Solano EDC Touts County at Conference

Solano EDC Touts County at Conference
By Reporter Staff

The Solano Economic Development Corporation is participating this week at the Medical Design and Manufacturing West conference in Anaheim as part of Team California, a non-profit organization that brings together economic development organizations to market their communities.

Solano County is one of California's major biotechnology manufacturing centers, and the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) has targeted the industry for its marketing campaign.

Michael Ammann, EDC president and trade show co-chair for the statewide organization, said the weeklong Anaheim conference is the premier educational and networking forum for the medical manufacturing industry.

"We expect to get about 200 leads from this trade show," Ammann said, and these leads are then shared with the seven economic development officials in the Solano County cities.

"Fifteen years ago Solano County didn't know that Alza, Genentech, Novartis and Bio-Rad would locate and make major investments which today provide about 2,000 jobs," said Ammann. "We have become one of California's major biotechnology manufacturing clusters."

Ammann noted that Team California provides Solano County with a good vehicle to attend and participate in biotech trade shows and help assure growth in this rapidly expanding industry.

"At the shows, we are looking for growing product lines and companies that are either interested in locating or expanding in California," he said. "With Solano County's current biotechnology growth, and our location between the Bay Area and Sacramento we are well positioned to see expansion in this area."

With UC Davis and Berkeley both within minutes of Solano County, the potential for economic growth in biotech is a reality that cannot be dismissed, he added.