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Second Quarter 2011
Auto Owners named to Fortune 500 listAuto Owners is ranked number 425 on the Fortune 500 list
of America’s largest corporaons. This is the ninth straight
year Auto Owners has made the Fortune 500 list. Auto
Owners was also ranked among the 20 largest Michigan-
based companies. The company remains the second largest
property and casualty mutual insurance company in the
United States based on their 2010 revenue. Twenty- two
Michigan companies made this year’s Fortune
500 list, four more than the 2010list.
Niowave grows with
Department of Energy contractsNiowave has expanded to triple their size through the Small
Business Research Innovaon program. The company has
received $5.3 million in funding through federal research
and development program contracts. Niowave COO, Jerry
Hollister, believes the contracts with the Department
of Energy have given his company credibility and more
opportunies.
MSU Federal Credit Union new Bath
locaonConstrucon on Michigan State University Federal Credit
Union’s North Marsh Branch in Bath
Township began in late June. The
new locaon will be a full service
branch with drive-up teller and
ATMs. The branch is expected to be completed in summer
2012 and cost $3.8 million. Granger Construcon is managing
the project for MSUFCU. The newest branch will be 7,800
square feet and employ 12 to 15.
Michigan Leads the Country in Economic
GrowthMichigan has an economic growth rate higher than the
naonal average at 2.9 percent. The recession in Michigan
is ocially over, with the growth rate being the highest
since 2002. The auto industry is responsible for 1.47
percent of the economic growth in 2010 along with the
diversicaon of the economy in Michigan. The increased
growth is esmated to connue for the next 3 years.
Christman Company awarded BWL Energy
Plant projectLansing based Christman Company was named genera
contractor for the new Board of Water and Light power plant
The new BWL power plant will replace the exisng Moores
Park Plant in REO Town. The new plant will cost $182 million
to build and will use natural gas instead of burning 139,000
tons of coal each year, reducing gas emissions by 50 percent
Construcon will employ approximately 200 workers when it
begins in late summer.
MSU and LinkedIn create rst me
partnershipMichigan State University and LinkedIn
have an ocial and rst me
partnership. LinkedIn, the world’s
largest online professional network,
will team up with MSU to help improve
LinkedIn’s worth for students and alumni.
The partnership will help LinkedIn
gain feedback about new features
and MSU’s alumni group, one of
the largest on LinkedIn, will benet
from receiving training on the new
features.
MBI new partnership with Department of
Energy GrantMichigan Biotechnology Instute has been granted $4.3
million as part of Obama’s Administraon to cut foreign oi
imports. The Department of Energy aims to improve the
economic and eciency of biological and chemical processes
that convert non-food biomass feedstocks into replacementfor petroleum-based feedstocks, products, and fuel. MB
will focus on improvements to a pretreatment process. This
process provides a stable, conversion-ready intermediate o
consistent quality at a cost and in a format compable with
long-term storage and ease of transfer between mulple
modes of transportaon.
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Study: Lansing area in top 20 for job growthThe Lansing area was ranked 19th for job growth in the naon
among midsize cies by New Geography. The area including
Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counes jumped 49 spots. Ingham,
Eaton and Clinton counes have consistently been among
the lowest jobless rate across the state. Job gains at General
Motors Co. along with hiring in the insurance and informaon
technology industries helped Lansing move up their ranking.
New Geography also complied lists for job growth in small and
large cies based on unemployment data from the U.S. Bureau
of Labor and Stascs.
Fih Third Bank named one of the World’s
Strongest Banks by BloombergFih Third Bank has been included on the list of the top
20 World’s Strongest Banks. Ranked at number 7, they are
ranked highest out of the three United States banks to make
the cut. Banks must have at least $100 billion in assets to be
considered one of the World’s Strongest Banks and is graded
on its Tier 1 capital rao (the company’s bank equity capital to
its risk weighted assets); nonperforming assets to total assetsrao; a measure of the banks’ ability to absorb losses (a rao
of reserves for loan losses to nonperforming assets); a rao of
deposits to funding; and
an eciency rao (cost
to revenue).
MSU-industry partnership boosts Michigan
sugar beet industryMichigan State University joined forces with Michigan’s sugar
beet industry taking the once $100 million industry to $444
million. The partnership has an esmated total economic
impact of $1 billion in Michigan. Breakthroughs in the quality
of the sugar beets and soluons to diseases and pests have
also been gained from the partnership. The partnership has
beneted the quality of the sugar beet by increasing the sugar
content from 16 percent to 18 percent.
MEGA acon projected to generate nearly
$182 million in new investmentThe Michigan Economic Growth Authority approved tax
incenves for three redevelopment projects and three
companies choosing to expand or locate in Michigan. The
redevelopments, expansions, and relocaons will generatenearly $182 million in new investment and 661 jobs across the
state. The companies include Kenersys Americas, LLC, Summit
Health, Inc., Tianhai Electric North America, Inc., East Lansing
Browneld Redevelopment Authority, Grand Rapids Browneld
Redevelopment Authority and General Motors, LLC.
Sun Country launched nonstop ights from
Lansing to D.C. on April 1, 2011Sun Country launched new nonstop service from Lansing’s
Capital Region Internaonal Airport to Washington, D.C. Regan
Naonal. The ights are oered Sunday through Friday. Sun
Country also has direct ights to Minneapolis and seasona
nonstop service from Lansing desnaons in Mexico and Florida
For the fourth year in a row, Sun Country has been names a “Top
Ten Domesc Airline”by Travel+Leisure and
Condé Nast Traveler
for the third year in a
row.
Maguire Family donates land to expand
Lansing’s river trailLansing’s River Trail connues to expand thanks to a recent
donaon by long me Lansing region Maguire family and
Wolverine Development. The Maguire family donated 12
acres of land to build Maguire Park with providing addional
access to Lansing’s River Trail. The park has a new play
set, parking lot, landscaping and signage. A previous 2008
expansion of the Lansing River Trail connected Hawk Island
Park to Maguire Park. The City of Lansing has been working
to connect area parks by the River Trail. Dean Transportaon
also donated land for the park development.
Impression 5 expands First Impressions room
and programming with $170,000 community
collaboraonA new 3,000 square foot First
Impression room is now open atImpression 5. The room was rst created
in 2007 for infants and toddlers, but due to its high demand
First Impression Room is now triple the size and includes a life
size, crawl-through tree, climbing lo, water table, playhouse
and more for very young children. Impression 5, the Harley
Beay Foundaon, Jackson Naonal Life Insurance, Dart
Foundaon, the PNC Foundaon and the Instute of Museum
and Library Services funded the $170,000 project.
Holt-based company plans to add jobsOrchid Orthopedic Soluons is looking to expand globally and
will need 150 new employees to do so. The new employees
are needed in manufacturing, clerical and execuve posions
The company specializes in medical device manufacturing
for replacement hips, knees and other joints as well as the
instruments surgeons use to implant the devices. Orchid is
looking to expand into Asia, India and South America.
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Gravity Works is a Sitecore PartnerGravity Works Design & Development is now an ocial
Sitecore Partner. The Gravity Works team is skilled in the .NET
framework and recognizes the value of Sitecore.
The right content management system (CMS) can provide
brand control with secure and simple content control;
Gravity Works will connue building websites according to
individual client needs at a local, naonal, and internaonal
level. Sitecore is a market leader for enterprise-scale CMS
plaorms, with a simple interface, exible structure, and
robust development capabilies. As a Sitecore Partner, Gravity
Works has access to advanced tools, a secure CMS, and a
strong Sitecore development community.
Gravity Works Design & Development creates custom
soluons—graphic design, websites, and mobile
applicaons—with detail-
focused designs and leading-
edge development pracces.
Netvantage Markeng grows sta by a third
with unique e-commerce servicesNetvantage Markeng opened its doors in 2008 and has grown
its sta by a third as it approaches its three year anniversary.
The company grew 115 percent last year with their unique
service of search engine opmizaon. Netvantage Markeng
helps companies to rank higher on internet searches and paid
search management.
Inspired Green grows into 2,000 sq- Grand
Ledge locaonInspired Green, a home performance contracng and consulng
rm, opened their doors in 2008 with four employees has now
expanded to 100 employees. In September, Inspired Green
will expand its 2,000 square foot locaon to 3,400 sq/ by
adding a second oor to their current locaon. The rm has
helped make homes more comfortable, healthy, safe and
energy ecient while playing a role in assisng ulity providers
in meeng their energy opmizaon goals.
Lansing Comfort Keepers celebrates 10
years of growthLansing Comfort Keepers has grown a lile each year. The
company provides quality in-home care for seniors and others
who need help with daily acvies. Their goal is to allowclients to live independently as long as possible. With its 10th
anniversary in the spring, the company has gone from 50
locaons to 550 over the years. Comfort Keepers sta has also
grown with the industry over the years to keep up with the
demand of paents and connue to make a huge dierence in
peoples’ lives.
If you have economic growth stories,
please let us know. We compile
stories from many dierent sources
and would love to share your news!
Contact Aubrey Zimmerman at