www.mybaycity.com
February 17, 2008
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Sponsored by Bay Area Chamber of Commerce
Carbone Exec Tells It Like It Is at Bay Chamber State of the Community
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Sohail Qamar, general manager, Carbone of America, gives rousing call to action at Bay Area Chamber "State of the Community" Luncheon at Bay Valley.
Dr. Jean Goodnow, president of Delta College, speaks from the podium during the state of the community luncheon.
"The state of business in our community is not very good," said Sohail Qamar, general manager, Carbone of America Corp.
Heads snapped up all across the room at a packed house at the Clarion Hotel Bay Valley Resort for the annual "State of the Community Luncheon" of the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce.
That statement got everybody's attention quickly.
"We've got a lot of work to do," Mr. Qamar soothed the nervous group, noting that 30,000 people left Michigan last year.
Sketching an allegory about a village comprised of a small group of people that "got really educated," building schools, colleges and think tanks, the Carbone general manager told how that small group of people became extremely successful and dominated the world economy.
That mystery village, of course, is "us," the United States, he revealed.
With about 300 million people comprising about 5 percent of the world population of 6 billion, we contribute about 22 percent of the world's $56 trillion economy, he noted.
"This is fantastic, unbelievable, an achievement that has never happened in the world before," he exclaimed, asking: "Why?"
The success this country has achieved has come by stressing education, innovation and fearlessly approaching challenges, he said.
But guess what? The game has changed because the rest of the world has figured out the path to economic success too, he said. China, India, Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union -- "all have figured out the formula."
We find ourselves in a time warp, facing competition that didn't exist a decade or two ago. We need to redouble our efforts to avoid getting crushed by the rest of the world, he said.
He suggested creation of technology incubators where businesses come together and create an environment where ideas and entrepreneurship can thrive. Also, think tanks where new ideas have the best chance of thriving.
For example, he said, Saginaw Valley State University could be a center of solar technology and Delta College might be a hotbed of nanotechnology development.
What else do we need?
Infrastructure;
Facilities;
Help and advice;
Resources and access to capital; and
Electricity.
"We need to bring people with ideas here," he urged. "Our future is bright because we know how to do it. I challenge everybody to come together and see where it goes."
He said in response to a question that Carbone, a French company, was attracted to make an investment in this area by a "high skill level of workers whose hard work and dedication put the company together over the past 40 years."
Bay City Mayor Charles Brunner said "we need to continue to build on things that make the city viable," noting that we have "a workforce second to none." The city is at a "critical juncture," he said, with a need to "do more with less." A big challenge is improvement of an "aging infrastructure," he said.
County Commission Chairman Patrick Beson said the county's economic development strategy, besides providing financial support to Bay Future, the public-private partnership, revolves around tax abatements for industry and helping townships develop infrastructure like water and sewer and roads. The county is in a sound financial position, he noted.
Delta College President Jean Goodnow said efforts are underway to align requirements to make it easier for graduates to move into higher education more swiftly.
A commonly accepted critical need is for a greater percentage of the adult population here to receive higher levels of education. The area population is presently about half the state average in percentage of college graduates.
The meeting group was welcomed by Walter Szostak, president of Chemical Bank-Bay City, and speakers were introduced by Max Holman, vice chairman of the chamber board.
Chamber President Mike Seward introduced new Bay City GM PowerTrain plant manager Dan Ryon, most recently in Australia, and said the city should make sure the road in front of the plant is paved and that there are "no personal property taxes for at least 50 years."
He noted record sales and earnings at Dow Corning, headquartered in Bay County, the naming of Emcor of Monitor Township as "one of the top 50 companies to watch in Michigan," noting expansion underway at its plant in Valley Center Technology Park, new lines in mining and utility fields and improved business at Bay Cast, Carbone's expansion now underway, location of Fabiano Brothers distribution center at the tech park, Consumers Energy's proposed $3.2 billion clean coal expansion of the Karn-Weadock plant at the mouth of the river, and other developments.
Mr. Seward also noted that the leaders of the three regional chambers, Bay, Midland and Saginaw, "are committed to marketing and building as a region and working as a team."
"I ask you to share in the effort to build and rebuild the city and the county and the region," the chamber president concluded. Sponsors of the event were Chemical Bank and St. Mary's of Michigan in association with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Northwood University.###
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