GARY
QUACKENBUSH
FOR NORTH BAY
BUSINESS JOURNAL | February 23, 2017, 9:27AM
Solano’s economic pulse
Contributors to gross county product
·
Advanced-materials manufacturing, 24.9 percent
·
Travis Air Force Base (military and civilian), 10 percent
·
Health care, 9.7 percent
·
Real Estate, 8.9 percent
·
Retail trade, 6.6 percent
·
Construction, 5.1 percent
·
Professional services, 4.7 percent
·
Wholesale trade, 4.6 percent
·
Logistics, 3.3 percent
·
Financial and insurance services, 3.3 percent
·
Agriculture, 1.1 percent
·
Information services, 1.1 percent
·
Other, 16.8 percent
Contributors to new jobs, 2016–2024
·
Advanced-materials cluster, 2.9 percent growth, 2,117
more jobs
·
Logistics, 5.6 percent, 1,189
·
Biotechnology and bomedical, 2.6 percent, 588
·
Food and beverage industry, 2.3 percent, 463
·
Countywide, 2.9 percent, 2,117
Source:
Economic Forensics and Analytics
Key industries and a military base powering $19.6 billion
in annual gross regional product, Solano County is increasing promotion of
itself as a premier business location.
Funded by a
$453,000 grant from the federal Office of Economic Adjustment and local funding
from the county of Solano, the “Moving Forward Solano” effort is “an inclusive
partnership of public–private stakeholders led by the county and the Solano EDC
to develop a forward-thinking strategy based on extensive research, data and
engagement,” said Sandy Person, president of the Solano Economic Development
Corporation.
“Business
first” is a key message of the campaign’s next phase.
It includes a
robust website, serving as a one-stop information clearinghouse that will
assist businesses, local governments’ brokers and site selectors. It is set to
provide economic and demographic data, and dynamic mapping showcasing unique
market locations, all county business parks, mega-sites and specific
properties.
Tools and
services will be offered to cities, including the identification of
public–public and public–private financing opportunities that can be used to
invest in infrastructure to attract economic activity.
Person noted
that Solano is strategically located 16 miles from Napa, 22 miles from
Sacramento, 25 miles from the Port of Oakland, 31 miles from San Francisco and
about an hour from San Jose. The county has 2.8 million workers in the labor
market, including 168,000 who commute into and out of the area, as well as
6,700 acres of land available for businesses.
Economist
Robert Eyler, Ph.D., president of Petaluma-based Economic Forensics and
Analytics and professor of economics at Sonoma State University, is part of a
four-member consulting team for the project.
“Solano County
had a strong 2016 with personal income and wages rising fueled by continued
growth in the wake of the recession,” Eyler said. “With regional housing and
commercial real estate prices increasing, the question is how can Solano gain
from some of the exodus as workers migrate to this county from other areas?
Other questions include how to identify the businesses that will come to
Solano, how supply chains will be affected and the ability of the county to
plan around these variables.”
Eyler said
Solano has specific industries that drive its economy. A wide array of
advanced-materials manufacturing, including biotechnology and petrochemical
firms, is the largest private-sector contributor, representing 24.9 percent of
the county’s gross product.
This large
business category is followed by Travis Air Force Base, split between military
and civilian workers on the base, that generates about 10 percent of the
economy; health care, including for profit and nonprofit hospitals, health
organizations and outpatient care facilities, 9.7 percent; Real Estate and
Rental Businesses, 8.9 percent; Retail Trade, 6.6 percent; Construction, 5.1
percent; Professional Services, 4.7 percent; Wholesale Trade, 4.6 percent;
Logistics and Financial/Insurance Services with 3.3 percent each; along with
Agriculture and Information Services with 1.1 percent each. All other services
collectively account for the remaining 16.8 percent of Solano County’s gross
product.
“Retail and
construction were larger contributors before 2010 and are likely to become a
larger part of the Solano County economy as the recovery continues,” Eyler
said.
He said five
industry groups act as a foundation for driving the regional economy due to
their ability to offer higher than average wages, an export market focus,
relatively large multiplier effects, their “industry fit” and niche in Solano
County as well as their location quotient.
Solano’s economic pulse
Contributors to gross county product
·
Advanced-materials manufacturing, 24.9 percent
·
Travis Air Force Base (military and civilian), 10 percent
·
Health care, 9.7 percent
·
Real Estate, 8.9 percent
·
Retail trade, 6.6 percent
·
Construction, 5.1 percent
·
Professional services, 4.7 percent
·
Wholesale trade, 4.6 percent
·
Logistics, 3.3 percent
·
Financial and insurance services, 3.3 percent
·
Agriculture, 1.1 percent
·
Information services, 1.1 percent
·
Other, 16.8 percent
Contributors to new jobs, 2016–2024
·
Advanced-materials cluster, 2.9 percent growth, 2,117
more jobs
·
Logistics, 5.6 percent, 1,189
·
Biotechnology and bomedical, 2.6 percent, 588
·
Food and beverage industry, 2.3 percent, 463
·
Countywide, 2.9 percent, 2,117
Source:
Economic Forensics and Analytics
Since the close
of the Great Recession, the Solano advanced-materials sector has experienced
the greatest growth, expanding from 189 firms in 2010 to 210 in 2016. Advanced
materials includes machine manufacturing, repair and maintenance; engineering
and scientific services; waste management; and some logistics.
Examples of
advanced-materials firms are Fairfield’s Tencate Advanced Composites, which
manufactures aerospace and industrial materials, and Dixon’s Powerscreen,
manufacturing equipment for mining, quarrying, crushing, screening, demolition
and recycling.
Some
representative businesses in the food and beverage group include Caymus Winery,
Vallejo’s Craft Brewery and Wine, Critelli, Formaggi Di Ferrante, Gold Star
Foods and Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Napa
Valley-based Caymus plans expansion of its Fairfield bottling plant and
upgrades to fermentation tanks and grape processing. Critelli fine olive oils
and vinegars just opened a Fairfield facility with tasting of wine and its
Sonoma Harvest Food brand. Formaggi Di Ferrante makes fine Italian cheeses in
Fairfield and is adding organic products with a tasting room and restaurant.
Gold Star Foods, Inc., in Dixon prepares K–12 school lunches each day for 300
school districts in Northern and Central California. Anheuser-Busch InBev is
expanding its Fairfield brewery.
The logistics
sector has firms such as Acorn Paper Products, which recently moved its
distribution center to Vacaville from Napa Valley, and Vacaville’s ACX Global,
an exporter of alfalfa hay, forage and roughage products.
“Looking ahead,
labor market projections from the EDD and our own EFA calculations indicate
that the advanced-materials cluster in Solano County will see 2.9 percent
growth between 2016 and 2024, adding 2,117 more workers,” Eyler said.
In the same
eight-year period, the food and beverage industry could grow by 2.3 percent
with 463 new positions; biotech/biomed by 2.6 percent, with 588 more employees;
and logistics could expand by 5.6 percent, adding 1,189 new workers.”
Gary
Quackenbush is a special correspondent for North Bay Business Journal.
