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Memphis Region Revs Up for Auto Industry Impact
photo credit: Tennessee Department of Tourism Development
Tennessee has carved out a niche in the automotive industry, and Memphis is revving up to become the state’s next cluster.
The Memphis Metropolitan Statistical Area, or MSA, is made up of eight counties in three states: Tennessee, Mississippi, and Arkansas. The city of Memphis is located on the banks of the Mississippi River in Shelby County, Tenn. Tipton and Fayette counties are also in Tennessee. Meanwhile, DeSoto, Marshall, Tate, and Tunica counties are in northwest Mississippi and Crittenden County in eastern Arkansas.
Memphis itself offers plenty for the auto industry to get excited about. It’s the nation's 17th largest city and the second largest in the Southeast. It has a metro population of over 1 million people, ranking 41st nationally. What’s more, the city of Memphis was ranked the fourth most efficiently operated city in a comprehensive national study of 44 major U.S. cities by national think tank Reason Public Policy Institute for five consecutive years. Memphis is home to four Fortune 500 headquarters and a $2.3 billion tourism industry with the third largest casino cluster in the nation. In 2004 the Memphis metro area's economy, measured by GDP, was larger than 12 states and 123 nations.
The Memphis region's strong transportation, logistics and communications infrastructure provides the access and doorway to the global economy.. Within the super region, Memphis has the largest concentration of transportation facilities. In fact, The Memphis region is on the NAFTA corridor, offering access to Canada and Mexico. Memphis also has the world's largest air cargo airport, the third largest rail center in the country, and the fourth largest inland port in the U.S. And the city already known as "America's Distribution Center" is fast becoming "North America's Logistics Center." That’s one reason why BMW recently announced a new distribution facility in Senatobia.
Also important to auto manufacturers and suppliers, the Memphis region boasts a large power grid and an extensive water supply system that depends on underground aquifers. Memphis also offers the combined advantages of leading-edge telecommunications infrastructure, multiple local points of presence by the major telecommunications services and a central geographic location.
Education-wise, the Memphis region boasts plenty of high-tech and engineering training. The Southwest Tennessee Community College has been named one of the country's best two-year schools by U.S. News & World Report. The public two-year college, offers 53 Associate of Applied Science, 17 Associate of Arts, and 20 Associate of Science degrees, two academic and 27 technical certificate programs, and courses that prepare students for transfer, employment, and career advancement in areas that include computer technologies and engineering and related technologies.
The Memphis region is also home to the Tennessee Technology Center at Memphis. The school offers 31 public vocational and technical programs in specialized areas such as central service technology, drafting/AUTO CAD, industrial electricity/electronics, welding, and machine shop, strategic training for the automotive industry. ITT Technical Institute, William R. Moore College of Technology, Vatterott and Concorde Career Institute, all private institutions, offer a range of vocational and technical programs in the fields of electronics, computer aided drafting, and in many areas of computer and office technology.
Meanwhile, Mid-South Quality Productivity Center, a partnership of the Memphis Regional Chamber and Southwest Tennessee Community College and a Tennessee Board of Regents Center of Emphasis, works with the manufacturing sector to promote quality in all facets of business, including Baldrige assessments, ISO/QS 9000 initiatives, Six Sigma, benchmarking, consulting, and training programs.
For more information about the Memphis Region, call the Memphis Chamber 901.543.3523, send e-mail to adaniels@memphischamber.com or visit www.memphischamber.com.
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