Ohio

Environmental Achievements in Walmart Global Responsibility Report

Walmart unveiled its 2013 Global Responsibility Report (GRR), which highlights the company’s 2012 accomplishments in terms of environmental, corporate and social responsibility.

Walmart Global Responsibility Report

Walmart Global Responsibility Report (photo – walmart.com)

The 172-page report has a lot of data to wade through, but it’s clear that the environmental achievements and the company’s stated goals for this decade are massive, regardless of whether one thinks Walmart is doing enough.

Highlights from the report’s environmental responsibility section (begins on page 52):-

Walmart installed more than 100 rooftop solar installations last year in different states including California, Arizona and Ohio, in addition to a 1MW wind turbine. In total, Walmart has more than 200 solar installations which combine to make it the largest on-site green power generator in the U.S., with over.

On a global level, the company has more than 280 renewable energy projects operational, which provide more than 1 billion kilowatt hours of renewable electricity per year – enough to power 95,000 American homes.

Currently, 21 percent of their energy needs are fulfilled through renewable sources. The company’s Vision 2020 goals call for huge increase of renewable energy usage to 7 billion kWh per year by 2020 through on-site generation and purchase.

As per a pledge made in 2012, Walmart was to have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2012. They wrapped up this pledge a year ahead of schedule, and are on track to reduce their global supply chain GHG emissions by 20 million metric tons by 2015.

They have also committed to reducing Co2 emissions by three million metric tons by 2020, which is the same as taking 625,000 cars off the road.

Walmart’s fleet efficiency has gone up by 10 percent in 2012. They drove 11 million fewer miles last year despite having to deliver 297 million additional cases. If they had not improved fleet efficiency, they would have had to drive an extra 70 million miles.

This efficiency has saved $130 million in fuel costs and reduced Co2 emissions by 103,000 metric tons (equivalent to taking 20,000 cars off the road).

In terms of waste reduction, Walmart reduced plastic bag shopping waste by 38.1 percent in 2012, and partnered with suppliers to reduce packaging by five percent and the overall GHG emissions from packaging by 9.8 percent in U.S. Walmart stores, and by 16 percent in Walmart Canada stores.

Andrea Thomas, Walmart’s senior vice president of sustainability, said their customers should not have to choose between sustainability and affordable process, and promised they would continue to fulfill commitments to operate responsibly while keeping costs low for customers.

Read the full Walmart Global Responsibility Report – Download (pdf)

GM Announces $332M Powertrain Investments in MI, OH, IN

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) announced plans to invest $331.8 million on fuel-efficient powertrains across four separate manufacturing facilities in Bay City and Flint, Michigan; Toledo, Ohio; and Bedford, Indiana.

GM investments in MI, OH, IN

GM investments in MI, OH, IN (photo – gm.com)

GM also announced an extra $46 million in powertain investments for plants in Saginaw and Romulus, Michigan.

These investments in six GM plants will help retain a total of 1,650 jobs to support production of the company’s new V6 engine, the small Ecotec gas engine and other transmissions.

No new jobs are being created with these investments.

Diana Tremblay, vice president of GM North American Manufacturing, said that this announcement demonstrated the company’s commitment towards strengthening communities where it has plants.

The exact breakup of today’s announcements is as follows:-

Flint, MI – $215 million for a small Ecotec gas engine and upgrades for existing V6 engine production.

Bay City, MI – $12.5 million for the Ecotec engine and $19.2 million to produce V6 engine components.

Toledo, OH – $55.7 million for expansion and tooling so that the plant can produce a new and advanced 8-speed automatic transmission, along with the existing 6-speed transmission.

Bedford, IN – Bedford Castings gets $19 million to produce components for the Ecotec gas engine, along with another $10.4 million to enable production of the aforementioned 8-speed and 6-speed transmissions.

The $46 million addition to previously announced investments in the Saginaw and Romulus plants in Michigan are as follows:-

Saginaw, MI – The Saginaw Metal Castings plant gets $41 million (total of $256 million) to enable production of castings for the new V6 engine.

Romulus, MI – The Romulus Engine plant gets an extra $5 million (total $390 million) for V6 engine production.

Joe Ashton, the UAW vice president in charge of the UAW GM department, said these investments would ensure UAW members continued to support the company’s growth and get their due share of it.

This latest round of investments brings GM’s 2013 commitments so far to $1.2 billion. Since 2009, the company has announced $1.8 billion in powertrain investments at these six facilities.

GM’s total investment across all U.S. operations since 2009 works out to $8.5 billion, which has resulted in the creation and retention of 24,700 jobs.

Walmart Becomes Ohio’s Largest Solar Power User

Walmart announced that it worked with SolarCity to install 20,287 solar panels on 12 Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs throughout Ohio.

Walmart solar installation in Ohio

Walmart solar installation (photo – walmart.com)

The installation, big enough to cover eleven football fields, has added more than 4.7 megawatts of generation capacity, making Walmart the state’s largest solar power user.

It also boosts Ohio’s overall solar generation capacity by more than 10 percent.

The solar panel installations will add approximately 6,000,000 kWh of generation production – enough energy to power more than 820 homes – and are expected to supply approximately 5-20 percent of each store’s overall electricity use.

“Walmart’s installation of solar on 12 store rooftops is the largest solar commitment ever made by a retail business in Ohio,” said Bill Spratley, executive director of Green Energy Ohio.

Walmart’s solar arrays will eliminate 5,500 tons of CO2e, the equivalent of taking 1,152 cars off the road each year.

“Solar power makes sense for Walmart, and it makes sense for Ohio,” said David Ozment, Walmart senior director of Energy. “We are committed to increasing the use of renewable energy resources, including solar panels, at our stores in Ohio and throughout the country.”

The Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs receiving solar power systems in Ohio are located in Mason, Xenia, Greenville, Austintown, Middletown, Franklin, Youngstown, Toledo, Milford, Loveland, and two systems in Cincinnati.

The U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership program ranks Walmart as the largest onsite green power generator in the U.S.

Walmart was ranked at the top of a list of commercial solar customers in the U.S. in a report published in Nov 2012 by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

As per the report, Walmart had a total installed capacity of 65,000 kW across a total of 144 systems in seven states. On a global level, a more recent Walmart factsheet claims it has 240 renewable energy projects underway worldwide.

Walmart says it has an aspirational goal is to be powered 100 percent by renewable energy. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) has 10,700 stores under 69 banners in 27 countries.

Texas Wins 2012 Site Selection Governor’s Cup

Site Selection magazine’s March 2013 issue includes its annual Governor’s Cup rankings, topped this time by Texas.

In this list, states are ranked based on the number of capital investment projects they attract. In order to qualify, projects must satisfy one or more of the following criteria – a $1 million investment, creation of 50 or more new jobs or a new facility of at least 20,000 sq ft.

Last year, Ohio won the 2011 Governor’s Cup, followed by Texas and Pennsylvania. This year, Texas walked away with the trophy by a wide margin. Ohio was a distant second, followed by Pennsylvania maintaining its third place ranking.

Listed below are the top 10 states in Site Selection magazine’s 2012 Governor’s Cup rankings.

Site Selection Governor’s Cup

Site Selection Governor’s Cup (photo – siteselection.com)

1. Texas – 761 project

2. Ohio – 491 projects

3. Pennsylvania – 430

4. Michigan – 337

5. Illinois – 322

6. Georgia – 296

7. North Carolina – 280

8. Tennessee – 231

9. Virginia – 199

10. Kentucky – 196

“This is a confirmation of the men and women of the Texas legislature understanding that if we will continue with the predictability and stability of tax and regulation and legal policy that allows entrepreneurs to keep more of what they earn, then we will become the job creation magnet in America,” TX Gov. Rick Perry said to Site Selection.

The magazine specifically credits five sectors in Texas for powering the Lone Star State to the top of the rankings – energy, chemicals, machinery manufacturing, professional services, and data centers.

Site Selection will also be announcing its list of top metros for new and expanded corporate facilities. The small metros (population less than 200,000) category was topped by metro Sioux City in Iowa, which bagged 23 projects. Battle Creek, MI and Jackson, MI were tied for second place with 13 projects each.

The Dayton metro area in Ohio topped the list of metros in the 200,000-1 million population category.

Koester Metals to Relocate HQ from Ohio to Fremont, IN

Koester Metals, Inc. (KMI), a manufacturer of sheet metal fabrications and enclosures, announced plans to relocate its headquarters from Defiance, Ohio to Fremont, Indiana.

Koester Metals

KMI (photo – kmienclosures.com)

The company will invest $2.7 million to move its headquarters and operations to its existing 130,000 square-foot facility in Fremont.

KMI currently employs 16 Hoosiers in Fremont, and the relocation will create 44 new jobs in Indiana by 2018.

“KMI is the latest company to look across the border and take notice of Indiana’s business-friendly climate,” said Eric Doden, president of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC). “Our fiscal stability, robust infrastructure and strong workforce have made the Hoosier State the best place to do business in the Midwest.”

IEDC has offered Koester Metals, Inc. up to $240,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $50,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. The town of Fremont will consider additional tax abatement at the request of the Steuben County Economic Development Corporation.

“KMI has been an excellent local company for Fremont since they initially leased the Fremont building in 2009,” said Steve Brown, president of the Fremont Town Council. “We are happy to see them acquire that facility, relocate their headquarters and consolidate operations in Fremont. This is a testament to the advantages of operating a business in Fremont and the state of Indiana.”

Matthew Koester, operations manager of KMI, said that the state of Indiana and local governments were very important in helping KMI make the decision to relocate fabricating equipment from Ohio and update the Steuben County facility’s software and technology.

“We are greatly looking forward to this move,” added Koester. “We look forward to continued growth and success within the Fremont area and to further develop our roots within the community.”

KMI was founded in 1975 in Defiance, Ohio, and currently has three facilities, including two in Defiance and one in Fremont, Indiana.

Ford Announces $200M Investment in Cleveland Engine Plant

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) announced that it will invest nearly $200 million for an expansion of its Cleveland Engine Plant in Brook Park, Ohio.

Ford Cleveland Engine Plant gets Ecoboost production

Ford Cleveland Engine Plant gets Ecoboost production (photo – ford.com)

The investment and expansion of the plant will create 450 new jobs. The Ohio facility employs approximately 1,300 people.

The hiring and expansion is meant for production of the 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine for North America. This engine is currently being shipped in by Ford from its plant in Valencia, Spain.

Ford said that Valencia will continue to produce and ship parts for these engines to North America, and will remain the exclusive production location of the 2.0-liter EcoBoost for Ford of Europe-built vehicles. Overall employment at the Valencia plant will not be impacted.

“This is our One Ford plan at its best – giving customers the power of choice to decide which fuel-efficient engine is best tailored to their needs,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford president of The Americas. “Cleveland Engine Plant was the first to produce EcoBoost engines and will continue to be a cornerstone of Ford’s strategy to deliver affordable fuel economy for millions.”

Ford is making the move to assemble engines regionally to help meet rising consumer demand for the 2.0-liter EcoBoost and to optimize production capabilities around the world.

This expansion is also a direct result of Ford’s 2011 national agreement with the UAW, under which it agreed to add production of a small new engine at the Ohio plant by 2015. The arrangement then had to be ratified with the local union. That Ford did last week, when it reached a deal with the UAW Local 1250 after negotiations that went on for almost 15 months.

This latest hiring announcement by Ford builds on the creation of more than 8,100 salaried and hourly jobs in the U.S. last year, including 1,000 in-sourced hourly positions. At the end of 2012, Ford’s automotive workforce had jumped up to a total of 80,000 employees.

Additionally, the company announced last month it plans to hire 2,200 salaried workers in the U.S. in 2013 to fill jobs in such key areas as product development, manufacturing and IT.

California Calls Summit to Compete for Institute of Manufacturing

The California Governor’s Office for Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) will hold an Advanced Manufacturing Summit at the State Capitol in Sacramento on March 27th, 2013.

Additive Manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing (photo – energy.gov)

The summit is a response to President Obama’s State of the Union call for the opening of three new Institutes of Manufacturing (IMI) in 2013 as an expansion of the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI).

The $1 billion proposal for an NNMI with 15 IMIs was first announced last year in March 2012, intended for “closing the gap between research and development activities and the deployment of technological innovations in domestic production of goods.”

The one-time billion dollar appropriation requires Congressional approval and that may take some time. However, a pilot IMI focused on additive manufacturing was launched in Youngstown, Ohio last year with $30 million in funding from federal agencies including the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Commerce and the National Science Foundation.

Commerce’s NIST is pitching in with another $5 million, and the winning consortium is coming up with a matching $40 million. The first pilot National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute (NAMII) went to a consortium of 40 companies, 11 non-profits, nine research universities and five community colleges from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. This was one of twelve teams that had applied.

Now, there are three such IMIs up for grabs in 2013, and California wants one. The summit called by GO-Biz will be a coordination of stakeholders to craft California’s proposal to compete for these new manufacturing institutes.

It will be led by Governor Brown’s senior jobs advisor Mike Rossi, and will convene key stakeholders from education, industry, research and the state’s iHub innovation network.

“As the number one state for manufacturing jobs and output in the nation, California will lead the next generation of advanced manufacturing in America,” said Rossi. “We heard the President’s call and California will respond.”

More than 35 organizations have already been called for the summit, including the California Manufacturers &Technology Association, Stanford University,UC Berkeley, Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, East Bay Economic Development Alliance and the Bay Area Council, among others.

FAA Ready to Ask For UAS Test Site Proposals

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will be asking contenders to submit proposals for the six Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) test sites by the end of this month.

UAS test flight

UAS test flight (Photo – U.S. Coast Guard)

Jim Williams, director of the FAA UAS Integration Office, was the keynote speaker at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International’s (AUVSI) Unmanned Systems Program Review 2013.

“When will the test site selection begin? I’m sure all of you are asking that,” said Williams. “And the answer is we’re getting closer every day, very close as a matter of fact. My office is working diligently to release the screening information request, and we are committed to releasing it before the end of this month.”

The screening information request (SIR) is a request by the FAA for information, documentation and proposals, which will then be used “to proceed with a source selection decision and contract award.”

In other words, the FAA will soon be asking communities and states who want to be considered in the site selection process to submit their proposals.

The SIR was originally scheduled to be released in July 2012, with the test site selection results scheduled to be announced in Dec 2012. However, in Nov 2012, the FAA announced it was postponing the process due to “privacy concerns.”

Williams acknowledged this issue in his speech, and said that the FAA will seek to address privacy issues during the UAS-NAS integration testing phase in the six pilot sites.

“As the government agency charged with introducing UAS into the airspace, it made sense that we take advantage of the test site program to tee up the issue so we can understand it better,” he said.

Williams also said the proposed rule for small unmanned aircraft is expected to be released by the end of this year. “I know that the rulemaking process is slow, and no one is more frustrated by that than me,” Williams said. “We all get impatient to implement these revolutionary designs.”

As per the Request for Comments (RFC) on this issue put out by the FAA last year, the combined capabilities of the six test sites should provide an environment and opportunities to test:-

(1) Conventional takeoff and landing capability,

(2) High speed flight,

(3) Maritime (launch/maneuver/recovery) capability,

(4) Operations at extremely high altitudes, and

(5) Evaluation of dissimilar aircraft in multiple altitude structures.

Each site would not necessarily need to be identical, nor would each site need to have all five capabilities. FAA believes that these capabilities should be present in the aggregate of the six test sites.

Geographical and climatic diversity are desirable traits for the test site location. Other important factors affecting siting include proximity to potential users, and availability of a suitable ground or air transportation network.

Around 30 sites from 10 states, including Arizona, California, Florida, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas are expected to compete to be selected as one of the six UAS test sites by the FAA.

Honda Investing $23M For 2014 Accord Hybrid Production in Ohio

Honda of America Mfg., Inc. announced that it will invest $23 million at its Marysville, Ohio auto plant to add production of the new two-motor 2014 Accord Hybrid Sedan.

Honda 2014 Accord Hybrid

Honda 2014 Accord Hybrid (photo by stevelyon/flickr)

As part of the Accord Hybrid expansion, Honda will hire approximately 50 new employees. The Marysville plant already has some 2,400 workers.

“With more than 30 years of continuously building eight generations of the Honda Accord close to our customers, our team now is using its experience and flexibility to add this sophisticated Accord Hybrid model,” said Jeff Tomko, plant manager of the Marysville Auto Plant. “At the same time, we are continuing with our commitment to manufacture new models in Ohio, along with the resulting growth in jobs.”

The Marysville Auto Plant is undergoing an expansion of 95,000-square-feet to house assembly processes and logistics specifically for production of the Accord Hybrid.

The expansion project includes lengthening the main assembly line to accommodate the unique hybrid production processes, and adding space for related parts receiving and sub-assembly operations.

Honda operates four manufacturing plants in Ohio, including auto plants in Marysville and East Liberty with the capacity to manufacture nearly 700,000 cars and light trucks per year.

Its engine plant in Anna supplies engines and components to most of Honda’s auto plants in North America, with production exceeding a million engines per year. The transmission plant in Russells Point manufactures more than one million automatic transmissions per year, including the CVTs, for Honda’s North American auto plants.

In the last three years, Honda has announced investments exceeding $800 million for these Ohio manufacturing facilities. They include projects to establish on-site parts consolidation centers, renovate auto assembly and painting operations, and major investments at the Anna Engine Plant, as well as its transmission plant in Russells Point, to manufacture continuously variable transmissions (CVTs).

Ohio is also the center for Honda’s vehicle engineering in North America. The expansive R&D center in Raymond, Ohio is Honda’s largest R&D center outside Japan. More than 1,300 associates at this R&D center are engaged in “complete product creation” of all-new products for Honda and Acura customers.

All put together, more than 13,500 Ohioans work for Honda. On a nationwide scale, Honda has 26,000 associates in its U.S. sales, R&D and manufacturing operations which represent a combined capital investment of more than $22 billion.

Ohio Economic Development Compliance Report

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine released his 2012 Report on award recipient compliance with state awards for economic development. The report analyzes compliance with the terms of economic development awards for 255 recipients which had performance periods ending in calendar year 2011.

Ohio economic development

Ohio economic development (photo – ohio.gov)

The report found that 162 awards were in substantial compliance while 93 awards did not comply, resulting in an overall compliance rate of 63.5 percent.

Awards issued by ODSA fall into four main categories – workforce awards, grants, tax credits, and loans. The report listed compliance rates by award categories:-

-          Workforce compliance rate: 89.9 percent (80 of 89 awards in substantial compliance);

-          Grant compliance rate: 48.6 percent (36 of 74);

-          Tax credit compliance rate: 59.5 percent (25 of 42); and

-          Loan compliance rate: 42.0% (21 of 50).

Most of the awards analyzed were made by the Ohio Development Services Agency (ODSA) in between 2006-08, and the Great Recession in between then and now may have had a negative impact on the projections, which might account for some of the non-performers.

For example, automobile supplier YSK Corporation was given a $2.5 million loan for expansion in 2006 in return for a promise to create 30 new jobs and retain 236 existing ones. They managed to retain the jobs, but could create only two new jobs.

Similarly, ABC Manufacturing, Inc. received tax credits to create 200 jobs, and managed to create only 53 jobs. Their tax credit term is being reduced from six to four years. ABC also received a $250,000 grant, for which the ODSA has sent notice of clawback of $181,250. They were also given a $750,000 loan under the Pioneer Rural Loan program, and the ODSA has now sent them a notice that it may increase the interest rate due to non-compliance.

But some of it is just about companies not living up to their commitments. For example, Caterpillar, Inc., which received $25,694 for workforce training and committed to training for 2,000 workers, has managed to provide training for just 52 workers. The ODSA sent Caterpillar a notice of clawback of $16,594.

Similarly, Home Depot U.S.A. Inc. received $32,500 under the Ohio Workforce Guarantee program to train 200 workers. They trained only 65.

Read the full report Ohio 2012 economic development compliance report – Download (pdf)

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