Montgomery Business Journal – April 2016 by Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce

Q&A WITH AUM VICE CHANCELLOR KATHERINE JACKSON PAGE 8

AALOS HELPS CLIENTS REACH THEIR POTENTIAL PAGE 14

IN THE BUSINESS OF DESIGNING MEMORIES PAGE 22

GEARING UP HYUNDAI MOTOR MANUFACTURING ALABAMA RAMPS UP FOR SANTA FE PRODUCTION PAGE 32

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CONTENTS Q&A with AUM Vice Chancellor Katherine Jackson

APRIL 2016

08 32

16 46 26 24 MEMBER NEWS 14 Member Profile: AALOS 22 Member Profile: CCM Graphic Design & Printing 30 Member Profile: Southland International Trucks

CHAMBER NEWS 06 Calendar 42 Reporter’s Notebook

FEATURES 8

SUMMASOURCE DESIGNED FOR PUBLIC, PRIVATE SECTORS Q&A with Katherine Jackson

16 STATE OF THE CITY & COUNTY Chamber event highlights city and county updates 24 KEY TO BANKING CUSTOMERS: CAR LOANS BB&T looks to establish long-term relationships 26 MONTGOMERY’S OWN UNDERGROUND Railyard Brewing Co. opens the Porter Club

32 RAMPING UP HMMA gets ready for Santa Fe build 38 VEHICLE SHIPMENTS OVERSEAS SIZZLE Alabama exports decline slightly in 2015 46 ADDING MORE TO LIFE ON THE LAKES The Waters develops new hamlets

52 Business Buzz 55 Members on the Move 59 Ribbon Cuttings & Ground Breakings 60 New Members 61 Economic Intel

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

THE NUMBER ONE BUSINESS SOURCE FOR MONTGOMERY AND THE RIVER REGION PUBLISHER

Randall L. George EDITORIAL

Tina McManama David Zaslawsky Lashanda Gaines Melissa Bowman DESIGN

Copperwing Design PHOTOGRAPHER

Robert Fouts ON THE COVER

Jun Ha Kim is president and CEO of Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama. ADVERTISING

Linda Drumheller 334-240-9494 mbjsales@montgomerychamber.com

Montgomery Business Journal c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Post Office Box 79 41 Commerce Street Montgomery, Alabama 36101 Telephone: 334-834-5200 Fax: 334-265-4745 Email: mbj@montgomerychamber.com www.montgomerychamber.com/mbj The Montgomery Business Journal (USPS NO. 025553) is published monthly except for the combined issues of June/July/August and November/December, by the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36104, (334) 834-5200, www.montgomerychamber.com. Subscription rate is $30 annually. Periodicals Postage Paid at Montgomery Alabama, 36119+9998, USPS NO. 025553. Volume 8, Issue 4. POSTMASTER send address changes to Montgomery Business Journal, c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 79, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36101, or email mbj@montgomerychamber.com. The Montgomery Business Journal welcomes story ideas from its readers. Email to: editor@montgomerychamber.com. Subscriptions are a part of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce dues structure. Subscriptions can also be purchased for $30 per year at www.montgomerychamber.com/mbjsub.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

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Katherine Jackson is vice chancellor for the Office of Business & Community Initiatives at Auburn University at Montgomery. She was recently interviewed by the Montgomery Business Journalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s David Zaslawsky.

Q&A 8

SUMMASOURCE DESIGNED FOR PUBLIC & PRIVATE SECTORS

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Montgomery Business Journal: Please briefly describe what is the Office of Business & Community Initiatives at Auburn University at Montgomery? Jackson: We provide services for state agencies, private sector organizations and for individuals to try to help them become more productive. We do that in a number of ways. We do that through training. We do that through consulting services. What is your role as vice chancellor? n I am basically the administration and I help organize all of that and manage all of that. I’m in charge of marketing and making sure that we are out there – getting the word out, but also making sure that the contracts that we have are executed appropriately.

Are there plans to move on campus? It depends on when the building is completed – probably around June 2017. n

What other AUM entities would you be sharing space with? n It will be a shared building and the who is still up in the air, but right now it looks like it will be a welcomeand-alumni center. It will be advancement and possibly some admissions and some of my group. The group that is here is the Business & Community Initiatives – people that do some of the contract work and also marketing.

How many employees do you have in this building? About 12.

How many contracts were there in 2015?

n Last year we had in the neighborhood of 150 agreements with state agencies; with private sector organizations.

How many employees overall are there in the Business & Community Initiatives group?

Is there a goal for the number of contracts in 2016?

n Full time we have about 75 to 80. When you consider part time, it could be up to 250. It just depends on the time of the year.

n We have a basic goal of 100. The number of agreements doesn’t make such a difference because one agreement could be for $10 million.

It’s the quality and not the quantity. Right. We do agreements for $2,000 and we do agreements for millions of dollars.

Would the majority of those be contract employees? Right. Summertime, we do all those programs for kids and we employ a lot of extra people during that time. n

I know that there are several locations, including here at Halcyon Summit.

The office is divided into two divisions: Outreach and SummaSource. Please describe the divisions. Outreach is really our community piece. We do our business breakfasts. We do ESL. All that continuing education happens through our Outreach piece. We do wine appreciation classes. Osher Lifelong Learning Institute happens through our Outreach piece; our kids’ programs during the summer – all of that happens through our Outreach piece. All of that is at our Center for Lifelong Learning. n

The Business & Community Initiatives and underlying units have four different locations right now. One small section is on campus, which is our ESL (English as a second language) program because we mainly serve, but not completely, individuals who want to be students, and lot of them live in on-campus housing. We have our Outreach unit and that’s at the Center for Lifelong Learning at TechnaCenter Park, and that is in an AUM building. n

Isn’t there a downtown site? n Three of our units are all in the Bailey Building at 400 South Union. That’s a great location for them because they serve public sector and private sector. A lot of the groups they serve are state agencies, so that’s a perfect location to serve state agencies. They do training, and that’s a great location for people to come for training. The last location is in this building (Halcyon Summit office park). We lease space in this building.

How long have you been at your current location? n

And the SummaSource? n SummaSource is our business piece and learning to be more effective in a business; as a business; or just individually – how can I be more productive at work. That happens through three different units and it may be as an individual or training a group; executive leadership training, but it may be, what can I do for my IT (information technology) system? How can I put in a more productive system? Do I need to look at my firewall? Is the security not up to par with my computer system? Do I need a new website? Things like that.

Continued on page 10

Almost five years. April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Continued from page 9

What are those three units? Advanced technology, which looks at IT through a number of different methods. They do managed services, where they can come in and help you run your IT services. n

A company can outsource their IT to you. Right, and that works well with small nonprofits. They do this for Pike Road schools. They have their IT people, but (we’ve) been assisting with that. They help with large procurements. For state agencies to keep a very unbiased and fair approach when they are putting out RFPs (request for proposals) – we will come in and help craft those RFPs and determine what is it that you really need here, and work with the people who are looking for IT services or the IT equipment and determine how (the RFP) will be evaluated; and help put that RFP out there to meet all the specs required. Then help when it comes in through the evaluation process, which sounds minimal, but some of those are for major, major dollars. It keeps it a safe process and it saves the state agencies a lot of money. They help with IT strategic planning. n

“Almost any organization needs a plan going forward, just to make sure budget-wise that you know what you’re going to spend your money on and where you’re going to be spending your time.” – Katherine Jackson, vice chancellor for the Office of Business & Community Initiatives at Auburn University at Montgomery

Sounds like an A to Z process. n Right. We have people on staff that we can plug into your organization if we need to. If you need a Web developer, but you don’t need them for more than six months or a year, sometimes we can put someone in your organization to work for you for a while. It’s just a broad range of services.

What other units do you have? n Organizational consulting unit. They work on making an organization more effective as far as people working together and how they approach working with each other and how they approach working with customers. They look at customer satisfaction and how to approach that more effectively. They look at your employees and how you’re treating your employees, which might be performance evaluation; performance management; how are you approaching that; how are you selecting employees? Are you doing that in a matter that is effective? Are you getting sued? Are you doing something that is likely to get you into a lawsuit? I work a lot with organizations that have been sued for race or gender discrimination.

Showing an organization the dos and don’ts. Right. They can come in and develop a valid selection process for you. They look at compensation; classification of positions; organizational analysis. We look at your organization and say these are the things you need to do to be more effective. They look at managerial assessments and putting individuals through certain training processes and looking at what n

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

is effective; what is ineffective here; and how do we make it more effective. It’s all about looking at efficiency and effectiveness and what’s working and what’s not working. Because they do what they do, they are really good at listening to unique problems and determining what is the best approach for you. They also do grant evaluation. That’s a pretty unique niche that works well for us because we’re a university. How does that work well for AUM? n A lot of granting funders now – particularly federal and even state – they don’t want you doing your own evaluation, which makes a lot of sense. They fund an agency or fund someone with grant money and they want to hear that you are using someone else to do an evaluation.

Is the evaluation how effective the organization was using the grant money? Right. When you send in a proposal and say, ‘I’m doing this and I’m doing this’ – they want an evaluation piece in there and they love collaboration. It’s much more effective for an outside party evaluating it, and it’s great to have a university evaluating it because universities are very strong on assessment and that’s something that looks very good. We do that. We will help groups write the grant and then we do the evaluation piece. Also in that unit, we do economic analysis. We have done a number of studies to look at the economic impact. n

That could be for the public sector or private sector. n Correct. How much money has this festival brought in or what is the economic impact of our organization?

That unit also conducts strategic planning, which is critical for every company to do. n It’s what the game plan is going forward. Almost any organization needs a plan going forward, just to make sure budget-wise that you know what you’re going to spend your money on and where you’re going to be spending your time. What your priorities are. You may think that small organizations or nonprofits don’t need it, but a lot of granting agencies will not give grant funds any longer unless you have a plan. It’s really important for any organization, and we do that for churches, for nonprofits, for state agencies.

There’s one more unit. n Yes, training solutions, and it does exactly like it sounds like. They provide training on the individual level, but also for groups.

Do you also conduct an analysis to determine what type of training is needed? Yes. We almost always do that … because a lot of people are off-base with what they think they need. n

Is the training built around how individuals and companies can become more efficient and more effective? There are a lot of different types of training. There is some very basic training like business writing skills. Is that going to impact the company overall? Yes, but it’s going to affect the individual more. They have computer classes. They have Word classes and Excel classes and certification classes. n

Does the training range from very basic to operating the company more effectively? n We have executive leadership classes – learning more about yourself and how you function as a leader and thinking about the people you supervise. Those (classes) can be done with people in the room from your own organization and sometimes they are done with people from other organizations in the room. Both of those approaches can be very effective. Right now we’re doing separate programs with a number of different organizations in town – one of those being Montgomery Public Schools with their aspiring leaders and with their current principals. We (are working with) a number of private sector organizations and with some state agencies and those have been very well received.

What is the new vision and brand for the Office of Business & Community Initiatives? n Outreach is just a very interesting word and it hasn’t always been Outreach. It’s been individual units for years and the individual units’ names have changed. The individual units have been around since the ’70s – some since the late ’70s. We’ve had continuing education. We’ve had the center for business. We’ve had the center for government; for demographic research. Outreach came into being in 2000. The name Outreach just doesn’t have a name that conveys a lot of meaning to people or the meaning that says business. We’ve had a lot of questions over the years about what is this. We did a lot of research on it and looked at other universities. We’re very unique in what we provide. There are not a lot of universities that provide the services that we provide. When we looked at Outreach, we found some continuing education-type of programs, but we also found some (other) services. And a lot of it said free. We like free, but of those 85 employees that I mentioned, we are self-supporting. We are a moneygenerating unit.

When did you become the Office of Business & Community Initiatives? n

That changed in January. We launched it on Jan. 13.

Continued on page 12

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It’s been a short time, but are you seeing some results? n We’ve had a very positive response. It’s not going to be an overnight thing. A lot of it is what is going to happen outside the River Region. Inside the River Region, people know Katherine Jackson; they know Kathy Gunter.

Is one of the goals or a side benefit for professional people to go back to school to get graduate degrees or undergraduate degrees at AUM? n I’m not specifically recruiting. Auburn Montgomery is a fantastic place. We offer a wonderful education. Certainly, I’ve answered a lot of questions while I spent time with the business community and people ask me about certain degrees. It is an awareness factor and because we’re a university, I am able to pull faculty in to our projects.

Can you bring in professors from the Auburn campus? All the time. Our training solutions group in particular uses people all the time on both campuses and we’ve been doing it for years. n

I know you work with a wide range of organizations, but are there some common issues? n Customer service is one. There are certain things organizations can put into place to improve customer service and a lot of it is thinking about it in the right way. Customer service is not a super easy fix, but it’s something that organizations could address and improve.

Is there another common issue? n Some basic supervisory skill issues, that kind of is an easy fix. We find all the time and this is such a common thing – people promote people who are good at what they do on the line. Let’s say you’re a good engineer and now you’re supervising engineers. I’ve said before that being an engineer and being a supervisor are different skill sets. Being a good anything doesn’t make you a good supervisor. It’s not that they don’t need to be a supervisor, it’s that there is no training.

Those are the key middle-level managers. That’s right, and they are messing a lot of people up when they don’t have what they need. They are making people uncomfortable. n n

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Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Member Profile

MIRACLE WORKERS AALOS helps clients reach their potential by Melissa George Bowman photography by Robert Fouts

Glenn Crumpton runs Alabama Artificial Limb & Orthopedic Service.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Redefine the possible. Those inspirational words guide the work of Alabama Artificial Limb & Orthopedic Service (AALOS). Just step inside AALOS’ lobby and you will see they are living up to those words. Covering the walls are framed clips of articles with headlines such as “Iraq veteran turns loss into personal triumph”, “First steps: amputees receive chance at new life” and “’Princess’ climbs, runs like other kids.” Behind each headline is the story of a person AALOS has helped. AALOS manufactures customized prosthetic and orthotic devices. The family-owned business based in Montgomery has been around for more than 60 years. Glenn Crumpton, a third-generation prosthetist and orthotist whose grandfather was a founder of the company, has been with AALOS since 1990. Even at a young age, Crumpton knew he wanted to be part of the family business. He began cooping at AALOS during high school and has never lost his enthusiasm for the rewarding work of helping patients. “We’re part of the restoration of their quality of life. It’s an exciting thing,” he said. “We can help somebody return to a normal life.” While some companies specialize in prosthetics or orthotics, AALOS provides both. Crumpton explains the difference. Orthotic devices brace certain parts of the body that require support, and prosthetics replace body parts due to amputation. Patients in need of orthotics are typically dealing with injuries or conditions like cerebral palsy or scoliosis. Patients requiring prosthetics may have been born without a limb or may have lost a limb because of disease or a traumatic accident. Among prosthetic patients, Crumpton says AALOS currently serves about four children under age 9 and several soldiers injured in combat, but the vast majority are amputees due to diabetes and peripheral vascular disease. “Diabetes and peripheral vascular disease have changed everything about our business,” he said. While the reasons patients come to AALOS vary, what they all have in common is the individual treatment they receive. Each device AALOS manufactures is customized according to what the client wants. Crumpton says it’s easy to assume everyone wants a prosthesis that most closely resembles the real thing, but that isn’t always the case. “We address the whole person,” he said. “We have found it means more to people when they can identify with their prosthesis and with their orthosis.”

a prosthesis that looked like a rifle. Another example includes a young woman who has been an amputee and client at AALOS since age 3. Her current prosthesis is a beautifully designed pattern of intricate scrollwork. Now in college, she has decided she wants to devote her career to working with other prosthetic and orthotic patients and interns at AALOS during her breaks from school. Not only does AALOS customize each device so that clients are happy with the look of the end product, they also utilize the most current technology to ensure the best fit. According to Crumpton, materials have advanced tremendously in recent years. Metals have been replaced by plastics that are better able to follow the contours of the body. Technological advancements have also led to microprocessors that Crumpton says can perform “real-time analysis of the environment the patient is walking in, and if they’re speeding up the prosthesis will react differently.” He says technology is constantly evolving and expects 3D printing and mapping to be the next big advancement. While many companies outsource construction, AALOS manufactures the majority of its products in-house, which Crumpton says is an advantage for clients because it can speed recovery. “We’re recreating something to go on the human body and when we fit the patient, if it’s not exactly as we expected it to be, we really don’t like to have the downtime while we wait for somebody in another state to recreate it and try again,” he said. “It’s better if we can make the changes on-site. It’s all about getting to the patient soon and not letting them become more debilitated.”

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Because AALOS strives to do what is best for each and every client, they have helped orchestrate many success stories. It takes sophisticated science and technology to make those success stories happen, but according to Crumpton, the personal connections with clients are by far what is most rewarding. “Everybody here gets to participate in that person’s life and that’s why it’s so exciting,” he said. “Everybody takes an active interest in the patient’s recovery and quality of life. They become our friends.” n

Crumpton says examples include a child who requested “princess legs” and a soldier who wanted

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

State of the City & County by David Zaslawsky

photography by Robert Fouts

Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange (top left) and Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton N. Dean Sr. (bottom) delivered speeches on the State of the City and the State of the County.

18 and is expected to be held at One Center, above a city fire station and police precinct at the former Montgomery Mall.

Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton N. Dean Sr. and Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange delivered their annual addresses at the Chamber’s State of the City and County. Bruce Crawford, chairman of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, said the city, county, Chamber, state delegation and region’s federal delegation “all work together to create jobs and a better quality of life for the citizens in the Capital of Dreams.” Dean said that the county is joining the city and the Reverend Kyle Searcy, senior pastor of the Fresh Anointing House of Worship for the Youth City initiative. The program is for children/youths 5 to

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

“Middle-schoolers who participate in after-school programs are more likely to graduate and go on to college or the workforce to have hope for lifting themselves and their families out of the cycle of poverty and into a world of possibility,” Dean said. “Youth City and the county’s youth programs will provide that hope.” Yes, 2015 was a good year for Montgomery – county and city. The county generated a record $43 millionplus in sales taxes and the city topped the $100 million plateau for sales taxes. The previous record for the city was $98 million.

The success from last year is continuing in 2016. The cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sales tax revenue for January was the secondbest month ever at $10.2 million, and just shy of the all-time record of $10.4 million set pre-Great Recession in January 2007. Meanwhile, the countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s budget was increased $6 million from the previous year to $108 million. The increase included $6.4 million for employee wages and benefits and $1 million for debt service on Montgomery Public Schools projects: building Loveless Academic Magnet Program High and Montgomery Preparatory Academy for Career Technologies at One Center; and adding a wing at Park Crossing High School. The County Commission, which is funding $16 million of the $27 million for the three projects, contributed an additional $28 million to the school district and has given MPS more than $322 million since dedicating a portion of sales tax collections for the school district. Continued on page 19

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

The State of the City and the State of the County speeches drew a full house to the RSA Activity Center.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;[We] all work together to create jobs and a better quality of life for the citizens in the Capital of Dreams.â&#x20AC;? -Bruce Crawford, chairman of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Continued from page 17

The county completed several projects last year: > New courtroom and administrative offices for probate judge - $1.5 million. > Renovations to the Montgomery County Youth facility - $8.6 million. > New district attorney’s offices - $3.5 million. > New public defender’s office - $525,000. > New handicapped-accessible restrooms for the probate/revenue west office - $125,000. > The county also funded 25 new vehicles for the Sheriff’s Office and each unit has $27,000-plus of computer equipment and video cameras.

“Youth City and the county’s youth programs will provide that hope.” – Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton N. Dean Sr.

This year, the county will open its first ever probate/ revenue office on the south side of Montgomery. The $1.4 million facility is located at the former Pier One building on McGehee Road. The City of Montgomery is building a municipal court on Madison Avenue. The city is also working on renovations to the 67-year-old Paterson Field. For the third straight year, Montgomery has topped the state’s metros in hotel occupancy rate, and Strange said that will result in three new hotels this year, which represent 250 to 300 more rooms. He talked about projects under way on Dexter Avenue, Fairview Avenue, Cloverdale, One Center and EastChase where “you see millions and millions and millions of dollars that are under construction. Our permit values right now are close to $300 million and that will take us a few months to work through …” Continued on page 21

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“For the third straight year, Montgomery has topped the state’s metros in hotel occupancy rate.” -Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Lt. Gen. Steven Kwast, commander and president of Air University (left) was one of the distinguished guests at the State of the City and the State of the County event.

Continued from page 19

Yet for Strange, one of the most important developments was Uber coming to Montgomery. “The fact that we have Uber sends messages to the world,” Strange said. “It talks about Montgomery (being) a tech-savvy city, and when you have people coming from all over the world to Montgomery and they can use Uber, that speaks volumes about where we are and what we’re doing.” There is another development that could someday rival or top the $4.8 billion annual economic impact of Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama’s plant in Montgomery. That development is the Montgomery Internet Exchange and Montgomery Cyber Connection. Strange said that places Montgomery “as the epicenter of cyber.” He said that Montgomery will be the Silicon Valley for cyber in two or three years. n

Montgomery County Commission Elton N. Dean Sr. talked about projects the county completed last year during his State of the County speech.

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Member Profile

DESIGNING MEMORIES

Christina C. Mims is owner of CCM Graphic Design & Printing.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Everything is new for CCM Graphic Design & Printing by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Although her business is more than three years old, there is a lot of newness including name, website, location, employees and products. The new name of Christina C. Mims’ company is CCM Graphic Design & Printing. It was a recent change and has prompted a new website as well. Mims, who has an office at the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Business Resource Center, moved in March to a larger space at the facility. It was about 1.5 times larger than her previous office. Meanwhile, the company has grown from just her – the owner – to an assistant and full-time graphic designer. Mims also uses two to three independent contractors and if necessary has two more on call. The larger office will also accommodate a full copy and printing center for businesses at the Business Resource Center. “I want to get the downtown area as well,” she said. She will offer drop-off and overnight services. She actually hopes to move out of the Business Resource Center by the end of the year into a downtown office. If that’s not enough, Mims invested between $90,000 and $100,000 on a machine that will enable Mims to print books that would be at least 10 pages for an additional keepsake for funerals or any occasion or event. She will be designing and printing a 150-page book to help Mount Zion A.M.E. Zion Church celebrate its 150th anniversary this year. She earlier designed and printed a 12-page booklet for the church to recognize its role in the Montgomery Bus Boycott. From the start, Mims’ funeral programs/booklets are what she calls her “flagship products.” She still remembers the date of her first obituary program: Jan. 24, 2013. She meets with the families and asks about the deceased. “I want to know their story,” she said. “I capture their stories through pictures and text. It becomes a memorial – a keepsake they hold onto forever.” One client slept with the funeral program of her late husband. Mims will now have the equipment to “create a memorial book with a hard cover.”

She has had some high-profile clients – designing and printing the funeral program for longtime WSFA 12 News employee Arlam Carr Jr., who is the son of civil rights icon Johnnie Carr. He died in 2013. Mims designed and printed the funeral booklet for former Montgomery County Board of Education President Beverly Ross, who died last year. She printed 500 booklets. Those funeral programs/booklets represented about 90 percent of her company’s revenue in 2013 and 2014, but with the growth of programs for churches EMPLOYEES: for fundraisers, banquets and receptions; weddings, 3 invitations, thank-you cards and brochures – the funeral-related products account for about 75 YEARS IN BUSINESS: percent of her revenue. She even designed course 3-PLUS catalogs for Wallace Community College. Funeral programs range from four pages to 16 pages. The typical funeral program she designs is an eight-page booklet that is 8.5 inches by 11 inches. That costs $6.50 a booklet and she has printed up to 1,000 booklets for a funeral. A 24-inch by 36-inch laminated photo costs $22. In her line of work, many orders are short-notice – very short-notice. Sometimes the programs/ booklets are needed the next day. Mims said she recently received a call from the Alabama Heritage Funeral Home for 700 booklets – the next day. “I designed it the same day and printed it,” Mims said. Nearly all the area’s funeral homes will tell their clients about Mims’ funeral programs, which are part of a client’s overall funeral bill. The client tells the funeral home what they want. “If they want my quality programs they call me,” Mims said.

PRODUCTS:

FUNERAL BOOKLETS/ PROGRAMS; SOUVENIR PROGRAMS, INVITATIONS, HARD-BOUND BOOKS LOCATION:

MONTGOMERY AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BUSINESS RESOURCE CENTER WEBSITE:

CCMGRAPHICDESIGN.COM

CCM Graphic Designs & Printing is not the only game in town, but Mims said her competitors “are not providing the type of service I give – the graphic work and everything I put in it. They can’t compete with that.” n

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

KEY TO BANKING CUSTOMERS: CAR LOANS BB&T looks to establish long-term relationships by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Guy Davis is market president for BB&T.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

It may not seem like an important step, but a young person’s first banking experience might be taking out a car loan. That is important to BB&T. “There is a good shot (that) wherever you get your first loan is where you maintain that relationship over a long period of time – unless the bank does something to mess it up, and that’s what we try really hard not to do,” said Guy Davis, market president for BB&T. “We hope that loan creates a contact with that client, that we can begin the relationship,” he said. “Relationships in our world today are built around financial literacy; around financial planning. Clients that are financially healthy have more of an opportunity to be a better long-term customer.” That car loan, whether for three, four, five or six years, can lead to a lifetime customer. “It’s an entry point for the consumer,” Davis said. “If you think back to the first time you borrowed money, it was probably either a car loan or credit card.” The car loans are also low-risk for the bank, Davis said. He said that being delinquent on car payments is “usually the last thing” a consumer does. “It’s their transportation to and from work,” he said. The bank offers car lease buyout loans, refinance and cash-out loans with some fixed rates as low as 7.39 percent for 24 months. Rates are subject to change. “We’re doing a better job as an industry in making sure that we purpose each loan,” Davis said. “We know what each loan is for and structure the repayment in a way that it’s not detrimental to the client.” He said that the bank won’t let a consumer get a car lease buyout loan for no longer than 24 months, “depending on what your needs are, because we want to match the purpose with the structure, and if you don’t, you really do a disservice to your client.” Unlike an automaker, BB&T can “bank an entire consumer,” Davis said, “whereas they can only bank a part of the consumer. They can lend them money, but they don’t have other things to provide and other services to sell to that consumer. By pursuing the car loan piece we have an opportunity to bank that client long term.”

“By pursuing the car loan piece we have an opportunity to bank that client long term.” – BB&T Market President Guy Davis

Of course, BB&T has plenty of rivals. “The reality is that this is one of the most competitive industries in the country and there are a lot of really good competitors,” Davis said. Most of the larger banks have departments that “focus primarily on calling on dealers to offer financing through those dealerships.” What is the impact of BB&T’s car loans? “We feel like it works because when a client chooses through an auto dealer to do their car financing with us, then the branch closest to that client will generally make a phone call and say, ‘Welcome to BB&T. We’re glad to have you as a new client.’ That’s part of the process.” Banks are careful not to be overly exposed to any industry, whether it’s car loans, commercial real estate or industrial lending. “We’re not trying to overgrow in one area to offset undergrowth in another,” Davis said. Davis said that BB&T tries to “bank with the person as opposed to the line of business, and for us it’s all about starting that relationship somewhere. One of the things that I think we’re good at is integrating that process for the client and taking care of their holistic financial needs as opposed to just that one product. “We don’t see ourselves as product-pushers. We see ourselves as bankers and as financial advisers. It’s only logical that we want to start that at the place that most people start their banking relationship.” The overall lending environment is “steady,” Davis said. “It’s not robust, but it’s not slow. People in businesses are borrowing money. Whenever there is uncertainty in the economy, businesses tend to put off decisions for expansion until there is some certainty.” Yet because there has been so much uncertainty for so long, businesses “are starting to make this investment a little bit more,” he said. n

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

OMERYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S O G T N WN O M

RAILYARD BREWING CO. OPENS THE by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

The foundation was there and the space was there, so it did not take a wheelbarrow full of money to convert the basement of Railyard Brewing Co. into two venues: The Tavern and The Porter Club.

PORTER CLUB

When Railyard Brewing Co. owner and general manager Bob Parker said all he did was decorate the area, he is downplaying his role. It was much more involved than that and it’s still evolving, as wooden walls were recently installed at The Porter Club. He just built the bar for that area, too. “I didn’t think it would cost that much, but I keep adding stuff,” said Parker, who spent $50,000 for the makeover. “I’m not content with it just being OK.” He said he wants customers to be “amazed. I like that word. It’s all about expectations. You aren’t expecting this,” he said about the rooms, which are decorated with cool tables, chairs and couches. Continued on page 28

Bob Parker is owner and general manager of Railyard Brewing Co.

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

“There’s nothing like it in Montgomery – not at the price point and not at the size.” – Bob Parker, owner and general manager of Railyard Brewing Co., talking about his downstairs venues

away from Railyard Brewing. If Dreamland has a good day and adds catering for 200 people, “the sales go way up,” he said. If Parker serves 150 meals all day at Railyard Brewing and adds a 50-person event downstairs – “that’s a third more in business we did that day,” he said.

The basement of the Continued from page 27 Railyard Brewing Co. has been converted into The “When I walk downstairs I Tavern and The Porter Club.

expect a basement. When I tell people to come downstairs they are like, ‘What am I going to see? A basement?’ C’mon, you’ll be amazed and I love the comments: ‘I want to live here. I’ve got to plan a party here.’ ” It is no exaggeration when Parker said, “There’s nothing like it in Montgomery – not at the price point and not at the size.” It is so much more than a conversation piece. It’s all about revenue and Parker said the goal is for the two venues to account for 25 percent of Railyard Brewing’s revenue. Think of it this way: If someone goes downstairs for an event, that person may decide to eat at the restaurant upstairs. If someone goes to the restaurant they may want to have an event downstairs. He said that the events downstairs bring in people who may not otherwise visit Railyard Brewing Co. Parker considers The Tavern, which has been open about a year, and The Porter Club, which opened in April, as offsite venues. He calls catering from Dreamland Bar-B-Que offsite revenue. He is owner and general manager of Dreamland, about a block

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Talk about tremendous upside, and there really is no downside. The downstairs venues do not create “a whole lot more work” because the food has already been prepared and it “doesn’t clog up our dining room,” Parker said. He averages one to two events a week at The Tavern, but was much busier during the holiday season. Although there is no rental fee, there is a minimum food and beverage charge for weekday nights ($500) and weekends ($750). Depending on the size of the private parties, there could be more than one event at each of the venues. The Tavern holds 70 for a seated dinner and 100 standing, while The Porter Club will hold about 60 people. The newly opened Porter Club is “going to feel a little bit like a men’s club,” Parker said, adding that he hates that term. He would prefer it being a cigar bar, but without the required filtration system it will have to be a cigar bar without the cigars. Now for what The Porter Club does have, and that’s top-of-the-line alcohol that could cost anywhere from $5 a glass to $100 a glass. Parker has about 85 bottles and is still adding to his collection. He calls it an amenity – having bottles that no one else will have in the city, from scotch, whisky and rye to bourbon and tequila.

Annual memberships will be sold for The Porter Club for $100 apiece and that includes a mug club membership, which is $25 a year. Customers receive a 20-ounce beer for the cost of a 16-ounce beer. Porter Club members have access to the venue when it is not booked. There is no fee to use the room during the day. The room is filled with couches, chairs and tables – not to mention a 1940s pool table, dart board and card tables. There is a poker table made from whiskey barrels, but Parker said it is an accent piece.

LIVING IT UP DOWNSTAIRS WITH SPECIAL EVENTS by David Zaslawsky

Creating memories is one of the ways that makes the Railyard Brewing Co. downstairs venues so unique and so important. “If you’re having an event down here you learn to fall in love with us because we do a lot of 40th birthday parties; we do a lot of surprise parties; we do a lot of rehearsal dinners,” said Bob Parker, owner and general manager of Railyard Brewing Co. and Dreamland Bar-B-Que.

He described the color scheme as “old school – a lot of reds and browns.” There will be pagers around the room for customers to order food.

The downstairs at Railyard Brewing Co. is divided into The Tavern and The Porter Club – special sites for special occasions or even business meetings. But it’s those special occasion events that Parker said have a lasting impression.

The Tavern and The Porter Club “are a huge part” of the business, Parker said. “They give it sustainability. They make this work.”

“Those are memories – you make memories at rehearsal dinners,” he said. “You remember that. We’ve become a part of your life when you have a great event down here and we execute it well.”

He did hire an events coordinator and three or four part-time employees who work the events.

Those events add to the bottom line and those memories may lead to a customer coming back and back for events or the restaurant upstairs.

There is another work in progress. Parker is adding a deck by the parking lot near Riverwalk Stadium, where the Montgomery Biscuits play about 70 home games a year. The deck will have tables and chairs and music. He expected to have it completed in the spring. n

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Member Profile

TRAILERS DRIVE BUSINESS GROWTH

Southland International Trucks creates niche by David Zaslawsky

photography by Robert Fouts

Drew Linn is president of Southland International Trucks.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

About four years ago Southland International Trucks Inc. began selling new and used trailers and leasing them as well. The move has been very good for the 30-year-old business with six locations in Alabama, including four dealerships. You cannot miss the Montgomery location if you drive near the main entrance to Maxwell Air Force Base on Maxwell Boulevard. The Southland International Trucks facility in Montgomery is located right across from that main entrance. It made sense to expand the business with trailers. “We’re calling those customers anyway and a customer who has a truck – he’s got 1.6 trailers,” Southland International Trucks President Drew Linn said. “You can’t just have one-for-one. That’s where we’re seeing a big growth and the parts and service on trailers.” The new trailers are Wabash, Transcraft and Benson, and used trailers from other manufacturers are also sold. The company has a trailer service center in Tarrant as well as a used truck/rental and lease and bus facility in Birmingham. There is a body shop located next door. Southland International Trucks was hoping to complete a new Tuscaloosa facility in March. The company built a new $200,000 warehouse on the Montgomery property to store parts. All four dealerships have warehouses. The Montgomery facility used to occupy just a corner of the property, but about five years ago Linn invested $2 million in a new facility because “the need for our products and services was expanding,” he said. The Montgomery staff has grown over the years from 17 to 26. “We have 150 to 175 years of experience under this roof (in Montgomery) and not only that, but they are still learning,” Linn said. “We have a tremendous learning program – continuing education, if you will.” That experience and “character of the employees” helps set Southland International apart from rivals, Linn said, but those are not the only factors. “I would say our capacity to sell more models within our brand; our service capacity across the state.”

The company sells International brand new models as well as used trucks from other manufacturers. There are medium-duty trucks, severe-service trucks, heavy-on highway trucks and buses. The engines are Cummins and Navistar. “We have different models and that’s something that is different than our competitors,” Linn said. “We have all these models under one roof.” Southland International is now selling more new vehicles, but Linn said that used truck sales “are a viable part of our business. We’ve always been a big player in used trucks so we have a whole different department for used trucks.” Different types of trucks have different customer bases. With school buses, Southland International salespeople will call on cities and counties, which may also have a need for a severe-service truck such as a garbage truck or dump truck. “It’s different customers and that breeds different relationships, and the more relationships expands our parts and service business tremendously,” Linn said. “Just follow the trail – you sell a truck or give it away and then you get the parts and service business.” In addition to selling new and used trucks and trailers, Southland International offers rentals and leases through its Idealease program. The rentals can be for a day, week or month while leases are for 13 months or longer. “We have about 430 pieces in our fleet and contract maintenance,” Linn said. He said the company is the third-largest conglomerate rental/leasing business in North America. Southland International offers what it calls “Southland University,” which is classes, and many are free. Those classes are about training technicians, especially on engines, transmissions and general chassis, as well as about the trucking industry, and are available to all customers. n

“We have 150 to 175 years of experience under this roof (in Montgomery) and not only that, but they are still learning.” – Southland International Trucks President Drew Linn

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Chris Susock (right) is vice president of production operations for Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

While producing 390,000-plus vehicles annually at a plant designed for a capacity of 300,000, production workers at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama have been asked to learn how to build a new vehicle. Just imagine that for a minute. The Montgomery plant is ramping up for Santa Fe production on the side and without any impact or disruption to the current building of Elantras and Sonatas, the company’s top-two best sellers in the U.S.

HMMA GETS READY FOR SANTA FE BUILD by David Zaslawsky

photography by Robert Fouts

“We have a business plan that we’ve got to meet day-in and day-out and oh, by the way, we’re going to be launching a brand new vehicle,” said Chris Susock, vice president of production operations for HMMA. “This is something we do every year, whether it be the LS Sonata (code name for the latest model) that we just launched here two years ago or the AE (Elantra) we launched last year and now the Santa Fe. We’re so used to this right now, it’s almost – I hate to say it – second nature.” Continued to page 34

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

HMMA Vice President of Production Operations Chris Susock has been in the automotive business nearly 27 years.

“We have a business plan that we’ve got to meet day-in and day-out, and oh, by the way, we’re going to be launching a brand new vehicle.” – Chris Susock, vice president of production operations for HMMA Continued from page 33

Whether it’s second nature or not, it is a monumental task and comes with a meticulous plan that is so detailed it nearly covers each hour. The timeline is developed by Hyundai Motor Co. and HMMA. “We have our requirements, so we tell them (Hyundai’s global manufacturing engineering team) that these are our requirements from a plant standpoint; from a business standpoint in order to make sure that we’re not having any issues or not impacting our current business plan,” Susock said. “Everything has to fit in.” Corporate will design a project plan, and then it’s discussed and debated with HMMA. Susock said, “Is the plan feasible? What constraints have they not seen that we now realize might be affected? We go through it again and again to make sure that we’ve got all the

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

T’s crossed and the I’s dotted and we’ve thought of everything we can in order to make this happen.” The finalized plan is now in place, but there still is tweaking along the way. Yes, there are milestones that must be made. Deadlines cannot be missed. There is a tight schedule with a launch date. The plant will be producing the 2017 Santa Fes in June. “Every day, every week we’re reviewing and we’re meeting – where are we?” Susock said about the timeline. “Are there obstacles? Are there constraints? Before we get to the point that we’re not going to meet the (milestone), we’re meeting about it. There’s no ‘you didn’t make your time’ and move back the (start date).” HMMA created its Santa Fe launch team by selecting 36 production employees from the general assembly area. “Each of these individuals are subject matter experts within their processes,” Susock said. They are from the chassis area, trim area and final area. Those 36 employees will become the trainers, but first the company had to train the trainers and what better place than the Kia plant in nearby West Point, Georgia, where the Santa Fe is being produced. The 36 employees were sent to the Kia plant in February for three days, but the focus was not on the nuts and bolts. Instead it was on the processes of building the Santa Fe, which HMMA will basically mirror what Kia is doing, according to Susock. They came back with notes and ideas on what worked at the Kia facility and what they could do differently at the Hyundai plant. The 36 worked with the plant’s process engineering team and “put their plans together on how we’re going to implement and start constructing

the work stations necessary for production build with the team members out there,” Susock said. That’s not a one-time deal for the 36 team members and the process engineering team. It’s an on-going process. “They’ll go back out on the (assembly) floor,” Susock said. “They’ll take a look at the work station. They’ll take measurements and do a visualization and say, ‘This is where the parts have to be; here’s how we have to set up the tooling.’ ” Remember those work stations are being used for two passenger cars – Sonata and Elantra. The work stations have to be “integrated” for the Santa Fe. “The thing that we want to impress here is, who knows better to build the vehicle than the people that are going to build the vehicle?” Susock asked. “We want them to make sure that they are comfortable with building the vehicle. They have to stay within the confines of the standards of how to build that vehicle in order to produce high-level qualities,” Susock said. Some of the work has been done at the facility’s training center, which is adjacent to the plant. Inside the training center is what Susock called a “new model prototype training center.” Simply put, it’s a simulation of a work station. It’s where they can design a work station and they work on a body buck or body-in-white. The vehicle is actually built through the system at the training center. “It’s almost like a mini factory,” Susock said.

POWER TO

“All the team members will be able to start learning how to actually assemble their vehicle within the confines of their processes,” Susock said. Those body bucks are run through the system and those 36 launch team employees are stationed in their areas and train other employees. Susock called it “realtime training.” What happens is that employees will build an Elantra or Sonata on the assembly line and then the training buck comes along. The launch team employees show other employees what to do. “We’ll take it (training buck) off line as it comes to the end,” Susock said. “We’ll tear it all back down and we’ll run it back through again and we’ll keep doing it.” There are pre-production builds and trial cars and trial processes. “We have milestone gates,” Susock said. “If we don’t meet the quality standard at a gate then we can’t proceed.” He said that not meeting the quality standards is the main thing that would prevent production from meeting its deadline. Continued to page 36

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April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Continued from page 35

“The thing that we want to impress here is, who knows better to build the vehicle than the people that are going to build the vehicle?” – Chris Susock, vice president of production operations for HMMA

When production employees are taken off the assembly line for training, they are replaced by temporary employees. There were no additional hires for the new Santa Fe production, but $52 million has been spent on robot programming, retooling and logistics. Remember the Santa Fe was previously built at the Montgomery plant in 2006, but in August 2010 production was moved to the Kia plant after manufacturing 400,000-plus units. That Santa Fe history remains alive as two-thirds of the production staff have experience building the vehicle. For those who have only built sedans, they now will be mounting a tailgate and the tailgate trimming instead of a trunk. When you ask Susock how long the entire process takes, he answered: “It depends on the program. This one is pretty much quite condensed. We’re going to try to accommodate this within a four-month period.” The plant was scheduled to shut down one week in March to get the tooling processes ready, but training was continuing. “I’ve been in this business since 1989 – almost 27 years and I love it,” Susock said. “That’s what I do.” n

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Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

One auto industry expert is calling for light truck sales to increase again this year to 57 percent of the market, or nearly six of 10 vehicles sold.

NEW SUV PRODUCTION MEANS JOB SECURITY

BUILDING BIGGER by David Zaslawsky

“It’s about job security, right?” – Chris Susock, vice president of production operations for HMMA

Hyundai sales in the U.S. have relied on the automaker’s passenger cars, which accounted for about 75 percent of all units sold last year. The passenger cars accounted for 78.4 percent of all Hyundai vehicles sold in 2014 and from 2011 to 2013, the passenger cars accounted for more than 80 percent of all the vehicles sold by Hyundai. That’s a good thing when the price of gas is high, but as the price declined sharply, light trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUV) became the top-sellers in the U.S. Hyundai does not produce a truck in this market and only two of its nine models are SUVs. “When gasoline falls below $3, consumer interest in low-mile- or lower-mile-per-gallon vehicles, bigger vehicles, picks up,” TrueCar founder and CEO Scott Painter told NPR. Hyundai wants to jump on that bandwagon of fast-rising light truck/SUV sales. While sales of light trucks and SUVs jumped 13 percent last year, sales of passenger cars declined 2 percent. It’s the fifth time in six years that light truck sales, including SUVs, outsold passenger cars.

Although Hyundai’s overall annual sales continue to grow year-over-year, the change in buyers’ preferences in the automotive market has impacted the Korean automaker. That’s why Hyundai decided to add to its production of the Santa Fe at the Kia plant in West Point, Georgia, by also building the sport utility vehicle in Montgomery at the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing plant. The goal for Montgomery is about 30,000 Santa Fes this year, according to Chris Susock, vice president of production operations for HMMA. That number fluctuates “based on market conditions,” said Robert Burns, senior manager of public relations and team relations for HMMA. That means the Montgomery plant will be producing fewer Sonatas and Elantras, the company’s top two sellers in the U.S. The overall production goal is 395,000 units, which would be the plant’s third-highest total. Bringing additional Santa Fe production “is a good thing for us,” Susock said. “It’s about job security, right? We could be at a point where the demand is low.” Sonata sales were flat last year – down about 3,600 units, but Elantra sales were up about 19,700 units. “Right now we’re fortunate enough that the models that we do build have a high demand to maintain that high utilization capacity,” Susock said. The high utilization capacity has been 399,000 units produced in 2013; another 398,000 vehicles in 2014; and about 385,000 units last year. There was no need to reduce the volume or the workforce with a dip in Sonata sales. “The fortunate thing is the demand for SUVs is much higher, so what better than to bring it here and offset (Sonata sales decline) and say, ‘Hey, guys, you’re still going to get 40 hours a week at least now for the next five years until we get the new generation or whatever happens at that time,’ ” Susock said. n

Those light truck sales in 2015 actually grew by 1 million units from 2014 and now account for 55.7 percent of the total new vehicle market. At the same time, passenger car sales declined 177,000 units from 2014.

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Vehicle Shipments Overseas Sizzle Alabama exports decline slightly in 2015 by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Greg Canfield is Alabama Commerce Secretary.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

The Alabama Department of Commerce has scheduled a trade mission to Mexico, the third-largest importer of state products. Exports to Mexico were nearly $2.9 billion in 2015, which was about 24 percent more than 2014. In 2013, exports to Mexico were about $2.2 billion. Mexico is just one of four countries which imported more than $1 billion worth of goods in 2015. Canada remains the state’s largest export market at $4 billion; China is second at $3.2 billion and Germany is fourth at $2.5 billion. That trade mission is Sept. 5-10 and also includes a stop in Chile, which ranks 24th on the list of the state’s top exporting markets. Exports to Chile increased 3.1 percent last year to $95.2 million. Vehicle shipments to Chile jumped 46 percent last year. Another trade mission was scheduled in March to Spain and Morocco. Spain was the state’s No. 25 export market last year at $95.1 million while Morocco was No. 78 at $9.4 million.

“The trade and business development missions we undertake each year are a key component of our international strategy,” Hilda Lockhart, director of the Commerce Department’s International Trade Office, said in a statement. “For Alabama companies, the opportunities far outweigh the challenges when you have our agency along with the Export Alabama Alliance providing assistance in every nuance of international trade.” Continued on page 40

“Alabama’s auto industry has become an exporting powerhouse with vehicles produced in the state finding markets around the world.” – Alabama Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield

Alabama will have a presence at the June 6-9 Bio International in San Francisco.

www.jackingram.com

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

TOP 10 EXPORTS

ANNUAL ALABAMA EXPORTS

TRANSPORTATION EQUIPMENT

2010

$9.3 billion

$15.5 billion

CHEMICALS

2011

$2.1 billion

$17.9 billion

PRIMARY METAL

2012

MANUFACTURING

$19.6 billion

$1.6 billion MACHINERY $1.1 billion PAPER $805.4 million MINERALS AND ORES

2013 $19.3 billion 2014 $19.4 billion 2015 $19.4 billion

$705.8 million COMPUTER AND ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS $580.8 million PLASTICS AND RUBBER PRODUCTS $423 million FABRICATED METAL PRODUCTS $378.4 million FOOD AND KINDRED PRODUCTS $328.4 million Source: Alabama Commerce Department

TOP 10 EXPORT MARKETS CANADA $4.1 billion CHINA $3.1 billion

“The trade and business development missions we undertake each year are a key component of our international strategy.”

$2.9 billion

- Hilda Lockhart, director of the Commerce Department’s International Trade Office

GERMANY

Continued from page 39

$2.5 billion

The state’s exports were flat last year – declining 0.4 percent to about $19.3 billion. The difference was about $70.1 million and that was attributed to a slowdown in China and a slump in coal shipments. Exports to China fell 4.7 percent from 2014 to 2015. That was a $200 million decline.

MEXICO

UNITED KINGDOM $609.8 million JAPAN $519.1 million KOREA $464 million FRANCE $448 million BRAZIL $338.1 million UNITED ARAB EMIRATES $283.5 million

Hilda Lockhart

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Shipments of minerals and ores – mostly coal – dropped 37.8 percent last year from about $1.1 billion in 2014 to $705.8 million last year. Mineral exports were more than $2.2 billion in 2011. “Alabama’s exports remained vital last year in spite of turbulence in the global economy, which includes a collapse in oil prices and a slowdown in China,” Alabama Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield said in a statement. Transportation equipment remains the state’s top export - $9.3 billion in 2015 for an increase of 7.5 percent. It has been the top category since 1998. Back in 2012, transportation equipment accounted for $5.4 billion of the state’s total exports. Motor vehicle exports increased 18 percent last year to $1.2 billion.

“Alabama’s auto industry has become an exporting powerhouse with vehicles produced in the state finding markets around the world,” Canfield told AL.com. “This creates jobs in our state and solidifies the position of the Alabama auto assembly plants in a global business.” Alabama now ranks third in automobile shipments overseas behind Michigan and South Carolina. The Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama facility in Montgomery produced nearly 38,000 vehicles that were sent to Canada last year. About 20,500 Elantras were exported to Canada from the plant along with about 17,300 Sonatas.

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“Exports of Alabama-made vehicles and parts continue to expand, underscoring the state’s status as a major player in this international industry, while there were also meaningful gains in exports of aerospace parts, machinery and paper,” Canfield said. Aerospace parts exports grew 16 percent last year to $868 million; machinery exports last year rose 24.8 percent to top $1 billion; and paper shipments were up 19 percent to about $805.4 million. “Alabama companies operating in a global economy through exports continue to be one of the state’s most powerful growth engines,” Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley said in a statement. “By trading Alabamamade products overseas, these companies support Alabama communities and create well-paying jobs for citizens across our state. We want to continue helping Alabama companies reach new customers around the globe because their exporting activities pay significant benefits here at home.” Alabama exports have topped $19 billion the past four years with a record $19.6 billion in 2012. n

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Alabama auto exports accounted for more than $7 billion in 2015, which was a record-setting amount and was a healthy increase of 5.8 percent from 2014. China has become the state’s top export market for vehicles after increasing 9 percent to $2 billion last year. The top 10 export markets (in order) are China, Canada, Germany, Mexico, United Kingdom, Australia, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Korea and Chile.

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April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

by David Zaslawsky

‘WOW’

Four people from the Metropolitan Opera were in town and said that they had never been to Montgomery. What was their reaction? In a word, “wow.” They said, ‘We didn’t know that Montgomery, Alabama, has what you have,’ according to Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange. “That’s what we need continually over and over and over again,” Strange said at the State of the City annual speech. “With your help – all of us working together – we can get there.”

NEW PARK

NEW HOME

Montgomery County Commission has hired Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood to design a park that would be located on Old Selma Road.

EAT South is moving to the city retail incubator at the corner of Commerce and Tallapoosa streets. The nonprofit organization promotes healthy eating and sustainable farming. “We are very grateful to the City of Montgomery for the opportunity to work in the heart of our city – in close proximity to the Downtown Farm and in a visible and accessible location surrounded by local restaurants and shops that contribute to the sustainability of our communities,” Liz Laroche, interim executive director for EAT South, said in a statement. The organization will sell merchandise and event tickets at its new location. EAT South’s downtown farm is just two blocks away.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

HAMPSTEAD UPDATE Hampstead plans to open its Lido Pool in the summer and is calling it the “largest neighborhood pool in the Montgomery region.” In addition to the pool, there will be lounging areas, fire pit and venue space for private events. The pool is adjacent to Hampstead Lake.

RESTRUCTURING The City of Montgomery’s Development Department and Planning Department are being combined after five years as separate entities. Mac McLeod will lead the Planning and Development Department and Robert Smith will continue to use his current title as director of planning. McLeod was previously in charge of the Development Department.

HIGH ACCOLADES FOR SONATA

TOP YOUNG PROFESSIONAL

The 2016 Hyundai Sonata, which is made in Montgomery at the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama plant, was named a Kelley Blue Book Best Family Car.

EMERGE Montgomery President Ashley Taylor was named Young Professional of the Year.

Taylor, manager with the valuation and litigation consulting group at Jackson Thornton, A group of said she “was in vehicles was complete shock” tested for when the award two weeks was announced. for family use “When talking to the and the Sonata other nominees, none Ashley Taylor received high of us prepared a speech marks for such things as because we all assumed the ease of installing a child seat other was more deserving,” and its “cavernous” trunk she said in a statement. and rear seats that fold down The other nominees were to increase cargo space. Clay McInnis, owner of Commerce Consulting and The KBB.com editors president of the Downtown considered child seats, Business Association; and rear-seat entertainment, Serena McCovery, orientation cargo space, safety and coordinator for Auburn comfort and driving. University at Montgomery. “Earning the designation of a The Young Professional of Best Family Car by the expert the Year Award recognizes automotive editors at Kelley the achievements of Blue Book means the Sonata individuals 22-40 years old. passed not only the safety “We look forward to next year test, but also the test on the and are excited to expand ease of car seat installations the awards gala to include and more – meeting needs several more categories of the modern family,” Mike O’Brien, vice president and highlight even more young professionals making of product and corporate planning for Hyundai Motor moves in the River Region” EMERGE Montgomery Vice America, said in a statement. President Ashley Jernigan said in a statement.

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

TRAINING FOR UTILITY LINE WORKERS

INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGES A new center for the expanded study of foreign languages will be at Troy Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Montgomery campus. The Center for International Language and Culture will offer Mandarin and Korean. It will have offices at the Rosa Parks Library and Museum.

Alabama Power Co. will partner with Montgomery Preparatory Academy for Career Technologies for a line worker pilot program. The school is scheduled to open in August at One Center, which is the former site of the Montgomery Mall.

Troy University is joining with Alabama-Korean Education and Economic Partnership to create the center.

FIRST CLASS MEDICINE The UAB School of Medicine Montgomery Regional Medical Campus has welcomed its second class of full-time medical students to first class medical education. This year, the Montgomery Regional Medical Campus has grown to include 24 third-and fourth-year medical students, further establishing a new generation of medical excellence for Montgomery and the River Region.

www.uab.edu/medicine/home/montgomery-campus K N O W L E D G E

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

T H A T

W I L L

C H A N G E

Y O U R

W O R L D

KRESS BUILDING UPDATE

LAMP NO. 1 IN ALABAMA

A $12.6 million building permit has been issued for additions and alterations to the Kress building on Dexter Avenue. The general contractor is Birmingham-based Brasfield & Gorrie.

Loveless Academic Magnet Program High School was ranked first in the state and 160th nationally by Niche while Booker T. Washington Magnet High was No. 16 in the state. Both are in the Montgomery Public Schools district.

Two floors will be added for 30,000 square feet of residential space and there is about 75,000 square feet of space for retail on the first floor. The building is owned by ELSAJA Properties, a subsidiary of MarJam, a national building materials supply company, which has eight locations in Alabama, including one in Montgomery.

Niche rates public high schools on such factors as academics, teachers, health and safety, student culture and diversity, resources and facilities, sports and fitness and surveys from parents and students.

GROWTH IN MONTGOMERY Walmart has opened its second Neighborhood Market in Montgomery this year after earlier announcing the closure of 154 stores nationwide, including nine in Alabama. The company’s newest Neighborhood Market is on Vaughn Road near the Taylor Road intersection. The Neighborhood Market stores are around 40,000 square feet, or about one-quarter the size of a supercenter, and employ around 95 people. The first Neighborhood Market store in Montgomery – a $10 million project – is on Federal Drive on part of the former site of Bonnie Crest Country Club’s golf course.

A ROAD LESS TRAVELED Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton N. Dean Sr. ended his State of the County speech with the following: “So, now we find ourselves at the proverbial fork in the road. We can go down the path that we’ve been on for far too long. It is an easier trail and we can continue to do what we have been doing for so many years. Or we can take the other road – the path to closing the inequality gap; take on big challenges; and getting results. That’s the path I choose today and I ask my fellow elected officials to join me. We’ve got one chance to get this right. Let’s seize it.”

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Adding More to Life on the Lakes The Waters develops new hamlets by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

The Waters is adding new hamlets.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

It is hard to imagine that “the best is yet to come,” but that is exactly what an official with The Waters recently said. It’s hard to imagine because the 500-acre development in Pike Road features three lakes, including the stocked 200-acre Lake Cameron, which is the largest lake in Montgomery County; two large saltwater pools, community pavilions, fishing, marina, piers, parks, walking trails, kayaks, canoes, fishing boats, cruise boat, lighted tennis courts, basketball court, bocce area, playgrounds, outdoor grilling station, soccer field, wide sidewalks, beach. And that’s not a complete list. Oh, by the way, there is a chapel on the grounds and Pike Road School, which is currently kindergarten through eighth grade, but will eventually be a K-6 after the Pike Road district builds a second school next year. There is a town center, which will shortly have 10 businesses and room for another three or so.

“Having 62 percent of your total land mass in either water or greenspace is a tremendous amount of walkable terrain.”

“The Waters is a unique community – there is nothing like it – not just in metro Montgomery, but all over the State of Alabama and really it’s unique in the South,” said Tommy Brigham, who is the managing partner of the Arc Opportunity Fund that owns The Waters. He is the partner and chairman of Birmingham-based ARK Real Estate Strategies. “Having 62 percent of your total land mass in either water or greenspace is a tremendous amount of walkable terrain. The green and water spacing allows people to have a unique living experience.” Remember that “the best is yet to come.” How can it get any better? A new neighborhood is being developed at The Waters, which actually calls its neighborhoods hamlets. The new hamlet is Dawson Creek. “The Dawson Creek peninsula is spectacular,” Brigham said.

“The Waters is a unique community – there is nothing like it.” -Tommy Brigham, managing partner of the Arc Opportunity Fund

It’s the lakefront views that Brigham was raving about with water on three sides. The first phase of Dawson Creek will feature 89 lots in a wooded area and construction of homes is scheduled to begin in June. Continued on page 49

-Tommy Brigham, managing partner of the Arc Opportunity Fund

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“THE SECOND PHASE OF DAWSON CREEK WILL PROBABLY BE THE MOST SPECTACULAR VIEWS WE’VE GOT OVERALL THROUGHOUT THE WATERS.” – Tommy Brigham, managing partner of the Arc Opportunity Fund that owns The Waters

Tommy Brigham is managing partner of the Arc Opportunity Fund that owns The Waters and Jennifer Atkins is a broker for New Waters Realty.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Continued from page 47

A second phase is expected to have another 115 lots with views of Lake Cameron from both the front of the house and the back of the house. “The second phase of Dawson Creek will probably be the most spectacular views we’ve got overall throughout The Waters,” Brigham said. The homes are expected to range from the high $200,000s to the mid $500,000s. “We’ve also got custom housing that’s between $1 million and $2 million, so it’s a really unique community in that you are truly a traditional neighborhood development in a sense that you’ve got a whole mixed bag of housing that’s accepted by a wide variety of the market,” Brigham said. “You might have an 800-square-foot house right next to an 8,000-square-foot house,” said Jennifer Atkins, broker for New Waters Realty. “The architectural standards are so high that it works for both parties.”

A walking bridge will connect Dawson Creek with Welch Cove and new amenities will include a playground and wooded park. The $500,000 Blue Heron Pool Club, which opened last year, is adjacent to Dawson Creek. That means easy access to the pool, pool house, pavilion, outdoor fireplace and bocce court. The zeroentry pool features a mushroom fountain and even has a lap swim area.

Seventy homes were sold last year at The Waters in Pike Road.

The newest hamlet is named after the Dawson family, who “helped rejuvenate this area,” Atkins said. Continued on page 50

Provide more than ROI. Provide ROR (return on relationship). That’s just the way we do business.

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April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Continued from page 49

“We’re the real estate arm,” Brigham said about New Waters Realty. “We are purely developers providing lot inventory for our builders. They turn around and list their spec homes and custom homes with us through New Waters Realty.” And speaking of spec homes – they do not stay on the market long at The Waters. “We are very fortunate that as soon as they are built they are sold,” Atkins said. There were two move-in ready homes in mid-February and three under construction. The development has nearly reached its halfway mark with 400 homes out of a buildout estimated at 866 homes. Almost 500 lots have been developed. With the new Pike Road School attracting families to The Waters, there will be an estimated 170 home sites and two hamlets near the school and the development’s two other lakes – the 18-acre Lake Sweet T and the 12-acre Jake Lake. The Waters even has what it calls a “Trail to Education,” where students can walk or bike or ride in a golf cart to go to school. Frazer United Methodist Church announced plans to hold services inside the school while a nondenominational church meets Sundays at the chapel, which is owned by two neighbors. The chapel is a rental venue for weddings

The Waters has a wide variety of homes – styles, sizes and prices.

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Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

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THE WATERS ANNUAL HOME SALES

The Waters will have an estimated buildout of 866 homes.

and business meetings as well and is used for neighborhood meetings. The land by the school and two smaller lakes â&#x20AC;&#x201C; near the entrance of the development â&#x20AC;&#x201C; will have commercial property, which may include a new location for New Waters Realty. The Waters has been contacted by a dry cleaner, bank and pizza restaurant in the past, according to Brigham. He expects to have businesses

in place in the next 12 to 18 months. He said with more and more rooftops in Pike Road there is a need for additional retail. That area may be developed before Dawson Creek is completed, Brigham said. n

2010:

2011:

2012:

2013:

2014 :

2015:

Source: The Waters

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

MEMBER NEWS

BUSINESS BUZZ MONTGOMERY AREA COUNCIL ON AGING RFECEIVES COMMUNITY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD MONTGOMERY – The Montgomery Area Council on Aging received the MAX Community Achievement Award at the 13th annual reception. Since its founding in 1972, the Montgomery Area Council on Aging, with the help of volunteers, has delivered more than two million meals to seniors. The organization serves 371 meals daily to seniors through its Meals on Wheels program. Along with the MAX Community Achievement Award, MAX gave the Montgomery Area Council on Aging $2,500 to further support its mission in the River Region. “We are thankful to have the opportunity to honor and recognize the Montgomery Area Council on Aging,” MAX President and CEO Greg McClellan said in a statement. “MAX’s community reception is an Greg McClellan event we look forward to each year because it provides MAX the opportunity to further support and honor organizations that go above and beyond to impact the communities we serve.” The previous recipients of the MAX Community Achievement Award are Junior League of Montgomery, Central Alabama Sports Commission, EMERGE Montgomery, Montgomery Area Nontraditional Equestrians (MANE), Joy to Life

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Foundation, Pastor Edward Nettles Sr., Montgomery Biscuits, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, 754th Electronic Systems Group, Joint Forces Headquarters Alabama National Guard, Alabama Wildlife Federation and the Montgomery campus of Troy University.

“We are very happy to welcome the C&D line of products to the Hartzell Engine Technologies cabin heater family,” Hartzell Engine Technologies President Mike Disbrow said in a statement. “C&D founders Dennis Sandmann and his wife, Cheryl, along with their son and company general manager, Bill Sandmann, have done a fantastic job building an outstanding business and line of products. Our goal is to continue that success.”

The MAX community reception brings together business, political and community leaders to celebrate community Disbrow said that C&D successes and Associates was sold because recognize organizations the company’s founders and individuals who Mike Disbrow plan to retire. He also said have made a significant that Sandmann will be joining HET, difference in the quality of life in initially assisting with the C&D central and east Alabama. product integration into Hartzell’s “As a volunteer through MAX’s heater business unit in Montgomery. corporate route partnership, I have Disbrow said that Hartzell Engine been able to see first-hand the Technologies will continue to produce great work they do for seniors,” the C&D line of aircraft combustion Jamie Brown, vice president of cabin heaters in the current factory relationship development for MAX, in Buchanan, Mich., until Hartzell said in a statement. “I believe all Engine Technologies has FAA PMAs of the MAX team members who in place. deliver Meals on Wheels would echo that we are thankful to He said the company plans to hire have a small part in the great five people, but that number may work that MACOA is doing in be increased. the community.” “The acquisition of the C&D brand is consistent with our strategy of growing our core product lines HARTZELL ENGINE organically and through acquisition,” TECHNOLOGIES Disbrow said. “This is another COMPLETES PURCHASE OF example of our parent company C&D ASSOCIATES Tailwind Technologies’ strong commitment to invest in and grow MONTGOMERY – Hartzell Engine our general aviation portfolio.” Technologies LLC announced that the company has finalized the asset purchase of C&D Associates Inc. Michigan-based C&D Associates manufactures a line of branded aircraft cabin combustion heaters as well as FAA-approved PMA parts for Janitrol and South Wind cabin heaters.

INSURANCE ORGANIZATION RECOGNIZES STARKE MONTGOMERY – Starke Agency President Trey Starke was recently honored for his ongoing pledge to education, commitment to excellence and dedication to the insurance profession. The Society of Certified Insurance Counselors (CIC) presented Starke with a formally inscribed certificate Trey Starke for his continued participation in the CIC program. Receiving his CIC designation and maintaining all requirements for 20 years places Starke in the top one percent of all insurance professionals in the country.

benefits Starke Agency, but the insurance profession as a whole,” Society of CIC President William T. Hold said in a statement. Starke Agency is an insurance brokerage and risk management company.

WARREN AVERETT STAFFER OBTAINS CERTIFICATION MONTGOMERY – Warren Averett audit supervisor Adam Himel has received his certified information systems auditor (CISA) designation. The CISA designation is a globally recognized certification for information systems audit, control and security professionals. A CISA certification showcases Himel’s audit

“The high standards of leadership maintained by Mr. Starke not only

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experience, skills, knowledge and demonstrates his capability to assess vulnerabilities, report on compliance and institute controls within the enterprise. Candidates must complete five years of professional information systems auditing; control or security work experience; and pass the rigorous CISA examination before they can apply for a CISA designation. They must adhere to the Code of Professional Ethics and maintain compliance with the Information Systems Auditing Standards. Designees are also expected to complete 20 contact hours of continuing education each year, in adherence to the Continuing Professional Education Program. Himel serves as a supervisor in the audit division of Warren Averett, leading teams in auditing financial statements. In addition to his new CISA designation, Himel is also a certified public accountant. CONTINUED ON PAGE

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BUSINESS BUZZ FROM PAGE

53 alternatives. Krebs was also asked to develop a cost-effective, long-term solution for controlling solids hauling and disposal costs while also utilizing renewable biogas produced at its wastewater treatment facility.

MOWERY CONSULTING GROUP WINS THREE AWARDS MONTGOMERY – The Mowery Consulting Group won three awards in the Stanley J. Reed Awards for Campaign Excellence by Campaigns & Elections magazine. The Montgomery company won Best Ad for Mayoral Candidate; Best Web Video for Mayoral Candidate; and Best Automated Phone Call for County, Local, Judicial or Mayoral Candidate. All the awards were for the firm’s Keep Montgomery Strange Campaign to re-elect Mayor Todd Strange. David Mowery is chairman of the Mowery Consulting Group.

Marquardt, who has been CFO since 2012, has raised David Mowery the standards of customer service and teamwork through employee engagement, process improvement and effectiveness.

LOCAL MAX EXECUTIVE NAMED CFO OF THE YEAR MONTGOMERY – MAX Chief Financial Officer Tim Marquardt was honored with the CU Times’ 2016 Trailblazer Award for CFO of the Year.

“I am excited and honored to be recognized by CU Times,” Marquardt said in a statement. “I’d like to thank MAX’s board, team members and customers. Without their support, this would not have been possible. Being recognized on a national level is truly indicative of the success of the entire organization.”

“Tim was not afraid to shake things up when he joined the team at MAX,” MAX President and CEO Greg McClellan said in a statement. “In his three years as the CFO, Tim has helped cast a strategic vision and accomplished more than many hope to achieve their entire career.”

The CU Times Trailblazer Awards aim to honor credit union executives, volunteers and Tim Marquardt financial institutions that promote change by creating and implementing innovative strategies KREBS and solutions.

ENGINEERING RECEIVES AWARD MONTGOMERY – Krebs Engineering Inc. has received the American Council of Engineering Companies of Alabama 2016 Grand Design Award. The company won for the “Biosolids Improvements for Energy Recovery” project in Albertville. The Municipal Utilities Board of Albertville hired Krebs to evaluate biosolids handling and disposal

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

The project helps to control Albertville’s operating costs by utilizing renewable biogas to eliminate about $275,000 of annual hauling and disposal costs, reducing volume of solids/sludge by 80 percent to 90 percent and producing high-quality biosolids that can be sold and used locally without restrictions as a fertilizer and soil conditioner. Krebs Engineering has specialized in planning, design, construction administration, and permitting for municipal wastewater, water supply and storm water projects for 90 years in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi.

THE NAMEDROPPER CELEBRATES 75TH YEAR MONTGOMERY – The NameDropper recently held a special ribbon-cutting to celebrate its 75th anniversary. The store originally opened in February 1941 as Bronson’s in downtown Montgomery. There have been names changes and different owners over the years. It is located at EastChase and the owners are Shea and Sid Schroll, along with their son Brian and his wife Gina. The Schrolls bought the store in 1984.n

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE

MEMBER NEWS

CHAMBLESS KING HIRES INTERIOR DESIGNER MONTGOMERY – Ashton Tumblin was recently hired as an interior designer for Chambless King Architects. Responsible for residential and commercial interior design projects, Tumblin will be formulating designs that are practical, aesthetic and innovative while helping to raise productivity and improving lifestyles. “Ashton’s fresh approach and enthusiasm for each project makes her a welcome addition to the Chambless King team,” John Chambless said in a statement. Ashton received a bachelor’s degree in interior design from Auburn University. She spent a semester abroad in Arricia, Italy, where she studied humanities, philosophy, language, culture, design and architecture. A native of Montgomery, Tumblin has completed internships here with experience in both residential and commercial projects. Chambless King Architects is a multifaceted architectural firm that offers a variety of services related to architecture, interior design, project management, master planning/ urban planning, programming and cost management.

HEALTHSOUTH REHABILITATION HOSPITAL NAMES CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER MONTGOMERY – Thomas Roddy has been named chief executive officer of HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital of Montgomery. Roddy will take over CEO duties following Linda Wade, who recently retired after serving 18 years as CEO of HealthSouth Montgomery.

He comes to HealthSouth Montgomery from Riverview Regional Medical Center in Gadsden, where he served as CEO and was responsible for overseeing the transition from Community Health Thomas Roddy and leadership made him Systems to Prime Healthcare; an excellent candidate and proven reconstitution of hospital governing leader for this role.” board; and reconstructing the administrative and leadership teams HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital of the hospital. of Montgomery is a 70-bed inpatient Roddy brings almost a decade of administrative leadership expertise to his role and previously served as chief operating officer at Riverview Regional Medical Center from 2013-2015; associate administrator at Stringfellow Memorial Hospital in Anniston; associate administrator at Riverview Regional Medical Center; assistant administrator at Sandhills Regional Medical Center in Hamlet, N.C.; and administrative resident at University Medical Center in Lebanon, Tenn. He received a bachelor’s degree in industrial/organizational psychology and a master’s degree in business administration with an emphasis in human resource management from Middle Tennessee State University and a master’s degree in health infomatics and in health administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “Thomas is an exceptional hospital leader,” Terry Brown, vice president of the Southeast region for HealthSouth, said in a statement. “He shares the commitment to highquality outcomes and patient care that are not only important to us, but most important to the caregivers and patients we treat. His past experience

rehabilitation hospital that offers comprehensive inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services for patients recovering from conditions such as stroke and other neurological disorders, cardiac and pulmonary conditions, brain and spinal cord injuries, complex orthopedic conditions and amputations.

POWERSOUTH ANNOUNCES PROMOTION ANDALUSIA – PowerSouth announced the promotion of Taylor Williams to governmental affairs and economic development manager. In his new position, Williams is responsible for overseeing PowerSouth’s governmental and public affairs in Alabama, Florida and Washington, D.C., as Taylor Williams well as PowerSouth’s interests in recruiting businesses to its service territory while retaining existing industry. CONTINUED ON PAGE

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Greg Barker MEMBERS ON THE MOVE FROM PAGE

Matthew Bowden

Susan Comensky

Williams previously served as governmental and public affairs representative, a title he held since 2012. Prior to that role, he served as economic development representative since joining PowerSouth in 2009. He received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama and a master’s degree in business administration from Auburn University at Montgomery. He is also a 2012 graduate of the Economic Development Institute at the University of Oklahoma. “Taylor has been proven to be a dynamic, productive leader in our company and this promotion is well deserved,” Horace Horn, vice president of external affairs for PowerSouth, said in a statement. “He is very well respected, both personally and professionally, by his peers and the community. His previous experience in economic development coupled with his work in governmental affairs is very beneficial to PowerSouth.” PowerSouth serves the wholesale energy needs of 16 electric cooperatives and four municipal electric systems in Alabama and northwest Florida, with more than a million consumers in 39 Alabama and 10 Florida counties.

John O. Hudson

Gordon G. Martin

ALABAMA POWER ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP CHANGES BIRMINGHAM – Alabama Power announced several changes in the company’s leadership. The changes follow the announcement that Alabama Power Executive Vice President Steve Spencer is stepping down to become president of the nonprofit Economic Development Partnership of Alabama. Greg Barker, Alabama Power senior vice president for marketing and economic development, has been elected executive vice president responsible for customer services. John O. Hudson III, vice president of public relations and charitable giving, has been elected senior vice president for marketing and business development. Gordon G. Martin, senior vice president and general counsel, has been named senior vice president responsible for corporate and administrative services.

Stephanie K. Cooper

Matthew Bowden, vice president for environmental affairs, has been elected senior vice president and general counsel. Susan Comensky has been elected vice president with responsibility for environmental affairs. She most recently served as vice president of external and regulatory affairs at Southern Power Co. Stephanie K. Cooper has been elected vice president of public relations. A former director of corporate communications for Southern Co., she most recently served as a senior attorney at Georgia Power Co. “These individuals are strong leaders,” Mark Crosswhite, chairman and CEO of Alabama Power, said in a statement. “They bring tremendous experience and knowledge to their new roles. The changes put us in a strong position to move forward – to meet the growing challenges to our business and the evolving needs and desires of our customers.” Alabama Power, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Co., provides electricity to more than 1.4 million customers.

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

TROY UNIVERSITY HIRES COMMUNITY OUTREACH DIRECTOR MONTGOMERY – Amy Waters of Montgomery has joined the staff of Troy University’s Montgomery campus as director of community outreach.

experiences in the nonprofit sector, along with her network of area professionals and organizations will provide an additional voice to the River Region on the outstanding programs and activities available through Troy-Montgomery.”

In addition to her work with the American Cancer Society, Waters A public relations, has previously served as marketing and development director fundraising for the Brantwood professional Children’s Home; with more than director of public 14 years of relations for the experience, Waters Association of County most recently Commissions of served as senior Alabama; south central Amy Waters market manager for regional coordinator community engagement with for Children’s Hospital of the American Cancer Society. A Alabama; and media buyer Troy University alumna, Waters for LWT Communications received a bachelor’s degree in (Stamp Idea Group). marketing, management and “I am thrilled to be working for research from the university’s my alma mater, Troy University,” Montgomery campus. Waters said in a statement. In her new position, Waters will “Troy University’s Montgomery cultivate and sustain relationships campus has so much to offer within the Montgomery students in the River Region. I community; oversee volunteer and am honored to have been given community outreach efforts of the the opportunity to share with Montgomery campus; identify and the community about Troy as cultivate corporate and community a destination for students of all partnerships; and work in ages and backgrounds who share conjunction with the university’s the common goal of creating media relations. opportunity and improving their lives through education. I look “We are extremely excited about forward to working with Dr. Tatum Amy joining our Montgomery on expanding our growth in the staff,” Montgomery campus Vice River Region.” Chancellor Lance Tatum said in a statement. “A strong focus in the last year was to give greater attention to programming on the Montgomery campus. Amy’s

CONTINUED ON PAGE

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE FROM PAGE

AUM NAMES DEPARTMENT CHAIR IN SOCIOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY, GEOGRAPHY MONTGOMERY – Annice YarberAllen has been appointed chair of Auburn University at Montgomery’s Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Geography in the university’s College of Public Policy and Justice.

“I look forward to working together with my colleagues to continue to develop a top-quality sociology, anthropology and geography program that serves the needs of our students and the larger community, as well as to learning more about academia through another lens,” she said in a statement.

In 2014, Yarber-Allen was nominated for the U.S. Professor of the Year Award, sponsored by the Council Yarber-Allen, a for Advancement and Support distinguished of Education (CASE) and teaching professor the Carnegie Foundation in her 12th year for the Advancement of at AUM, is excited Teaching. She also has about the potential served twice as principal for increased investigator for a National learning within the new Science Foundation-funded Annice Yarber Allen role and also to further effort to mentor underrepresented professional development. minorities and women through a fiveweek residential college preparation program designed to increase the

participation of underrepresented groups in the engineering profession. In addition, Yarber-Allen was a 2014 recipient of the prestigious FulbrightHays Group Projects Abroad Award to implement the Summer Institute on the Welfare of Women of Belize project. She and her co-project director accompanied a group of 12 K-12 teachers and university faculty from across the United States to Belize to examine the sociocultural and economic history and current status of women in Belize. After serving 20 years as a social worker in the areas of substance abuse counseling and administration, she received her doctorate degree in medical sociology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a focus on sexuality. n

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Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

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RIBBON CUTTINGS & GROUND BREAKINGS

CHAMBER NEWS

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SOCIAL WORKERS-ALABAMA CHAPTER

INFORMATION TRANSPORT SOLUTIONS, INC.

PROFESSIONAL LIFE ENRICHMENT SERVICES (PLES)

5015 Woods Crossing Drive • Montgomery, AL 36106 334-260-4918 • www.naswal.org Dawn Ellis-Murray-Executive Director Associations/Non-Profit

445 Dexter Avenue, Suite 3050 • Montgomery, AL 36104 334-567-1993 • www.its-networks.com Quincy Minor-President/COO • Steve Meany-CEO Computers-Software/Hardware/Consulting

P.O. Box 231481 • Montgomery, AL 36123 334-517-8636 • www.ples-lifeservices.org Tawana Harris-Executive Director Associations/Non-Profit

THE NAME DROPPER/STORKLAND

D’ROAD CAFÉ

WALMART NEIGHBORHOOD MARKET #4691

7107 EastChase Parkway • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-277-7118 • www.namedropperkids.com Sid Schroll-Owner • Shea Schroll-Owner • Brian Schroll-Owner Children’s Clothing & Specialty Items

121 Montgomery Street • Montgomery, AL 36104 334-328-2938 Janett Malpartida-Owner • Restaurants-Venezuelan

8035 Vaughn Road • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-777-5881 • www.walmart.com Jeff Young-Store Manager • Groceries-Retail

PAPA ROC’S

CIVIL RIGHTS-MONTGOMERY

MANPOWER

7780 Atlanta Highway • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-676-4212 • www.paparocsitaliangrill.com David Lisenby-Owner • Joey Avery-Owner/Chef Restaurants-Italian

239 Marian Drive • Prattville, AL 36066 334-595-9243 Jeremy Cromblin-Founder • Attractions-History

9134 EastChase Parkway • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-215-8782 • www.manpower.com Adam Lavender-Branch Manager • Employment Agencies

CHAPPY’S EXPRESS BAPTIST HOSPITAL

BAPTIST MEDICAL CENTER SOUTH PHARMACY & GIFT SHOP

2055 East South Boulevard • Montgomery, AL 36116 334-286-9200 • www.chappysdeli.com Jeff Barranco-General Manager • Restaurants-Deli

2105 East South Boulevard • Montgomery, AL 36116 334-288-2100 • www.baptistfirst.org Ann Markham-Manager • Hospitals/Clinics April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

CHAMBER NEWS

NEW MEMBERS ADVERTISING

AUCTIONS

ENGINEERS-SPECIALIZED

MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE MARKETING Paige Thornton 310 W. Selfridge Street, Building 1036 Maxwell AFB, AL 36112 334-953-3366

GRANGER, THAGARD & ASSOCIATES, INC. Jack F. Granger 1806 Oxmoor Road Birmingham, AL 35209 205-326-0833

KREBS ENGINEERING, INC. Danny Holmberg 312 Catoma Street, Suite 100 Montgomery, AL 36104 334-271-0986

APARTMENTS

THE GRAND RESERVE AT PIKE ROAD Tony Staten 160 Stone Park Boulevard Pike Road, AL 36064 334-277-8770 ASSOCIATIONS/NON-PROFIT

ALABAMA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS Malcolm Young P.O. Box 4070 Montgomery, AL 36103 334-262-3808 ALABAMA COALITION AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE Patricia Butts 1420 I-85 Parkway Montgomery, AL 36106 334-832-4842 ALABAMA TECHNOLOGY FOUNDATION Renee Borg P.O. Box 240036 Montgomery, AL 36124 334-323-4777 SALVATION ARMY THRIFT STORE Walter Strong 6262 Atlanta Highway Montgomery, AL 36117 334-801-9656

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

AUTOMOBILE REPAIR SERVICES

DON DUNCAN’S ALL AMERICAN AUTOMOTIVE & TIRE, INC. Don Duncan 408 Madison Avenue Montgomery, AL 36104 334-263-3872 DON DUNCAN’S ALL AMERICAN AUTOMOTIVE & TIRE, INC. Don Duncan 2700 Bell Road Montgomery, AL 36117 334-270-9825 DON DUNCAN’S ALL AMERICAN AUTOMOTIVE & TIRE, INC. Don Duncan 3521 McGehee Road Montgomery, AL 36111 334-281-2491 DANCE

THE MONTGOMERY BALLET Sara Ellen Thompson 2101 Eastern Boulevard, Suite 223 Montgomery, AL 36117 334-409-0522

EVENT PLANNER

SWEET JONESIN DESIGNS Brenda Jones 4009 Amberly Road Montgomery, AL 36116 334-324-9088 EVENT-VENUE

DREAM FIELD FARMS Cathy Ellis 6376 Highway 82 Fitzpatrick, AL 36029 334-534-6976 INSURANCE COMPANIES/SERVICES

THE CALHOUN AGENCY-ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY Malcolm Calhoun 8428 Crossland Loop Montgomery, AL 36117 334-288-7095 JANITORIAL SERVICE/SUPPLIES

B & S JANITORIAL SERVICES, LLC Shameil Harris 59 Ridgeview Drive Millbrook, AL 36054 334-233-2263

CANNON JANITORIAL SERVICE Orlando Cannon 415 South Decatur Street Montgomery, AL 36104 334-315-7222 LANDSCAPING/LAWN SERVICES

LANDSCAPE WORKSHOP, LLC Adam Leger 22 Handey Warehouse Drive Montgomery, AL 36117 334-215-8627 PRIVATE SCHOOLS

ALABAMA CHRISTIAN ACADEMY Misty Overman 4700 Wares Ferry Road Montgomery, AL 36109 334-277-1985 WAREHOUSING/DISTRIBUTION

MS COMPANIES James Willard 201 County Court Montgomery, AL 36105-5508 334-590-5074

ECONOMIC INTEL UNEMPLOYMENT

Civilian Labor Force FEB P 2016

AREA

JAN R 2016

CHAMBER NEWS

Unemployment Rate FEB R 2015

FEB P 2016

JAN R 2016

FEB R 2016

Montgomery MA

168,986

168,302

168,112

6.10%

5.90%

Autauga County

25,331

25,188

25,139

5.60%

5.40%

5.30%

Prattville City

16,541

16,465

16,417

5.40%

5.20%

5.00%

Elmore County

36,134

35,998

35,964

5.40%

5.30%

Lowndes County

3,790

3,805

3,746

11.40%

12.00%

11.00%

Montgomery County

103,731

103,311

103,263

6.20%

6.10%

Montgomery City

91,234

90,852

90,829

6.40%

6.20%

6.30%

Birmingham-Hoover MA

535,566

528,407

529,483

6.00%

5.80%

5.50%

Birmingham City

92,604

91,268

91,870

7.40%

7.10%

7.30%

Huntsville MA

209,954

207,397

208,339

5.70%

5.50%

5.60%

Huntsville City

91,047

89,923

90,415

6.00%

5.80%

6.00%

Mobile MA

183,291

181,172

182,850

7.30%

6.90%

Mobile City

85,548

84,574

85,319

7.60%

7.50%

7.00%

Alabama

2,148,740

2,126,391

2,131,570

6.50%

6.30%

6.20%

United States

158,279,000

157,347,000

156,213,000

5.20%

5.30%

5.80%

SALES TAX

MA=Metropolitan Area. pPreliminary rRevised Estimates prepared by the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations in Cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, based on 2015 benchmark.

FEBRUARY 2016

FEBRUARY 2015

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

Montgomery County

$3,243,887

$3,193,876

1.57%

$7,491,019

$7,301,743

2.59%

City of Montgomery

$7,563,122

$7,352,738

2.86%

$17,743,439

$17,219,475

3.04%

$222,700

$294,568

-24.40%V

$402,151

$356,071

12.94%

$1,779,557

$1,546,654

15.06%

$3,957,099

$3,886,084

1.83%

$639,082

$565,790

12.95%

$1,459,635

$1,379,854

5.78%

$81,358

$76,955

5.72%

$219,056

$236,839

-7.51%

$462,739

$390,774

18.42%

$966,824

$922,913

4.76%

Pike Road Prattville Autauga County Elmore County Wetumpka

YTD 2016

YTD 2015

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

Sources: Montgomery County Commission, City of Montgomery, City of Pike Road, Autauga County Commission, City of Prattville, Elmore County Commission, City of Wetumpka, City of Millbrook Note: YTD numbers are January 2016 thru current month.

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

Building Permits

BUILDING STARTS

Building Valuations

FEB 2016

JAN 2016

FEB 2015

FEB 2016

New Construction

$20,187,720

$7,401,401

$21,383,000

Additions and Alterations

$16,543,059

$2,532,406

$7,569,666

Others

$265,080

$154,400

$75,840

145

114

115

$36,995,859

$10,088,207

$29,028,506

Total

JAN 2016

FEB 2015

Source: City of Montgomery Building Department

MONTGOMERY METRO MARKET HOME SALES FEBRUARY 2016

JANUARY 2016

MONTH/MONTH % CHANGE

FEBRUARY 2015

YEAR/YEAR % CHANGE

STATEWIDE FEBRUARY 2016*

Median Price

$125,950

$128,500

-1.98%

$126,600

-0.51%

$126,858

Average Price

$149,269

$136,294

9.52%

$145,011

2.94%

$148,192

2,496

2,472

0.97%

2,729

-8.54%

28,146

Months of Supply

7.4

8.8

-15.91%

10.1

-26.73%

7.9

Total # Sales

338

282

19.86%

269

25.65%

3,577

Days on Market

142

129

10.08%

131

8.40%

156

Units Listed

Source: Alabama Center for Real Estate (ACRE), The University of Alabama

Free Estimates Over 40 Years Experience Montgomery

5506 Wares Ferry Road Montgomery, AL. 36117

334-239-9510

Montgomery Business Journal April 2016

Tow to Chico’s William (Chico) Flores, owner Fax: 334-239-7936 Emergency: 334-399-1055 Prattville

1665 McQueen Smith Road Prattville, AL. 36067

334-356-0091

Millbrook

5609 Coosada Pkwy Millbrook, AL 36025

334-290-2600

Rental Cars Available Locally Owned & Operated Union Springs

1764 Hicks Industrial Blvd. Union Springs, AL. 36089

334-738-5224

MONTGOMERY REGIONAL AIRPORT FEBRUARY 2016 Air Carrier Operations

FEBRUARY V2015

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

YTD 2016

YTD 2015

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

730

648

12.7%

1,520

1,424

6.7%

5,219

3,926

32.9%

9,788

8,529

14.8%

Enplanements

12,678

12,513

1.3%

24,836

25,490

-2.6%

Deplanements

12,391

11,045

12.2%

24,418

24,492

-0.3%

Total Passengers

25,069

23,558

6.4%

49,254

49,982

-1.5%

Total Operations

Source: Montgomery Regional Airport (MGM) Dannelly Field

HYUNDAI SALES

AIRLINE FARES

VEHICLE

FEB 2016

FEB 2015

YTD 2016

YTD 2015

Accent

4,897

4,867

9,947

9,305

ATL

Sonata

17,470

13,987

32,679

26,350

11,973

15,708

21,858

27,948

5,532

8,762

10,671

16,511

438

757

847

1,341

Roundtrip airfare comparisons from Montgomery, Birmingham and Atlanta airports to key destinations. Destination

MGM

BHM

Baltimore (BWI)

$311

$209

$136

Elantra

Boston (BOS)

$368

$361

$196

Santa Fe

Charlotte, NC (CLT)

$327

$322

$185

Chicago (ORD)

$311

$277

$97

Cincinnati (CVG)

$328

$381

$238

Tucson

7,336

3,869

12,554

6,905

Dallas/Ft Worth (DFW)

$397

$331

$121

Veloster

2,101

1,555

4,124

2,857

Denver (DEN)

$343

$351

$154

Genesis

2,976

2,793

4,883

5,366

Detroit (DTW)

$328

$388

$141

Houston (HOU)

$325

$319

$118

286

207

457

427

Indianapolis (IND)

$380

$378

$103

Total

53,009

52,505

98,020

97,010

Las Vegas (LAS)

$393

$468

$210

Total

60,007

53,672

698,202

661,211

Los Angeles (LAX)

$378

$392

$226

Memphis (MEM)

$418

$308

$104

Miami (MIA)

$314

$348

$136

Nashville (BNA)

$422

$352

$196

New Orleans (MSY)

$437

$400

$178

New York (JFK)

$447

$410

$256

Orlando (MCO)

$311

$242

$116

Philadelphia (PHL)

$337

$323

$80

Pittsburgh (PIT)

$335

$353

$268

St Louis (STL)

$378

$277

$103

Seattle (SEA)

$380

$353

$344

Seoul (SEL)

$1,350

$1,105

$1,034

Tampa (TPA)

$322

$241

$88

Washington DC (DCA)

$319

$321

$166

Azera

Equus

Source: Hyundai Motor America

Date of travel: April 19-24, 2016. Date of pricing: March 13, 2016. Source: travelocity.com

April 2016 montgomerybusinessjournal.com

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