Easy distribution to major markets and a technically trained workforce are both readily available at Montana Connections Business Development Park. Nestled at the foothills of the Montana Rockies and bundled with a bounty of other park amenities, they create a solid foundation for companies seeking sustainable growth.
The skilled workforce here in Butte was very attractive to us
Montana Precision Products, the new partnership between GE Aviation and SeaCast is an example of one of many of the park’s success stories. SeaCast fabricates custom metal products and state-of-the art titanium castings, while GE Aviation invests more than $1bn annually in jet propulsion programs and is currently introducing more products than ever before. Together the companies are building small structural casts, ducts and tubing for General Electric jet engines, including popular models for jet airliners. The partnership creates the capacity needed to meet increasing demand for product.
Qualified workforce
While GE Aviation and SeaCast are boosting the general local economy with even more job opportunities, the existant local workforce offers highly desired skills and aptitudes.
Colleen Athans, the Vice President and General Manager for GE Aviation said: “The skilled workforce here in Butte was very attractive to us.” Educated and skilled workers come from a seven-county region of more than 140,000 people, where 25 percent hold bachelor degrees. Montana Tech of the University of Montana has a worldwide reputation for academic excellence in environmental and petroleum engineering, as well as mineral geology and mining. Nearby, Highlands College trains workers with all the skills needed for the top technology and manufacturing venues of today.
REC Silicon and FedEx are two other companies that also found success with the qualified local employees. REC, a major producer of poly-silicon and silane gas, currently employs 300 people. While FedEx, the global leader in express distribution and delivery, hires locally to staff its $8m shipping transfer centre, which uses the advantage of the park’s unique location.
Montana Connections boasts transport links that businesses based outside of the park can only look at with envy. At the crossroads of two major interstates and two Class I Railroads, the park facilitates transportation from north to south and from east to west. Access to desirable destinations in North America and international ports is also available within one day by truck or rail.
Mega Montana
Montana Connections is a ‘mega park’ that offers ample land and industry friendly zoning. Its designation as a foreign trade zone eliminates costs on import and export duties. Products manufactured using foreign materials may be exported again without import duties. Another hugely significant benefit is that there is no inventory tax; this enables importers to import and hold goods until the best price can be obtained in the US market.
Local government assistance through a tax increment district offers financial help, while developing much needed infrastructure. Companies with large water needs enjoy a highly reliable and abundant supply, which is piped from lakes consistently fed by the high mountain snowfall courtesy of the towering Rockies. NorthWestern Energy, a regulated utility, provides electricity and also delivers power supplies that bigger power customers negotiate with preferred power providers. The utility – one of the largest gas providers in the US northwest quadrant – also offers cost-effective natural gas.
Skilled workers, ease of distribution, industry-friendly zoning, and other benefits make this business development park as appealing as Montana’s clear blue ‘big sky’ above it.
For further information visit www.montanaconnectionspark.com; email krosa@bsb.mt.gov; tel 001 406 497 6470