Piqua: Location, Land, Labor

With one of the heaviest concentrations of manufacturing in Ohio, Miami County is a hot location for new business investment. Ranking 29th in population, the county holds 12th position in manufacturing employment.

Piqua (pop. 22,000), strongly influences that ranking, chalking up some 1.2 million sq. ft. of new facilities and expansions in the last four years.

Piqua-produced pumps, steel tubing, baby furniture, propellers and scores of other products make their way around the world.

Smooth distribution is a main attraction for the manufacturing firms. The city is at the crossroads of I-75 and U.S. 36, a major cross-state artery.

Piqua's "auto alley" location puts it well within the just-in-time area for vehicle makers like Honda. Honda's Anna engine plant is just a few miles north of Piqua on I-75 and its auto and motorcycle plants are a short distance east.

Piqua is just 20 minutes from the juncture of I-70 and I-75 -- the "Crossroads of America" -- and about the same from Dayton International Airport.

But in addition to location, Piqua's most important assets are labor, low electricity rates and plenty of land.

Companies like Evenflo, a maker of juvenile furniture, like the ease of distribution that comes with proximity to I-70 and I-75. But for this company and many others, the labor force is equally important. Evenflo employs nearly 600 workers in production and worldwide distribution of two million children's car seats a year, plus high chairs and other items for retailers like Wal-Mart, Toys 'R Us, Sears and Kmart.

	"The quality of Piquas workforce is excellent," says Evenflo plant manager Dan Jackson. "We find that people in this part of Ohio are very willing to try new things and are very accepting of new methods." Evenflo operates two shifts a day and reports no difficulties staffing the second shift. Eighty percent of the company's workforce is female.
Labor and location are the key qualities that keep Piqua industry happy. Jackson Tube a major employer, recently expanded, adding substantial manufacturing and distribution space.

Despite Piqua's low unemployment rate -- 4.8 percent -- new business investment is not stifled by lack of labor. One reason is the large labor pool in the region. Piqua and Miami County are part of the Dayton-Springfield metro area of one million population. In addition, good access to the city allows companies to tap a 30-mile labor pool of 570,000 workers.

Piqua's strong vocational school, adjacent to Edison Community College, is one way the community keeps the labor supply fresh. The school upgrades worker skills in such areas as automation and tailors programs to the particular needs of companies.

Piqua has an abundance of one of the prime requirements of the distribution industry -- almost 900 acres of level, easily developed sites, many of them served by CSX rail. Most of the tracts are in the city's Enterprise Zone or Community Reinvestment Areas, where companies can benefit from tax abatements. Sites of more than 300 acres in a single tract can be assembled.

Road improvements are opening up even more industrial and distribution acreage. Sites amounting to 600-acres south of U.S. 36 near I-75 will become accessible by a new road fronting on the property.