Innovation Center for Re-employmentKalamazoo is not a large city, with a small population of just over 200,000 people, including the surrounding area. The main local industries are pharmaceuticals, paper, medical equipment, automobiles and accessories, etc., and has also experienced the impact of manufacturing restructuring in recent years: there was a large General Motors plant there, which was later closed; Pfizer, the largest U.S. pharmaceutical company, also had a large production plant and drug research organization, which later laid off 2,000 people at once; and the paper industry, which used to be the pillar industry of the local community, has been in decline. The whole paper industry, which used to be the pillar industry of the region, has declined. These have had a great impact on the local economy. However, the local people did not just walk away. They mobilized all forces and did everything they could to turn unfavorable factors into favorable ones. For example, Pfizer laid off a large number of people, many of whom were researchers with doctoral and master's degrees. They had the knowledge, but had no use for it. The City of Kalamazoo established a Southwest Michigan Innovation Center in April 2003 by securing a state loan and raising funds from the community. The center is almost exclusively for Pfizer researchers, and the companies that are housed there are all biological and pharmaceutical high-tech companies, with 70 percent of the staff coming from Pfizer. It charges a very low rent, but provides research equipment and other services such as legal and financial services, so that these people from Pfizer can start small bio-tech companies. The reporter saw that the innovation center is not big, but it is clean and well-equipped, and there is no difference between the conditions of a large company's research facility. These small companies have patents and are very innovative. After a few years of innovation center fostering, can "graduate" out, self-sustaining. The services provided by the Innovation Center to these small technology companies are multifaceted. For example, it acts as an intermediary liaison between venture capitalists and technology companies; it seeks to cooperate with West Michigan University in the city so that these companies can utilize the university's research facilities; and it doesn't even need to worry about purchasing experimental equipment and raw materials. In this environment, the small tech companies in the center grew quickly. Simmerman, chief executive of a drug company called Callecson, told reporters that they started with two people and have grown to 24, with an annual turnover of more than $3 million, and may soon be able to operate on their own.
Science and education center trains new talent
Kalamazoo also has a Michigan Center for Science, Technology and Education, built in 2001 with a $5 million state grant and $6 million raised by the local community, with the goal of training talent and catalyzing new industries in the local manufacturing sector. Kalamazoo's economy has been in transition for several years, and many workers need to learn new skills in order to find new jobs, as well as current business employees, who need ongoing training, and the center is meeting this changing need. In addition, the center also provides pre-product screening for many small companies, helping them to establish contacts with relevant government departments and agencies so that their new products can be productive as soon as possible. The Center for Science and Technology Education for Pfizer alone to train 4,000 people a year, but also to help some small businesses can not afford to pay the cost of training staff training, in the local economy has played a big role in the development.
Waste to treasure business park
The reporter was also impressed by a Midlake business park. It was built around a former General Motors manufacturing plant. After GM closed the plant, the huge premises were left unused and abandoned. The Midlake Corporation saw the opportunity to purchase this highway-side property and plant facilities and transformed it into a rental business park and applied for a state "economic revitalization zone" with tax incentives. A number of warehousing and logistics companies moved in, taking advantage of the tall buildings and lifting equipment, as well as convenient transportation conditions, and became a promising new industry. Midlink also plans to build a retail business center on the site around the plant, turning this abandoned land into a source of wealth creation.
Relying on potential and innovation to survive
Kalamazoo is not without its traditional manufacturing industry, there is a manufacturing automobile water tanks and filters and other plastic products Hank Hughes Moore company, it seems that the product technology content is not very high, the equipment is not very advanced. Reporters asked why this factory can still survive, the answer is very practical: products in the wage cost is not high, product users in the neighborhood, can reduce many transportation costs, so do not need to move out, but also to maintain competitiveness. Of course the quality of the product is the first, but more important is their pragmatic philosophy. Originally there were a few robots working automatically on the production line, but then the cost was not cost-effective and they were not used. There are also large, advanced multinational manufacturing companies, such as Stryker Medical Devices, which employs 17,000 people and has annual sales of $5 billion, is headquartered in Kalamazoo, and has thousands of local employees. The company relies on constant innovation to maintain its position as a world leader in orthopedic medical devices and hospital bed equipment, with hundreds of patents filed each year.
Finding opportunities with China
Despite Kalamazoo's status as a U.S. hinterland city, businesses in the region are outward-looking, and to the reporter's mild surprise, a number of companies have established ties with China. Large multinational companies like Stryker need not be mentioned, but the Michigan Center for Science and Technology Education, which is only a few years old, has had its share of China-related events. The center has held two forums this year on how to do business with China. The center also has a dedicated China consultant who is always available to advise local companies. Some companies have done business with China through these events. And First Southwest Michigan, the local company that arranged for the reporter's interview, has had its vice president, Bland, visit China several times to explain how to do business in the U.S. and to encourage Chinese companies to come and invest in Kalamazoo. With so many enterprising companies, it's no surprise that Kalamazoo's economy has stayed thriving.
Community experiment a national sensation Unlike twilight Detroit, Michigan's largest city, Kalamazoo is full of life and energy. According to experts, Detroit's problem is that the industry is too concentrated in the automotive industry, and if the industry has problems, the entire regional economy is going to be in tatters. Kalamazoo's industry is more diversified, although the same face the U.S. auto industry downturn, Kalamazoo by the impact is much smaller. From the industrial structure, Kalamazoo has both the traditional automobile manufacturing and paper industry, but also the rising biopharmaceutical and logistics industry. In terms of enterprise scale, Kalamazoo has both small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as Fortune 500 companies like Stryker Corporation. After more than 70 years, Stryker has grown from a modest workshop to a Fortune 500 company that is the world's largest producer of medical beds and orthopedic devices. The company's vice president, Paret Anderson, said Kalamazoo can be considered a blessing for the company, with its excellent community atmosphere, college resources and investment climate that are very attractive to businesses. As part of the Kalamazoo Promise, a community experiment that has become a sensation in the United States, an anonymous group of individuals donated a substantial fund to provide up to 100 percent of the scholarships for each Kalamazoo Public Schools graduate who matriculates in the program to improve the competitiveness of the local economy. Since the program's inception, applications for new students to enroll and transfer here have been flying into local public schools like snowflakes. Encouraging Students to Put Down Roots Southwest Michigan First, in partnership with the Monroe-Brown Foundation, has taken the Kalamazoo Promise one step further by announcing the Monroe-Brown Internship Program and the Southwest Michigan Talent Network, which will provide scholarships, internships and job opportunities, as well as scholarships and job opportunities to talented recent graduates of the region's colleges and universities, beginning next year. The Monroe-Brown Internship Program and the Southwest Michigan Talent Network Program will be implemented next year to provide scholarships, internships and jobs, and networking events for the region's top graduating college students. Bob Brown, president of the Monroe-Brown Foundation and director of Southwest Michigan First, said the intent of the programs is to encourage students to put down roots and grow in Kalamazoo, and that the program goes beyond the money to provide students with rare work experience and professional networking that will help them make a difference in Kalamazoo. Ronald Kerchans, CEO of Southwest Michigan First, said Kalamazoo's strongest resource is its large population of highly educated young people. For years most college graduates from small and mid-sized U.S. cities have gone to large metropolitan areas, "We seek to redefine Kalamazoo's economy and future through this innovative model that will drive change in local education."