Monday, January 23, 2017

From Chips to Screens?

From the Times Union Blog: Foxconn Fab $7B Opportunity for NY
Right now it appears that Pennsylvania has the edge.... 
However, New York state would also appear to be a viable candidate, having just lost a tenant for a $600 million computer chip factory it was planning to build outside of Utica that already has state funding secured. Plans for the factory could easily be changed to make display screens and would help ease the pain of losing the tenant, analog chip maker ams AG of Austria...
If this idea is plausible to folks in Albany it should be plausible to us here. I think Utica would be happy with this.  This blogger certainly would be. And the number of jobs seems to eclipse anything suggested to date. THIS one may really be transformative if landed. But it sounds like people must act fast.

Are EDGE and ESD up to the task?

Have local officials burned their bridges with the people in the best position to help the area succeed?  Is there forgiveness on both sides?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

In reading the blog it appears that the French company is well aware of New York but had not been interested in the state in the past. It s possible that they may set up a straw man rival to extract more goodies from Pennsylvania. One must also be sure that they have secured the Apple contract. The real reason AMS failed was that a big contract was not yet consummated and did not happen. That is one hazard of speculation that New York paid little heed to. Finally since there seems to be no accountability here for failure, why should the locals get their act together? They live very well with little to no accomplishment.

Anonymous said...

Since its creation twenty some off years ago, has the EDGE brought one private sector company into the area? I can think of a couple, both of whom did not last. That answers the question of whether or not the area is up to the task. I often wonder what that huge, expensive staff does all day? They must attend many, many meetings. Perhaps their computers ought to be examined.

Rodger Potocki said...

The current buzz to contact the company relates to the readiness of a site. Although a site is an obvious important component of any location decision it is not by a long shot the most important; labor is. The labor availability and costs are by far the most important factor in any such decision. A site even if it includes a building is meaningless unless an adequate labor force is available. When judging or reporting on prospects, the questions relating to labor should always enter into the discussion and expectation of success. I'm sure the EDGE is well aware of this basic fact but it never seems to dawn on the local media to inquire and report on this vital component. This is particularly relevant to a small area such as ours.

Anonymous said...

Step back and take a look, a hard look. Not counted out as being too negative but just a dose of REALITY.

Where we are, what it has cost us (the time, the people, the resources) and how did we got here?

Once this flat panel option fades out realize just how desperate we have become. Shifting from nano scale fabrication to large screen TV assembly. Tech is tech right? How hard can it be?

We can set up new training - its out with nano fab and in with OLED displays. This will be so easy for our crack economic development team, like changing socks. Set up new courses for our students to take, new promises, new jobs since we know what we're doing. Have faith (again)

Yell out to all comers "Please let us spend the $600 million dollars on you to move in and let us build something, ANYTHING! Hurry up before its gone since it must be spent!!"

Then wonder again why our taxes are too high, the region decays and our political gambers keep looking for that one big score.

SOI

Anonymous said...

Here's the gem posted above: "Finally since there seems to be no accountability here for failure, why should the locals get their act together? They live very well with little to no accomplishment."

Until that one thing changes, everything will continue as it has. Show me where I'm wrong with history as a guide.
More effort needs to be spent figuring out how to make this very uncomfortable for these frauds. Whatever it takes we must rally into a cohesive group whose one goal is to remove these parasites from office by calling the respective Corrupt CNY Fusion-Party's leadership and and get really nasty about it. These people preach positivety, but are the first to reach for attacks and negativity when called on their crap. There is a good deal of suffering and poverty in CNY now, yet these people's families are well cared for.

Asking nicely, begging and expecting them to do anything but make excuses while forcing us to pay their way has never worked, won't ever work and makes us just as responsible for this debacle as they are.

Anonymous said...

Companies hate it when elected officials make public invitations concerning a relocation decision. If the County Executive didn't learn that by now, something is horribly wrong. Publicity generates media inquiry, people writing letters concerning jobs and can snow ball into unwanted contacts by many states and municipalities. All of this costs a company time, money and exposes it to confusion among those that they are actually considering. All "real" companies doing "real" projects have location strategy and study teams. Our local politicians should have left the matter to EDGE and Center State, not show boat publically. Obviously, they are grand standing to cover their dismal NANO failure. This is not good nor does it merit anything but condemnation.

Anonymous said...

Why dont we just stick Picente in an office, give him a phone & a coffe machine & let people that know what they're doing handle this? He obviously is clueless.