Siemens' ICE-model train, which will be adapted to the China market Source: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20090320-18139.html

Siemens, which makes and sells trains extensively in Europe and elsewhere, has won a large contract to manufacture passenger rail equipment in China for the China market. A release by Agence France-Presse says, "Siemens … had won another Chinese contract for 100 high-speed trains worth 750 million euros (US$1 billion). Siemens ‘has secured five of the last six contracts on the high speed rail market over 300 kmh (188 mph)’ in China, the company said. The trains would be assembled in China from parts made in German, Austrian and Chinese factories run by Siemens, and were expected to be operational starting in late 2010. Siemens' Chinese partners in the project are Tangshan Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd., Changchun Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd., and the Chinese Academy of Railways."

The newest Siemens plant in Turkey, located in Istanbul, is touted by the company as both technologically advanced and environmentally friendly. The plant makes "electric power transmission and distribution products." An Associated Press article carried in Canadian Business Online says, "The Munich-based company called the new €100-million ($135 million) plant one of the most advanced in the world and said it paves the way for more expansion in Turkey and the region. Siemens will move some of its current Turkish operations to the new location over the next three years. The new factory, which has been nominated for Turkey's first green building certification, uses 25 percent less energy and 50 percent less water than some of Siemens' other Turkish facilities, the company said."

Howard Lange is the IAMC Active member with Siemens, which ranks 37^th on Fortune’s Global 500 list.

Continuing a manufacturing presence in Ireland going back to the 1970s, drug maker Merck has announced plans for a €20 million vaccines and biologics plant in County Carlow. Grouptivity.com writes, "A total of 160 construction jobs will be created by the project and the finished facility will employ 170 people. Building work began last October, but will not be completed until 2011. Merck’s vice president of science, technology and global pharmaceutical commercialization Dr. Michael Thien said that the investment illustrates the New Jersey-headquartered company’s long-term commitment to Ireland."

Joe Milano is the IAMC Active member with Merck, which ranks 101^st on the Fortune 500 list and fourth on the pharmaceuticals industry list.

Michelin’s Ardmore, Okla., tire plant. Source: http://www.ardmoreite.com

Michelin, the French tire maker, has a reputation as a great company to work for. So, it’s not surprising that when demand eased for the tires made at its Ardmore, Oklahoma, plant the company decided to cut production and costs by a work-week cutback instead of layoffs. The Daily Ardmoreite says, "More than 1,400 employees at the Ardmore tire plant were affected by the cutback in hours. The new work schedule did not change employees’ hourly wages or benefits but did reduce their pay. The truncated work schedule was slated to last eight weeks, and employees began working fewer hours on Feb. 13. Director of Public Relations Lynn Mann said Tuesday the 8-week-long amended work schedule will end on April 13."

Chris McNutt is the IAMC Active member with Michelin, which ranks 335^th on Fortune’s Global 500 list.

Hewlett-Packard has opened the Central England Business Recovery Centre in Rugby to assist local businesses in the event of business interruption due to flood, fire, terrorism, winter storm and similar events. The new facility will replace two older ones. An article in the Birmingham Post quotes HP Business Continuity Service Director Richard Davenport as saying, "It is all about cost saving in terms of a risk mitigation exercise. It is increasingly important given the financial uncertainty that companies are not out of business for a long time period."

Renee' Leach is the IAMC Active member with Hewlett-Packard, which ranks 14^th on the Fortune 500 list and first on the computers, office equipment, industry list.

As the economy looks to recovery, companies are looking for cost savings and ways to improve their image to prospective investors. Apparel-maker Hanesbrands seems to have killed two birds with one stone by investing in its Perris, CA, distribution center. An article on the facility by John McCurry in Site Selection magazine says, "…the company is forging a reputation for green buildings as it implements a new real estate strategy following its spinout from Sara Lee Corp. in 2006. The latest and largest example of this strategy can be found near Perris, Calif., halfway between Riverside and Murietta along I-215, where the company began shipping in January from its new 1.3-million-sq.-ft. (120,770-sq.-m.) distribution center, the largest in the company's global supply chain."

Kevin Dollhopf is the IAMC Active member with Hanesbrands who was interviewed for the article. Hanesbrands ranks 510^th on the Fortune 1000 list and fourth on the apparel industry list.

Hanesbrands’ Perris, Calif., distribution center

Here’s an update on a Northrop Grumman facility in Suffolk, Va., we’ve reported on before. The 30,000-sq-ft. office will "support joint military training." An article in Marketwatch.com says, "The new facility will be staffed by up to 85 employees, including simulation and communications engineers. The company will consolidate approximately 60 employees from three existing offices in the area and intends to hire up to 25 simulation systems engineers in the coming months. Among other things, Northrop Grumman employees in the Suffolk area support the Joint Forces Command's Joint War-fighting Center, which provides realistic, cost-effective training for joint forces."

Michael Brendes, Eugene A. Canale, Chris Hemminger and Joseph Jones are the IAMC Active members with Northrop Grumman, which ranks 76^th on the Fortune 500 list and fifth on the aerospace and defense industry list.

GE gas pipeline compression equipment similar to that which the company will sell to China. Source: http://www.ge.com/innovation/2008/index.html

Even while world demand for China’s goods has cooled off, the government is relentlessly investing in the country’s energy infrastructure in preparation for the economic upturn. An example is a China-traversing gas pipeline to move the fuel from sources in the west to industrial users in the east. On this, The Wall Street Journal says, "General Electric Co. said it has won a $300 million contract to supply compression equipment for the second phase of a natural-gas pipeline across China. GE Oil & Gas executives say the West-to-East pipeline is one of the largest ongoing gas pipelines in the world and, when completed in the next six years, will stretch roughly 20,000 kilometers through 13 provinces and bring $600 million in revenue to GE."

Terry Rees is the IAMC Active member with General Electric, which ranks sixth on the Fortune 500 list and first on the diversified financials industry list.

* With each project, we provide the name(s) of the IAMC member(s) from the organization(s) involved. This is for information purposes. We are not indicating or suggesting that the member was involved in the project.