North Carolina Advantages

North Carolina has its share of advantages to offer. Within the last several years, the state received high rankings in a variety of areas. Some of these include:

• #5 in the nation in 1997 for new and expanded facilities Site Selection, March 1998
• #1 in the nation in 1996 for new and expanded facilities Site Selection, March 1997
• #2 in the nation in 1996 for international investments Site Selection, March 1997
• #1 for business relocation and expansion in reader's poll for third consecutive year Plants, Sites and Parks, November 1996
• "Best business climate" among all states for fourth consecutive year Site Selection, November 1996
• "Best business climate" in the United States based on a survey of corporate executives Development Counselors International, November 1996
• Best Southeastern state for business location Financial World, November 1996

Other North Carolina benefits exist in the following areas:

Transportation Infrastructure

• North Carolina's central location puts the state within a 700-mile radius of more than 150 million U.S. and Canadian consumers, and 66 of the nation's 100 largest metropolitan areas.
• The state offers an extensive network of highways, railroads, airlines and ports to provide businesses easy access to domestic and international markets.

Workforce

• In 1996, the labor pools totaled 3.7 million, up from 3.0 million in 1991; the manufacturing work force is close to 900,000 strong — the largest in the Southeast.
• North Carolina workers have one of the highest productivity rates in the United States and they have the lowest number of workdays lost to injury in the Southeast.
• As a right-to-work state, North Carolina has the nation's second-lowest unionization rate.
• The average cost of workers' compensation for manufacturing is one-and-a-half times lower than the national average.

Workforce Training and Development

• North Carolina's industrial training program allows businesses to coordinate with area Community Colleges to arrange worker training before a new facility is complete. The state, which pays the full cost of this program with no federal funding and at no cost to the employer, has helped more than 1,800 businesses develop customized training programs during the past 20 years.
• The North Carolina Community College System consists of 58 campuses across the state that offer more than 280 programs to train workers for technical occupations.

Higher Education

• The University of North Carolina, with its 16-campus system and graduate programs, is renowned as one of the best public higher education systems in the South — and is also one of the least expensive.
• Forty-four private colleges and universities complement the state university system including such institutions as Wake Forest University, Duke University and Davidson College.

Research and Technical Support

Higher education and the research sector work synergistically.

• Support for start-ups and emerging-technology companies ranges from the 1000-acre Centennial Campus at North Carolina State University to 14 business incubators located throughout the state.
• Technical support is also available through the Microelectronics Center of North Carolina (MCNC), one of the premier commercial microelectronics centers in the nation offering realtime transfer of information and knowledge.
• The North Carolina Biotechnology Center facilitates cooperative efforts between university and industry scientists across North Carolina working in medicine, agriculture and engineering. This type of assistance has enabled North Carolina to become the leading Southeast state in the biotechnology field with more than 20,000 workers and 100 biotechnology and related firms.

Business Incentives

• North Carolina has gained national and international recognition for low-cost construction, housing, utilities, taxes and transportation as well as its diverse economy, educated and productive workforce and pro-business attitude.
• The economy is stable and continues to outpace that of the nation.
• The state is also fiscally sound, carrying one of the few AAA bond ratings in the country.
• The North Carolina Legislature passed the William S. Lee Quality Jobs and Business Expansion Act in 1996 to provide incentives for new and existing businesses to expand or relocate in North Carolina.

For More Info

For more details regarding North Carolina State Facts and Resources, contact Herb Crenshaw.