March 2011 $2.

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Business
update
1993-2011 ublication

Features:
Office Furniture
Construction Insurance
Metal Forming & Fabrication
Green Construction
Hearing Health
Vacation Planning
 Knorr Warns Furniture Retailers
Not to Gamble on Their Future
Traverse City – “Unless furniture
retailers scrutinize every part of their
business and comprehensively plan
ahead, they will likely lose the retail
game,” said Doug Knorr, president of
Knorr Marketing during the biannual
furniture trade show held in Las Vega,
Nevada January 24 to 28. “It’s almost a
‘winner take all’ environment out there
today – where brick and mortar stores
are placing bets against each other and
Hayworth Reports Strong 2010 Sales Results
and Numerous Awards
Holland – Haworth, Inc. announced
that 2010 global sales reached $1.21
billion, an increase of 9%. The growth
was boosted by strong results in North
America, with sales growing at more
than twice the rate of the industry, as
well as Asia and emerging markets.
Northern Europe also experienced solid
online competition based on hearsay
and what’s worked in the past. It’s time
for retailers to start controlling what
they can and shape their own luck.”
Doug Knorr, known as a “retail
marketing activist,” is well-known in
the home furnishings industry as he
writes a column for the NHFA Home
Furnishings Retailer magazine called,
“Turn it Around!” His presentation,
titled “Lucky 7 for a Hot 2011,” was
growth, though at a lesser rate.
Haworth’s continued investment in
new products contributed to the launch
of several new product platforms in
2010. One of Haworth’s most success-
ful projects, the Very® Task Chair, had a
global introduction at NeoCon and
Orgatec. Part of the growing Very fami-
sponsored by the Western Home
Furnishings Association – the largest
affiliate of the NHFA (National Home
Furnishings Association), representing
more than 1,000 independent home fur-
nishings retailers in more than 2,400
stores in 12 western states.
Knorr’s “lucky 7” list for
home furnishings retailers:
ly of seating, the chair provides science-
based ergonomics, personalized com-
fort, design and durability at a sensible
price. Haworth received NeoCon Gold in
Seating: Conference and NeoCon Silver
in Seating: Ergonomic Desk/Task for
the Very Task chair.
Also at NeoCon 2010, Haworth
revealed a new showroom with an
inspiring vision that featured Compose
wood storage, Enclose frameless glass
walls, the Kiron European desking sys-
tem, Tuohy casegoods and Cloud sculp-
tures with Kvadrat, as well as a Terrazzo
flooring hybrid with Haworth’s raised
access base and Tecnika tiles by
Monotile. Haworth received NeoCon
Gold in the Walls: Movable category and
Groupe Lacasse received NeoCon Gold:
Systems Furniture for C.I.T.E
(Collaborative, Innovative, Teaming
Environments). In addition, Tuohy,
where Haworth has a minority invest-
ment, received a NeoCon Silver:
Casegoods for the Prato collection. At
Orgatec 2010, Haworth set a new
benchmark with a dynamic organic
workspace booth and large array of
product introductions, including LTB
lounge furniture, MeetYou privacy ele-
ments, the T_up desk system, the Vados
storage system and Esedra3 glass walls.
Haworth’s LIM (Light in Motion)
and Very chair won prestigious gold
2010 International Design Excellence
Awards given out by the Industrial
Designers Society of America and 2010
Red Dot Awards from the Design Centre
Nordrhein Westfalen in Essen,
Germany. LIM also won an iF 2010
Product Design Award from The
International Design Forum in
Hannover, Germany.
During 2010, Haworth continued
its sustainable journey and released a
sustainability report – the company’s
2
1. Establishing store brand differentiation.
2. Maximizing your merchandising mix.
3. Increasing one-on-one advertising
frequency.
4. Starting or enhancing in-home design
services.
5. Expanding search engine optimization
(SEO) tactics.
6. Enabling social media integration.
fifth annual. The company reported on
sustainable products, Zero Waste to
Landfill, energy management, sustain-
able workspace design, greenhouse gas
emissions, green transportation, green
building, social responsibility and
stakeholder engagement.
Haworth’s global headquarters and
the San Francisco and New York City
showrooms achieved LEED gold certifi-
cation from the U.S. Green Building
Council (USGBC) in 2010. The head-
quarters also earned the US
Environmental Protection Agency’s
(EPA) ENERGY STAR®. With the addi-
tion of these certifications, Haworth has
11 LEED Gold spaces globally, including
showrooms in Zurich, Switzerland,
Shanghai, China and Pune, India.
Haworth also continued to improve
operational efficiencies by consolidating
movable wall and wood casegood man-
ufacturing into existing West Michigan
facilities.
During 2010, Haworth certified
over 50 products with level™ - the
Business and Institutional Furniture
Manufacturer’s Association Product
Sustainability Standard. With this
multi-attribute certification that reviews
both environmental and social impacts,
customers can make informed choices
about commercial furniture and modu-
lar interiors. The certification also iden-
tifies that a product has been vetted by
an independent certifier.
Haworth is also proud to be recog-
nized for efforts related to social respon-
sibility, including being awarded the
2010 Michigan Minority Supplier
Diversity Council (MMSDC) Corporation
of the Year – Commercial Products.
And, for the 2nd year in a row, the com-
pany was recognized with a MMSDC
Corporate One Award.
 The Changing Face of the Office Furniture Industry 3
According to
industry analysts,
the office furniture
industry has con-
tracted by approxi-
mately 25% over the
last 10 years.
Michigan—particu-
larly Grand Rapids—
Randy DeBoer has seen the impact
as many industry
leaders reduce manufacturing jobs and
facilities.
What is really driving this down-
turn?
Sure, it’s easy to point the finger at
“economic conditions.” We haven’t seen
the growth of jobs in the commercial sec-
tor that historically meant “butts in
seats,” the lifeblood of our industry.
But would you believe that a larger
impact has actually been the shrinking
workstation? In the 1970s, the average
workspace was 12 feet by 12 feet. By
1995, it had shrunk to 10 feet by 10 feet.
Today? A worker’s space averages a
mere 6 feet by 8 feet… And it is shrink-
ing rapidly.
As square footage of stations is
reduced, traditional office cubicle panels
are also getting lower. In many cases
Local West Michigan Investors Acquire
Public Seating Line
Zeeland – Newly formed in 2011,
Greystone Public Seating LLC purchased
the assets of the former Greystone
International, Inc of Byron Center,
Michigan. Greystone Public Seating, also
known as GS Seats, manufactures high
quality, high end upholstered seating
specifically for the Theatre, Worship,
Educational, Performing Arts and Home
Theatre markets, globally. The company
has contracts with several West
Michigan suppliers to produce the com-
ponents for the chair’s unique architec-
ture. The company began production on
January 3, 2011 at their headquarters
located at 7900 Logistic Drive in
Zeeland, Michigan.
Quality Office Furniture,
at a price you can afford!
today, panels are even being eliminated
completely and replaced by more open
“benching” type solutions. Case in point,
Haworth is introducing a new worksta-
tion product line this year that contains
no panels, but instead uses storage com-
ponents to create a low visual separation
between each station.
Why are workstations shrinking?
What has changed?
Technology. Thanks to a wide
array of work alternatives like e-mail,
wireless Internet and flex time, employ-
ees are working fewer and fewer hours
at their desks. In turn, companies are
investing less space and money into sta-
tions that just don’t get as much use. For
example, whereas 10 years ago 90% of
Haworth's headquarter space was desig-
nated for workstations, only 60% of the
space in their new headquarters is
assigned to these individualized spaces.
Now more area is used for collaborative
areas like coffee bars, lounges and
touchdown spaces.
Collaboration. E-mail, web confer-
encing and other technological advance-
ments provide easy, inexpensive means
to communicate without face-to-face col-
laboration. However, companies recog-
nize the importance and value of bring-
Greystone Seating is proud to assist
in the manufacturing rebirth of West
Michigan.
The capitalization of the company
provides funding for new product devel-
opment and expanded marketing of the
current product lines. It also ensures that
Greystone will continue to source seating
components from local companies pro-
viding continuing employment opportu-
nities for over 50 individuals.
Investors in this new venture are
strongly rooted in the West Michigan
manufacturing landscape. The investors
include Larry Kooiker, President and
owner of Agritek Industries Inc. located
in Holland Michigan; Bill Maddox, the
Bill Feyen
616-554-0200
billfeyen@exceloffice.com
ing people together. Social interaction is
enhanced when people can see each
other, hence tighter quarters and lower
or no dividers.
Kids Today. For the first time ever,
we have four generations in the work-
place at once. You might not catch a Baby
Boomer at Starbucks studying for exams
with ear buds in their ears, but the
Millennial Generation prefers an open,
less formal work environment. As the
Millennial become the majority of work-
ers over the next few years, this prefer-
ence for more open flexible work styles
and environments will continue to
increase and offices will change to meet
their needs.
So what's the office furniture indus-
try doing to grow and keep up with the
ever-changing workspace?
At Interphase Interiors, the only
West Michigan Preferred Haworth dealer,
we no longer focus solely on commercial
environments. As more of the workforce
transitions to healthcare, education and
hospitality, we have diversified our prod-
uct offerings and expertise to serve these
other markets.
With change happening faster than
ever, we have also focused on finding
ways to help companies navigate their
Managing Partner of DiffusionTek LLC
and Manufacturing Enterprise
Consultants LLC located in East Grand
Rapids and Key Portfolio LLC, a West
Michigan-based family investment part-
nership. ROCG consulting group played a
critical role in negotiating and facilitating
the business ownership transition.
Greystone Public Seating is operat-
ing under the direction of Gaylord
Stanton as President. Joe Yonkman
heads up the operations of the company
as Vice President of Operations. Other
key employees are Nick Maksymowski
who directs engineering, Darren Smith
who is in charge of marketing and
Danielle Robinson who is the Office
way through this new landscape. We are
no longer in a world where you build a
new facility and then dump furniture
into it. The best facilities today are
designed around the people that will
occupy the space. Interphase and
Haworth offer organizations a deep
knowledge of how people work and com-
bine that with great design for value far
beyond just selling furniture. We bring
more science and facility knowledge to
the equation than ever before.
The office furniture industry must
focus on addressing the organizational,
human and facility needs of a broad,
diversified client base. More than ever,
customers seek partners that support the
triple-bottom-line goals of people, planet
and profitability. For those who deliver
this value, the future is bright!
Randy DeBoer is president and
owner of Interphase Interiors, the exclu-
sive Haworth dealer in West and
Northern Michigan for 30 years. DeBoer
was the first Michigan furniture deal-
er/owner with Leadership in Energy &
Environmental Design (LEED) accredi-
tation. Further information can be found
at www.interphaseinc.com or by calling
(616) 245-0800.
Manager. Ben Stanton is the National
Sales Manager, Cinema; John Corner and
Bob Sprouse direct sales in the
Educational and Worship Markets. As
the company grows, Greystone Public
Seating will create new jobs in Western
Michigan.
President Gaylord Stanton com-
mented, “With the financial strength of
our ownership group and their extensive
manufacturing experiences, combined
with a team of talented professionals,
Greystone Public Seating has strategical-
ly aligned itself to capture market share
through product enhancements and cost
reductions.”
Toll Free 800-968-8608
Fax 616-997-7263
modernofficeinteriors.com
 Dan Vos Construction Celebrates
60 Years of Building for Life
By Shannon Cunningham
In 1951, Daniel R. Vos was not
expecting to find himself owning his own
construction company, but after a sea-
sonal hobby proved to be a successful tal-
ent, Vos found himself at the foot of a
new venture: Dan Vos Construction
Company (DVCC).
Vos, once a celery farmer by profes-
sion, spent his winters assisting friends
and neighbors in remodeling or building
new homes. It didn’t take long for Vos to
develop and maintain a great reputation
for his craftsmanship and strong relation-
ships with his clients. It was this focus
that not only developed the idea of Dan
Vos Construction Company but led the
business to where it is now: a third gener-
ation, family-owned design/build con-
struction company with approximately 70
employees working in almost every indus-
try within and beyond West Michigan.
Business
update ublication
Publisher: Gary Kralapp
Business Development
Senior Vice President: Jim Lroy
Senior Vice President: Diane LaPreze
Contributing Writers: Randy DeBoer,
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Jane M. Orient, Gyl Kasewurm, Kevin
Roehling, Rodney D. Unema, Gerald
Shankel.
Managing Editor: Carol M. Kralapp
Associate Editor: David Calkins,
Printing/Distribution: News Web Printing
Accountant: Michael Tawney & Company
Legal: Miller Canfield Paddock & Stone
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Over time, Vos’ son, Gary, and
grandson, Dan, entered the business
where they remain today. Gary currently
resides as CEO while Dan stands as the
company’s Executive Vice President.
“This is something that I’ve always
known I’ve wanted to be a part of,” said
Dan. “Learning from and growing with
this company is an incredible opportuni-
ty that I’m very proud to be a part of.”
Located in Ada, Mich., DVCC is com-
plete with a full architectural staff, steel
erection department and facilities servic-
es department. Since 1951 the organiza-
tion has had a hand in various industry
arenas: education and churches; dental
and veterinary clinics; and food process-
ing and manufacturing facilities.
In reflecting on its 60th anniversary,
Dan agrees that the success of the compa-
ny stems from the principles in which his
grandfather founded the company – the
value of relationships and ethics along-
side the promise of providing fair, quality
service. “The core values that my grand-
father instilled in the company in 1951
remain our foundation 60 years later,”
said Dan. These have not changed or fal-
tered, and will forever remain our focus.”
These values and practices have led
to the continued success and relation-
ships with many recognizable faces in
the West Michigan community including
Request Foods of Holland. This relation-
ship began in the late 1980s and contin-
ues to this day. Construction commenced
in July on Request Food’s latest develop-
ment: a new 225,000 sq. ft. frozen foods
production facility. The project is
planned to be completed in the late
spring of this year.
DVCC boasts a very high repeat
client rate which helped to maintain
business throughout the succession of
Putting the Pieces Together
SEEING THE ENTIRE SOLUTION, NOT JUST THE PARTS
• Access Control
• Digital Video Surveillance
• Intrusion Alarm
• Fire Alarm
• Photo ID Badging
• Visitor Management
Grand Rapids, MI 616-773-6300
the past few years. “We’ve been really
lucky to have such strong relationships
with our clients,” said Dan. “Throughout
the downfall of the economy, they
helped us to remain steady, and for them
we are thankful.”
Many of these repeat clients are
familiar organizations throughout West
Michigan, including Perrigo Company,
Nestlé Gerber, Hudsonville Ice Cream,
BISSELL and DVCC’s most recently devel-
oped affiliation Gordon Food Services
(GFS). DVCC was recently awarded a GFS
project which will entail a new corporate
campus near its current national head-
quarters in Wyoming, Mich. “This project
truly demonstrates our capabilities and
we’re thrilled to be working with a pres-
tigious client such as GFS.”
Aside from its clients, DVCC has
established a positive rapport with its
many subcontractors in the area; so much
as to have been awarded the 2010
American Subcontractors Association of
Michigan’s (ASAM) Contractor of the Year
(COTY) award. The award was created to
give the ASAM membership an opportu-
nity to nominate and recognize general
contractors or construction managers who
exhibit best practices, professionalism
and collaboration with Michigan’s sub-
contracting community. The association
voted on a set of ten criteria including bid
ethics and practice, safety, job site super-
vision, communication, schedule coordi-
nation, project relations, lien processes,
administrative procedures, payment
terms and quality workmanship.
“The COTY award is an incredible
honor for us; it represents our core val-
ues that are reflected in our day-to-day
business – the things that happen
behind the scenes,” said Dan. We’re so
honored to have received this award
www.securalarm.com
4
from our subcontracting community; we
wouldn’t be where or who we are today
without them.”
Before the new decade, CEO Gary
Vos realized the importance of consider-
ing a succession plan. In implementing a
stable plan, his hopes are that the com-
pany, along with every DVCC employee,
is able to transition appropriately
throughout the various management
changes. Although he and current DVCC
President Gordon DeYoung are not plan-
ning to retire yet this year, the manage-
ment realizes the planning will be crucial
when the time comes.
“This is a long-term plan that will
assist us when it is time for them to
retire,” said Dan. “We’ve found that
proactive succession planning is vital to
move forward with a smooth transition.”
In planning for the future, DVCC
stresses the importance of recognizing,
welcoming and implementing change
while the company acknowledges it must
stay current with industry trends.
Although change is inevitable, DVCC
remains forever rooted in the core values
it was founded upon.
“Our core values and ethics are the
base and heart of this company,” said Dan.
“These are the factors that will forever
remain intact and we refuse to change;
they have been the backbone since day
one and will lead us in the future.”
Shannon Cunningham is the
Marketing Coordinator at Dan Vos
Construction Company. She is a board
member with the American Marketing
Association of West Michigan and has a
BA in Advertising and Public Relations
from Grand Valley State University.
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 Bidding 200 MW of Renewable Energy Projects 5
for Detroit Edison RFP
Detroit – New Generation Power
Michigan, LLC announced that it is bid-
ding 100 MW of solar renewable energy
and 100 MW of wind renewable energy
projects for a total of 200 MW of renew-
able energy projects for Detroit Edison
Company’s RFP. The projects are estimat-
ed to cost between $650 and $700 mil-
lion dollars and will bring green invest-
ment and quality jobs to Michigan.
The New Generation Power
Michigan Team includes the following
major members:
• New Generation Power is the prime
contractor and manages the renewable
energy system.
• Patriot Solar will provide engineer-
ing, procurement and construction and
racking materials for PV solar projects.
• Martifer Solar USA will provide
engineering, procurement and construc-
tion for PV solar projects.
• Windemuller Electric will provide
engineering, procurement and construc-
tion for wind generation projects.
• Starr Commonwealth provides the
land to build solar and wind facilities.
• Wanxiang America provides solar
PV panels Made in the USA.
• Solar Street Lights USA provides
solar engineering.
• Anderson Environmental &
Engineering provides environmental per-
mitting and assessments.
“We are excited to have such an
extraordinary team,” said Dr. Chirinjeev
Kathuria, President of New Generation
Power. “Our team recognizes the initiative
launched by DTE Energy and Detroit
Edison to expand the renewable energy
space in Michigan, and we will provide
cutting-edge, world-class photovoltaic
solar power and wind generation systems
to Detroit Edison and their customers.”
A portion of the projects’ profits will
go to Starr Commonwealth to enhance
their mission of providing positive envi-
ronments where children flourish
through programs for at-risk youth in
Michigan, Ohio and nationally. The New
Generation Power Michigan team will
also provide internships, learning oppor-
tunities and employment for Starr
Commonwealth youth.
The projects are located in and
around Albion, Michigan and will be able
to generate enough electricity to power
over 28,500 homes and reduce carbon
dioxide emissions at a rate of 283,000
tons annually, equivalent to the emis-
sions from over 47,000 cars.
New Generation Power Michigan
partnered with Michigan-based and
Michigan-affiliated companies to utilize
local resources to create and retain jobs
for the Michigan work force. New
Generation Power Michigan estimates
that approximately 500 jobs will either be
saved or created in the Albion market
alone as well as thousands of other jobs
across the country, including design serv-
ices and manufacturing.
New Generation Power is also cur-
rently building an up to 62 MW Rockford
Solar Project, the largest PV solar devel-
opment in the Midwest and one of the
largest in the United States.
Albion, Michigan-based Patriot Solar
Group brings innovation and expertise in
engineering and manufacturing solar
trackers and mounts and will provide
engineering, procurement and construc-
tion and supply tracking and mounting
materials for PV solar projects.
Martifer Solar, a subsidiary of
Martifer SGPS, has installed over 100MW
of solar worldwide and will bring demon-
strated performance to providing engi-
neering, procurement, and construction
for the projects.
“Martifer is very excited to be part of
an opportunity that would not only gen-
erate job growth, but would also provide
the people of Michigan a substantial
amount of renewable energy for many
years to come,” said Raffi Agopian, CEO
of Martifer Solar USA, Inc.
Windemuller will bring extensive
experience in wind renewable system
development and will provide engineer-
ing, procurement and construction for
wind generation projects.
New Generation Power Michigan
Team will stimulate the economy, create
jobs and provide clean energy as mandat-
ed by Section 1603 of the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
of 2009.

Holland Begins Evaluating

Power Needs
Holland – With State of Michigan
approval of its air quality permit for a
new, 78-megawatt power unit at the
James De Young generating plant, the
Holland Board of Public Works will now
move forward with the process of decid-
ing how best to meet the community’s
future base load power generating needs.
“We are very pleased to have the
air permitting process completed,
because without it we could not realisti-
cally consider an upgrade of the De
Young plant as one of our viable
options,” said Loren Howard, general
manager of the Holland BPW. “It is a
great advantage to the community to
have this option, because a decision this
important should be made on the most
complete information possible.”
The greater Holland community is at
a crossroads in determining how best to
meet its future power needs. Factors at
work are long-term growth in power
demand, regulatory requirements for the
use of renewable energy sources, rising
demand for power world wide and the
cost and difficulty of maintaining the
aging equipment at the De Young plant,
which currently produces a significant
portion of the community’s electricity.
“By the end of 2011 our community
needs to make some decisions about
how we are going to generate base load
power,” Howard said. “Whatever the
path or paths we may choose, it takes
time to bring new generating resources
on line and we need to move ahead with
the decision-making process.”
The chief options under considera-
tion are to build cleaner, more efficient
generating capacity at the De Young
plant, buy more power from the open
markets or buy a share of ownership in
another power generating project.
An expansion at the De Young plant
would use circulating fluidized bed tech-
nology that dramatically reduces emis-
sions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides
and mercury, allowing for the very clean
combustion of coal. The facility could also
support the use of up to 30 percent biofu-
els such as wood, biomass and others,
providing flexibility of use in the future.
The new 78-megawatt power sta-
tion would replace an aging 11-
megawatt pulverized coal generator at
the De Young power station that was
installed in 1953.

Finance/Insurance Briefs
Kentwood – Regal Financial Group,
LLC announced that Brian Yarch has
accepted the opportunity to become the
chief operating officer of the company.
Grand Rapids – Varnum attorney
Melissa Papke has been selected to be a
member of the 2011 West Michigan
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board of
Directors. Papke is a corporate attorney
who focuses her practice on real estate
and financial services.
Grand Rapids – Fifth Third Bank
announced that Kevin Lukassen has
been named vice president and treasury
management sales manager for Fifth
Third Bank Western Michigan.
Grand Rapids – Baker Spindler Holtz
has recently hired two interns for the
2011 Tax Season. Kimberly Quaile, a
senior accounting student at Grand
Valley State University and Andrew
Ziegler, a senior accounting student at
Calvin College. Baker Spindler Holtz,
CPAs and Advisors, also announced the
promotion of Melissa Seguin, CPA to
tax supervisor. Melissa is a graduate of
Grand Valley State University and joined
the firm in 2005.
Ionia – Toni Buys, corporate governance
officer at Independent Bank, was pre-
sented with the Business Woman of the
Year award at the Ionia Area Chamber of
Commerce’s 2011 Annual Awards. Buys
received this award from Ionia’s Business
and Professional Women’s Club.
Grandville – The Sytsma Group, an
independent firm with securities offered
through Raymond James Financial
Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC,
announced that Carrie Cornelisse has
joined the firm. Cornelisse was hired as
the client services specialist Also of The
Sytsma Group, Christine Lindeman
recently completed the Foundations in
Financial Planning course offered by the
College for Financial Planning.
Grand Rapids – Teymur Bashirov CPA,
a graduate of GVSU, and Amanda Baar
CPA, a graduate of Calvin College, have
joined the firm of Helmholdt+Company
LLP, CPAs as staff accountants.
Grand Rapids – Lake Michigan Credit
Union announced the hiring of Alexis
Howard as a mortgage loan officer for
the Portage and Kalamazoo markets.
Austin, TX – The Association of
Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), the
world’s largest anti-fraud organization
and premier provider of anti-fraud train-
ing and education, has announced that
Johnnie R. Bejarano and E. Wendell
Hopewell have been elected to the ACFE
Board of Regents.
Grand Rapids – Baker Spindler Holtz,
CPAs and Advisors, announced that
Lori J. Baker is newly certified as an
Accredited Estate Planner® by the
National Association of Estate Planners
& Councils. Baker devotes the majority of
her time to tax planning and consulting.
Grand Rapids – Thomas L. Saxe, a share-
holder with the Grand Rapids law firm of
Rhoades McKee, was elected to serve as
Board Member of the Alternative Dispute
Resolution Committee of the Grand
Rapids Bar Association. He will serve
for a two year term.
Holland – Lake Michigan Financial
Corporation, holding company for The
Bank of Holland and The Bank of
Northern Michigan, announced: Gath
Deur has been named chief operating
officer; Paul Anema will fill the new role
of senior vice president, corporate serv-
ices; and Ellen Carpenter has been pro-
moted to vice president, marketing.
Grand Rapids – Varnum attorney
Thomas Barnes is the recipient of the
2011 Distinguished Service Award pre-
sented by the 2,600-member Labor and
Employment Law Section of the State
Bar of Michigan.
Grand Rapids – Adamy Valuation
Advisors, announced Brian G.
DeMaagd has achieved the Accredited
Senior Appraiser professional designa-
tion from the American Society of
Appraisers. Brandon S. Finnie has
been promoted to manager in recogni-
tion of his exceptional project manage-
ment skills and expertise in the litigation
support practice area.
Washington, D.C. – Lenders who partici-
pate in the U.S. Small Business
Administration’s Preferred Lender
Program can approve loans through the
agency’s new Small Loan Advantage
program beginning Feb. 15. At the same
time, the agency will begin accepting
applications from community-based,
mission-focused lenders who are inter-
ested in making SBA-guaranteed loans
through the new Community Advantage
program. Built on what the agency refers
to as its “Advantage” platform, both
Small Loan Advantage and Community
Advantage offer a streamlined applica-
tion process for SBA-guaranteed 7(a)
loans up to $250,000. Advantage loans
will come with the regular 7(a) govern-
ment guarantee, 85 percent for loans up
to $150,000 and 75 percent for those
greater than $150,000.
Washington, D.C. – Small businesses
facing maturity of commercial mortgages
or balloon payments before Dec. 31,
2012, may be able to refinance their
mortgage debt with a 504 loan from the
U.S. Small Business Administration
under a new, temporary program. The
new refinancing loan is structured like
SBA’s traditional 504, with borrowers
committing at least 10 percent equity
and working with third-party lending
institutions and SBA-approved Certified
Development Companies in the standard
50 percent/40 percent split. A key fea-
ture of the new program is that it does
not require an expansion of the business
in order to qualify. The program, author-
ized under the Small Business Jobs Act,
will be in effect through Sept. 27, 2012.
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6
Grand Rapids – For the third year in a
row, Ivy Funds and Waddell & Reed
Advisors Funds are among the top of
the “Best Mutual Fund Families” in an
annual ranking published by Barron’s.
Grand Rapids – Miller Johnson has
announced that Robert D. Brower was
appointed to the Fiduciary Litigation
Committee for 2011-2012 by Mary E.
Radford, president-elect of The
American College of Trust and Estate
Counsel.
Grand Rapids – Ross A. Leisman, of
Mika Meyers Beckett & Jones PLC,
was recently appointed to the Kent
Country Building Authority. Leisman
practices civil litigation, land use and
municipal law.
Grand Rapids – The CFA West Michigan
Society honored the team from Eastern
Michigan University (EMU) as the
2011 Global Investment Research
Challenge local competition winner. The
EMU team will now advance to the
Americas Regional competition to be
held in Omaha on April 7.
Grand Rapids – Sandy Siedlecki has
joined Macatawa Bank as Grand Rapids
Retail Team Lead. She will be responsi-
ble for overseeing 13 banking offices in
the Grand Rapids market. Stephanie
Price has joined Macatawa Bank as the
Investment Executive for the Grand
Rapids Area.
Lansing – Thomas Traciak has joined
Umbaugh, a Midwest-based public
accounting firm and advisor that works
closely with local governments, utilities
and schools.
Grand Rapids – Elizabeth K.
Bransdorfer, a member of the law firm
Mika Meyers Beckett & Jones PIC, was
recently elected Chair of the ADR Section
of the Grand Rapids Bar Association.

Michigan’s Emerging Technologies Fund Receives
Additional $1.4 Million
Grand Rapids – The Michigan
Strategic Fund (MSF) Board approved
an additional $1.4 million to be allocat-
ed to the Michigan Emerging
Technologies Fund (ETF) managed by
the Michigan Small Business and
Technology Development Center (MI-
SBTDC) in partnership with the
Michigan Economic Development
Corporation. The ETF provides commer-
IRS Issues Final Version of New Hire Retention Credit
Nationwide – The IRS has issued
the final version of the New Hire
Retention Credit (Form 5884-B) for use
Credit Application
Approvals Increase
Miami, FL – LeaseTrader.com, the
nation’s most popular online car leasing
marketplace, believes the environment
for consumer credit may be getting
healthier in analyzing its customer cred-
it application data of first-time cus-
tomers from the last quarter of 2010.
For the first time since the recession
began, the company saw the rate of
credit application approvals increase for
first-time customers during the final
quarter of 2010. Credit application
approvals increased by 4.5 percent since
the start of October and have continued
in positive territory to begin 2011. To
ensure the best possible experience for
drivers looking to find an individual
interested in assuming the remaining
contract, LeaseTrader.com requires all
car shoppers to verify creditworthiness
before any contact is made.
"Having good credit is arguably the
single most important factor in anyone’s
cialization funding to match federal
SBIR/STTR awards for technology-
based Michigan companies.
The Michigan ETF matches 25 per-
cent of phase I awards up to $25,000,
and 25 percent of phase II awards up to
$125,000. The ETF awards are grants,
and award dollars must be used to help
bring Michigan projects to commercial-
ization.
by employers to compute their credit for
retained workers. The Form itself is
unchanged from the draft version
ability to lease a vehicle," said Sergio
Stiberman, CEO and founder of
LeaseTrader.com. "We view this positive
indication as key to the health of the
overall leasing environment. It’s one
thing to offer great lease deals but
you’ve got to have customers with good
credit to sign on the dotted line."
Credit is analyzed differently when
applying to take over a lease compared
with credit analyzed to lease a new car
at the dealership. In taking over a lease,
the amount of credit a person has, com-
bined with credit history, is analyzed to
determine whether they can assume a
lease. Unlike a dealership, a person’s
credit score is not analyzed to determine
which category of pricing they qualify
for when shopping for the best payment.
The same person could have the credit to
lease one vehicle in both scenarios but
fail to qualify for the similar payment at
the dealer level.
“The ETF grants are being used to
hire key staff, protect intellectual prop-
erty, build facilities for production and
beta testing with new customers,” stated
Phil Tepley, ETF program manager.
Since the MI-SBTDC took over the
program in February 2008, it has
awarded 64 ETF awards for a total of
about $3.2 million. Companies report
that the program has enabled them to
issued in December of 2010.
The HIRE Act carried two valuable
incentives for employers that boosted
payroll in 2010: a payroll (FICA) tax
exemption for employers that hire
unemployed workers and an up-to-
$1,000 tax credit for keeping these new
hires on the payroll for at least one year.
Qualified employers were exempted
from paying the employer's 6.2% share
of Social Security (i.e., OASDI) employ-
ment taxes on wages paid in 2010 to a
newly hired qualified individual. The
payroll tax relief applied only for wages
paid to qualified individuals from the
period beginning on March 19, 2010
(the day after the HIRE Act was signed
into law by the President) and ending
on December 31, 2010.
In addition to the payroll tax
exemption, HIRE Act Sec. 102 provides
employers with an up-to-$1,000 tax
credit for retaining qualified individuals
as defined for purposes of the employer
payroll tax holiday purposes. The
workers must be employed by the
employer for a period of not less than
52 consecutive weeks, and their wages
for such employment during the last 26
weeks of the period must equal at least
80% of the wages for the first 26 weeks
of the period.
7
create and retain 104 jobs and raise an
additional $5.5 million.
“With Michigan ETF support, our
company was able to secure a scientist
with cellular imaging skills which accel-
erated our efforts in establishing the
mechanism of action of our novel
insulin-sensitizing agents,” said Rolf
Kletzien, founder of Metabolic Solutions
Development Co.
The amount of the credit per eligi-
ble employee is the lesser of $1,000 or
6.2% of wages (as defined for income
tax withholding purposes) paid by the
employer to the qualified employee dur-
ing the 52-week consecutive period.
The portion of the general business
credit attributable to the new hire reten-
tion credit cannot be carried back to a
tax year that begins before Mar. 18,
2010. The amount of the credit is
essentially capped at $1,000 for work-
ers who receive wages during the 52-
week period of more than $16,129.03.
($16,129.03 x .062 = $1,000)
The new hire retention credit is
claimed on the employer's income tax
return (not the employer's employment
tax return). The credit may be claimed
for a retained worker in the first tax
year ending after Mar. 18, 2010, for
which the retained worker satisfies the
52-consecutive-week requirement.
However, since retained workers must
be qualified individuals, the credit
applies only for workers hired after
Feb. 3, 2010, and before Jan. 1, 2011.
For employers filing calendar year
income tax returns, the retention credit
will be claimed on the employer's 2011
income tax return.

SBA Re-Launches Dealer Floor Plan
Pilot Loan Program
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Small
Business Administration announced
that a pilot loan program aimed at
increasing access to inventory financing
for auto, boat, RV and other dealerships
was re-launched Tuesday February 8th
and will be effective through Sept. 30,
2013.
The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010
included a provision for re-launching
SBA’s Dealer Floor Plan (DFP) Pilot Loan
program, which first became available in
July 2009. The pilot is part of the SBA’s
overall 7(a) loan guarantee program. The
Jobs Act also increased the maximum
size for 7(a) loans to $5 million, up from
$2 million, which includes loans made
Sustained High Oil Prices Slow Economic Recovery
Atlanta, GA – High oil prices, cau-
tious consumer sentiment and fiscal
cutbacks at all levels of government
continue to hamper the nation’s eco-
nomic recovery, said Rajeev Dhawan,
director of the Economic Forecasting
Center at Georgia State University’s J.
Mack Robinson College of Business.
In his Forecast for the Nation,
Dhawan said that the recent spike in oil
prices began with Tunisia's Jasmine
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through the DFP pilot program.
“As a result of the credit crunch in
late 2008 and early 2009, dealerships
saw a significant decline in the avail-
ability of this type of inventory financ-
ing,” SBA Deputy Administrator Marie
Johns said. “SBA’s original DFP pilot
program was launched as a way to
expand the availability of floor plan
financing and the Jobs Act added further
enhancements to that program, includ-
ing allowing for larger loan sizes.
“Dealerships are a cornerstone of
local business communities. As we con-
tinue to see our economy recover, the re-
launch of this pilot provides another
tool, alongside SBA’s other programs, to
Revolution last December. “The revolt
spilled over to Egypt in January, which
led that country to change regimes in
February,” said the forecaster. “The big
unknown now, is how the change in
Egypt will affect the stability of oil-pro-
ducing regimes in the region, particular-
ly those hostile to the West.”
Dhawan said that even without
these “political Black Swan events,” oil
prices will remain high because of
China’s demand for oil to support its
construction industry.
“Another area of concern,” said
Dhawan, “is the mood of consumers.
Personal consumption may have grown
by 4.4 percent in the fourth quarter of
2010. But don’t look for the momentum
of that quarter to continue to get us to
the 5 percent-plus GDP growth rate
needed to make for a strong job market.
Stagnant consumer confidence coupled
with federal budget cutbacks and the
hard reality of record fiscal deficits, has
led Congress to consider drastic changes
in discretionary federal spending.”
Dhawan also noted that another
impediment to reaching the higher rate
M because it would put all those people
& Highlights from the Economic
A 2.9% in the first half of 2011 and then
help them succeed and create jobs in
their local communities.”
The rules and regulations for the
pilot are available on the website of The
Federal Register, and in print. A proce-
dural guide to the program is posted on
the SBA website at.
Floor plan financing is a revolving
line of credit that allows a dealership to
obtain financing through SBA’s 7(a)
program for inventory that can be titled,
such as autos, RVs, manufactured
homes, boats and trailers. As each piece
of collateral is sold by the dealer, the
loan advance against that piece of collat-
eral is repaid. As the loan is repaid, the
dealer can borrow against the line of
of GDP is an idle construction industry.
“New home sales were the lowest
on record last year, and even in 2013,
housing starts will remain well below
the one million mark,” said Dhawan. A
consumer, still unwilling to invest in an
asset that “may depreciate 10 percent
or 20 percent in the future” is the pri-
mary reason for why housing will con-
tinue to lag.
Dhawan also predicted that unem-
ployment will remain above 9 percent
until late 2012. He said that students
who use “delaying tactics such as going
for advanced degrees or postponing
graduation” will eventually have to
enter the workforce. At the same time,
older workers will stay longer in the
workforce to recoup portfolio losses
(from the stock market and their
homes), adding to the rising labor force
participation rate.
“One worry we don’t have,” con-
cluded Dhawan, “is inflation. Inflation
occurs when the economy is running
above its potential to grow given the
limits of population, equipment, soft-
ware and facilities available. That is not
the case in the United States right now,
but a dose of inflation would not be bad
who lost jobs during the Great
Recession back to work."
Forecasting Center’s National Report
• The economy will expand by
2.4% in the second half as the fiscal
8
credit to add new inventory.
The program is available to qualify-
ing small businesses, including new and
used automobile, motorcycle, RV, manu-
factured homes and boat dealers. The
SBA has issued a new maximum alter-
native size standard to allow businesses
with $15 million net worth and $5 mil-
lion in net income measured over two
years to have access to the program.
All SBA-approved lenders may
make DFP loans. Lenders with more
than $1 billion of floor plan lines of
credit in their current portfolios may
apply for delegated authority, which
would expedite the lending process.
stimulus wanes. Overall, real GDP
growth for 2011 will be 2.8%, decelerat-
ing slightly to a 2.7% growth rate in
2012. In 2013, real GDP will grow at a
slightly better rate of 3.0% as the depre-
ciating dollar boosts exports. Personal
consumption growth will average 2.9%
in 2011, slow to a 2.6% rate in 2012
and then to 2.3% in 2012.
• Oil prices will remain around $85
per barrel over the next few years as
emerging markets (especially China)
continue their expansion. Barring fur-
ther geopolitical shocks, oil prices will
average $85.8 per barrel in 2011, $87.7
in 2012 and $86.8 per barrel in 2013.
• Vehicle sales will average 12.7
million units in 2011 and improve slow-
ly but surely towards the 14.0 million
unit mark by 2013.
• Private fixed investment will
grow in the 8% range in the coming
three years. But job growth will still be
sub-par by historical standards. In
2011, the economy will create 100,000
jobs per month, which slightly improves
to a monthly 127,000 rate in 2012 and
further to 140,000 per month in 2013.
• The CPI inflation rate will aver-
age 1.9% in 2011 and 2012. The infla-
tion rate will increase to 2.0% in 2013.
Meanwhile, the core CPI inflation rate
will average 1.1% in 2011 but grow at a
much stronger rate of 1.9% in 2012 and
2013. Expect the yield on a benchmark
10-year T-bond to average 4.0% in
2011, 4.7% in 2012 and 5.0% in 2013.

Technology CFOs Forecast Growth in 2011 Revenue
Chicago, IL – According to a study
by BDO USA, LLP, one of the nation’s
leading accounting and consulting
organizations, 77 percent of chief finan-
cial officers (CFOs) at top U.S. technolo-
gy companies expect revenue to increase
in 2011. Continuing the upward trend in
optimism, CFOs forecast an overall rev-
enue increase of 10.4 percent, up from
2010 (8.7%) and a dramatic increase
from 2009 (1.6%).
Merger and acquisition (M&A)
activity is also expected to rise, with 78
percent of CFOs forecasting an
increase, including 23 percent who
expect it to increase significantly over
2010. Contending with heavy competi-
tion, 78 percent of CFOs say the moti-
vation for M&A will be primarily offen-
sive and geared toward strategic
growth. Amid rumors of major media
and Internet companies considering
initial public offerings (IPOs) and an
improved stock market, the vast major-
ity of CFOs (68%) also expect an
increase in IPO activity in 2011.
“With liquidity improving and rev-
IT Certifications Grow in
Importance in Hiring
Downers Grove, IL – Employers are
inclined to rely more heavily on profes-
sional certifications when hiring infor-
mation technology (IT) workers, but are
challenged by credential evaluation and
validation issues, says research from
CompTIA, the non-profit trade associa-
tion for the information technology (IT)
industry.
Among IT hiring managers, nearly
two-thirds (64 percent) rate IT certifica-
tions as having extremely high or high
value in validating skills and expertise.
Eight in ten human resources (HR) pro-
fessionals surveyed believe IT certifica-
tions will grow in usefulness and impor-
tance over the next two years.
But employers also expressed con-
cerns about some aspects of using IT cer-
tifications in the hiring process. There is
a perception among some hiring IT man-
agers that the HR department does not
have a solid understanding of IT certifi-
cations. Some firms also said verifying a
job candidate’s credentials can be a chal-
lenge due to the time involved (cited by
44 percent of hiring IT managers) and
Communication & IT 9
enue on the rise, technology companies remain the most cited primary driver for • Economic Rebound Necessary
are poised for a strong 2011,” said Aftab acquisitions in the industry at 39 per- for Sustained Growth. The majority of
Jamil, Partner and National Leader of the cent. Many CFOs also point to increased CFOs (52%) say continued economic
Technology and Life Sciences Practice, market share as a primary driver (34%), rebound in the U.S. will be the most
BDO USA, LLP. “After scaling back on up from 24 percent in 2010. important factor driving growth in 2011.
R&D and operational expenses during • Improved Access to Capital. The On the heels of skyrocketing mobile
the recession, many technology compa- vast majority of CFOs (83%) say they device sales, 19 percent of CFOs say
nies are flush with cash and well-posi- feel better about their company’s ability consumer demand for innovative per-
tioned to spend. M&A will be a primary to access capital and credit. Still, threats sonal technology will be the most impor-
tool for companies looking to boost prof- remain to the funding environment. tant driver of growth, up from 12 per-
itability through strategic growth and Sixty-one percent of CFOs say economic cent in 2010. International growth
increased market share.” uncertainty will have the greatest effect (11%), increased corporate IT budgets
Other major findings of the 2011 on funding, followed by regulatory and (8%) and demand for green technolo-
BDO Technology Outlook Survey: political developments (14%), interest gies and solutions (8%) are also cited.
• M&A Activity Ramps Up in rates (13%) and more competition for • Competition is the Greatest
Software, Media and Telecom Sectors. funds (8%). Challenge for 2011. With China threat-
With technology giants increasingly • Private Equity Remains Primary ening to outpace the U.S. in patent appli-
buying niche software specialists to Source of Capital. Forty-three percent of cations, 40 percent of CFOs point to
expand their offerings, nearly one-third CFOs report that they anticipate seeking competition as the greatest challenge
(32%) of CFOs expect the traditional additional capital this year, up from 2010 they will face in 2011. This marks a
software sector to see the most M&A (32%) and 2009 (34%). With equity mar- notable jump from 2010 when just 15
activity in 2011. Another 30 percent kets relatively stable and many private percent of CFOs cited competition as the
point to the media and telecom sector, equity firms shifting their focus from primary challenge. Managing risk moves
followed by biotechnology & life sci- exits to new investments, most CFOs who to the second most cited challenge
ences (15%), clean tech (13%) and plan to raise capital report that they will (20%), a significant decline from 2010
hardware (10%). Consistent with 2010, focus on private equity (43%). Another (38%). Recruiting and retaining work-
increased revenue and profitability 31 percent will concentrate on debt, down force talent (19%) and access to capital
slightly from 2010 (34%), and 19 percent (15%) also remain challenges.
will focus on public equity.
effort required (38 percent).
Experience, track record and accom-
plishments rank as the most important
factors when evaluating job candidates,
according to the study. But education
and credentials such as certifications
also rank high. For example, 86 percent
of hiring managers indicate IT certifica-
tions are a high or medium priority dur-
ing the candidate evaluation process.
The study suggests that certifica-
tions will become even more important
as employers struggle to find individuals
to fill job openings. Despite a virtual
buyer’s market for hiring, roughly eight
in ten HR executives in the United States
said it’s challenging to find the right can-
didate with the right skill set to fill their
openings and many IT managers in the
study share a similar view.
“Now more than ever, there’s little
margin for error for making a bad hire,”
Herbert said. “In an environment of
needing to do more with less, organiza-
tions cannot afford the time and cost of
bringing on a new employee who cannot
contribute immediately.”

Survey Establishes Link Between
High-Speed Internet Use and Bottom Line
Lansing – A new report by Connect
Michigan shows businesses with a
broadband connection are likely to gen-
erate more revenue and jobs. Michigan
businesses with high-speed Internet
connections report having median annu-
al revenues $200,000 more than busi-
nesses without broadband
“In the digital economy, businesses
must embrace broadband, and other
transformative technologies like it, in
order to remain competitive and viable,”
said Brian Mefford, CEO of Connected
Nation, Connect Michigan’s parent
organization. “The Internet is driving
products and services to the marketplace
in an environment where creativity and
innovation are both reinforced and
rewarded.”
Connect Michigan, a statewide pub-
lic-private partnership working on
broadband expansion, has released a
new study on technology usage among
businesses in Michigan. The new
Communications & IT Briefs
Jersey City, NJ – Comodo announced that
the company has acquired DNS.com, the
managed domain name system (DNS)
services provider. With this acquisition,
Comodo is also announcing the launch
of its Authoritative DNS Service.
DNS.com will join the Comodo family of
companies and the founding team
including Dan Kimball, former CEO of
DNS.com, who will join Comodo and
continue the development of the next
generation of DNS services.
Grand Rapids – With the most recent
release of CU*BASE system enhance-
ments, CU*Answers has provided its
clients with controls to specify certain
membership designations (such as busi-
nesses) as being exempt from Opt In/Opt
Out requirements. CU*Answers also
unveiled several improvements to the
Dashboard tools embedded in the
CU*BASE core data processing system
developed from direct input of CEO’s that
attended the most recent CEO Strategies
Focus Group.
New York, NY – The winners of the
Annual Telly Awards have been
announced. Out of nearly 11,000 entries
from all 50 states and numerous coun-
tries, WGVU has been awarded with two
Communication & IT
Business Technology Assessment
reveals how technology is being used by
businesses and where gaps still remain.
The assessment is designed to measure
technology adoption and the awareness
of available broadband service among
Michigan businesses and establish
benchmarks for these metrics.
Findings from this survey illustrate
a significant correlation between high-
speed Internet adoption and a business’s
bottom line. Specific examples include:
• Businesses with high-speed
Internet connections report having medi-
an annual revenues $200,000 more than
businesses without broadband.
• About one-half of all Michigan
businesses (50%, or approximately
118,000 businesses) have a website.
Median annual revenues among busi-
nesses that use broadband and have a
website are double the state average.
• Broadband can enable job cre-
ation and enhance quality of life. 24%
Telly Awards: LZ Michigan: A Journey
Home in the category of TV Documentary
was awarded Bronze, and LZ Michigan:
Highlights also received a Bronze in the
category of TV Live Events.
Madison, WI – TDS Telecommunications
Corp. was recognized at the J.D. Power
and Associates Customer Service
Roundtable in Las Vegas, as a J.D. Power
2011 Customer Service Champion—one of
only 40 companies to have earned the dis-
tinction this year.
Grand Rapids – First
Telecommunications announced that
Brad Cree has joined their organization as
an account executive.
Grand Rapids – CU*Answers and
McQueen Financial Advisors, an SEC-
registered investment advisory and Asset
Liability Management provider, have
agreed to an alliance to improve the ALM
processes and reporting for their clients.
Grand Rapids – Xtend, Inc. reports that
electronic communication delivered to
members through its Member Reach
service reached more than three million
email and online banking messages to
credit union members.
of Michigan businesses let employees
telework.
• Statewide, more than eight out of
ten Michigan businesses (84%, or
approximately 197,000 businesses) use
computers for their work functions.
Among those that do not use a comput-
er, the largest barrier is the belief that
they do not need computers for their
work, followed by those that report that
their business is too small to benefit
from a computer, or that computers are
too difficult to use.
Other key highlights:
• 10% - Broadband-connected
Michigan businesses that need more
bandwidth
• $67 - Median monthly cost for
broadband for Michigan businesses
• 75% - Broadband adoption in the
Michigan manufacturing sector
Across the state, approximately
164,000 Michigan businesses use
broadband for their daily business
Detroit – To meet the growing need for a
Michigan-based trade association
focused on synergy and collaboration to
insure continued growth of the mobile
technology industry, the Mobile
Technology Association of Michigan
(MTAM) has been formed as a non-prof-
it trade association. MTAM is now
accepting applications for charter, corpo-
rate, small business, individual and stu-
dent memberships. The MTAM Board of
Directors includes founder Linda
10
needs. This includes 63% of small busi-
nesses, or approximately 78,000 busi-
nesses with fewer than five employees.
Increasing broadband capacity
among businesses is just one area that
Connect Michigan is focused on. Across
the state, Connect Michigan is collabo-
rating with local partners to increase
broadband accessibility and use in vul-
nerable areas.
Connect Michigan has partnered
with the Michigan Public Service
Commission to create the state’s first
broadband inventory maps and engage
in a research project to better under-
stand broadband adoption across the
state. The project is focused on gather-
ing accurate and reliable data on the
broadband market to aid in planning,
the creation and facilitation of local tech-
nology planning teams and the estab-
lishment of computer ownership and
Internet access programs.
Daichendt, Cynthia Grubbs, Paul
Czarnik, Keith Bourne, and Jonathan
Engelsma. The group is currently oper-
ating out of Southfield, but seeking per-
manent offices in downtown Detroit.
Grand Rapids - Open Systems
Technologies, Inc. announced the addi-
tion of Michael McKenzie as Senior
Account Executive and Doug
Greenwood as Sales Support Specialist.

Mobile Tech in the Workplace:
A Management and Budget Challenge
Detroit – Mobile devices have
become a standard part of today's work-
place; in fact, most companies and their
employees would likely struggle to oper-
ate without them.
However, many corporate execu-
tives and their IT staff are beginning to
realize they can no longer enforce corpo-
rate standards for mobile devices and
networks and instead must begin to
embrace the popularity of consumer-ori-
ented, employee-selected handsets.
According to the Aberdeen Group’s 2010
Wireless & Mobility study, “There's been
a four-fold increase in employee-pur-
chased devices used for business pur-
poses. In many cases, workers are
choosing to bypass enterprise IT depart-
Review of Talent Is
Overrated
By Rolf Dobelli, Chairman,
getAbstract
Author Geoff Colvin rejects the pop-
ular notion that the genius of a Tiger
Woods, a Mozart or a Warren Buffett is
inborn uniquely to only a few individu-
als. He cites research that refutes the
value of precocious, innate ability and
he provides numerous examples of the
intensely hard work that high achieve-
ment demands. Best performers’
intense, “deliberate practice” is based on
clear objectives, thorough analysis,
Communication & IT
ments entirely to use their own mobile
devices for work.”
As a result, companies are facing
increased pressure from employees who
want to bring personal mobile devices
such as iPhones and iPads into work,
and those employees aren’t very under-
standing when told they can’t because
the IT department can't provide support.
At a recent Computer Weekly round-
table event, General Motors Global
Director of Mobile Computing and
Unified Communications stated, "You
can't stop people from bringing in power-
ful devices. They have applications such
as Google Talk and Microsoft Live capa-
bility on their SmartPhones, but many
come up against the geniuses in the IT
sharp feedback, and layered, systematic
work. getAbstract finds that Colvin
makes his case clearly and convincingly.
He shows readers how to use hard work
and deliberate practice to improve their
creative achievements, their work and
their companies. The author’s argument
about the true nature of genius is very
engaging, but, in the end, he makes it
clear that the requirements of extraordi-
nary achievement remain so stringent
that society, after all, turns out to have
very few geniuses. Colvin admits that
the severe demands of true, deliberate
practice are so painful that only a few
people master it, but he also argues that
you can benefit from understanding the
nature of great performance. Perhaps, he
says, the real gift of genius is the capac-
ity for determined practice. You can
improve your ability to create and inno-
vate once you accept that even talent
isn’t a free ticket to great performance. It
takes work.
Geoff Colvin. Talent Is Overrated:
What Really Separates World-Class
Performers from Everybody Else.
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$25.95. ISBN-13: 978-1591842248.
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than 5,000 titles covered. www.getab-
stract.com
department who can't give them access
to corporate systems.”
But this issue isn’t new. As long
ago as 2007, an article in CIO Magazine
stated, “A mobile mess looms for CIOs
who ignore the rising popularity of con-
nected handhelds. This trend poses new
challenges to CIOs who need to maintain
enterprise network and data security,
plus keep end-user support costs down.
Yet most enterprises have no policies or
mobile management strategy in place to
achieve these goals.” A number of ques-
tions can come up: How do you maintain
security? How do you minimize costs?
And last but certainly not least, how do
companies integrate such a multitude of
technologies into the IT infrastructure?
Four years later, companies are finally
starting to realize the challenge they’re
faced with and are now seeking strate-
gies to meet that challenge.
Early last December, Mobile Monday
Detroit offered presenters and exhibits to
help companies begin to understand the
issues involved in managing their firm’s
mobile technology needs. Among the
presenters was Nick Pike, representing
Nick Picke Consulting and VOX Mobile,
Great Coffee Starts With A Fresh Roast
Open to the Public Saturdays 10am to 3pm
www.grandrapidscoffee.com
11
who spoke about the diverse nature of
the current wireless horizon –
Blackberry, Droid, iPhone, iPad,
Windows, Palm devices – and how to
securely manage these various platforms
across an enterprise.
According to Pike, “The ability to
use wireless for business today has
become more exciting than ever.
Deploying applications that save time
and money has never been easier.
Unfortunately, with the introduction of
the iPhone, iPad, Droid devices and 3G
and 4G networks, the wireless landscape
has never been more confusing. How do
we secure these devices? How can we
manage these devices? How do we sup-
port these devices? How can we leverage
the best pricing from the carriers? How
can we control international users?
Which applications do we choose? From
the smallest business to the largest
enterprise - all of these questions exist.”
Companies would do well to answer
these questions for themselves especially
now that the Holiday season has ended
and employees will be returning to the
workforce armed with the latest new
devices in mobile technology.
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1111 Godfrey Avenue SW Ste S530
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Craig A. Patterson • 616-308-7753
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Education Briefs
Kalamazoo – Western Michigan
University's public radio station,
WMUK 102.1 FM, has a new general
manger and underwriting manager: Dr.
Gordon Bolar, WMUK's development
director, will now lead the station replac-
ing Floyd Pientka, who retired Jan. 31
after 11 years as general manager and
26 years at the University. WMUK also
hired Anders Dahlberg fill the vacant
position of underwriting manager.
Grand Rapids – James Edwards has
been selected as the new executive direc-
tor of the Dorothy A. Johnson Center
for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State
University. He replaces Kathy Agard,
who retired in December. Edwards has
served as director of the Johnson
Center’s Community Research Institute
and assistant professor of social work
since arriving at Grand Valley in 2003.
Grand Rapids – Davenport University
presented the 2011 Peter C. Cook
Excellence in Business (EIB) Award to
James P. Hackett, president and CEO of
Steelcase, Inc.
Big Rapids – For the fifth year, Ferris
State University’s School of Education
has received funding in the amount of
$47,000 from the Martin Luther King
Jr./Cesar Chavez/Rosa Parks-Morris
Hood Jr. Educator Development Program
grant from the state of Michigan.
Allendale – For the first time in the uni-
versity's history, the Grand Valley State
University Board of Trustees voted to
freeze housing rates. All freshmen and
returning students living on campus will
pay fall 2010 rates.
Lansing – James B. Thelen of DeWitt
has been named Associate Dean for
Legal Affairs and General Counsel at
Cooley Law School. He takes over
duties from James Robb, who has been
named Associate Dean for Development
and Alumni Relations. Thelen was most
recently a partner at Miller, Canfield,
Paddock, and Stone, where he worked
in the firm’s Lansing office and handled
several matters on Cooley’s behalf.
Grand Rapids – Kendall College of Art
and Design hosted Dr. Nell Irvin
Painter - award winning scholar, writer
and one of the pre-eminent African-
American historians today - at a free
public event in mid February.
East Lansing – The Crandall family from
Battle Creek has been recognized as the
2011 Michigan State University (MSU)
Dairy Farmer of the Year - the highest
honor bestowed by the MSU Department
of Animal Science. Larry Crandall, his
wife Gloria, and two sons, Brad (wife
Monica) and Mark (wife Sara) operate
the family business, Crandall Dairy
Farms LLC.
Lansing – Governor Rick Snyder
announced the appointments of
Michael Hawks and Mike Morris to the
Eastern Michigan University Board of
Regents. The regents will serve eight-
year terms expiring Dec. 31, 2018.
Hawks will replace regent member
Philip A. Incarnati and Morris will
replace Gary Hawks.
Hoffman Estates, IL – Sanford-Brown
announced the launch of Sanford-Brown
Community Link at more than 30 cam-
puses across the United States.
Community Link is a membership based
suite of on-campus and online resources
giving students access to online test
preparation tools and alumni access to
continuing education activities and short
credential-based courses.
Grand Rapids – Grand Rapids
Community College has revamped their
non-credit, extended-education Certificate
in Aging program this year to incorporate
many improvements and inputs suggest-
ed by area professionals as well as past
participants. While targeted to those cur-
rently working in the field, GRCC has also
opened the course to anyone interested,
particularly those caring for aging family
members or friends. Continuing
Education Credits are available to Nursing
(RN, LPN) and Social Work Professionals.
Grand Rapids – Awards were handed out
at Calvin's faculty awards dinner last
February. Larry Herzberg (Asian
Studies) was the 2011 recipient of the
Presidential Award for Exemplary
Teaching, the highest honor that the col-
lege bestows upon any faculty member.
Irene Konyndyk (French) received the
Innovative Teaching Award; Ned Nielsen
(Engineering) was awarded the Advising
and Mentoring Award; Gerard Fondse Jr.
(English) received the Community-Based
Teaching Award and Stephanie
Sandberg (Communication Arts and
Sciences) took home the From Every
Nation Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Muskegon – Since 1986, the D. J. Angus
research and education vessel has pro-
vided “on the water” experiences for
almost 74,000 students and the general
public. The vessel is docked on Harbor
Island in Grand Haven and is operated
by the Annis Water Resources Institute
(AWRI) at Grand Valley State
University which use the vessel for
research. As the vessel celebrates 25
years, more than 12,000 Grand Valley
students have also been on the D. J.
Angus, conducting hands-on water-
quality sampling and analysis.
Grand Rapids – Grand Rapids
Community College Tassell M-TEC and
Habitat for Humanity of Kent County
began work on the home at 335 Freyling
Place SE - just one in a much larger proj-
ect called the Wealthy Heights
Partnership Project. This is the 13th time
the two have worked together to create a
home for a local family, and the home is
the 10th to have earned LEED certifica-
tions for its energy conservation design.
Grand Rapids – The 31-member Calvin
College board of trustees concluded its
winter meeting, approving 10 faculty
members for reappointment and granting
tenure to Patrick Bailey (computer sci-
ence), David Dornbos (biology), Kristin
Du Mez (history), Matt Halteman (phi-
losophy), Phillip Hash (Music),
Youngkhill Lee (HPERDS), Matthew
Lundberg (religion), Corey Roberts
(German) and Aubrey Sykes (engineer-
ing). Calvin's 19th-annual Presidential
Award for Exemplary Teaching was
given to associate professor of Asian
Languages Larry Herzberg. Finally,
Bastian Knoppers, who has served as
chair for the past five years, passed the
torch to Scott Spoelhof.
Big Rapids – Ferris political science fac-
ulty member Christine Bailey's students
organized a series of activities that
raised about $10,000 during a two-year
period to benefit soldiers and families of
soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical
Center in Washington, D.C., in January.
Bailey traveled to Washington D.C. with
students Shane Stikeleather, Drew
Davidson and John Lyons who present-
ed more than $6,000 in cash and gift
cards to Stephen Maguire, director of
Walter Reed's Service Families
Assistance Center. Ferris is the only uni-
versity in the United States to have such
a project for their patients.
12
Grand Rapids – Five charter schools
authorized by Grand Valley State
University are now designated as a
School of Excellence: Arbor Academy
(Battle Creek), Black River Public
Schools (Holland), Detroit Merit Charter
Academy (Detroit), Oakland Academy
(Portage), and Vanderbilt Charter
Academy (Holland). All went through a
rigorous review process that included
analysis of historical performance.
Grand Rapids – Calvin physics profes-
sors Stan Haan and David Van Baak
were recently named Fellows of the
American Physical Society. Previous pro-
fessors Vernon Ehlers and John Van
Zytveld have also received this honor.
Van Baak is being honored for his devel-
opment of lab experiments for under-
graduates. Haan is being honored for his
cutting-edge research in atomic physics.
Kalamazoo – Dennis W. Archer of
Detroit and William D. Johnston of
Portage have been elected to serve for
2011 as chair and vice chair, respective-
ly, of the Western Michigan University
Board of Trustees. All officers serve one-
year terms. Archer replaces Trustee
Larry Tolbert of Kalamazoo, who
remains on the board.
Grand Rapids – The third lecture in the
Grand Rapids Community College
2010-11 Psychology Speakers Series
featured Dr. Steve Wagner, Executive
Director of Organizational Learning at
GRCC. The final presentation in the
series will be “The Roots of Morality:
Does Religion Play a Role or is the Tail
Wagging the Dog?” by Luke Galen,
Ph.D on March 30.
Allendale – Grand Valley State
University's accountability Dashboard
Report shows the college leading other
Michigan schools in key performance
indicators over the last decade: 23 percent
of the increase in annual enrollment in
Michigan’s 15 public universities over the
last 10 years was at GVSU; the number of
degrees awarded went up by nearly
10,000, GVSU having the largest share of
it at 22 percent; and during the same peri-
od, Grand Valley has kept tuition below
the state average even though it receives
the lowest state funding per student.

WMU Lauded in Groundbreaking
National Report on Sustainability
Kalamazoo – Western Michigan
University was lauded as a campus
trendsetter in a groundbreaking national
report released Feb. 9 that outlines how
colleges around the nation are saving
millions in operating funds by using
innovative green financing models.
Successful methods pioneered at
WMU were outlined in "Greening the
Bottom Line: The Trend toward Green
Revolving Funds on Campus." Released
at www.GreeningTheBottomLine.org, the
report was published by the Cambridge
(Mass.)-based Sustainable Endowments
Institute in collaboration with 11 partner
organizations.
Facing rising energy costs and steep
budget cuts, the report says that many
colleges are grappling with how to
finance urgently needed energy efficiency
upgrades. In response, more schools are
tapping a new option--a green revolving
fund or GRF--for financing sustainability
improvements while earning a high
return on investment.
Ferris State University Responds to Budget Proposal
Big Rapids – Governor Rick
Snyder’s announcement that higher
education funding will be cut by 21.9
percent is an unprecedented challenge to
Ferris State University and its students.
If enacted in its entirety, the cuts would
mean the loss of nearly $10.6 million to
the University – or more than $780 for
each student enrolled. This would be
the largest funding decrease in the his-
tory of the University.
“By any standards this is a historic
shift in how the state funds higher edu-
cation,” said Ferris President David
Eisler. “Michigan’s needs well-educated,
productive workers who will reverse the
state’s economic situation. We will work
to temper the negative impact these cuts
will have on producing the graduates
our state needs.”
Although the scope of Gov. Snyder’s
proposal is historic, the university has
already taken steps in line with the fiscal
realities of the state. In the past two
years the university has reduced its
staffing by more than 100 full and part-
time positions. This and other actions
should help reduce the impact of the
state’s disinvestment, although the size
of the cuts means extremely difficult
decisions lay ahead.
“Our first priority is our students and
“The trend is clear both in terms of
money saved and reduced energy con-
sumption,” said Mark Orlowski, execu-
tive director of the institute. “The number
of green revolving funds has more than
quadrupled since 2008. A major incentive
is the financial benefit. Our survey found
a median annual return on investment of
32 percent.”
While most funds are new, the
report points out, others have been in
existence for a decade or more and have
proven consistent long-term perform-
ance. WMU has a quasi GRF that has
been in existence since 1980--by far the
oldest effort noted in the report. The
WMU funding arrangement has
financed 101 projects, with an average
annual return on investment of 47 per-
cent and an average simple payback
period of 2.1 years.
At WMU, rather than establish a for-
mal GRF as many schools are now doing,
Glasser says, funding for energy conser-
vation and greenhouse gas reduction is
the continued high quality of their educa-
tion,” said Eisler. “During my eight years
as president, we have never increased
tuition to cover reductions from the state.
We remain dedicated to constraining costs
and maintaining quality.”
The governor has proposed a
reserve fund of $83 million for universi-
ties that hold tuition increases to less
than seven percent. Assuming all state
universities hold costs below this level –
as Ferris State University has done since
at least 2003 – the impact would be a 15
percent reduction in funding. That
reduction would still be the largest in
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directly built into a deferred maintenance
fund and the infrastructure the
University has built for utility billing.
"The rationale for not creating a for-
mal GRF, with a fixed principal, is that it
would set artificial and inappropriate lim-
its," he notes. "Our goal is to cost-effec-
tively identify opportunities at all funding
levels and to strategically employ existing
funding mechanisms to reduce our bot-
tom line energy and water costs."
WMU Vice President for Business
and Finance Lowell Rinker says that
while the SEI survey instrument was
broad and included data on a number of
campus operations, it was the
University's methods for financing sus-
tainability projects that attracted the
institute's interest.
"The piece they were intrigued with
is our Facilities Management practice of
moving forward on projects based on a
return on investment model," Rinker
says. "Rather than limiting our invest-
ment to a certain base budgeted
the university’s history at more than
$7.3 million.
A 21.9 percent reduction in funding
at Ferris State University would mean
that the state would contribute approxi-
mately 21 percent of the cost of a stu-
dent’s education. With a 15 percent cut
the state would still contribute less than
a quarter of the cost of a college degree.
The impact of other details of the
governor’s plan, such as rolling funding
for higher education into what would
13
amount, we look at how quick the pay-
back is. We have been using this
approach for 30 years and have
returned millions of base dollar savings
in energy costs. This kind of environ-
mental and financial stewardship is now
an ingrained part of our culture."
The report notes a wide variety of
projects that are financed through GRFs
including the following:
• In 2001, WMU moved the
waste heat from the chillers at its ice
arena to heat the large pool in an adja-
cent natatorium. All of the steam energy
needed to heat the pool was no longer
needed. It resulted in annual savings of
$24,000 per year and a 51% annual
return on investment.
• A 2009 Harvard University proj-
ect installed energy-efficient lighting in
10 parking garages, resulting in annual
savings of $400,000 and is projected to
yield a 23 percent annual return on
investment over the next 10 years.
effectively become the K-20 budget,
remain to be seen.
“Over the past decade in Michigan,
our state government has steadily
stepped away from its financial respon-
sibility to public universities,” said
Eisler. “What was once a state commit-
ment to higher education has now
become the financial responsibility of
our students and their families. This is a
disappointing turn of events that is not
likely to be reversed.”

Local Travel Trends for 2011
Compared with National Results
Grand Rapids – Grand Rapids’
Travel Leaders is forecasting that area
business travel for 2011 is likely to be
somewhat higher than the level of busi-
ness travel booked during all of 2010.
That’s in line with the recently released
nationwide findings of Travel Leaders in
which 76% of its business-focused trav-
el agents throughout the United States
are forecasting that business travel for
2011 will match or exceed their total
bookings for last year.
“We are optimistic about the level of
business travel that will take place in
2011 for West Michigan’s companies,
whether they are large corporations or
small- to mid-sized companies,” stated
Mike Malaney, President of Grand
Rapids’ Travel Leaders location. “Our
business travel clients rely on our com-
mitment to use all cost-savings meas-
ures possible to help them stay on budg-
et and ‘get the most bang for their buck’
when business requires them to be on
the road. Additionally, they have peace
of mind knowing any necessary last
minute changes can be handled immedi-
ately by a trained, local professional –
not by calling some unknown 800-num-
ber. We call that good business sense.”
Anticipated Level of Business Travel
Malaney said he expects business
travel this year to increase by 15% over
2010 levels. Nationally, when Travel
Leaders business travel experts were
asked, “What have your business travel
clients indicated in terms of either actual
bookings and/or client feedback as to the
amount of travel they anticipate for 2011
compared to 2010?” 39.7% said that
booking levels would increase this year,
36.3% said booking levels would remain
on par with 2010, and only 7.8% indi-
cated there would be a decline.
Hotel Accommodations
Grand Rapids’ business travelers
primarily choose their hotel accommoda-
tions based on location to business
meeting said Malaney. Nationally, when
asked, “What is most important to your
business travel clients when choosing a
hotel?” the top five selections were: 1.
Location – near business meeting
(82.8%); 2. Rewards program – frequent
guest points (54.4%); 3. Free Wi-Fi
(31.4%); 4. Location – near airport
(17.7%); 5. Free breakfast (13.2%).
Survey participants were allowed to
select up to three options.
Other Findings
• Combining Business with
Leisure – Malaney stated that his busi-
ness travel clients have combined busi-
ness travel with leisure or family trips.
Nationally, 65.7% indicated that clients
do indeed combine business travel with
leisure or family trips.
• Changes in Company Travel
Policy – According to Malaney, “I have
noticed a change in booking practices that
would require my business travel clients
to book their flights in advance.”
Nationally, 54% of Travel Leaders experts
answered “No” to “noticing a change in
booking practices which require business
travel clients to book their flights in
advance,” while 46% said “Yes.”
• Last Minute Flight Changes –
Malaney said that Grand Rapids’ busi-
ness travelers are occasionally limiting
last minute or unnecessary flight
14
changes. Nationally the responses were:
no, things come up and changes are nec-
essary (60.8%); yes, it only occasionally
happens any more (33.8%); yes, it very
rarely happens any more (5.4%).
• First/Business Class vs. Coach –
Malaney is forecasting that 10% of Grand
Rapids’ Travel Leaders business clients
will fly first or business class for their
travels. That compares nationally with
31.8% of Travel Leaders business travel
experts who indicated that 11% or more
of their bookings are in first or business
class. Another 56.4% indicated that 1-
10% of their clientele is flying “up front.”
The national survey was conducted
November 3 – 30, 2010. The business
travel trends are based on responses
from 204 Travel Leaders owners, man-
agers and frontline travel experts
throughout the United States who identi-
fied that 50% or more of their portfolio
consists of business travel clients. The
business trends were part of a compre-
hensive travel trends survey which
included responses from 547 Travel
Leaders experts nationwide.

Hotels/Restaurants Briefs
Grand Rapids – Officials of ArtPrize
have announced 2011 registration dates
for venues and artists, and special dates
for submitting art to be installed in the
Grand River. ArtPrize 2011 will run from
Sept. 21 through Oct. 9. Venue registra-
tion opens March 14 and closes April 14.
Artist registration opens April 18 and
closes June 16. Artist/venue matching
opens May 31 and closes June 30. Any
art proposed for installation in the Grand
River, must be submitted to the city of
Grand Rapids (pre-application filed by
March 28) and the Department of
Natural Resources and Environment
(application filed by April 8).
Grand Rapids – The Grand Rapids Art
Museum reached its 80,000th visitor to
view the Diana - A Celebration exhibi-
tion in mid February. Michael Polanski
of Interlochen came to the museum with
his wife, Sherry, as something to do
together for Valentine's Day. He won a
one-year membership to the museum,
two overnight stays at the Amway
Grand Plaza Hotel and other prizes.
Polanski was also the 1 millionth visitor
the exhibit worldwide.
Traverse City – Beginning February 1,
craft beer lovers throughout Ohio will be
able to enjoy a selection of North Peak
beer thanks to a distribution program
managed by Premium Beverage
Supply. This is North Peak's first ven-
ture outside its home state of Michigan.
The majority of Premium's craft retailers
around the state of Ohio will add North
Peak's Vicious, Diabolical and Siren
beers for starters to their line-up, avail-
able in both bottles and on draft.
Kalamazoo – January marked Imperial
Beverage’s tenth anniversary as a
Michigan-wide distributor of fine wine
and beers. Imperial Beverage is current-
ly the 24th largest distributor in
Michigan by volume of revenue employ-
ing 180 team members in Kalamazoo
and Plymouth.
Paw Paw – Douglas Singleton has been
appointed Vice-President of Finance at
St. Julian Wine Company of Paw Paw,
Michigan. Singleton was with The Dow
Chemical Company in Midland, Michigan
for 12 years in finance and accounting
prior to joining St. Julian in 2009.
Mackinac Island – Mission Point has combined Earth Day festivities with
Resorts sales manager Angie Fair has traditional Astronomy Day programs in
recently earned the SGMP Meeting an engaging, double-impact Earth & Sky
Specialist Certification through the Day at the Museum April 30. Earth &
Michigan Chapter Society of Government Sky Day activities are available 11 am to
Meeting Professionals. This certification, 4 pm, and are free with general admis-
which is recommended for Michigan sion. Guests can observe the sun and
planners seeking to improve their planets from indoor and outdoor tele-
knowledge to carry out the functions of scopic viewing posts, see a live sky show
a meeting professional, covers all rele- in the Planetarium, create Earth and
vant information for beginner to sea- Sky-themed crafts and see live, interac-
soned meeting professionals to conduct tive demonstrations by local school
meeting business in a professional man- groups and community organizations on
ner for the clients or employees. This is alternative energy, conservation, green
a voluntary certification program for trends and more.
planners and suppliers who must be a
Michigan Chapter SGMP member.
Grand Rapids – For the second year in a
row, the Grand Rapids Public Museum
www.proficientmachine.com
Phone: 616-878-7800
Fax: 616-878-7006
AT PROFICIENT MACHINE & TOOL WE...
• DESIGN & BUILD CUSTOM MACHINES & FIXTURES
• FABRICATION SERVICES • MACHINE DESIGN SERVICES • MACHINING SERVICES
• ERGONOMIC WORKSTATIONS • CONTROL SERVICES
• REBUILD-REFURBISH EXISTING EQUIPMENT

By Michelle Yurcak
2011 will be a year of growth for
many – and, whether you’re a startup,
well-established company or working for
either one, there are five key things you
can implement that will ensure your
growth in 2011.
1) Educate yourself and your
clients
It is critical that companies not only
continue to educate themselves in their
own industry, but also continue to edu-
cate their clients and stay informed
regarding their client’s needs. Moving
into 2011, commit to attending at least
two educational events specific to your
industry, reading publications focused on
your industry and keeping up to speed on
your industry’s latest trends.
Additionally, educate yourself in the cul-
ture of your area and its people. I prom-
ise you that they have a lot to teach you.
Ask yourself about what idiosyncrasies
are unique to your area. When you edu-
cate yourself on issues important to the
people you are attempting to do business
with, you win over many clients. When
you speak with authority on your own
industry as you are building these client
Troubled Property Turnaround: Michigan Company
Awarded National Honor and $3.5 Million Grant
Grand Rapids & Milford – The
National Affordable Housing
Management Association (NAHMA) has
recognized a Michigan-based company
for managing one of the best multi-fam-
ily affordable housing communities in
the U.S.
This year, Paragon Management,
Inc., was awarded for “Outstanding
Turnaround of a Troubled Property” for
Delaware Manor at 10 Delaware Street
SW in Grand Rapids. The award is one
of NAHMA’s six Communities of Quality
Awards (COQ) issued in 2010.
In addition to this honor, Paragon
Management, Inc. has accepted a 3.5
million dollar grant entitled, “Section
202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly”
from HUD which will bring an influx of
work into downtown Grand Rapids and
expand the number of units and servic-
es available to senior adults who are in
need.
Paragon President Margaret Davey
states, “These are two great happenings.
We are thrilled to be named number one
in the country for a troubled property
turnaround by NAHMA and to accept
the 3.5 million dollar grant from HUD to
add 36 units so that the property can
5 Ways to Grow in 2011
relationships, you seal the deal.
2) Don’t be afraid to say “No”
“It’s easy to be tempted to take on
work that is not a right fit for your com-
pany, but seems financially rewarding (in
the immediate future). Before you enter
2011, analyze what is your core business
and who are your core clients. Many peo-
ple might be watching you to see if
you’ve been tested and proved before
they choose you. Are you picking the
right clients so you can shine appropri-
ately? Not all business is good business.
Make sure you are comfortable turning
down business that does not fit within
your mission and core capabilities. As a
result, your reputation will be solid,
which will be reflected in your client base.
3) Be confident
To grow in any industry, you must
be confident in your expertise and have
the nerve to tell a client that their ideas
may not produce the most successful
results. I have found that some clients
will have a theme in mind for an event
and after qualifying all of the demo-
graphics, objectives and logistics of the
event, their ideas or suggestions are all
wrong for them. We help them under-
stand that and give them an event that
properly function to care for senior
adults.”
Several units and accommodations
are available for senior adults with spe-
cial needs. “We applied to increase the
number of units and HUD awarded the
gift. Enlarging the building on existing
land allows us to serve more people and
helps financial sustainability.”
Davey continues, “It is very satis-
fying to take a building from the point of
neglect and create five star results.
Besides fixing up the building and mak-
ing it very lovely, we helped set the
Business
update ublication
Have your
own copy
E-mailed
monthly
prupdate@businessupdate.com
truly accomplishes their goals. Once you
are confident that your ideas and creativ-
ity will produce the desired results your
clients envision, you can begin to create
that sense of expectation from a client
that will give you the open door to advise
them what works and what doesn’t for
their specific situation.
4) Be relevant
Times are changing and we must
change with the times. We are an experi-
ential society and influenced by the digi-
tal technology and all of the wonders it
brings. It is imperative that any part of
your company output is no longer status
quo. When your goal is to create an expe-
rience every time you come in contact
with a client, growth follows, especially
because not every company can create
and deliver a true client experience. Stand
in your clients shoes for a moment. Ask
yourself, “What will he appreciate? What
is she hearing me say? How can I avoid
wasting any of their money?” When cre-
ating an experience for a client, identify
what is the most effective for their situa-
tion. You want to be able to contribute the
full picture that makes sense to the indi-
viduals you are working with and the
area they are working in.
property apart by offering award-win-
ning programs like a daily food program
and a computer learning center for resi-
dents. Then we wrote for the HUD Grant
and received that also.”
The Citizens for Better Living, Inc.
is the non-profit owner of Delaware
Manor. They are dedicated to providing
superior affordable housing for senior
citizens and disabled persons.
"It's quite an accomplishment to be
multitasking (adj):
the concurrent performance of several jobs
Maybe we should change our name...
offering 4-color printing, mailing services, composition and design,
bindery and inserting services and excellent customer service.
We h a v e b e c o m e y o u r m u l t i t a s k i n g p r i n t e r.
15
5) Know your competition
In our industry nowadays, most
clients have to get several bids for an
event or large group transportation.
Knowing our competition and how we
stack up against them is essential to
growing. We have well-established qual-
ity competitors, and they push us to be
better, be more creative and be on our
game. I may be going away from conven-
tional wisdom to say this, but give your
competitors a pat on the back. For us,
ours is a small industry and having allies
over enemies shows that we support the
growth of our entire industry and not just
our own business. We maintain that we
can’t be all things to all people so if we
lose a piece of business, maybe we
weren’t the right fit. We believe that
another opportunity is sure to follow.
Grow right, grow wisely.
Michelle Yurcak is the president of
Premium Event Services, a leading corpo-
rate event production and destination
management company since 2002. She is
the only Destination Management
Certified Professional in Michigan and
can be reached at myurcak@premi-
umeventservices.com or 734.528.1455.
named a National Community of Quality
Award winner," said Kris Cook, CAE,
executive director of NAHMA. "The com-
petitive process pits outstanding proper-
ties against one another, and our inde-
pendent panel of judges carefully ana-
lyzes the entries to select the ones that
really stand out."
Greenville, Michigan 866.262.4449
www.newswebprinting.cc

Op-Ed: Healthcare Reform and Pre-Existing Conditions
By Jane M. Orient, M.D.
The plight of people who lose their
insurance and then get sick is one of the
most appealing arguments for health
care reform. And the White House really
took advantage of it, soliciting tear-jerk-
ing stories from responsible folks who
played by the rules and who can’t get
insurance through no fault of their own.
The disagreeable truth—a relentless
law of economics—is that you can’t insure
a pre-existing. If you wreck your car, State
Farm pays only if you had the insurance
policy before the accident. If you don’t
have insurance, your options are to take
the bus, walk, ride a bicycle, get help from
friends or family, or come up with money
to buy a new car from some source other
than a car insurance company.
People would very much like the
“right” to buy insurance that would cover
their pre-existings, without restrictions or
waiting periods. But the same folks don’t
much like the idea of paying for other peo-
ple’s pre-existings—or even for their sick-
nesses. So the healthy ones often switch
into a new policy that gives them an entic-
ing low rate if they pass the underwriting.
Then those who can’t switch see their pre-
miums go up rapidly. This is called the
“death spiral.” Is it the wicked insurance
companies’ fault... or human nature?
You might naturally feel sympathy
toward a person who finds out that he has
Health Care Stakeholders to Collaborate on
Quality Improvement, Cost Reduction
West Michigan – The Michigan
Institute for Clinical Systems
Improvement (Mi-CCSI) announced that
it had filed incorporation papers and
convened a Development Steering
Committee of key health care stakehold-
ers to address critical quality and cost
issues in health care in west and south-
west Michigan.
“MI-CCSI was conceived by regional
physician leaders as an innovative solu-
tion to address difficult healthcare issues
payers, employers or healthcare provider
communities cannot solve on their own,”
said Paul Ponstein, DO, a physician and
one of the founding members of MI-CCSI
(pronounced “mix-see”). “In the past
our inability to work collaboratively has
fostered wasteful variation in clinical
practice, administrative processes and
payment policies limiting quality
improvement and cost reduction efforts.”
a costly and fatal condition like AIDS. But
what if he doesn’t tell the life insurance
company about the pre-existing as he
buys a million-dollar policy for the benefit
of his partner? Is it wicked of the insurer
to rescind the policy because of fraud? Or
should the government force the company
to pay—until it goes bankrupt and leaves
all of its subscribers without coverage?
If you have insurance through your
employer, pre-existings are likely not a
problem—if you can get the job, that is.
But the huge drawback of employer-
owned insurance is that you lose it if you
lose your job. This is called “job lock.”
Lots of people are stuck in jobs they hate
because of this.
It might not seem fair that people
who pay into a policy for years or
decades are left with nothing the instant
the policy lapses. But that is the nature
of an insurance contract.
If over 10 years or so, you put
$100,000 into a safe investment, at the
end of that time you have $100,000 plus
interest. If instead you hand the money
over to the insurance cartel, you have
nothing. The trade-off is that if you have
a catastrophic event during the time you
are covered, the insurer pays. Most peo-
ple think the deal is a fair one, and that’s
why they voluntarily pay the premiums.
As soon as the government forces
people to pay a premium for other peo-
ple’s pre-existings, they are likely to
The organization received its initial
funding from Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Michigan and Blue Care Network which
are participating on the Mi-CCSI Steering
Committee. Mi-CCSI is also collaborating
with the Alliance for Health in Grand
Rapids on a grant from the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation to address quality
improvement, reduced disparities in care
and cost reduction. Mi-CCSI’s leaders
believe employers also need to be
involved and it plans to seek board-level
employer representation.
“Blue Cross Blue Shield enthusiasti-
cally supports this effort, which brings
physicians and health systems in West
Michigan together to transform the deliv-
ery of health care. Founded on a strong
patient focus, it adds better management
of the process of care consistent and the
best scientific evidence,” said Tom Simmer,
MD, Chief Medical Officer of BCBSM.
object to what they—quite reasonably—
see as a rip-off. Hence the need for more
force: the individual mandate.
Some people don’t see the connec-
tion, thinking we can keep that popular
provision on pre-existings and delete the
rest. We can’t.
The long-term answer to the prob-
lem of pre-existings is to break the con-
nection between health insurance and
employment, which requires changing
the tax code provision that caused it.
People can pay medical costs with pre-
tax dollars if and only if they pay with
employer-owned insurance. If they pay
out of pocket or through individual poli-
cies, they must use after-tax dollars.
With payroll tax and income taxes, that
means they pay about twice as much.
How can that be fair?
People tend to have much longer
relationships with groups other than
their employer: churches, credit unions
or fraternal organizations, for example.
Why can’t they get group health insur-
ance in that way? This type of group
policy could offer advantageous guaran-
teed renewability to keep healthy people
in the program.
And why should people get a huge
tax advantage if and only if they funnel
payments through a third party?
Meanwhile, there are people who
have problems now. And there is a solu-
tion that already works without the sys-
MI-CCSI will be a neutral, free
standing, non-profit regional forum for
health care stakeholders to discuss and
find effective solutions across organiza-
tional boundaries. The overarching
framework of the proposed organization
is to facilitate solutions to issues that no
one organization can address successful-
ly on its own. It is modeled after the
Institute for Clinical System
Improvement (ICSI) based in
Minneapolis, Minnesota, which has a
record of success in working with multi-
ple stakeholders to solve long-standing
quality and cost problems. Senior leaders
from ICSI were actively involved in the
early discussions regarding the develop-
ment of Mi-CCSI and will provide con-
sulting services in support of early MI-
CCSI development and operations.
“Physicians clearly see the value of
an organization like Mi-CCSI to develop
16
tem-wide destruction of ObamaCare.
Many states have high-risk pools for the
uninsurable. In Colorado, the monthly
premium for a 35-year-old man with
income under $50,000 is about $204,
around $50 higher than premiums in the
regular market. In New Jersey, with guar-
anteed issue/community rating like that
in ObamaCare, the regular monthly pre-
mium is $2,150.
Forcing insurers to cover pre-exist-
ings without allowing enormous premi-
um increases will bankrupt them.
Perhaps driving private insurers out of
business is the real agenda. However,
imposing a “solution” that multiplies
costs bankrupts everybody.
Those who are counting on that sin-
gle payer hovering in the background
need to remember that the government is
already bankrupt—a very dangerous
pre-existing condition.
The most popular provision of
ObamaCare may also be the worst. The
whole Act needs to be repealed.
Jane M. Orient, M.D., is the execu-
tive director of the Association of
American Physicians and Surgeons and
has been in solo practice of general
internal medicine since 1981. She is a
clinical lecturer in medicine at the
University of Arizona College of
Medicine. She can be reached at (520)
323-3110 or jane@aapsonline.org.
effective evidence-supported systems we
can use for all of our patients, not just
one payer’s members,” says Ponstein,
who has been in the forefront of system
transformation efforts for many years.
Mary Ellen Benzik, a leading physi-
cian in Battle Creek and a member of the
Mi-CCSI steering committee, has been
involved in developing widely recog-
nized collaborative initiatives that have
received national attention. “We have
experience working with multiple stake-
holders to solve complex health care and
cost problems. West and southwest
Michigan have shown a high level of col-
laboration already within our local com-
munities and this is borne out in cost
and quality measures publicly available.
Mi-CCSI hopes to build on this work to
show that communities acting together
in a systematic way can take quality
improvement to the next level.”

A Professional’s Journey to Better Hearing
You might be
surprised to find out
that 17% or more
than 35 million
American adults
suffer from a hear-
ing loss of some
kind. Even more
surprising is that
Gyl Kasewurm nearly 75% of those
adults are under the
age of 69 and have a high frequency
hearing loss as a result of exposure to
noise at work. What’s shocking is that
according to data compiled by the
National Institute on Deafness and Other
Communication Disorders, only 1 in 5 of
those who could benefit from amplifica-
tion has made the decision to do so.
Rod Jones – age 63, resident of
Ada, MI and Chief Learning Officer with
the machine tool company Mori Seiki –
knows all too well the journey of work-
ing with a hearing loss. As Rod’s doctor
of audiology, I had a chance to sit down
with him recently to get a perspective on
his journey and to get a sense for the
benefits he receives from his decision in
December 2010 to use amplification
technology (commonly known as hear-
ing aids).
Healthcare Briefs
Kalamazoo – Denise Neely, BSN, MBA,
has been appointed vice president, chief
nursing officer for Bronson Healthcare
Group. With more than 30 years of
experience in nursing, clinical opera-
tions and healthcare leadership, Neely
has served since 2005 as director of
service lines and regional business
development at Bronson.
Holland – HealthGrades, a national inde-
pendent healthcare ratings organization,
has named Holland Hospital as one of its
Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical
Excellence™. In the recently released
HealthGrades Quality Study, Holland
Hospital ranked in the top 5% of hospitals
nationwide across 26 different medical
procedures and diagnoses. Nearly 5,000
hospitals were reviewed for the study.
Grand Rapids – Pine Rest Christian
Mental Health Services welcomed psy-
chiatrist Wissam K. Hoteit, M.D. to the
Northeast Clinic location. He is a child,
adolescent and adult psychiatrist.
Rod, tell me when was the first time
you learned of your hearing loss?
“In my 20’s I worked at a GM man-
ufacturing plant for a summer during
engineering school and they tested us
when we came to the plant and when we
left the plant. I remember the doctor
saying, ‘you have a high frequency
hearing loss’ and advising me not to
spend a lot of money on an expensive
stereo. At that point he didn’t say I
needed a hearing aid.”
When did you really begin noticing
your hearing loss?
“On a few occasions over the years
I’ve had hearing tests and I knew it was
getting worse. It was just in the last year
or so though that I realized how much I
was saying, ‘excuse me?’ or ‘could you
repeat that?’ and how much I complained
about people mumbling. A visit with a
family doctor for a hearing test just 4
months ago humbled me and for the first
time, I heard that I could benefit from
hearing aids.”
What finally pushed you over the
edge to start using amplification?
“Well after learning about the cost
of hearing aids, I thought I needed more
time to think about it. What really
impacted me was talking with 2 other
Dayton, OH – CareSource, a public-sec-
tor managed care company, has earned
recognition for a second year in a row as
one of Training magazine's Top 125
companies that excel at staff develop-
ment and training. Listed at number 10
on the list, they join the ranks of some of
America's largest and most successful
companies including Best Buy, FedEx,
McDonalds and MetLife. The company
was honored at the awards gala held
February 8 at the Training 2011
Conference & Expo in San Diego, CA.
Last year, CareSource was ranked #78.
Denver, CO – Homewatch CareGivers
International, an experienced provider
of in-home care with 176 offices global-
ly, has selected a Grand Rapids man to
serve as chairman of the company’s
Franchise Advisory Board. Jeff Swain,
owner of Homewatch CareGivers serving
Grand Rapids and Kent County, will lead
the Advisory Board’s efforts to represent
the franchise owners to franchisor
Homewatch International in Denver.
professionals I worked closely with who
wear hearing aids and told me how great
a difference they made. The problem is,
you don’t know what you don’t know
and you don’t know what it will be like.
It wasn’t until I came to your office and
you took hearing aids out of the box,
adjusted them and put them on me that
some of the fears I had about using hear-
ing aids began to fall away. I could bare-
ly tell they were there and I could hear
the difference right in your office.”
Tell me a little bit about the changes
you’ve seen wearing hearing aids.
“I speak in front of groups quite a
bit and I’m in some pretty busy situa-
tions. I can be much more confident and
productive in meetings now. I am not
afraid of the noisy restaurant lunch
meeting and can focus on a conversation
with a student without getting over-
whelmed by background noise, which
has been great. Really, it’s like going
from a flat one-dimensional world to 3D.
There are sounds I simply forgot about
being able to hear: the sounds of water
in the bathroom, the sound of the vibra-
tion of the reed in the saxophone. I
notice how much farther I can have the
radio turned down and I can watch TV
with my wife at a volume she’s comfort-
Muskegon – On February 19, the
Muskegon Area Medication Disposal
Program hosted the area’s first unused
medication collection event for 2011 at
the Fruitport Township Fire Department.
The 2010 program collected over 2,300
pounds of medications at five events,
reducing the amount of unused and
expired medications in residents' homes.
Grand Rapids – The first implantation of
an MRI-compatible pacemaker in
Michigan was performed at the
Spectrum Health Fred and Lena
Meijer Heart Center.
Muskegon – Mercy Health Partners
Curbside Trash & Waste Services:
Trash Cart • Yard Waste Cart • Recycle Cart
866-669 2047 Jenison, Michigan
17
able with (which is lower, of course).
“One interesting story: I came to
the dinner table during a recent cruise
with my wife and she glanced over and
asked why I didn’t have my hearing
aids in. I looked back at her and told
her, ‘I do have them in.’ When she took
a closer look she could see they were
there. As you know, there have been
some technical things with the
Bluetooth technology that you are help-
ing me work through, but in all I could-
n’t be happier with the decision.”
As a doctor of audiology working in
Southwest MI for more than 25 years,
I’ve heard a lot of stories like Rod’s.
Unfortunately, for every story like his,
there are 4 other people who have yet to
address their hearing loss.
Time to get your hearing checked?
Dr. Kasewurm started Professional
Hearing Services (located in St Joseph,
MI and online at www.prohear.net) in
1983. A lifetime resident of southwest-
ern Michigan, she obtained a Masters
Degree from Western Michigan
University and went on to earn her
Doctoral Degree from Central Michigan
University.
Diabetes Self-Management Program was
recently named an accredited diabetes
education program by the American
Association of Diabetes Educators.
This will allow residents in and around
west Michigan increased access to criti-
cal diabetes education services. The pro-
gram, located at the Mercy H.E.A.R.T.
Center, offers diabetes education classes
at the Mercy H.E.A.R.T. Center and at the
Lakeshore Campus in Shelby.
Nationwide Survey Confirms Positive Economic Impact
of “Buy Local” Campaigns
Grand Rapids – Findings of the
2011 Independent Business Survey were
released by the New Rules Project of the
Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR)
confirming for the fourth straight year
the positive economic impact of “Buy
Local” campaigns throughout the United
States. The survey, based on question-
naires completed by 2,768 locally owned
businesses representing all 50 states,
determined that local businesses in com-
munities with a “Buy Local” initiative
reported average revenue growth of
5.6% in 2010 compared to just 2.1%
average revenue growth for those in
communities without one. Similarly,
local businesses in communities with
Economic Impact of 2010 ArtPrize
Estimated Over $7 Million
Grand Rapids – Grand Valley State
University researchers have found that
during the 2010 ArtPrize, roughly
400,000 visitor days generated an esti-
mated economic impact of as much as
$7.5 million for the Grand Rapids area.
Students from Grand Valley’s
Economic and Hospitality and Tourism
Review of Clever
By Rolf Dobelli, Chairman,
getAbstract
Clever employees dream up intriguing
new products and services, and develop
revolutionary processes that catapult their
organizations over their competitors. As
“Buy Local” initiatives reported an aver-
age holiday sales increase of 5.2%, while
those not supported reported an average
gain of just 0.8%. The Institute for Local
Self-Reliance estimates that “Buy Local”
campaigns – such as West Michigan’s
own Local First – are underway in
approximately 140 cities nationwide.
This is Local First’s fourth year
participating in the annual survey
organized by Stacy Mitchell, senior
researcher at the Institute for Local Self-
Reliance and New Rules Project. More
than 30 West Michigan business own-
ers submitted responses.
“For the fourth consecutive year, the
ILSR’s Independent Business Survey
Management departments collected data
under the supervision of Paul Sicilian,
associate professor of economics; Seohee
Chang, assistant professor of hospitality
and tourism management; and
Experience Grand Rapids.
• 50 percent of respondents came from
outside Grand Rapids (94 percent were
such, they are crucial to a company’s suc-
cess. However, as consultants Rob Goffee
and Gareth Jones explain, leading them
can be a huge challenge. Manage them too
much, and they will leave and take their
brilliant ideas to your competitors. Manage
them too little, and they may waste pre-
cious corporate resources on impractical
activities that do not contribute to your
bottom line. In this thoughtful, illuminat-
ing book, Goffee and Jones describe how
to lead them so they will be happy and so
your company will benefit. The authors
emphasize that cleverness is not every-
thing society makes it out to be, but that,
properly managed, clevers can take your
organization to the heights, so you want to
nurture them. getAbstract finds that this
book shows you how, in the cleverest pos-
sible way.
Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones. Clever:
Leading Your Smartest, Most Creative
People. Harvard Business Press, 2009.
208 pages, List Price: $26.00. ISBN-13:
978-1422122969
getAbstract is the leading provider of
business book summaries, with more than
5,000 titles covered. www.getabstract.com
confirms that locally owned and inde-
pendent businesses perform significantly
better when supported by strong ‘Buy
Local’ campaigns,” said Elissa Hillary,
Executive Director of Local First in Grand
Rapids, Michigan. “The proven success
of businesses working with ‘Buy Local’
campaigns fully underscores the impor-
tance of continuing to educate the public
on the economic benefits of supporting
local businesses.”
The 2011 Independent Business
Survey is released at a time when many
in Michigan are questioning the effec-
tiveness of present economic develop-
ment strategies. In his inaugural State of
the State address, Gov. Rick Snyder
Michigan residents);
• 67 percent of non-locals were day-vis-
itors (did not stay overnight);
• 9.5 percent of non-locals stayed in a
hotel/motel or B&B;
• 87.5 percent said that ArtPrize was
the primary reason for their trip to
Grand Rapids;
• Nearly 44 percent were attending
MTA Names Safety
Professional of the Year
Lansing – On February 15, several
of Michigan’s best professional drivers
and trucking personnel were honored at
the Michigan Trucking Association’s
Annual Safety Banquet. Secretary of
State Ruth Johnson presented the awards
as well as the keynote speech. Among
the honorees was Sharon Conklin of
Van’s Delivery Service, Inc. Sharon took
home the award for 2011 Safety
Professional of the Year.
Sharon has been with Van’s
Delivery Service, Inc. for over six years,
and has served as President of the MTA
Bradley C Rudich
616.392.3804
734 Washington Ave
Holland, MI 49423
issued a strong endorsement of “eco-
nomic gardening” — an economic devel-
opment strategy in which entrepreneur-
ship and support for local businesses are
emphasized over recruitment.
“Small, local businesses generate
the majority of new jobs in the U.S.,”
said Michelle Long, Executive Director of
the Business Alliance for Local Living
Economies (BALLE), of which Local First
is the Midwest Regional Hub Network.
“Buy Local First campaigns help bring
these businesses and residents together
to build community health and wealth —
from the bottom up.”
ArtPrize for the first time (did not attend
last year).
Results also showed direct spending
of:
• more than $2.8 million on food;
• about $721,000 on lodging;
• nearly $589,000 on transportation;
• about $684,000 on retail purchases;
• and about $168,000 on tourism.
Safety Management Council for two
years. Judging of finalists was based
upon professional qualifications of the
nominee, success in advancing highway
and industry safety, cooperation with
regulatory authorities as well as work
and leadership with the MTA Safety
Management Council.
Sharon’s employer, Van’s Delivery
Service, Inc. was also awarded a Fleet
Safety Award for the third year in a row.
This award is given to transportation
companies who exhibit outstanding
achievement in highway safety.
Brad@GemmenTaxPros.com
www.GemmenTaxPros.com
Taxes • Payroll
Business Accounting

New Residential Construction Fall Protection
OSHA has
announced a direc-
tive that requires all
residential construc-
tion employers to
provide fall protec-
tion for workers
more than six feet
above ground.
Kevin Roehling Falls in residen-
tial construction are
deadly and common. According to data
from the U.S. Department of Labor’s
Bureau of Labor Statistics, an average of
40 workers are killed each year as a
result of falls from residential roofs – the
number one cause of workplace deaths
in construction.
In Michigan, falls account for 37%
of fatalities in the construction industry
investigated by MIOSHA. For example, a
43-year-old carpenter was working on a
ladder that barely reached the roof edge.
The base of the ladder slipped on ice and
snow, causing the employee to fall 8 feet.
In another incident, a 33-year-old labor-
er was working near the edge of a roof
and lost his balance while pulling on an
electrical cord to power a screw gun,
falling 28 feet to the ground below.
These injuries and deaths are not
only costly to companies due to claims
and elevated insurance premiums, they
are preventable. For this reason, the
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) has announced
a new directive that replaces one that
formerly allowed residential builders to
bypass fall protection requirements.
This change was recommended by
the National Association of Home Builders
as well as other safety and labor groups.
Who is Involved?
All employers engaged in residential
construction work will be required to
provide fall protection for workers work-
ing more than 6 feet above ground.
Residential construction includes the fol-
lowing elements:
• The end use of the structure being
built is a home or a dwelling.
• The structure is built using tradi-
tional wood frame construction materials
and methods. Limited use of structural
steel does not disqualify a structure from
being considered residential construction.
Previously employers could bypass
fall protection requirements, however
now they will be required to comply with
OSHA regulations regarding fall protec-
tion systems. Therefore all employees
working 6 feet or more above lower lev-
els must use guardrails, safety nets or
personal fall arrest systems, (i.e., a full
body harness, a deceleration device, a
lanyard and an anchor point).
Certain types of work specified
under other OSHA provisions warrant
alternative fall protection measures.
19
What if Fall Protection is Infeasible?
When the use of conventional fall
protection methods is infeasible or cre-
ates a greater hazard, employers must
create a written, site-specific fall protec-
tion plan that documents why these
methods are infeasible and why they
would create a greater hazard.
When Will it be Enforced?
The effective date of this change is
June 16, 2011. OSHA has begun to
develop training and compliance assis-
tance materials for small employers and
will host a webinar for those who are
interested in learning more about com-
plying with the standard.
Kevin Roehling heads the Risk
Management and Claims Team at
Berends Hendricks Stuit Insurance
Agency.

Q&A With Exxel

Engineering
"What is a legal description? I
thought I knew but what I thought was
my legal description is a lot different
from our son’s. It seems they should be
about the same."
- Sharon from Caledonia, MI
Sharon, there’s a good textbook
answer to your question: “The purpose of
a legal description is to define a parcel of
land in a clear, concise way, making it
unique from any other parcel on earth.”
Legal descriptions are used when
any property is bought or sold. They are
an important part of a deed or land con-
tract document, as the legal description is
what defines the property that is being
conveyed. Land Surveyors, attorneys and
title companies will often ask for the legal
description to be able to provide the serv-
ice you need from them.
There are different types of descrip-
tions used to define various types and
shapes of property. The most commonly
used are:
• A specific lot or unit within a
recorded subdivision or condominium
development. (Example: Lot 12, Sunny
Acres, part of the NW 1/4, Section 1, T5N,
R10W, Caledonia Twp., Kent County, MI.)
• Fractional section description.
(Example: The West 1/2 of the SW 1/4,
of the NW 1/4 , of Section 1, T5N, R10W,
Caledonia Township, Kent County, MI.)
• Metes and bounds description that
traces around the parcel of land and
defines each “leg” of the property with a
phrase. (Abbreviated example: That part
of the NW 1/4, Section 1, T5N, R10W,
Caledonia Twp., Kent County, MI,
described as: Beginning at the SW corner
of the NW 1/4, Section 1, T5N, R10W,
Caledonia Twp., Kent County, MI; thence
N90°00’E 200 feet; thence ….)
An accurate legal description can
also be used to calculate the square
footage and acreage of the property or to
mark the property corners on the ground
by a Land Surveyor.
A Professional Surveyor has the
expertise and specialized equipment to
assist you in making sure your legal
description is correct and that it accurate-
ly defines your property!
- Rodney D. Unema, P.S.
Rod Unema is Survey Department
Manager at Exxel Engineering, Inc. in
Grand Rapids and can be reached by
phone at (616) 531-3660. Exxel
Engineering, Inc. is a civil
engineering/land survey firm located in
Grand Rapids and has 38 years experi-
ence in the area.

Construction Briefs
Grand Rapids – C. D. Barnes
Associates, Inc. announced they have
been awarded the construction of the
Eastown Veterinary Clinic. This com-
plete renovation will turn a former bank
branch into a new 3,270 sq. ft. veteri-
nary clinic featuring an updated façade,
resurfaced parking lot and new land-
scaping. Interior features will include a
large, bright waiting room; three exam
rooms; x-ray and ultra sound equip-
ment (utilizing the bank vault space);
dental radiology equipment; a treatment
room; isolation room; dog ward; and a
surgical suite with laboratory. C.D.
Barnes Associates will begin construc-
tion in February.
Grand Rapids – Richard “Dick”
VanderZyden, president of the general
contractor / construction management
firm Wolverine Building Group, was
recently selected by the company’s
board of directors to serve as its 2011
board chair.
Grand Rapids – C. D. Barnes
Associates, Inc. announced they have
been awarded the renovation and
expansion of Ely Manor in Allegan.
Originally constructed in 1970, Ely
Manor houses three wings: long term
care, dementia and rehabilitation. Once
renovations are complete, Ely
Manor will accommodate 101 beds.
Renovation work includes remodeling of
the wings, offices and support areas.
New construction consists of a new
street side elevation, roofline, additional
office support and physical therapy
areas. The dining and day rooms will
receive complete makeovers with 2 new
fireplaces. Also included are a new
nurse’s call system, HVAC and fire sup-
pression. CD Barnes Associates began
construction in January of 2011 and
expects completion in January of 2012.
Ann Arbor – The Michigan Chapter of
the American Society of Landscape
Architects (MiASLA) announced that
the Central Michigan University
Outdoor Learning Center received a
Merit Award for Landscape
Architectural Design. The award was
presented at the awards ceremony held
in Lansing, part of the annual MiASLA
conference. The award was made by an
out-of-state jury that reviewed nomina-
tions on behalf of the MiASLA to insure
that the selection was based solely upon
the merits of the nomination.
20
Grand Rapids – C. D. Barnes leased 24,200 sq. ft. of industrial space cation – the highest possible level
Associates, Inc. announced that have at 4327 Airlane Dr. SE in Grand Rapids awarded by the USGBC. Maximum use
been awarded the construction of the to Envirotronics; Elston Richards of the existing site was the cornerstone
Metro Dental Office in Wyoming. This leased 79,000 sq. ft. of industrial space of the sustainable plan. LakeBridge One,
single-story, slab-on-grade, 4,524 sq. ft. at 3703 Patterson Ave. SE in Grand the last of the seven homes built in the
dental office will house the practices of Rapids. Tenant Lacks Exterior LakeBridge lakefront community,
two dentists, and a dental laboratory. Systems, LLC expanded into an addi- obtained LEED Silver certification.
The dental office will include 4 treatment tional 55,700 sq. ft. and took an addi- Indigenous and non-invasive landscap-
rooms, 3 hygiene rooms, state-of-the-art tional 24,000 sq. ft. for an additional 8 ing were incorporated into a carefully
dental equipment and a kid’s corner month term; MFS Realty, LLC of 5252 designed drainage and water collection
complete with wall-mounted television Monroe Street, OH renewed their lease system, as well as a zoned irrigation
and fresh-water fish tank. Project of Metro Health Village Retail, LLC's system to minimize water use.
Manager John Maycroft and Site 1,641 sq. ft. of office space at 2355
Manager Jonathan Stoner began con- Health Drive in Wyoming. Dearborn – The SME Education
struction in February of 2011 and expect Foundation has provided $50,000 from
completion by July 2011. C.D. Barnes Holland – Cottage Home, designers and the Gene Haas Machining Technology
Associates will be showcasing their den- builders of well appointed beach houses Scholarship Fund to Focus: HOPE for its
tal practice construction capabilities at and cottages, announced that two new Machinist Training Institute – repeating
this year’s Michigan Dental Association homes achieved LEED® Certification last year’s investment in a program that
(MDA) Annual Session to be held at the from the United States Green Building provides training and education in
Devos Place from April 13-16. Council (USGBC). The North Beach machining technology.
Cottage obtained LEED Platinum certifi-
Kalmazoo – Derrick Quintanilla has
joined CSM Group as an IT Technician.
Alicia Swaim has joined CSM Group
as a marketing coordinator working on
the Business Development and
Marketing Team.
Grand Rapids – C. D. Barnes Associates,
Inc. announced they have completed
construction of java gym located in the
Northridge Center on East Beltline Ave.
in Grand Rapids. This 5,375 sq. ft. chil-
dren’s entertainment center provides
children and their parents a place where
fun is found in every corner.
Lansing – C2AE recently announced the
promotion of John A. Harvey, PE,
LEED® AP to business unit leader. As
such, Harvey oversees the operation
and business development of multiple
teams that perform planning, design
and construction services for infrastruc-
ture, transportation and water/waste-
water projects.
Grand Rapids – Colliers International
in West Michigan, a leading local real
estate services firm, announced the fol-
lowing transactions: OVD Investments
purchased an 11,215 sq. ft. bank-
owned (Byron Acquisition, LLC) office
space at 2780 44th Street SW in Grand
Rapids; Market Street Cement LLC
purchased 3.38 acres located at 949
Freeman SW in Grand Rapids; Cascade
Business Center, LLC purchased
Flagstar Bank's 148,388 sq. ft. office
park located at 6095-6161 28th Street
SE in Grand Rapids; P&K Development

Green Business is Good Business – How a
Comprehensive Energy Strategy Boosts the Bottom Line
By David Calkins
There's no doubt that "sustainable"
and "green" have become buzzwords to
the point where the terms may be getting
a bit tired, especially in their newest role:
as a selling point. But despite the reces-
sion, green building has evolved from a
trend or niche sector into a significant and
growing part of the economy due in part to
government initiatives, improvements in
sustainable materials and rising demand.
Many organizations are embracing a
moral imperative to look at material
sources, energy expenditures, carbon
footprint, waste generation and how they
impact the ecosystem. However, leading
organizations realize that green initia-
tives that result in energy efficiency
gains, cost reductions and strong ROIs
not only improve the environment but
also the bottom line. In business, nothing
speaks louder than the bottom line.
When it comes to green construc-
tion, it pays (and it can pay a lot) to
approach sustainability from multiple
angles. Reducing operating expenses
and capital expenditures is all well and
good, but there are actually a number of
other ways green construction can
approach a vast number of technical,
environmental, financial, legal and
administrative issues while generating a
positive return to the bottom line.
Rubicon Professional Services
(www.rubiconps.com) is a leading nation-
al provider of full-service energy, consult-
ing, engineering and construction man-
agement. While they typically manage the
construction of mission critical facilities
like data and telecommunications centers,
Rubicon’s services and offerings can be
applied to various market verticals.
“Our team is made up of experi-
enced engineers, attorneys and energy
market experts with over 30 years of
experience helping organizations meet
their energy goals,” said Jim Embley,
CEO, Rubicon Professional Services.
“Even outside of our typical data center
clients, we’ve seen pharmaceutical com-
panies, heavy industrial businesses and
other sectors realizing the benefits of our
expertise and offerings.”
When it comes to a comprehensive
energy strategy that impacts the bottom
line, Embley and his team offer four
major service areas.
“The first area we address,”
explains Embley, “is the obvious one:
demand side management. This is a
power reduction strategy utilizing energy
efficient equipment and advantageous
payback periods. Rubicon performs ener-
gy audits and assessments identifying
systems that can benefit from efficiency
gains and result in solid returns to our
clients. If we recommend an efficiency
upgrade to an air conditioning or UPS
system, the client should know how
many dollars they’re saving and when
the upgrade will pay for itself.”
But Rubicon doesn’t stop there. In
parallel with these efforts, Rubicon offers
a second area of focus which works with
state and utility agencies to provide
energy incentive funding for such con-
servation initiatives.
“A payback period should take into
account energy incentive programs and
rebate opportunities because there are
hundreds of millions of dollars in energy
incentives available throughout the
United States,” explains Embley. From
local utilities to state agencies, many
incentive programs can be found in
DSIRE (the Database of State Incentives
for Renewables & Efficiency), which is
located at www.dsireusa.org and is over-
seen by the U.S. Department of Energy.
According to Embley, identifying
incentive programs is the easy part. The
real question is how to effectively obtain
cash funding from these organizations in
a timely manner while meeting both the
goals of the applicant and the agency
administering the program. Rubicon and
its clients have arrived at the following
key takeaways and best practices to
obtain energy incentives:
• Incentive agencies must achieve
kW reduction goals and issue amounts of
funding that are proportionate to obtain-
ing such goals. To this end, many incen-
tive agencies undergo annual audits by
the states attorney general’s office or
public utility commission/service.
• Although similar in objective, each
incentive body throughout the country
has different initiatives, processes, time-
lines and funding levels. There are
incentives for energy site assessments,
energy efficient equipment installs, new
construction and demand response
equipment installs. All require varying
degrees of effort and documentation on
behalf of the applicant and have varying
funding levels/caps.
• Applicants must be mindful that
funding levels for each agency change
from year-to-year, and to obtain funding,
organizations must do more than simply
fill out a form. Rubicon advises clients
on timelines, stages, gates and measure-
ments/verifications required to obtain
funding and incorporates these tasks in
the overall facility infrastructure plan.
• Most agencies will disqualify fund-
ing if energy efficient equipment has been
ordered prior to submitting the incentive
application. To prevent disqualifications,
a dedicated resource is required that pos-
sesses knowledge and experience in man-
aging multiple incentive agencies and
their various funding initiatives.
• Agencies subcontract the adminis-
tration of most incentive programs to third
parties because they typically do not have
the in-house personnel to solely manage
these initiatives. Therefore, organizations
need to retain resources (either through
in-house talent or outside partners) with
expertise and experience in dealing not
only with the incentive agencies but also
their subcontractors while understanding
the criteria and amounts of funding that
each incentive agency offers.
• To acquire this level of expertise,
facilities need a resource dedicated to
identifying incentive opportunities, know-
ing what initiatives bring in the maximum
amount of funding, and shepherding the
process from filing to funding.
The third area Rubicon addresses is
evaluating and enrolling its clients in
demand-response programs. Many
independent system operators – the self-
regulating bodies of utility grids – have
programs where consumers are paid to
voluntarily shed their power load off the
21
grid during times of peak demand.
Depending on the service area, con-
sumers receive annual cash payments of
$40,000 to $100,000 per committed
megawatt. In addition, many customers
already have the power distribution
equipment to facilitate this process, and
even if they don’t, Rubicon can help
them obtain it. The company boasts a
proven track record with top equipment
manufacturers – a purchasing history of
over $300 million in infrastructure relat-
ed equipment – that equates to direct cost
savings for their clients.
The fourth area Rubicon takes into
consideration is sustainability and
green initiatives. More attention is being
paid to various third party certifications
(LEED, Green Globes, Energy Star) and
Rubicon can help clients navigate to find
the best fit. Although most want to obtain
a green certification, companies must
identify the right certification programs
that are cost effective, provide marketing
cache and an energy assessment and effi-
ciency baseline for their facilities.
Demand and even necessity for
green construction continues to grow in
all sectors, from heavy industrial and
manufacturing to commercial structures
and office spaces. Partners like Rubicon
enable world class organizations to
transform “green” and “sustainability”
from simple buzzwords into acceptable
ROIs that deliver a clear, measurable and
positive impact to the bottom line.
“Green buildings are not a fad,”
concludes Embley, “and energy and cost-
savings will never be out of fashion.”

Top Ten Green Building Trends for 2011
Portland, OR – Earth Advantage
Institute, a leading nonprofit green
building resource and research organiza-
tion that has certified more than 11,000
sustainable homes, announced its annu-
al selection of top ten green building
trends to watch for over the next 12
months.
The trends, which range from
“affordable green” to lifecycle analysis
of materials, were identified by Earth
Advantage Institute based on discus-
sions with a range of audiences over the
latter part of 2010. These sectors includ-
ed policymakers, builders, developers,
architects, real estate brokers, apprais-
ers, lenders and homeowners.
“Despite market conditions, we
have seen the market share for high per-
formance homes increase from 18.5 to
23 percent in the Portland Metro area
alone,” said Sean Penrith, executive
director, Earth Advantage Institute.
“This is a sure sign that the rate of
appeal for these homes is increasing.”
1. Affordable green. Many con-
sumers typically associate green and
energy-efficient homes and features
with higher costs. However, the develop-
ment of new business models, technolo-
gies and the mainstreaming of high per-
formance materials is bringing high-per-
formance, healthy homes within reach
of all homeowners. Leading the charge
are affordable housing groups, including
Habitat for Humanity and local land
trusts, now building and selling LEED®
for Homes and ENERGY STAR®-certi-
fied homes across the country at price
points as low as $100,000. In the exist-
ing homes market, energy upgrades are
now available through new programs
that include low-cost audits and utility
bill-based financing.
2. Sharing and comparing home
energy use. As social and purchasing
sites like Facebook and Groupon add
millions more members, the sharing of
home energy consumption data – for
rewards – is not far behind. The website
Earth Aid lets you track home energy
usage and earn rewards for energy sav-
ings from local vendors. You can also
elect to share the information with oth-
ers on Earth Aid to see who can con-
serve the most energy. When coupled
with other developments including home
energy display and a voluntary home
energy scoring system announced by the
Department of Energy, a lot more people
will be sharing and comparing their
home energy consumption.
3. Outcome-based energy codes.
Existing buildings are responsible for
most energy use and associated carbon
emissions, but the prescriptive energy
codes used in commercial remodels don’t
encourage effective retrofitting.
Compliance with energy codes is deter-
mined at permit time, using prescriptive
or predictive models, and actual post-
construction may never even be
reviewed. Heating and cooling equip-
ment could be faulty or improperly con-
trolled, with significant energy and
financial implications.
Under outcome-based energy
codes, owners could pursue the retrofit
strategy that they decide is most effec-
tive for their building and its tenants,
but they would be required to achieve a
pre-negotiated performance target
through mandatory annual reporting.
4. Community purchasing power.
Neighborhoods interested in renewable
energy will increasingly band together to
obtain better pricing on materials such
as solar panels and on installation costs.
The Solarize Portland program was initi-
ated by local neighborhood leaders who
wanted to increase the amount of
renewable energy generated in
Northeast Portland by working together
as a community. The program is struc-
tured so that the price of solar panel
installation decreases for everybody as
more neighbors join the effort.
Group purchasing creates a 15-25
percent savings below current prices.
This group discount, in addition to cur-
rent available tax credits and cash
incentives, gives participants a signifi-
cant cost savings. In Philadelphia, the
Retrofit Philly program leverages con-
tests between residential blocks to get
neighborhoods involved in energy
upgrades.
5. “Grid-aware” appliances fuel
convergence of smart grid and smart
homes. While many residential smart
meters have been installed, the cus-
tomer interface that will allow home-
owners to track energy use more accu-
rately are not yet in place. In the mean-
time, manufacturers are increasingly
introducing appliances that are “grid-
aware.” These appliances are endowed
with more sophisticated energy man-
agement capabilities and timers, offer-
ing homeowners machines that monitor
and report their own electricity usage
and that increase or decrease that usage
by remote command. Many machines
have timers and can already be manual-
ly programmed to run during off-peak
hours. These developments will begin
forging the convergence of a smart grid
infrastructure and the control applica-
tions needed to manage energy savings
in our buildings and homes.
6. Accessory dwelling units. Last
year we discussed home “right-sizing”
as a trend. However, with fewer people
moving or building due to financial con-
cerns, many have chosen to stay put in
their favorite area and build accessory
dwelling units (ADUs). These small
independent units, which can be used
for offices, studios or in-law space, are
the ideal size for energy savings and
sustainable construction. As detached or
attached rental units, they help cities
increase urban density and restrict
sprawl, while allowing homeowners to
add value to their property.
7. Rethinking of residential heat-
ing and cooling. Advances in applied
building science in the US and abroad
have resulted in homes that are so tight-
ly sealed and insulated that furnace-
less, ductless homes are now a reality.
The increasingly popular “Passive
House” standard, for example, calls for
insulation in walls and ceiling that is so
thick that the home is actually heated by
everyday activity of the occupants, from
cooking to computer use. Even in ENER-
GY STAR-certified homes, builders are
now encouraged to bring all ductwork
inside the insulated envelope of the
house to eliminate excess heat or cool-
ing loss, and to use only small but effi-
cient furnaces and air conditioners to
avoid wasting power. Geothermal heat-
ing and cooling, where piping loops are
run through the ground to absorb
warmth in the winter and cool air in the
summer, are another option gaining
broader acceptance.
8. Residential grey water use.
With water shortages looming in many
areas including the Southwest and
Southern California, recycling of grey
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water – any household wastewater with
the exception of toilet water – is gaining
traction. Benefits include reduced water
use, reduced strain on septic and
stormwater systems and groundwater
replenishment. Although many cities
have been slow to legislate on grey
water use, some communities have
increased the amount of allowable grey
water use for irrigation. Systems can be
as simple as a pipe system draining
directly into a mulch field or they can
incorporate collection tanks and pumps.
9. Small commercial certification.
95 percent of commercial building starts
in the U.S. are under 50,000 sq. ft., but
the bulk of current certified commercial
buildings tend to be much larger. This is
in part because of numerous “soft” costs
including commissioning, energy model-
ing, project registration and administra-
tive time, all of which can be prohibi-
tively expensive for small building own-
ers and developers. To encourage more
small commercial projects to go green,
alternative certification programs have
sprung up, including Earthcraft Light
Commercial and Earth Advantage
Commercial, which have found signifi-
cant appeal through fully subscribed
pilot programs.
10. Lifecycle Analysis (LCA). We
know quite a bit about the performance
of certain materials used in high per-
formance home and commercial building
construction, but the industry has just
begun to study the effects of these mate-
rials over the course of their entire lives,
from raw material extraction through
disposal and decomposition. Lifecycle
analysis examines the impact of materi-
als over their lifetime through the lens of
environmental indicators including
embodied energy, solid waste, air and
water pollution, and global warming
potential. LCA for building materials will
allow architects to determine what prod-
ucts are more sustainable and what
combination of products can produce the
most environmentally friendly results.
Industrial Hardware Inc.
• Drill Bits & Taps
• Production Parts
• Concrete Anchors
• Bin Maintenance Available
• Delivery

The Manufacturing Predicament:
A Sector Primed to Surge & a Shortage of Skilled Labor
By Gerald Shankel
Manufacturing. It’s been America’s
“signature” since the days of the
Industrial Revolution. Financial pundits,
business leaders and government officials
past and current assert that manufactur-
ing represents this country’s economic
engine and serves as the catalyst for pros-
perity.
Despite such value placed on U.S.
manufacturing, its influential “signature”
currently is not a bold flourish but a
shaky, subdued script. Yes, the worst
economy since the Depression and years
of job losses to low-wage countries have
been devastating. But the economy
already shows signs of a comeback, and it
is manufacturing that has led the way in
the rebound.
However, many are not ready to
predict that a vibrant U.S. industrial
environment is on the horizon. The rea-
son? Manufacturers simply cannot find
the skilled labor needed today to handle
the kinds of sophisticated production
processes and tasks required on the
manufacturing shop floor.
It is a remarkable contradiction.
Companies cannot find workers in an
economy still reeling from months of dou-
ble-digit unemployment rates. Yet,
research and real-life scenarios support
what for many is counter-intuitive. For
example:
• The 2010 Manpower Talent
Shortage Survey revealed that among the
most difficult U.S. jobs to fill today are
those in the skilled trades.
• A recent CBS News segment
reported the number of open manufac-
turing jobs doubled in one year to
227,000, yet many are not filled due to a
shortage of skilled workers.
• A PBS Newshour report in
December 2010 noted “there is an
unfilled demand for highly skilled, high-
ly educated personnel in the manufactur-
ing sector.”
As more and more baby boomers
retire, the problem is expected to acceler-
ate dramatically.
How Did This Happen?
How and why is manufacturing fac-
ing this remarkable dilemma? A conflu-
ence of factors is at work:
• Manufacturing has an image prob-
lem – especially among today’s youth. A
national poll, sponsored by Nuts, Bolts &
Thingamajigs (NBT), the Foundation of
23
the Fabricators & Manufacturers ior and senior high students through certifications.
Association (FMA), showed 52 percent apprenticeship opportunities. Manufacturers also should consider
of teens have little or no interest in a The Manufacturing Institute recent- offering factory tours to local elementary
manufacturing career and another 21 ly launched the National Association of and middle school classes. When stu-
percent are ambivalent. Manufacturing endorsed Skills dents see a clean, modern facility full of
• We are a nation of “non-tinker- Certification System that targets deficits sophisticated machinery, it will leave a
ers.” Another NBT poll showed 60 per- in education and training. These creden- lasting, positive impression.
cent of adults avoid tackling major tials validate the skills and competencies Manufacturers also should be willing to
household repairs themselves. needed in entry-level manufacturing advise local instructors and counselors at
• Education priorities today rarely jobs. community colleges or high schools on
position manufacturing as a preferred Then there is the case in which an opportunities and participate in curricu-
career choice and many vocational pro- entire high school is established to pre- lum planning.
grams and shop classes have been pare students for manufacturing careers. • Revive Apprenticeships and In-
dropped. Polytechnical Academy in Chicago, House Training. Companies should
• Many manufacturers themselves founded by the Chicago Manufacturing invest time and dollars to conduct pro-
have not been proactive to any great Renaissance Council, educates students grams such as internships and appren-
extent to help combat the skilled labor in all aspects of manufacturing, from ticeships that reach out to specific indi-
shortage issue. skilled production and engineering to viduals already considering manufactur-
What Must Be Done management and company ownership. ing careers.
Industry trade groups, manufactur- In 2010, twenty three Austin students
ers, educators and the media each can earned nationally-recognized machining Continued on page 25
contribute to meeting the challenge.
Fortunately, significant inroads have
been made to:
• Increase Young People’s Interest
in Manufacturing. It’s quite apparent
that attracting the next generation of
workers to manufacturing can be a
panacea. That’s the goal of the Gold
Collar Careers initiative in Wisconsin
established by a consortium of compa-
nies, trade groups and educators. That’s
also why FMA member D&S
Manufacturing participated in a new pro-
motional video, titled “Manufacturing –
the New Cool” that features young peo-
ple visiting local manufacturers mar-
veling at today’s high-tech factories.
Taking a similar message to young
audiences is one goal of the NBT which
provides grants for summer manufactur-
ing camps across the country that expose
junior high and high school students to
math, science and engineering principles
and many facets of manufacturing tech-
nology. NBT also issues scholarships to
students at colleges and trade schools
pursuing careers in manufacturing.
• Partner with Educators in
Effort. Support from the educational
community in this effort is critical. Such
engagement can be done through both
formal and informal activities.
One excellent example of the former
is the state of California’s “I Built It-
Youth” campaign – a collaboration
between the California Department of
Industrial Relations and the California
Department of Education. It promotes
careers in the construction trades to jun-
 24
Green Efforts Save Greenbacks
Grand Rapids – When you are pres- Two years later, that waste hauler really hasn’t considered how many dol- “Instead of having all of the sizes
ident of a company, you might observe doesn’t haul away as much wastewater. lars the company could save by eliminat- and opportunities for waste, we looked
things that others don’t even notice. Through increased employee vigilance ing unnecessary metal purchases. at how we could optimize,” he said.
That just comes with the territory when and better monitoring of equipment, the That type of proposition is an easy As an example, Hawkins said the
you are dealing regularly with profit and company has cut its annual water usage sell to manufacturers that live by lean company was ordering five different
loss statements. by 58 percent when comparing 2009 manufacturing practices. DeWys sizes of 18-gauge steel. In 2009 they set-
Jon DeWys, president of DeWys with 2007. Those numbers are normal- Manufacturing is one such company, tled on two sizes.
Manufacturing, a Grand Rapids, Mich.- ized to sales, so the huge improvement is boasting four lean-certified trainers, reg- The benefits are easy to see, accord-
based precision fabricator, noticed that a real, not just a result of the slowdown in ularly tackling new projects to root out ing to Hawkins. DeWys Manufacturing
disposal truck was showing up at the business that everyone had to live waste and keeping the company’s 120 doesn’t have to accommodate as many
company frequently to haul away through in 2009. employees notified about lean plans and different sizes of sheet metal, so it can
wastewater. That was the first of several lessons performance outcomes. live with fewer raw material shelves.
The company wasn’t hooked up to a that DeWys learned about being “lean DeWys joked that the 65,000- Setup times for laser cutting jobs are
city sewer system, so any waste generat- and clean,” as William Stough, CEO of square-foot shop floor is always in a reduced because operators aren’t chang-
ed by the company (more specifically, by Sustainable Research Group, described state of movement. The company is ing out sheet sizes as often in the midst
its five-stage pretreatment system for its this approach to green manufacturing. keenly aware that whatever space can be of a shift’s production run. The purchas-
powder coating line) fed right into its Like lean, the lessons keep coming reclaimed from manufacturing eventual- ing department is getting a break from
own septic tank. That tank needed to be because this brand of environmentally ly can be used to accommodate new pro- material suppliers because they are mak-
cleaned out quite frequently, and each responsible manufacturing is also about duction efforts. ing larger and less varied orders.
service call added to cleanup costs. Most continuous improvement. When a visitor walks onto the shop Nothing good comes without a little
of the employees saw a simple waste Stough said that when approaching floor, he or she walks into the midst of bit of pain, however. DeWys
hauler; DeWys saw a money pit. companies about the efforts of the Green several “value streams.” Nine of these Manufacturing is in the process of
Not so coincidentally, the company Suppliers Network, he always tries to value streams stretch from material stor- migrating 6,000 part numbers over to
had just undergone a rigorous environ- speak in terms that manufacturing man- age on one side of the building through new dynamic nesting programs that
mental audit in 2008 and earned recog- agement understands: dollars. fabrication areas, to welding or finish- accommodate the new sheet sizes. It
nition by the Green Suppliers Network as To illustrate his approach, Stough ing, and finally to shipping. hasn’t been an overnight transition, but
a company that had streamlined product pointed to a typical manufacturer’s recy- The family of parts that belong to Hawkins said the transition should be
practices and used materials more effi- cling program. The manufacturer knows these value streams all have similar finished in the coming months.
ciently, not heaping needless waste into exactly how many pennies per pound it specs. For instance, laser-cut parts that DeWys Manufacturing has reduced
the environment. Wastewater was one of gets for selling metal scrap, and honest- require only a few bends on press brakes its water usage dramatically through bet-
the first areas the DeWys Manufacturing ly, most are pretty happy with that fig- before heading on material carts to be ter management of its five-stage pre-
team targeted and studied. ure. However, that same manufacturer welded might be a part of one value treatment process, but that’s not where
stream. Another value stream might call the savings end. If the pretreatment line
for laser-cut parts to be formed on the is reusing water, it also is reusing some
company’s new Salvagnini automated of the pretreatment chemicals. As a
bending cell and then moved to a hard- result, the company doesn’t have to buy
ware insertion machine before moving as many chemicals and the environment
along to powder coating. benefits because fewer chemical com-
This type of production flow was pounds are fed into the waste stream.
perfect for establishing more environ- DeWys is excited about the potential
mentally friendly manufacturing prac- impact that these green projects will have
SPECIALIZING IN QUALITY ZINC BARREL PLATING tices because the management team on the company. So much of last year
could target one strategic area of the was about “surviving,” he said, that only
ISO 9001:2000 Certified business, not simply launch numerous in the past six months has DeWys
efforts that would have been ignored Manufacturing really hit its stride in
PROCESSES AVAILABLE AT DYNA-PLATE INC. easily during the trying months of 2009. tackling these projects.
(Barrel Plating Lines Only) In targeting a product family that Of course, the company will contin-
may be found in one of these value ue to look at eliminating more waste as it
TRIVALENT CHROMATES - AUTOMOTIVE APPROVED streams, Stough said the team should relates to electricity, material, and water
• ZINC WITH CLEAR CHROMATE (Flash - .0005 thickness) take a look at material efficiency, energy usage. After all, it is about continual
intensity used during the manufacturing improvement—and not just for DeWys
• ZINC WITH YELLOW CHROMATE (Flash - .0005 thickness) process and the use of toxic and haz- Manufacturing, but all of manufacturing.
• ZINC WITH BLACK CHROMATE (.0001 - .0005 thickness) ardous materials. Once data has been col- “Manufacturers have to be good
lected, the team can decide what objec- stewards of the world,” said C.T.
• ZINC WITH OLIVE DRAB CHROMATE (.0001 - .0005 thickness) tives are to be met and establish metrics Martin, the company’s vice president.
• BAKE FOR HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT to achieve the agreed-upon goals. “Manufacturing has had the reputation
One of the first areas to grab the of making a profit at the expense of the
344 Mart SW Grand Rapids MI 49548
attention of manufacturing was raw environment. We’ve got to turn that
P: (616) 452-6763 material usage. Chris Hawkins, the com- around.”
pany’s manufacturing manager, said the
F: (616) 452-6661 company was ordering all sorts of sheet
www.dynaplate.com sizes for its fabrication needs.

Business Conditions in the Metalforming Industries
Cleveland, OH – According to recent
reports from Precision Metalforming
Association (PMA), metalforming com-
panies started this year optimistic about
business conditions and anticipating a
significant spike over the first three
months of 2011. The percentage of par-
ticipants anticipating an improvement in
economic activity has been steadily
increasing after jumping from 20% in
November to 40% in December (rising to
51% as of the latest February report)
while those anticipating a decline in
activity fell from 25% in November to
only five percent in February.
Metalforming companies also seemed to
expect improvement in incoming orders;
companies who report this optimism
have been rising quickly from 25% in
November to finish at 61% in February.
Average daily shipping levels dipped
in December; 35% percent of participants
reported shipping levels below those
reported three months earlier – an
increase from 28% in November.
However, PMA president William E.
Gaskin noted that this end-of-year fall
off appeared to be a seasonal dip and not
a harbinger of a double-dip recession.
Levels remained steady through January
and then spiked in February as those
reporting higher average daily shipping
jumped from 26% to 48% and those
reporting lower levels had fallen to 15%.
The number of metalforming compa-
nies with a portion of their workforce on
short time or layoff has remained steady
since November, hovering near an average
of 14% over that period. Still, this com-
pares very favorably to the same period
last year when reports averaged 52%.
January’s reported 12% of companies with
portions of their workforce on short time
or layoff was the lowest level seen since
October 2007.
“In spite of a modest year-end soften-
ing in orders, metalforming companies
experienced significantly improved busi-
ness conditions in 2010 and anticipate
continued growth in 2011,” said PMA
President William E. Gaskin. “On average,
for the first 11 months of 2010, metal-
forming companies reported a 41 percent
increase in orders and a 37 percent
increase in shipments compared to 2009.
“Metalforming companies continue to
benefit from growth in the manufacturing
sector, the strongest component of the
slow but steady recovery that began some
18 months ago. Survey results demon-
strating expectations for the general econ-
omy and for growth in orders are the most
positive we have seen in several years. A
few markets, such as construction, contin-
ue to underperform, but the outlook for
the metalforming industry continues to
improve. One cautionary note for the
months ahead is substantial concern over
higher costs for flat-rolled metals, which
could impact supply-chain relationships
and profitability.”
Gaskin also noted in a January
update from PMA that December's mar-
ginal increase in steel imports indicated
that the U.S. manufacturing sector recov-
ery continues to move forward, though at
a lackluster pace. According to prelimi-
nary data issued by the U.S. Department
of Commerce, total steel imports
25
increased 1% from November's levels to
1,642,583 metric tons, the fourth lowest
monthly import total in 2010.
Nevertheless, total steel imports for 2010
as a whole came to 21,652,948 metric
tons, a 47% increase over the recession-
ary year of 2009.
"This coming year marks a crucial
juncture for the small and medium-sized
businesses in our sector," continued
Gaskin. "Policymakers must work to
reinforce U.S. manufacturing growth by
enacting policies that directly enhance
the industry's competitiveness. We need
nothing short of a national manufactur-
ing policy to tackle head-on the tax,
health, environmental and trade policy
challenges facing our companies today.
We hope President Obama's emphasis on
economic growth and competitiveness in
his State of the Union address turns into
real progress for U.S. manufacturers."

The Manufacturing
Predicament
Continued from page 23
• Foster a Positive Image. The
manufacturing industry must constantly
inform the editorial media. These media
outlets can help tell the story to the
younger population (as well as influen-
tials such as educators and parents) that
dreams jobs are there for the taking. In
fact, that’s one of the missions of NBT. It
uses some of its resources to drive local
and national public awareness cam-
paigns to spread the message that man-
ufacturing is a viable career option.
The Alabama Construction
Recruitment Institute (ACRI) took the
effort to an even higher level. In late
2010, it retained Mike Rowe, prominent
host of “Dirty Jobs” on the Discovery
Channel and a long-time voice for the
need of skilled workers, to help convey
the message in the state. In a new public
service announcement, Rowe speaks
directly to Alabama teens and their par-
ents about the growing need for skilled
tradesmen.
In Conclusion
The message is clear. The goals are
attainable. The economic climate is
warming in a positive way.
Many in the industry are encour-
aged by the progress being made. For
example, in the NBT poll cited earlier,
parents were asked if they would support
having a young factory worker in their
family. More than half – 56 percent –
actually would recommend their child
pursue a career in manufacturing or
another kind of industrial trade.
Knowing so many parents will back
their children in this career path is truly
welcome news. However, a significant
amount of work remains to be done – as,
conversely, 44 percent of parents cur-
rently are not supportive. The industry
needs to convince them, their children
and others in this great country that
manufacturing is an honorable and ful-
filling career.
Gerald Shankel is president and CEO
of Rockford, IL-based Fabricators &
Manufacturers Association, International
(FMA), a professional organization with
more than 2,100 members working
together to improve the metal forming
and fabricating industry.

Industrial Briefs
Dearborn – Nominated by the SME Three Rivers – Armstrong
Education Foundation, Brianne Maier, International announced the release of
an Engineer II at General Mills special- the IS-4 Stainless Steel Universal
izing in optimizing packaging and Connector for high pressure and super
machinery interaction for increased per- heat steam lines. The new design
formance, has been named an honoree, enables quick and easy access to replace
one of 14 highly-accomplished engi- steam traps in critical process applica-
neers recognized for the New Faces of tions without disturbing the existing
Engineering Class of 2011. piping. The IS-4 with its integral strain-
er is rated for Class 900 service and is
Battle Creek – Representing the Battle rated up to 1245 psig at 900°F (86 bar at
Creek / Calhoun County / Kalamazoo 482°C). Stainless steel construction also
County Inland Port Development makes it corrosion resistant for exposure
Corporation, executive director Jan to harsh environments. The IS-4 is com-
Frantz was appointed to the Industry patible with 4-bolt connector steam traps
Trade Advisory Committee on Customs such as the Armstrong SH4000 and
Matters and Trade Facilitation on IB4022. The IS-4 also comes with a
February 10, 2011. three-year warranty against defective
materials and workmanship.
For All Your Finishing Needs!
• Vibratory Finishing • Parts Cleaning
• Abrasive Blasting • Soda/Dry Ice Blasting
• Peening
West Michigan’s Leading Provider of
Surface Enhancement Solutions
800- 968-1811 Byron Center, MI
www.grandnorthern.com
Waterford – In an effort to further
expand their capabilities in support their
business strategy of “Delivering Energy
in Every Way,” Oak Electric Services,
Inc. has been certified by GM’s preferred
partner for home charging products, SPX
Service Solutions, to be one of their
independent sales contractors for the
sales and installation of the Chevrolet
Volt electric vehicle charging stations.
Dexter – Alpha Metal Finishing
Company announced the following pro-
motions within its staff: Greg Wood has
been promoted from director of business
development to chief operating officer.
Laurie Armstrong has been promoted
from sales and marketing manager to
sales and general manager. Both
employees started working at Alpha in
May of 2010.
Whiting, IA – Jake Weller, who runs the
eBay department at Weller Auto Parts,
Inc., in Grand Rapids, MI, has been
named one of the top “25 Most
Influential Auto Recyclers of 2009” by
Locator UpFront in the “Under 25”
category.
Chicago, IL – Paint and coatings indus-
try leader Valspar is offering their Anti-
Rust Armor in an aerosol spray and
quart, gallon and five gallon sizes in a
variety of colors. The high-quality
enamel is great for interior and exterior
uses with a scrubbable, stain-, mois-
ture-, chemical- and abrasion-resistant
finish.
26
Holland – LeanLogistics, a global solu-
tions provider of transportation manage-
ment system applications and supply
chain services, announced a new part-
nership with PINC Solutions, the leader
in Real Time Location Systems technolo-
gy for yard visibility and management.
PINC Solutions' flagship product Yard
Hound provides live data for all yard
activities automatically and cost-effec-
tively. Information such as trailer park-
ing positions, yard truck locations, gate
activities and the temperature of refrig-
erated trailers are presented in real-time
through an easy-to-use graphical user
interface.
Chicago, IL and Dearborn, MI – A “Call
for Papers” for the 2011 Italian Machine
Tool Technology Awards (IMTTA) was
announced by the Italian Trade
Commission via its Chicago USA Office.
The IMTTA program asks upper level
students attending premier North
American universities to write a thesis
on the relative innovation taking place in
mechanical engineering related indus-
tries and the issues they face. Winners
will be awarded a two-week trip to Italy
to visit top Italian companies in the
machine tool industry and take part in
an advanced international engineering
program from Polytechnic of Milan.
Walker – Tubelite Inc. has named Tom
Minnon as eastern region sales manager
of the company’s architectural aluminum
products, serving clients from Maine to
Georgia. With nearly four decades of
industry experience and many profes-
sional accreditations, Minnon regularly
provides educational and consultative
support to architects, buildings owners
and glazing contractors.

St. Joseph – Hanson Logistics

announced a $2,000,000 expansion to
the company’s Decatur, MI facility used
for cold storage, mixing and packaging
by Dole Packaged Foods.

Grand Rapids – Sixarp LLC, Praxis

Design, Fabrication, Manufacturing, PVC Coating, Insulation, Stripping, Packaging announced today that Fran
Miller, Quality Manager in Columbus,
Sandblasting, Repairing, and Rebuilding of Anodizing, E-Coat, Painting, Ohio, has achieved the status of Safe
Plating, Powdercoating and PVD Racks, Baskets, Barrels and Screens Quality Food Practitioner from the
Safety Quality Food Institute, a lead-
ing, global certification program and
management system.
Phone: 616-453-8261 Fax: 616-453-3811
2855 Marlin Court N.W. Grand Rapids, MI 49544 racks@expertcoating.net
 Corporate Information
Grand Rapids – Kim and Michael
Gilpin, the father and son team that
operates the FASTSIGNS sign and
graphics center in Grand Rapids, have
been awarded the franchise network’s
most important recognition: the FAST-
SIGNS Award.
Grand Rapids – The popular Get the
Lead Out! program is offering increased
incentives to owners of single-family
rental properties in an effort to make
more of Grand Rapids housing units
lead-safe for children. Effective immedi-
ately and until further notice, Get the
Lead Out! program financing arrange-
ments for landlords have been increased
to $12,000 for the first unit served. The
co-pay has also been reduced to $500
per unit. Also effective immediately and
until further notice, co-pays are reduced
from $1,000 to $500 per unit.
Detroit – The Velvet Peanut Butter
Company announced continued expan-
sion and new hires. Jason Bruce has
been appointed Director of Operations
and will directly oversee the expansion
and distribution of Velvet Peanut Butter
in Michigan. Jason is owner Eric Bruce’s
brother.
Lansing – Jason Lamoreaux of Belding,
MI won the 2011 Michigan Auctioneer
Championships. Sixteen contestants
from Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio com-
peted for the coveted title. Other finalists
included Romayne Graber (Charlotte),
Frank E. Leist (Petoskey), Robert
McAdams (Martinsville, IN) and Donna
Tuttle (Mio). Lamoreaux received a
championship ring, trophy and entry
into the International Auctioneer
Championship in Orlando, FL this July.
Grand Rapids – Lambert, Edwards &
Associates, West Michigan’s top-ranked
public relations agency and the state’s
largest investor relations firm,
announced it has promoted Emily
Veltman to associate within the firm’s
Consumer Practice. Veltman was hired in
Sept. 2010 as an intern and will now
support the account teams for several of
the firm’s key consumer clients.
Battle Creek – Karl Dehn, president and
CEO, Battle Creek Unlimited,
announced Paul Jones has joined the
organization as marketing coordinator.
Jones is a native of Battle Creek, and he
received a bachelor’s degree in advertis-
ing and public promotions with a minor
in business administration from Western
Michigan University.
Grand Rapids – Susan Temple has
joined The Williams Distributing fami-
ly of kitchen and bath professionals.
Lansing – Big Brothers Big Sisters
Michigan Capital Region announced the
recent hire of Dr. Phillip Knight as the
agency’s executive director.
Lansing – The Lansing-based Small
Business Association of Michigan
announced that David Jessup has been
named the association’s director of gov-
ernment relations.
Anaheim Hills, CA – Liberty Alliance,
an industry leader in background checks
and employment screening solutions,
announced a partnership with Kimstaff,
a leader in human resource outsourcing.
Kimstaff wants to ensure that their
clients are protected in their hiring, and
Liberty Alliance as the chosen pre-
employment screening company will
provides them this assurance.
New York – The National Hockey
League announced a major agreement
with brewers Molson Coors in Canada
and MillerCoors in the U.S., awarding
flagship brand Molson Canadian exclu-
sive League rights in the beer sponsor-
ship category, including the rights to the
Official Beer of the NHL® designation,
beginning with the 2011-12 NHL sea-
son. The deal will span seven years.
Holland – Moms in Tow, a Holland start-
up group providing moms and expecting
moms with opportunities for social
events, activities and discounts, have
announced the addition of their 50th
business partner to the expanding list of
businesses from the Lakeshore to the
Grand Rapids area.
Muskegon – Naman Robertson Sr. of
Muskegon was awarded the Dr. Robert
E. Garrison Award at the third annual
American Veterans Dinner held at the
Great Lakes Naval Memorial Museum.
This award is given for service to coun-
try and community.
Grand Rapids – Siciliano's Market
announced plans to expand into the space
currently occupied by Marinades Pizza
next door. With the added space will come
more merchandise, new equipment for
brewing and wine making, plans to
expand their book selection and seriously
considerations towards selling green,
unroasted coffee beans, home coffee
roasters, and bread-baking ingredients
and supplies. The expansion should be
complete by the middle of March.
Lombard, IL. – The alluring prize of a
$25,000 marketing program awaits a
health care organization through a
unique initiative offered by the Stevens
& Tate Marketing agency. Through its
“Lend-A-Hand Marketing Giveaway”
contest, the agency will blend its myriad
skills in preparing a comprehensive, cus-
tomized plan based on the winner’s mar-
keting communications needs. The con-
test is open to any not-for-profit or for-
profit organization that is involved in
the delivery of health care or health
information.
Pontiac – Raleigh Michigan Studios,
the only built-for-production film and
television studio in the state of
Michigan, announced that Friedman
Integrated Real Estate Solutions has
been engaged as the exclusive market-
ing and leasing agent for 100,000 sq. ft.
of office space on the studio lot.
Grand Rapids – The American
Advertising Federation (AAF) of West
Michigan has named Yang Kim, execu-
tive creative director and co-owner of
Peopledesign, as the 2011 AAF West
Michigan Silver Medal Award winner.
Review of Fascinate
By Rolf Dobelli, Chairman,
getAbstract
Becoming fascinating is the best way
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interesting and distinctive that consumers
27
Athens Township – The Nottawaseppi
Huron Band of the Potawatomi
(NHBP), owners of FireKeepers Casino
in Battle Creek announced a check was
presented to the state of Michigan for a
total of $9,723,511.85. The second pay-
ment, representing the amount due for
the year 2010, brings the total amount
received by the state of Michigan to
$13.6 million since FireKeepers Casino
opened in Aug. 2009. The funds distrib-
uted are pursuant to the negotiated
agreement between the NHBP and the
state for 2010 operations at the NHBP’s
FireKeepers Casino, located in Battle
Creek. Along with the distribution of
nearly $10 million, the NHBP’s
FireKeepers Casino has contributed sig-
nificantly to Michigan’s economy in
2010. The $300 million facility has been
staffed with 1,500 team members since
its Aug. 5, 2009 opening, making the
property one of the largest employers in
Calhoun County. Interest in employment
with FireKeepers has remained high
with nearly 16,000 applications received
in 2010.
will be irresistibly attracted to it, as they
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