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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Manufacturing 661

From environmental issues to labor to real estate, manufacturing companies face challenges not found in other industries. And while many parts of Los Angeles County have become too expensive or restrictive for manufacturers, the northern valleys welcome them. In the 661 telephone area code, which includes the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, there’s affordable land, an educated workforce, close proximity of freeways going to the San Pedro ports, and city governments that want to attract and retain manufacturing jobs. Holly Schroeder, chief executive of the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corp. said the city was one of the few areas in the state that has been growing manufacturing jobs over the past few years. “We like to view ourselves as a bright spot and want to continue to grow those companies here,” Schroeder said. Top employers in manufacturing in the Santa Clarita Valley include Boston Scientific Corp., Advanced Bionics Corp., Aerospace Dynamics International Inc., ITT Aerospace Controls and Woodward HRT. While aerospace and medical devices are the most pervasive industries, the city obviously has a variety of other manufacturers, Schroeder said. “There is Remo Inc., a manufacturer of drumheads and not in either of those industries, but certainly dominant in its sector of (musical) instruments,” she added. Palmdale and Lancaster also have their share of aerospace companies – big ones like Northrop Grumman Corp., which makes its Global Hawk drone and the fuselage of the F-35 Lightning II in Palmdale – as well as smaller suppliers. Northrop is the top company on the Business Journal’s list of largest manufacturers ranked by employees (see page 12). Vern Lawson, economic development director for Lancaster, said Northrop is currently on a hiring spree and will add up to 1,700 manufacturing jobs by December 2019. “That will have a ripple effect,” Lawson said. “It will create more housing. It will be good for retail. It will be good for the schools. It is good for everybody.” But the cities are also home to companies that include Delta Scientific Corp., which makes security barricades; U.S. Pole Company Inc., which makes decorative light poles; recreational vehicle maker Lance Camper Manufacturing Corp.; and electric vehicle manufacturer BYD Motors Inc. Kimberly Maevers, chief executive of the Greater Antelope Valley Economic Alliance, said the biggest pitch the area has is its affordability and accessibility. Space available in the cities and the unincorporated areas of northern Los Angeles and southeast Kern counties is 30 to 50 percent less expensive than elsewhere in Southern California. “We are the only place left that has room to grow,” Maevers said. Also, manufacturers like the fact that the Antelope Valley has its own air quality management district overseeing the California Environmental Quality Act process. “That is real attractive to any type of manufacturer that is concerned about air quality regulations in California,” Maevers said. Both Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley have schools that partner with companies on training programs for manufacturing. Antelope Valley College’s aircraft fabrication and assembly program is putting about 98 percent of its graduates into jobs at Northrop, Maevers said. “Another big push that we have is really smart educators who are listening to the needs of the employers and supplying that workforce with the training and tools they need to go to work here locally and get them off the freeway,” Maevers said. Denise Covert, an economic development associate with Santa Clarita, said manufacturers benefit from a surrounding network of support services provided by the city, the economic development corporation and College of the Canyons. The community college, for instance, can provide customized training on current and emerging technologies used by manufacturing businesses, Covert said. The city makes manufacturers aware of tax credit and rebates. For instance, there is a rebate on a use tax for companies that purchase new equipment or do an expansion. “That is a big tax incentive, in addition to the other great incentives you have being in Santa Clarita – no business license, no personnel tax, no utility user tax,” Covert said. The following pages feature profiles of top executives at four manufacturing companies – Vision Engineering Inc., Nasmyth Group, Morton Manufacturing and Stratasys Direct Manufacturing. They show the inventiveness and diversity of manufacturing in the region and companies discuss the advantages of building their business in the 661.

Mark Madler
Mark Madler
Mark R. Madler covers aviation & aerospace, manufacturing, technology, automotive & transportation, media & entertainment and the Antelope Valley. He joined the company in February 2006. Madler previously worked as a reporter for the Burbank Leader. Before that, he was a reporter for the City News Bureau of Chicago and several daily newspapers in the suburban Chicago area. He has a bachelor’s of science degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

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