness center, multiple buildings on its campus.  It will operate 24/7 3 shifts.  They will make their diabetes and alzheimer's drugs here for EXPORT to 120 countries around the world. 

Why Concord?  they looked at 187 sites around the country.  Then they zeroed in on NC because of great startup of their $800M plant in Research Triangle Park which is 2 years ahead of this plant and makes the same drugs for domestic US consumption.  But why Concord?  1. Local workforce  2. experience with RTP plant in NC  3. excellent transportation including CLT airport.  International flights were important to them.  By the 4th quarter 2024 they will be making drugs here for export to world markets. 

this is a gamechanger for the region.   They need biologists, chemists, office staff, warehousing staff, production manufacturing employees.  A very wide gamut.

https://www.lilly.com/who-we-are/about-lilly/key-facts   This announcement has already put Cabarrus County and this entire region on the map for pharma manufacturers.  

 

Edited August 5, 2022 by KJHburg

[ArchiCLT]

12 hours ago, KJHburg said:

went to the Cabarrus Economic Development Summit where Cabarrus County just came off their best 2 years in their history of economic development.  Top topic was the new Eli Lilly $1 B plant in Concord on part of the old Phillip Morris site.   Remember this is the LARGEST econ development project in the last year in the entire Charlotte region.  

https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/projects/eli-lilly-parenteral-products-facility-concord/

additional facts I learned tonight.  600 jobs that is the minimum expect this to grow.  This will be the largest Eli Lilly manufacturing plant in the  world and the largest warehousing operation, total square footage 1.2 Million.   Largest  Eli Lilly facility in the world. 30 acre solar farm on site.  Will be Eli Lilly's greenest plant in the world.   300 total acres. Will have daycare center, onsite fitness center, multiple buildings on its campus.  It will operate 24/7 3 shifts.  They will make their diabetes and alzheimer's drugs here for EXPORT to 120 countries around the world. 

Why Concord?  they looked at 187 sites around the country.  Then they zeroed in on NC because of great startup of their $800M plant in Research Triangle Park which is 2 years ahead of this plant and makes the same drugs for domestic US consumption.  But why Concord?  1. Local workforce  2. experience with RTP plant in NC  3. excellent transportation including CLT airport.  International flights were important to them.  By the 4th quarter 2024 they will be making drugs here for export to world markets. 

this is a gamechanger for the region.   They need biologists, chemists, office staff, warehousing staff, production manufacturing employees.  A very wide gamut.

https://www.lilly.com/who-we-are/about-lilly/key-facts   This announcement has already put Cabarrus County and this entire region on the map for pharma manufacturers.  

 

My firm, WGM Design, is the architect for this project. It's big. As an example, Gilbane (GC) is building (2) 13,000 SF Sprung structures on-site just as temporary offices for 250 people during the course of construction.

Gensler is designing the Office Building, and we're doing all of the other buildings. We have a similar project structure at Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Oakboro: BB+M designed the Office Building, and we have everything else. Manufacturing is still booming in our region.

[KJHburg]

speaking of the new Eli Lilly plant here are some drive bys on the construction site today.  Look at that huge construction office. and they even have a parking hut as a guard gate. 

Edited August 5, 2022 by KJHburg

[SydneycartonII]

This might provide some impetus for Lily to expand in NC.

[SouthEndCLT811]

Have to prevent the NC GOP from gaining super majority in the state senate in November or we'll likely end up in a similar position to Indiana on the issue.

[Norm2]

1 hour ago, SouthEndCLT811 said:

Have to prevent the NC GOP from gaining super majority in the state senate in November or we'll likely end up in a similar position to Indiana on the issue.

Has there been any impact to Texas economic growth? I haven't heard about any companies in Texas making a stand in the national news. 

[SydneycartonII]

11 minutes ago, norm21499 said:

Has there been any impact to Texas economic growth? I haven't heard about any companies in Texas making a stand in the national news. 

When NC and Ga passed their questionable laws a few years ago, many companies took a disingenuous stand and “punished” the states.  Texas, by contrast, is going absolutely over the top on every issue, and yet, companies are relocating there in droves.  Clearly, the bottom line rules.

[videtur quam contuor]

I am awaiting the moment Indiana bans abstinence birth control.*

*My screen name is now a Mark of Cain.

[SydneycartonII]

Deleted political issue…

Edited August 7, 2022 by SydneycartonII

[kermit]

4 hours ago, norm21499 said:

Has there been any impact to Texas economic growth? I haven't heard about any companies in Texas making a stand in the national news. 

Its too early to have any real data on recent events but there is a growing amount of anecdote, particularly in the context of professional workers:

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/challenge-antiabortion-states-doctors-reluctant-162629136.html

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/in-depth/2022/04/26/424023/trans-kids-and-families-are-leaving-texas-amid-state-efforts-to-charge-parents-with-child-abuse/

Having said that, the plural of anecdote is not data.

The momentum of growth in Texas means that policy is extremely unlikely to cause growth to reverse. I think a more reasonable question for Texas is: "did the state see its growth rate reduced due to politics?" I will say that from my perspective the number of reasons why some businesses and individuals may want to avoid Texas is growing (culture war politics, unreliable (and expensive) power grid, climate change impacts, urban homelessness, housing costs (outside of Houston) and property tax rates quickly come to mind) so I wonder if we will see signs of "peak Texas" on the horizon.

Edited August 7, 2022 by kermit

[RANYC]

Key to smart growth is a manageable growth rate.  Population influx in droves is nothing to celebrate, imo.  

[KJHburg]

Lets keep all the politics to the wonderful separate thread called Political Thread  under the Coffeehouse.  

One thing mentioned at the Cabarrus Economic Summit was by a economic development consultant that works in 23 states was that North Carolina was one of only 4 states to appear consistently in the top 10 lists by Forbes, CNBC, Business Facilities, CEO, Site Selection magazines   Texas and VA are another 2 maybe Georgia and Tennessee the 4th not sure

Charlotte MSA was in the top 9 out of 100 metros for business climate

Specifically of Cabarrus 68,000 people commute out of the county for jobs but 50,000 commute into Cabarrus.  He suggested the pool of 68K is the ones you attract to new employers in the county like Eli Lilly, Kroger etc.

5 year job growth of Cabarrus county has been 7.7% vs. .7% for the USA as a whole that is 10 times the rate 

Pharmaceutical jobs are a MAJOR target of Cabarrus county now and they have interested parties.  

 

[KJHburg]

Well this is interesting HQ for Charlotte.  But with Albemarle Corp HQ here maybe not so unusual and the rash of EV plants in the southeast and east coast supply of recyclable materials. 

With the founding of IperionX ltd., he’s going further, reshoring a key supply chain in titanium and rare-earth metals while making the business more sustainable in both the economic and environmental sense.  IperionX, based in Australia, has a headquarters in Charlotte. It listed on Nasdaq in June in what is likely the first move toward relocating the business to the U.S., a process called “redomiciling.”  The company already has a pilot manufacturing program for making titanium powders in Utah. It is testing those powders as feedstock for 3D printing and other advanced manufacturing processes in a program with the federal government at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.  The company is also working to reopen what had been a titanium minerals mine in a formation called the McNairy Sands in Camden, Tennessee.   So, what we're trying to do there is bring back an industry, which we had here in the U.S. — which we started in the U.S. But, more so, bring it back sustainably. And to bring it back at lower cost to feed not just our existing titanium metal industry, but to feed the advanced manufacturing industry, which is growing rapidly in this country. ""

""What rare earths will you produce?  The rare earths that the industry thinks of today for electric vehicles or for renewable power generation are the magnet rare earths. They form part of the very high-performance permanent magnets, which go into the electric vehicle motors and other generators. So, that's neodymium, praseodymium dysprosium and terbium.  Then also from the Titan project, we have titanium in different mineral forms — rutile and ilmenite. Titanium is not a rare earth. But those titanium minerals are important because it is hard to find them in geopolitically safe, infrastructure rich and (with) economic deposits. And that's what we found here in Tennessee. ""

""Why make Charlotte the headquarters?  I think from accounting and finance perspective, we had set up a good base of operations in Charlotte. You can attract good talent for administrative function of the company. Charlotte's an excellent financial center, so it lends itself to being an excellent setup for running the administration and headquarters of what we're doing.  And like I've said in the past, the titanium metal operations could go anywhere as well. And I think that the East Coast U.S., especially the Southeast, are good candidates for that. And, again, that lends itself to Charlotte as being a center of gravity for IperionX.""

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2022/08/09/newsmaker-taso-arima-iperionx.html

Not to mention Charlotte is home to the largest steel producer Nucor.   and their HQ is in uptown Charlotte at 129 W Trade. 

https://iperionx.com/

Edited August 9, 2022 by KJHburg

[SydneycartonII]

I wonder where in the state this plant will be.  Greensboro seems to be the aviation manufacturing hub, but Concord might be possible too.  Also, “Concord” would be an appropriate place to build supersonic jets.

“…. Boom will build the jet at a new manufacturing plant in North Carolina and expects to roll out the first model in 2025, with the first flight in 2026.”

https://www.maxim.com/travel/this-new-supersonic-jet-can-fly-from-nyc-to-london-in-just-3-5-hours/amp/

 

Also, I wonder if any of these will fly from Charlotte.

Edited August 16, 2022 by SydneycartonII

[15895]

31 minutes ago, SydneycartonII said:

I wonder where in the state this plant will be.  Greensboro seems to be the aviation manufacturing hub, but Concord might be possible too.  Also, “Concord” would be an appropriate place to build supersonic jets.

“…. Boom will build the jet at a new manufacturing plant in North Carolina and expects to roll out the first model in 2025, with the first flight in 2026.”

https://www.maxim.com/travel/this-new-supersonic-jet-can-fly-from-nyc-to-london-in-just-3-5-hours/amp/

 

Also, I wonder if any of these will fly from Charlotte.

Isn't there some air park in eastern NC the state pumped a lot of money in to with hopes to lure an aircraft manufacturer? 

As for service, I don't think Charlotte will see the supersonic jet with scheduled flights. It'll probably be between major markets focusing on local premium traffic. The aircraft is probably premium heavy in addition to why take a super sonic jet if you have to make a connection right afterwards. 

Edited August 16, 2022 by AirNostrumMAD

[SydneycartonII]

2 minutes ago, AirNostrumMAD said:

Isn't there some air park in eastern NC the state pumped a lot of money in to with hopes to lure an aircraft manufacturer? 

As for service, I don't think Charlotte will see the supersonic jet with scheduled flights. It'll probably be between major markets focusing on local premium traffic. If the jet ever actually becomes reality.

Charlotte has become a major market.  Isn’t it among the ten busiest in the US?

[CLT2014]

19 minutes ago, SydneycartonII said:

Charlotte has become a major market.  Isn’t it among the ten busiest in the US?

Charlotte is a massive connecting hub for domestic flights, with some international service largely focused on connecting leisure travelers going to the Caribbean or tourist destinations in Europe like Rome and Dublin. Domestic leisure is a profitable group of customers when you connect them through the cheapest hub you have and maximize the profit for selling 180 $400 fares on a Airbus A321. You don't want to connect those customers through airports with high costs or the profit margin on a $400 fare quickly gets eaten away because connecting customers rarely pay a "premium" and just search for the lowest cost ticket with schedule that works for them.

If American ever offers a small fleet of 20 supersonic jets, it will be focused on point to point service for a few niche routes with very affluent residents between major cities where people can pay $8,000 for a seat like NYC - London, LAX - Tokyo, Miami - London, et... If people can afford an $8,000 supersonic seat... they don't want to be connecting with the cruise ship crowd going from Buffalo to Tampa via Charlotte.

Edited August 16, 2022 by CLT2014

[15895]

42 minutes ago, CLT2014 said:

Charlotte is a massive connecting hub for domestic flights, with some international service largely focused on connecting leisure travelers going to the Caribbean or tourist destinations in Europe like Rome and Dublin. Domestic leisure is a profitable group of customers when you connect them through the cheapest hub you have and maximize the profit for selling 180 $400 fares on a Airbus A321. You don't want to connect those customers through airports with high costs or the profit margin on a $400 fare quickly gets eaten away because connecting customers rarely pay a "premium" and just search for the lowest cost ticket with schedule that works for them.

If American ever offers a small fleet of 20 supersonic jets, it will be focused on point to point service for a few niche routes with very affluent residents between major cities where people can pay $8,000 for a seat like NYC - London, LAX - Tokyo, Miami - London, et... If people can afford an $8,000 supersonic seat... they don't want to be connecting with the cruise ship crowd going from Buffalo to Tampa via Charlotte.

To expand on this great, great post. 

The below shows how much airports charge per passenger (CPE). 

If you were to choose between forcing 500 passengers to connect in Charlotte, Philadelphia or Newark NJ, the cost per enplanement would be $1,790, $8,020 & $13,085 respectively. When you start increasing that by millions of passengers, you can see why Charlotte is such a large connecting hub. Lower yielding traffic will work at Charlotte whereas it wont at San Francisco. Whereas San Francisco may be a more lucrative market with higher yielding passengers and lots of flights being filled with locals who aren't connecting. What also makes Charlotte great at generating profits for AA is they don't have to worry about competition. There's not enough local demand for much competition. Which is why some airlines invest a lot more $ in the airport and amenities in certain markets versus AA in CLT. Because the airlines have to compete on quality if there are more options. Why fly United for a premium if Southwest is just as nice...

LOWEST cost airports (FAA Large and Medium hub classifications):

BUR = $2.09
ATL = $2.61
CLT = $3.58
SLC = $4.17
MSY = $4.31 (New Orleans)
PBI = $4.70
CVG = $4.71
TPA = $4.89
PHX = $6.26
MKE = $6.42

HIGHEST:

EWR = $26.17 (New York area (Newark NJ))
JFK = $25.41 (New York)
SFO = $20.63
LGA = $19.33 (New York)
MIA = $19.20
ORD = $17.87 (Chicago)
LAX = $16.75
IAD = $16.53 (Washington DC)
PHL = $16.04
SJU = $14.99

Source: https://www.airliners.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1426381

Edited August 16, 2022 by AirNostrumMAD

[KJHburg]

3 hours ago, SydneycartonII said:

I wonder where in the state this plant will be.  Greensboro seems to be the aviation manufacturing hub, but Concord might be possible too.  Also, “Concord” would be an appropriate place to build supersonic jets.

“…. Boom will build the jet at a new manufacturing plant in North Carolina and expects to roll out the first model in 2025, with the first flight in 2026.”

https://www.maxim.com/travel/this-new-supersonic-jet-can-fly-from-nyc-to-london-in-just-3-5-hours/amp/

 

Also, I wonder if any of these will fly from Charlotte.

this has already been decided Boom Supersonic is going to Greensboro and PTI airport.

https://boomsupersonic.com/news/post/boom-supersonic-first-supersonic-airliner-manufacturing-facility

[TCLT]

2 hours ago, AirNostrumMAD said:

If American ever offers a small fleet of 20 supersonic jets, it will be focused on point to point service for a few niche routes with very affluent residents between major cities where people can pay $8,000 for a seat like NYC - London, LAX - Tokyo, Miami - London, et... If people can afford an $8,000 supersonic seat... they don't want to be connecting with the cruise ship crowd going from Buffalo to Tampa via Charlotte.

Don't forget that it can only fly supersonic over the ocean. And it only seats 70-ish people. So it would be no more than a mind-bogglingly expensive regional jet on any domestic routes. 

[SydneycartonII]

3 hours ago, CLT2014 said:

Charlotte is a massive connecting hub for domestic flights, with some international service largely focused on connecting leisure travelers going to the Caribbean or tourist destinations in Europe like Rome and Dublin. Domestic leisure is a profitable group of customers when you connect them through the cheapest hub you have and maximize the profit for selling 180 $400 fares on a Airbus A321. You don't want to connect those customers through airports with high costs or the profit margin on a $400 fare quickly gets eaten away because connecting customers rarely pay a "premium" and just search for the lowest cost ticket with schedule that works for them.

If American ever offers a small fleet of 20 supersonic jets, it will be focused on point to point service for a few niche routes with very affluent residents between major cities where people can pay $8,000 for a seat like NYC - London, LAX - Tokyo, Miami - London, et... If people can afford an $8,000 supersonic seat... they don't want to be connecting with the cruise ship crowd going from Buffalo to Tampa via Charlotte.

 But since all rich people are leaving NY, SF, and LA and moving to Charlotte, maybe that demand will exist in the future.

[Bikeguy]

So help me understand why American opts to route London bound, CLT originating award passengers through Phillly ? 

If it costs so much more to go through Philly, why would American  not want to cut their losses and just fly CLT award passengers directly to London ..? 

 

[TCLT]

So help me understand why American opts to route London bound, CLT originating award passengers through Phillly ? 
If it costs so much more to go through Philly, why would American  not want to cut their losses and just fly CLT award passengers directly to London ..? 
 

It depends. Because I picked random dates in February and the nonstops are the first two and cheapest options for mileage award redemption. Airline revenue management is quite sophisticated. For certain dates they can likely fill a cheaper connecting fare seat over PHL with the award ticket and sell a more expensive nonstop cash fare from CLT.

[JRCLT]

Also this may or may not have anything to do with those decisions but most flights going from N. America to Europe take the North Atlantic route and that takes the air craft right over Philadelphia so it isn’t a huge detour…