We all know manufacturing is in decline. The numbers are staggering. The Center for Community Solutions recently reported that Ohio lost more than 204,000 jobs between 2000 and 2005, most of them manufacturing jobs. Cuyahoga County lost more than 9 percent of its jobs during the same period. In the past five years, Ohio has lost more than 15 percent of its high-wage manufacturing employment.
But our regional economy doesn’t have to go in the dumper along with the manufacturing sector.
The city’s successful businesses have learned to thrive in this global economy and have developed best-of-class processes, innovations and technique for staying on top of their game. At Cool Cleveland, we’ve started to focus on the business sector with BizBuzz and Tech-Cleveland columns, which spotlight the heroes and winners in this challenging economic environment. This month, we focus on innovation, business growth and sustainability. Come out and cheer the good guys, and pick up a pointer or two.
Small Business Conference Everyone is happy that Dan Gilbert bought the Cavaliers basketball team, re-signed LeBron and is making investments and improvements. What people often forget is Gilbert’s main achievement: creating the world’s largest online mortgage business, Quicken Loans. This is a “dot-com” company, people. Not a bank. Not an insurance company. Not an auto plant. Hear Gilbert offer the keynote address, along with Travelocity’s Terry Jones, at COSE’s Small Business Conference Oct. 12 and 13 at the I-X Center. Learn from 65 breakout sessions covering everything from marketing to finance, wander the 55-exhibitor trade show and visit the business resource center for one-on-one counseling. http://cose.org/sbc/registration.asp
| Photo Courtesy of Honda |
Energy Management Conference Have you been by the Great Lakes Science Center recently and noticed the 150-foot wind turbine? Did you know it is ahead of schedule in producing 7 percent of the Science Center’s electricity for the year? And did you know Cleveland has the opportunity to create new industries for fuel cells and alternative fuels? Stop by the Northern Ohio Energy Management Conference Oct. 3 and 4 at Akron’s Knight Center for a trade show and workshops on national energy policy, promoting the effective use of our energy resources, the true benefits of hybrids and how to make Ohio No. 1 in fuel cells. www.cesnet.org/pdf/NOEM2006.pdf
Materials, Medicine and Nanotechnology Summit Manufacturing meets medicine as Cleveland Clinic and ASM (formerly American Society of Metals) host a blended conference: the Clinic’s NanoMedicine Summit, and ASM’s Materials and Processes for Medical Devices Conference and Exposition. This summit features technical programs, seminars and exhibits on materials for engineers who work with innovative medical devices, including the next generation of nanomaterials and biomedical research. Oct. 2-5, InterContinental Hotel and Conference Center, www.nanomedicinesummit.org
