MOHAVE COUNTY NEWS RELEASE Wednesday, June 13, 2012 KINGMAN –
Kingman and Mohave Manufacturers’ Association (KAMMA) is bringing private and public interests together for a cooperative approach to economic development.
Recently Laron Chief Operating Officer John Hansen and Mohave County Economic Development Department (EDD) Director Travis Lingenfelter discussed the growth of the Association in Kingman since its first meeting in December.
Laron, situated on 14 acres of industrial property at Kingman Airport Industrial Park, handles “machining, fabrication, millwright services, electrical equipment repair and manufacturing, new equipment sales, and predictive maintenance,” Hanson said. “Laron’s reputation has been based on providing superior support services to the mining, manufacturing, power generation, gas transmission, and construction industries in the southwest United States.”
“Mohave County EDD and our Community Services Workforce Division are partnered with the burgeoning Manufacturers’ Association,” Lingenfelter said. “Manufacturing is one of the county’s targeted industries. We obviously want to do what we can to grow the manufacturing companies currently existing in Mohave County. The Association not only provides our manufacturers a unified voice to get things done, but it is also a great tool to help them share costs and establish cooperative systems to take advantage of the Association members’ combined power.
“Laron has been one of the shining stars on the private industry side,” he said. “Laron has dedicated significant time, energy and resources to bring the association concept to manufacturing and industrial companies, helping them to understand why KAMMA is needed in Mohave County.”
“The biggest thing for us (Laron) is that, as an employee stock ownership company, we are critically concerned about the success of our business,” Hansen said. “If our business hurts, then we have 200-plus owners who hurt.”
Hansen believes the health of all local manufacturing/industrial companies is linked.
“With the horrible direction the economy has taken during the last three and a half years, we all need more work,” he said. “We need new businesses to come here. We need businesses that have left to come back. And although each business has its own products, Laron and all the companies in the industrial park have things to offer new industries.”
“As one of the initial efforts, the Manufacturers’ Association members have set up a SharePoint site that has a potential to better optimize inbound and outbound shipping,” Lingenfelter said. “The Association is talking about putting together a unified approach to reducing utility costs and identifying common training needs for manufacturing which can then be translated to Mohave Community College (MCC) for the development of curriculum to be offered through MCC’s new Mobile Workforce Training Unit.
“It is all about business retention,” he said. “The Association, if supported and grown, can make all of the businesses currently in Mohave County stronger by taking advantage of their cooperative-shared voice and strengths. Once all of our current businesses become stronger, visiting businesses may find it appealing and want to become part of this too. Priority one is to do what we can to make all of our current manufacturing businesses prosper.”
The KAMMA website is www.mohavemfgassociation.com.
“KAMMA stemmed from the manufacturing sector strategy adopted by the Mohave/La Paz Local Workforce Investment Board (LWIB),” Mohave County Workforce Development Manager Jen Miles said following the interview. “John Hansen, an LWIB member, became an early champion and has taken a leadership role in the development of the Manufacturing Association.”
Hansen is bullish on Mohave County.
“When we put together KAMMA, we set three strategic goals,” he said. “First is to keep the existing businesses here” through business retention. “The second goal is to attract new businesses to our area. And the third is to ask and answer the question, what does Mohave County have that no other county or location can offer?
“I see Kingman as this amazing place with tremendous opportunity,” Hanson said. “We have a friendly regulatory environment here. Restrictions have not gone overboard like they have in other parts of the county. It’s a great place to do business. We are well situated logistically as we have the east, west, north and south freeways close at hand. We are on the main line of the BNSF (Burlington Northern Santa Fe) rail line. And, we are at the extreme eastern edge of the one-day, round-trip distance to the Port of Los Angeles.
“So here is what we have,” he said. “We have a motivated, private-industry-led Association with a clear vision, innovative ideas and committed membership. We have the means and a plan for the industry-guided development of a superior workforce. We have a location, community and government to encourage the development of new businesses and the introduction of new friends and neighbors. We know our businesses will be successful when all other current and new businesses are successful. We have made some real progress since our first meeting in December. KAMMA is an idea whose time has come.”
The Association is open to businesses throughout Mohave County, Hansen said. “We are there for anybody who wants to play. We all work together. We give some and we take some.” The end result is, being part of KAMMA will “put money in your pocket.”
For more information, go to the KAMMA website or call Hansen at (928) 279-5740, Lingenfelter at (928) 757-0903, ext. 5059, or Miles at (928) 753-0723, ext. 4254.
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