Prairie Business January 2016

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The Value in Waste

DEPARTMENTS

6 Editor’s Note

BY LISA GIBSON

Our Year of Innovation

8 Business Advice

BY MATTHEW D. MOHR

Funny Numbers

10 IT Infrastructure

BY ARIC BLOM

Focus on Growth and Transformations

12 Energy Engineering BY

HEATHER SYVERSON

The Intersection of Energy, Water and Economic Development

14 Technology BY

TAYLOR CUPP

3-D Keeps Construction Projects on Schedule

16 Prairie News

22 Prairie People

24 Business Insider: Fierce Leader Oil industry executive experiences highs and lows

36 Construction Corner: Building a Network Midcontinent now available in select areas of Fargo, N.D.

38 By the Numbers

40 Energy: Federal Drilling Data Next Month The

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professionals discuss cybersecurity mistakes, threats and best practices for large and small businesses

Waste streams produce heat and power through partnerships between cities and end users in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. See page 30.

LISA GIBSON Editor 701.787.6753

lgibson@prairiebizmag.com

Our Year of Innovation

In 2016, Prairie Business will roll out some new things and put a new twist on some old ones. Our editorial calendar features some added topics throughout the year, including banking and finance, small business and the return of our Community Profile sections.

These profiles are a chance for us to pull our chairs up to the conference table alongside city leaders, chambers of commerce, economic development corporations, business owners, event planners, university presidents and many others to discuss sectors or companies achieving impressive growth in their communities. We’re pleased to once again present these unique glimpses into individual business environments.

Of course, 2016 also will boast our long-standing and most popular elements, including 40 Under 40, Top 25 Women in Business and 50 Best Places to Work. Stay tuned for more big developments in the works for 2016.

This year’s first issue of Prairie Business covers a topic increasingly important to businesses of all sizes in the Upper Midwest: cybersecurity. Companies in our region are being targeted, and some IT experts speculate it’s because we have the reputation of being trusting and nice. Hacking and phishing are common and most of us have experienced it, even in our personal lives. I know I’m not the only one who has gotten that email from a foreign prince who wants to give me $1 million and needs my bank account number to deposit it for me.

But in some instances, the scam is more cleverly disguised. In the information technology feature beginning on page 26, Staff Writer Kayla Prasek delves into some of the threats out there and what business managers need to know to protect their companies. IT can be outsourced to multiple firms that help maintain a secure network, even when scams evolve — and they do. We’ll discuss the first steps in ensuring security and the biggest mistakes in losing it.

This issue also focuses on energy, featuring some interesting waste-fueled systems in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. Some involve landfill gas or wastewater treatment effluent. Some involve partnerships with neighboring companies, on-site energy use or sale of power to the grid. Engineers, project developers, waste producers and users seem to agree that incorporating certain aspects into a waste-to-energy project will guarantee success. Read more about how these systems function, beginning on page 30.

Page through Prairie News to learn how one university is promoting business in China among its students, and get an update on a major South Dakota parking ramp project.

We’re starting 2016 with an issue full of useful advice, compelling trends and modern initiatives. I’m looking forward to our year of innovation here at the magazine and I hope you have some new things planned for your businesses this year, too. I’d love to hear about them.

KORRIE WENZEL, Publisher

LISA GIBSON, Editor

KAYLA PRASEK, Staff Writer

BETH BOHLMAN, Circulation Manager

KRIS WOLFF, Layout Design, Ad Design

Sales Director: JOHN FETSCH

701.212.1026 jfetsch@prairiebizmag.com

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BRAD BOYD

western ND/western SD 800.641.0683 bboyd@prairiebizmag.com

NICHOLE ERTMAN

eastern ND/western MN 800. 477.6572 ext. 1162 nertman@prairiebizmag.com

Prairie Business magazine is published monthly by the Grand Forks Herald and Forum Communications Company with offices at 375 2nd Avenue North, Grand Forks, ND 58203. Qualifying subscriptions are available free of charge. Back issue quantities are limited and subject to availability ($2/copy prepaid). The opinions of writers featured in Prairie Business are their own. Unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, artwork are encouraged but will not be returned without a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

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Funny Numbers

BY MATTHEW D. MOHR

As a business closes the books on the previous year, it is of great importance to scrutinize the final income statement and balance sheet to ensure a business is being properly run and the numbers are accurate. Most people have some understanding about how the famous Enron accounting scandal involved hugely fictitious numbers and accounting fraud. All business owners must take the time to completely understand their own numbers to make sure the accounts are accurate and make sense.

A friend of mine was extremely good at leading his business enterprise, had an unusually high level of industry understanding and was very well respected, but left accounting to another family member. After years of showing good profits and strong sales growth, the business owner became stretched for cash. He could never quite understand how he was so profitable and yet never had enough money in the bank. Naturally, as a family-owned business, the higher the profits, the more money was paid to each family member, especially those involved with running the business. When searching

for his cash, my friend was led to believe the business growth meant more cash was constantly needed to acquire inventory and cover accounts receivable. When my friend sold his business, he faced a shock.

The new owner carefully evaluated the business and discovered many years of faulty accounting. False profits were created by shifting expenses to inventory and, as a result, the inventory balance was overstated and the money, generated from loans, was paid to the family owner/employees in the form of performance bonuses. To the best of my knowledge, my friend paid off the creditors, but refused to recover anything from other members of his family, including the ones involved with the accounting “mistakes.”

A rather unhappy situation for my friend, which could have been avoided if he would have paid more attention to his financial statements. PB

Matthew D. Mohr CEO, Dacotah Paper Co. mmohr@dacotahpaper.com

Focus on Growth and Transformations

BY ARIC BLOM

Efficiently managing IT infrastructure is critical as companies look for ways to execute business strategies faster and with greater cost effectiveness. In the past, an IT department could be successful simply by “keeping the lights on.” Today, however, IT leaders are expected to leverage technology to create a robust IT infrastructure that gives their business a competitive advantage and improves their business outcomes.

In a recent Gartner Group study, IT investment strategy was classified in three categories — run, grow and transform.

• Run focuses purely on operation and maintaining the status quo.

• Grow focuses on improving performance and operational effectiveness through business processes.

• Transform elements create a competitive advantage and help realize the company vision.

The study revealed that even with these new business demands on IT, most departments struggle, with up to 64 percent of IT budgets still being devoted to run, just 21 percent allocated to grow and only 15 percent to transform.

Of course most businesses would be happy for IT to devote greater resources to growth and transformation but are locked in run mode for four main reasons: under-resourced, overburdened staff; immature or obsolete infrastructure; excessive administrative cost; and too many resources spent on fixing issues.

With so many IT departments focused solely on run, too many opportunities for transformation and growth are lost, including improving online customer

service, mobile and big data capabilities; streamlining operations both inside and outside of IT; building the technical skills of the IT staff; and reinvesting cost savings into the business.

How can IT move away from putting too much focus on running, and spend more time on growing and transforming the business? The first step is setting a goal to create a business efficient IT (BEI) environment. BEI takes the economic definition of efficient and applies it to IT, giving the optimal combination of people, processes and technology operating at the highest level of efficiency for the lowest investment. The quickest path to achieving this state begins at the top, with a comprehensive analysis of staff skills, infrastructure maturity level and IT and related business processes. Because not every business has the resources to engage in this comprehensive analysis, it can also be separated into component parts and performed iteratively over time.

Executed properly, this analysis will yield a clear understanding of the level of IT performance needed to support the business goals, the technology, process and personnel gaps that need to be addressed to reach that goal, and actionable plans to improve the capabilities and technologies to support the goal. Ultimately, this will deliver a greater alignment between IT and the business, and IT can begin delivering transformative outcomes.

Achieving a BEI environment requires a strategic approach, long-term commitment, and for IT leaders to think in new and holistic ways about their department’s role in the business. PB

Aric Blom Branch Manager, Xigent Solutions 605.332.5997 ablom@xigentsolutions.com

The Intersection of Energy, Water and Economic Development

BY HEATHER SYVERSON

The Northern Plains Nitrogen fertilizer production facility planned for Grand Forks, N.D., is moving forward. The next step for the $2.5 billion project is the value engineering process, which involves groups of engineers from around the world working together to make a project as functional and cost-efficient as possible. The front-end engineering design (FEED) process will follow.

When it is operational, NPN will include an ammonia plant, as well as urea and urea-ammonium-nitrate (UAN) production facilities. “There are three key elements for a nitrogen fertilizer facility: air, water and natural gas,” says Calvin Coey, NPN project manager. “Favorable energy prices make

this project viable, as 80 percent of the input cost is related to natural gas.”

The plant will use 80,000 million British thermal units of natural gas per day, which is expected to help reduce natural gas flaring in North Dakota.

The NPN facility will be located near the Grand Forks wastewater treatment plant so it can use wastewater effluent from the treatment process. Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services Inc. (AE2S), an engineering consulting firm that specializes in water projects, has been working with NPN and Grand Forks on the project since 2013.

“The fertilizer production process is heavily dependent on access to water,” says Shawn Gaddie, AE2S nexus division manager. “NPN is a perfect

illustration of how water intersects with the energy sector and creates economic development. During peak construction, the plant is expected to employ 2,000 people. After the facility is operational, an estimated 170 full-time jobs will be created.”

NPN is currently looking for additional investors to make the proposed plant a reality. “We have acquired the necessary permits and we’ve had engineers working on making the plant a reality for nearly two years,” Coey says. “The last piece of the puzzle is funding. We’re excited about this project and look forward to benefiting the city of Grand Forks with our presence.”

In December, the Grand Forks City Council unanimously approved an extension on the water agreement with NPN through the end of 2016, allowing more time for the project to take off.

The project plans were developed after a North Dakota State University study found conditions in the Northern Plains are favorable for the construction and operation of a nitrogen fertilizer facility. The study identified key market conditions such as the natural gas reserves in North Dakota, which would provide a reliable regional supply of fertilizer for farmers while reducing the U.S.’s dependence on imports. Grand Forks was selected as the location for the plant because of its access to the current and planned natural gas pipelines in the region, water availability and its existing rail and truck infrastructure. PB

Heather Syverson Communications Coordinator AE2S heather.syverson@AE2S.com

POSITIVE ENERGY

With energy savings reaching over $10,000 annually – much of that coming from 200 rooftop photovoltaic cells – the award-winning University of North Dakota Gorecki Alumni Center is sending a message to the tech-savvy and socially-conscious new generation: go make the world a better place.

3-D Keeps Construction Projects on Schedule

BY TAYLOR CUPP

Beyond the gee-whiz factor, cool graphics and high-tech status, implementing 3-D technology in the construction industry brings many practical benefits. At Mortenson Construction, it has become integral to our everyday business and we call it virtual design and construction (VDC).

In the past 15 years, 3-D technology has become one of the construction industry’s most effective tools to combat project delays and complications. From pre-fabrication to construction, we have leveraged VDC to help plan, design and fine-tune the $500 million Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, N.D. Likewise, the $117 million Denny Sanford Sioux Falls (S.D.) Event Center benefitted from 3-D coordination during every step of its construction. And

at the 50,000-square-foot critical access hospital for Southwest Healthcare in Bowman, N.D., we are using 3-D technology to increase our field efficiencies. The same approach was applied at the Sanford Healthcare Dickinson (N.D.) clinic and is being employed at the Dickinson Middle School.

We are building with more intricacy than ever before, and using the most advanced technologies available to us allows for greater and more precise planning. Using 3-D modeling significantly reduces the risk in reworking projects and allows us to ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page through enhanced communication.

As an example, on the Sanford Medical Center Fargo, an effective yet simplified form of augmented

Building a Better World for All of Us®

Since 1997, SEH has built a reputation across North Dakota as knowledgeable providers of reliable engineering solutions and innovative approaches to planning for North Dakota’s future.

Our North Dakota team is located in Bismarck and our employee-owners understand how the decisions we make in the field will impact your community. We will continue to provide feasible, right-sized, technical solutions for all of your planning and engineering needs including:

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reality was used to review the design of a patient room with nurses in real time. We projected a 3-D visualization of the planned headwall behind an actual patient bed and invited practicing nurses to confirm equipment placement and other room features while we made adjustments. Nurses tried out their suggested modifications until they all agreed on the optimal arrangement, allowing for an accelerated review process and better understanding of critical device placements.

This interactive visualization has not only increased customer satisfaction, but also decreased project cost by minimizing the need for change. Designs are reviewed and approved at a more rapid pace and clients are more informed and confident in their decisions.

VDC can be a great benefit to the planning of any project, but there are some good base rules to consider before engaging with this exciting new technology.

• Begin with the end in mind: What are you hoping to accomplish with VDC?

• Evaluate your options: Is VDC the best way to reach your goals? Are there lower-tech options that will work just as well?

• What is the right VDC equipment and experience for each engagement? There are a number of companies and applications now vying for your VDC business.

• Which low-tech solutions shouldn’t be replaced? In construction, VDC works best when it complements traditional planning tools, like physical mock-ups.

• What is the return on investment? VDC is rapidly dropping in price, but this is an evergreen question for all businesspeople to consider before investing in a new technology.

Overall, VDC has been found to reduce costs on projects by an average of 2.95 percent and increased productivity by as much as 25 percent. Like good communication, it has allowed us to avoid mistakes and coordinate team members while meeting client expectations and improving safety.

Using 3-D technology efficiently is a skill, but it is a skill that can be learned and, when applied smartly to business, can be revolutionary. PB

Taylor Cupp Senior Integrated Construction Coordinator Mortenson Construction taylor.cupp@mortenson.com

MSUM’s Doing Business in China Program receives MnSCU award

BY KAYLA PRASEK

Minnesota State University Moorhead’s Doing Business in China Program has been named a winner of the 2015 Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Academic and Student Affairs Awards for Innovation in Global Education.

The award recognizes the creative and effective practices of faculty and staff that increase students’ understanding of the growing interdependence of nations and peoples through cross-cultural and international experiences, according to a news release.

“This award gives us recognition with MnSCU in terms of global innovation and reaffirms that what we’re doing here is unique,” says Marsha Weber, dean of the College of Business & Innovation.

Weber nominated the Doing Business in China Program for the award because of its uniqueness. “It exposes students to the global system and it really met all the requirements MnSCU sets for the award. We have two professors whose classes do projects with students in China and who have traveled and researched extensively in China. We also host a global innovation event on campus each year with keynote speakers, which we involve the community in as well.”

Doing Business in China is a certificate program that consists of courses in Chinese language and culture, international business and a Doing Business in China class, along with a

Marsha Weber, dean of the College of Business & Innovation at Minnesota State University Moorhead. IMAGE: MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY MOORHEAD

three-week study trip in China. The program is available for both business and non-business majors, as well as community members.

The program, which was started in 2013, “made sense” for MSUM, Weber says. “We’ve always had a strong international business program. We also have two professors who travel to China frequently and exchange agreements with two Chinese universities. It seemed like a natural fit when we were looking for something unique but also played into our strengths. It’s a distinctive program because there isn’t really another one in the region.”

The Doing Business in China Program also includes: virtual learning experiences connecting students from MSUM, Shanghai Finance University and Xi’an University of Science and Technology, both in China; Chinese scholar visits to MSUM to conduct research with MSUM faculty, teach, guest lecture and speak at community events; the annual Global Innovation Day featuring a variety of activities related to global business, including a strong emphasis on doing business in China; and innovative faculty members Ruth Lumb and Peter Geib, who have traveled and researched extensively in China for a combined total of more than 25 years and have published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals.

A Doing Business in Latin America certificate is in the works. “These types of certificate programs provide our students the opportunity to learn about the world and global business,” Weber says. “By expanding our offerings, it may give more students a chance to study a different part of the world.” PB

Kayla Prasek Staff Writer, Prairie Business 701.780.1187

kprasek@prairiebizmag.com

City of Sioux Falls, S.D., announces construction manager and design team for mixed-use parking ramp project

STAFF REPORT

The city of Sioux Falls continues to move forward with its new mixeduse parking ramp project.

After a competitive proposal process, Sioux Falls Construction was selected to lead construction for The Banks, which will be located in downtown Sioux Falls.

In a news release, Randy Knecht, president/CEO of Journey Group Cos., which owns Sioux Falls Construction, says the company is excited to partner with the city of Sioux Falls, Bender Midwest Development, U.S. Hotel and Resort Management and Perspective on the project.

“Sioux Falls Construction has been privileged to help shape the landscape and skyline of Sioux Falls well over 100 years ago,” Knecht says “We look forward to continuing to help define the landscape of Sioux Falls with this community landmark project in the heart of the city.”

Perspective Inc., a Sioux Falls-based architecture firm, will lead the project design efforts. Walker Parking Professionals, the largest parking consulting firm in the U.S., also has been added to the design team.

“We believe that this project will truly transform downtown Sioux Falls by adding a structure that you typically only see in larger cities,” says Jim Bruget, project manager and partner at Perspective.

The construction manager at risk contract with Sioux Falls Construction is subject to the Sioux Falls City Council’s approval. The city council recently approved a design contract for Perspective.

“We are very pleased that two qualified local firms will design and construct what will be the largest public-private project in the history of downtown Sioux Falls,” says Darrin Smith, Sioux Falls director of community development. “We still have many months of design work ahead of us and continue to pursue a goal of breaking ground in 2016.”

The project will be constructed on the city-owned surface parking lot located at 110 S Mall Ave. in downtown Sioux Falls. Perspective has already generated preliminary images of the project and will now begin to advance the design process. The final design will determine the exact number of hotel rooms, apartments, retail spaces and parking spaces in the mixed-use project.

The overall project budget estimate will be established after the schematic design process. It is anticipated that site preparation work will begin early next year with groundbreaking later in 2016. PB

The city of Sioux Falls recently chose a construction manager and solidified the design team for The Banks project, which is expected to break ground in 2016. IMAGE: TSP

SD School of Mines selected for national engineering innovation program

BY KAYLA PRASEK

Ateam of faculty and administrators from the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology has been selected to participate in a national program designed to help institutions fully incorporate innovation and entrepreneurship into undergraduate engineering education.

South Dakota Mines is among 14 universities selected for the Pathways to Innovation Program, which is administered by the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter). Epicenter is funded by the National Science Foundation and directed by Stanford University and the VentureWell.

“Increasing opportunities for students to be involved in innovation and creating an ecosystem that supports innovation is a priority for Mines,” says South Dakota Mines President Heather Wilson in a news release. “This is one way in which we will chart our path forward.”

The team from South Dakota Mines will assess the university’s current offerings, design a unique strategy for change and lead peers in a transformation process to broaden and strengthen campus-based innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems, according to a news release.

“Economic development is one of the goals of higher education,” says Michael Langerman, head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and one of Mines’ team leaders. “Entrepreneurship has a spinoff that involves more

Michael Langermann, co-leader of the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology’s Pathways to Innovation team, recently attended the first training session for the program at Stanford University. IMAGE: EPICENTER

Michael Langermann, head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology in Rapid City, S.D. IMAGE: SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MINES & TECHNOLOGY

Christian Widener, mechanical engineering professor at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, contributes to the school’s entrepreneurial mindset with his startup, VRC Metals. IMAGE: SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MINES & TECHNOLOGY

than just a startup company. Companies want employees who are more than just the technical acumen. They need to know the business side and we want to provide employers with a more well-rounded employee who is highly sought after and valued.”

Teams will receive access to models for integrating entrepreneurship into engineering curriculum, custom online resources, networking opportunities, guidance from a community of engineering and entrepreneurship faculty and membership in a national network of schools with similar goals, according to a news release.

Langerman says being part of the Pathways to Innovation Program “gives credibility to the efforts we’re already going through to bring entrepreneurship to campus while also using their expertise and learning from them. We’ll be able to see what (Stanford’s) programs are doing with STEM education and entrepreneurship.”

To be selected for the program, Langerman submitted a proposal outlining what South Dakota Mines is currently doing in regard to entrepreneurship and how those efforts can be integrated into the Pathways program.

Langerman and fellow team leader Darren Haar, South Dakota Mines entrepreneur in residence, met with the Pathways program for the first time at Stanford in November. A second meeting in January will bring together the full Mines team to analyze the needs and opportunities at individual schools and develop plans for transforming the undergraduate engineering experience. A third meeting will be held in March. PB

Kayla Prasek Staff Writer, Prairie Business 701.780.1187

kprasek@prairiebizmag.com

NDSU’s Mountain-Plains Consortium awarded federal grant

BY LISA GIBSON

The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded North Dakota State University’s Mountain-Plains Consortium an $861,000 grant for projects that focus on safe, mobile and sustainable passenger and freight transportation.

MPC, the Region 8 Transportation Center, is made up of eight universities: NDSU, Colorado State University, South Dakota State University, University of Colorado Denver, University of Denver, University of Utah, University of Wyoming and Utah State University.

The schools will submit proposals for projects and the best ones will be given funding from the grant, according to Tom Jirik, communications coordinator for the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute at NDSU, the lead agency of MPC. The funding is a continuation of a grant awarded in 2013.

“We share a lot of characteristics,” Jirik says of the states represented in the consortium. “We have lots of land and not a lot of people.” That makes rural road safety crucial, including at rural train crossings. NDSU is conducting a study to determine how those crossings can be improved. “They are a well-known safety hazard,” Jirik says.

Trains are often at their top speeds when barreling through rural areas and many rural crossings don’t have arms or obvious warning systems in place, he says. The cost of putting in the arms is often not justified in areas where traffic is sparse. “[The study] is certainly spurred by accidents, but we can’t point to any in particular.”

Ongoing projects in other MPC states include dust control, bridge infrastructure and traffic control. Jirik says Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., was instrumental in securing the federal funding for new projects. “While North dakota’s population continues to grow, there are still very many rural parts of our state,” Hoeven says in a statement. “The researchers at NDSU’s Mountain-Plains Consortium are working to tackle issues that affect transportation, which is especially important in our rural areas because they can carry their own unique risks and hazards. [This] grant will allow folks at MPC to continue the important work they are doing to ensure the safety of North Dakotans.”

Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., says in a statement, “Reliable, safe transportation infrastructure is critical to local economies, communities and families. These federal funds will support invaluable programs at NDSU’s Mountain-Plains Consortium to address high-risk rural roads, the movement of hazardous materials, infrastructure longevity and other unique transportation challenges of the region.” PB

Lisa Gibson Editor, Prairie Business 701.787.6753

Brackin named president of Weather Modification Inc.

Neil Brackin has been appointed president of Weather Modification Inc. in Fargo, N.D.

Brackin is an aviation industry leader with extensive experience in all aspects of aircraft operations. In addition to being a professional pilot with more than 9,000 flight hours, he received his Bachelor of Science in Aviation Administration from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks and his Master of Aeronautical Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla.

BioND appoints new CEO and executive director

BioScience Association of North Dakota (BioND) has appointed Richard Glynn to be CEO and executive director.

From 2011 to November 2014, Glynn served as chief operating officer of Avianix, a biotech company that develops and manufactures therapeutic antibodies derived from domestic geese as a treatment for viral diseases. Glynn holds a Juris Doctor degree from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minn. Glynn also teaches courses in entrepreneur law in the University of North Dakota School of Entrepreneurship.

Peterson elected chairman of North Dakota State Health Council

Wade Peterson, Sanford Health Sunset Drive Continuing Care Center administrator, was recently elected chair of the North Dakota State Health Council.

This council serves as the North Dakota Department of Health’s governing and advisory body. The State Health Council’s other duties include monitoring the quality of health care in North Dakota and monitoring overall health care costs. The council’s 11 members are appointed by the governor for three-year terms.

Peterson has been with Sanford Health for 17 years

Broin resumes role as Poet CEO

Jeff Broin, founder of Poet, has resumed his role as the company’s CEO after stepping into the executive chairman role for the past 3.5 years.

Jeff Lautt has been CEO and will continue to manage the dayto-day operations of Poet as president and chief operating officer.

SDAHO welcomes two

The South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations (SDAHO) recently welcomed two to its staff. Jeanette A. Porter has been named vice president of post-acute care. Porter will be responsible for planning, organizing and directing SDAHO’s activities related to post-acute care services in the health care continuum.

Porter earned both her bachelor and master degrees from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion and completed her Doctor of Education in Leadership from Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., in 2014.

Debra Owen has been named vice president of state and federal relations. Owen joins SDAHO’s Policy and Advocacy Team and will serve as chief lobbyist on state issues. Owen has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, S.D., and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Dakota. She is a member of the South Dakota Bar Association.

Neil Brackin

Richard Glynn

Wade Peterson

Jeff Broin

Jeanette A. Porter

Debra Owen

Davidson named Regional Health chief operating officer

Paulette Davidson has been selected as Regional Health’s new chief operating officer. In this position, she will focus on clinical operations and strengthening corporate culture to benefit patient care and services. Davidson will also oversee several key leaders within Regional Health.

Davidson is a Certified Medical Practice Executive. A fellow in the College of American Health Care Executives, Davidson has a Master of Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame – Mendoza College of Business in South Bend, Ind., and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

KLJ Solutions names Sisk VP of finance

KLJ Solutions, the parent company of a diversified family of companies focused on progressive engineering, advanced oilfield operations and innovative property development, has named Susan Sisk vice president of finance.

Her responsibilities include financial planning, analysis, reporting and budget management. Before joining the corporation, she served as the chief financial officer and controller for CHI St. Alexius.

Sisk earned a master’s degree in business administration from Troy (Ala.) University and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Minot (N.D.) State University.

Paulette Davidson

Susan Sisk

Fierce Leader

Kathleen Neset provides leadership in North Dakota’s oil and higher education industries

BY KAYLA PRASEK

When Kathleen Neset graduated from Brown University with a degree in geology, she never imagined she would carve out a successful career in the male-dominated oil industry. Yet the Washington, N.J., native has spent her entire career in the industry, including the past 36 years in North Dakota.

In her first job out of college, Neset worked as a seismologist in an oilfield in Gaylord, Mich. From there, she transitioned to Core Laboratories in Dallas, Texas, which then transferred her to its location in Casper, Wyo., and then to Bismarck, N.D., in 1979, right in the middle of the last oil boom in the state. “Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would end up in the oil industry,” Neset says. “When I was in college, the most conventional thing to do with a geology degree was to be an environmental scientist.”

Kathleen Neset, owner of Neset Consulting Service in Tioga, N.D., also serves as chair of the North Dakota Board of Higher Education. IMAGE: NESET CONSULTING SERVICE INC.

Show o your company in our special 2016 Corporate Communities Section!

Prairie Business presents Corporate Communities. This upcoming special section will be an opportunity to showcase your company’s culture. The focus is up to you. Highlight your employees, inter- o ce culture, workplace bene ts and invite readers to visit your careers page. Corporate Communities will be a great workforce recruitment tool, reaching the valuable Prairie Business audience across the Upper Midwest.

In fact, Neset had a job lined up in that industry, before an oil company visited Brown to recruit employees. “It sounded exciting, so I changed my career path.”

Even though she grew up on the East Coast, Neset stayed in North Dakota, settling in Tioga, where she started Neset Consulting Service Inc. in 1980 with her husband Roy. “I stayed here because of a combination of my passion for the industry, coming to the state during the oil boom, my love of being on the rigs and I fell in love with Roy Neset.” Neset Consulting provides well site geologic/geo-steering and engineering services to the oil industry.

When the oil boom turned into a bust, Neset says it was “a near disaster” for the company, but the the family had Neset Farm and she taught science at Tioga High School. “The mid80s was definitely the hardest period of time for us,” Neset

Neset Consulting’s operations. “When it got really busy, I knew where I needed to be. I’m not out on the rigs as much as I would like to be, but I do still get out there on a regular basis.”

During the most recent oil boom and slowdown, Neset says her greatest challenge has been scheduling. “When oil was booming so much and everyone is tired and needs a break, but you can’t give everyone those breaks, it’s a challenge. But on the flip side, now, during the slowdown, everyone needs hours but you have to be conservative, so scheduling is still a challenge.”

In the middle of it all, Neset was appointed to the North Dakota University System’s Board of Higher Education, where she has served since 2012 and is the current chair. “I absolutely love serving on the Board of Higher Ed,” Neset says. “In all my work in the oil field, with the state Board of Higher Ed and on the North Dakota Petroleum Council, my passion has always been education.”

NDUS Chancellor Mark Hagerott says Neset is an important member of the SBHE. “It has been wonderful to work with Kathleen and the state Board of Higher Education as we move to accomplish the many goals we have set for higher education. Her leadership style is visionary and thoughtful. She is well-informed and her expertise and experience lend to her very capable leadership abilities. She is enthusiastic about students and in every decision she makes, she thinks about the student and their success first.”

says. She says there were times when she was only managing one well for a 12-month period. In 1997, she had zero rigs for the first time, and then one rig started drilling again. “Neset Consulting always had work going on, but we relied on the farm to get us through.”

Some drilling resumed in the late ’90s and early 2000s. Then, in 2004, the number of rigs started growing. From 2004 to 2007, “it really started growing and we really started ramping things up,” Neset says. And then, the boom hit again. “It’s been fabulous, exciting and challenging. We’ve been catching our breath and regrouping for the last year. Even though it’s been a slowdown, it’s been intense as we strive to do better for the companies we manage rigs for.”

Neset “lived on the rigs until 2006,” she says. At that point, she knew she needed to be in the office to manage

Neset’s passion for education crosses over into her work at Neset Consulting. When she started in the oil industry in the 1970s, there were very few women. Today, it is still a male-dominated industry, but Neset has dedicated herself to sharing her passion with young women. “Being able to provide quality technical science jobs to young people through Neset Consulting is important to me, especially in such a rural part of the state. I’m really proud I can share this industry with science-minded women in this remote area.”

Neset calls being one of the few women in the oil industry “a challenge, but a good challenge. The way I was accepted in the ’70s was as a professional, and that hasn’t changed. I always made sure I showed that I was professional, but the industry always felt like a natural fit for me because I grew up with eight brothers.”

As for Neset’s future, she has plans for a new geosteering center and more services at Neset Consulting when the industry picks back up, which she fully expects to happen. PB

Kayla Prasek Staff Writer, Prairie Business 701.780.1187

kprasek@prairiebizmag.com

“Being able to provide quality technical science jobs to young people through Neset Consulting is important to me, especially in such a rural part of the state. I’m really proud I can share this industry with science-minded women in this remote area.”

-Kathleen Neset Neset Consulting Service in Tioga, N.D.

Protecting Data

Cybersecurity threats target the Midwest, but there are solutions

BY KAYLA PRASEK

In the past several years, cybersecurity and hacking have become major concerns for not only large corporations, but businesses of all sizes. Local information technology experts say if a business hasn’t deemed this important yet, it must.

“A lot of companies don’t have a managed network,” says Justin Stansbury, general manager of Corporate Technologies’ Fargo, N.D., location. “They just plug everything in and never check it again.” Corporate Technologies is a reseller of IT solutions, networks, hardware and IT staffing. Jim Beske, senior network engineer at Corporate Technologies, says most companies “don’t give it a second thought, so they don’t have the proper equipment and they don’t run tests to ensure everything is secure and working correctly.”

Weston Hecker, a network security engineer for High Point Networks in Bismarck, N.D., says he sees companies either ignoring security or relying solely on hardware without having the staff to fix problems. Corey Steele, also a network security engineer for High Point Networks in Sioux Falls, S.D., says most companies “don’t follow the best practices, either because they think it’s too expensive or because it’s too complicated. In return, they’re exposing their clients and themselves to countless threats.” High Point Networks, headquartered in Fargo, is a reseller of IT solutions including infrastructure, unified communications and security, while also providing service to all products.

Mike Pagán, service manager at Network Center Inc., says he, too, sees companies make their biggest mistake by relying “too much on a

piece of technology. That is not enough for the threats that are out today. There’s not enough intelligence built into a product to alert you about everything, whether it’s antivirus or a firewall. There are too many ways into a network.” Network Center, headquartered in Fargo, is a network consulting company that provides managed services, IT solutions and app development for small and medium companies.

Kristine Lunde, lead deposit product specialist at Alerus, and Jerry Wynne, chief information security official at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota, both are involved with IT and cybersecurity at their respective companies and are aware of the mistakes other companies make in regard to security. Both companies have in-house IT departments.

“The two biggest mistakes I see companies making are that the leaders don’t educate themselves and their employees regarding security best practices and threats and then they don’t stay abreast to changing threats and changing technology,” Lunde says. Wynne says the biggest mistake he sees companies make is a “lack of maintaining equipment and not understanding critical threats. There’s also a lack of maintaining patches and keeping software and operating systems updated.”

Best Practices

Beske says the best place for businesses to start strengthening their security is an assessment of weaknesses. “That’s the first thing we do when we start working with a business,” he says. “We’ll assess their operating systems, any updates that may need to be done and their firewalls, along with all the other parts of their network.” Stansbury says Corporate Technologies also makes it a priority to look at critical areas of the customer site, “not just anything that is security-related, but also access and permissions given to employees and former employees, which also need to be taken seriously.”

Hecker says the starting points for businesses should be getting their systems up-to-date and patched. “There are appliances that can fully protect you, but you need to continue upgrading.

- Kristine Lunde Lead Deposit Product Specialist Alerus

If you’re still using Windows XP as your operating system, for example, you are totally vulnerable. They are no longer updating that system, so it’s time for you to move on.”

Pagán says the first line of defense for businesses should be their employees. “You need to educate the users about what to look for in emails and attachments that identify them as viruses or threats. They could receive an email asking for a wire transfer or a phone call from a person who claims to work for Microsoft and they just need to be connected to the computer to fix it. We’re too trusting in the Midwest, and that leads to your business getting into trouble.” Lunde echos what Pagán says, but adds that companies and their employees need to also be educated about security best practices, breaches and reading data.

Businesses should also take a layered approach to security, including an antivirus, a firewall to monitor traffic and restricting what employees can access on the Internet. “You could restrict being able to send and receive traffic to specific countries that have been deemed to have many security threats coming from them,” Pagán says. “This can help protect you from having data stolen and from having a virus that encrypts all your data.” He says companies should also back up all their data, so if it’s compromised, it can easily be restored.

Companies also need to pinpoint the biggest threat to themselves and to their industry, Wynne says. “Figure out what kind of data you have and understand the value of what you have. That will help you determine what kind of security and how much you need.” For companies that have transactions online, Lunde suggests speaking to a bank for best practices when using fraud protection. Alerus offers a free product that will protect computers while on a business’ online accounts, she says.

“They need to make sure they’re utilizing all the tools out there,” Lunde says. “It’s important to understand what goes into keeping their data secure. Knowing what to do when there is a problem, knowing who to contact and being able to catch a problem early are also important. If something seems

“The two biggest mistakes I see companies making are that the leaders don’t educate themselves and their employees regarding security best practices and threats and then they don’t stay abreast to changing threats and changing technology.”

suspicious, don’t email back or just do what the email says; a phone call is the best way to defend yourself.”

Potential Threats

As Beske points out, potential threats aren’t coming just through an Internet connection, but also via email or by clicking on a link. Steele says the biggest threat, particularly in the Midwest, is ransomware, which encrypts a user’s files and holds those files for ransom. Hecker says this can result in data loss. “Tons of people are being targeted because they don’t protect themselves. No matter where you are, anyone can touch you. The Midwest is one of the highest payers of these ransoms because these companies don’t have sufficient backups or paying a ransom is cheaper than hiring a service technician to recover the data for them,” Steele says. This type of threat is usually either an attachment on an email or a link in an email that seems important.

Another major threat Pagán is seeing more often is cold calls from people claiming to be technicians with Microsoft who need to fix the user’s computer and say they need to be connected remotely to that computer. “These (two threats) are where a majority of attacks are coming from. It’s easier and cheaper to attack a user than to hack a firewall. It’s easier for a criminal to go through users because they have a lot of access to the system and are the weakest links.”

“But that’s not all that’s out there,” Steele says. “There are still 10-year-old viruses out there.” Additionally, there are now

what’s called zero-day viruses. “There’s no antivirus solution that can protect you from these,” Wynne says. “Ten years ago, these would’ve made national news. Now, we see one to two of them per week. They’re so common that they’re very hard for most organizations to combat.”

Point-of-sale (POS) systems, particularly at small businesses, can also be attacked, Steele says. “Every small business has a POS system, which attacks can be aimed at. They need to know what the POS system company is doing to protect the client, especially if they have a full-blown POS system that can be compromised.”

IT Services

When it comes to managing IT, a company has two options: build up an in-house IT department or outsource IT management. Lunde, of Alerus, which has an in-house IT department, says it’s important a company partners with the right firm if outsourcing. “If you’re outsourcing, they may not be part of your environment, so you need to make sure they understand your business. You also need to know how quickly they can help you if there’s a security breach.”

Steele says it’s important businesses “look for a partner who’s going to bridge the gaps the company may have. The IT company you choose will be your partner who knows the IT side and can come in and fix any issues you may have.” Hecker says companies need to make sure they choose someone who “genu-

inely cares about the customer. Make sure they aren’t just selling a solution, that they’ll be there to service it when something goes wrong.”

When choosing a partner, “it’s important for customers to have an idea of the history of the organization,” Pagán says. “Make sure they’re qualified to do everything you need. It’s important to have things planned out if there are issues. Accountability is important.”

Stansbury says Corporate Technologies has a 24/7 help desk and multiple technicians always available. “We’ll try to resolve your issue at our help desk, but if we can’t, then we’ll dispatch a technician. If it’s an emergency, we can always pull someone to get them to the company immediately.” Corporate Technologies provides managed IT services to about 15 percent of the businesses in the Fargo area, Stansbury says.

Pagán says it’s also important that the IT company provides user-initiated support. “They should not have unlimited access to your network unless you want that. There also needs to be communication about what has been done during a service call.”

In parts of the Dakotas and Minnesota, unemployment in the cybersecurity industry is at zero so “it can be very difficult for businesses to find good people to manage their IT,” Wynne says. “On the flip side, outsourcing can bring in people who may not treat your network the way you want.”

For in-house IT departments, it’s important the technicians have the experience needed to support the company, Lunde says. “At that point, IT really becomes part of the culture. Your IT technicians can interact with you on projects and really become part of the company’s day-to-day operations.”

Wynne says BCBSND values its members’ information “so we have invested a lot of time and money into protecting it. We stay up on what our data is worth. The amount of time people spend recovering data is astronomical, and they will walk away from brands because of it, so organizations need to be aware of what they have and protect it.” PB

Kayla Prasek Staff Writer, Prairie Business 701.780.1187

kprasek@prairiebizmag.com

The Value in Waste

Upper Midwest engineers, city officials and company managers work together on energy projects

BY LISA GIBSON

Dustin Hansen says he would absolutely recommend partnership projects like the one he helps maintain between the Sioux Falls, S.D., city landfill and the nearby Poet ethanol plant in Chancellor, S.D. As superintendent of the landfill, Hansen is crucial in an agreement that provides landfill gas (LFG) to Poet for $4 per mmbtu. The landfill makes 25 percent of its revenue through the partnership, keeping tipping costs low, and Poet displaces about 18 percent of its natural gas use.

Similarly, the Fargo, N.D., landfill sells LFG to Cargill Inc., where it’s used in an oilseed processing facility. The arrangement solves the landfill’s odor problem and gives Cargill a cheap energy source, at $1 per mmbtu. Terry Ludlum, solid waste utility director for the city of Fargo, would recommend the collaboration to other landfills, too.

Hansen and Ludlum agree on the key to success: direct use for the LFG, as well as the around-the-clock operation of that direct user. “All of it is being collected and used,” Hansen says. “The only time the gas isn’t used is when the ethanol plant is down for maintenance. Last year, we operated 96 percent of the time.”

In Grand Rapids, Minn., it’s not LFG, but wastewater treatment effluent that brings the city savings in heating multiple facilities. “It’s a win-win,” says Jason Benson, a project manager for AE2S, the engineering firm working on the many facets of the systems. “It’s not only a big benefit for the city and a savings, but also the public utilities is doing their part and on the forefront of trying to provide green energy.”

A Unique Partnership

LFG production and leachate are problems for most, if not all, landfills and Sioux Falls was no exception when the city began to explore options for using its LFG a few years ago, Hansen says. Poet heard about the city’s intentions and approached it with the partnership idea.

The initial system was installed in 2008 and 2009, including collection wells that pool the gas, the LFG conditioning facility that removes moisture and pressurizes the gas, and the 11-mile pipeline to the ethanol plant. Once the LFG reaches the ethanol facility, it’s used in special burners that can handle the methane. Poet owns the rights to all the LFG produced at the landfill. “Once it gets to their boundary, they own it from there,” Hansen says.

The Poet ethanol plant in Chancellor, S.D., uses landfill gas from the nearby Sioux Falls, S.D., landfill in its production process. IMAGE: POET

Interestingly, the landfill covered the approximately $4.8 million bill, not only for its on-site infrastructure, but also the entire pipeline up to Poet’s location. It also owns and operates the pipeline. It did not pay for anything Poet installed on-site.

“Sioux Falls is pretty unique,” says Fred Doran, solid waste department manager for Burns & McDonnell engineering firm, which handles the Sioux Falls system, as well as many other waste-to-energy projects on the northern plains. In typical LFG projects, a third party operates and owns the pipeline or the two parties split that cost, he says. In this instance, the landfill accepted the risk and cost with the assurance of Poet’s longevity in its location, Doran says.

The project was installed using existing funds, Hansen says, including tipping fees set aside for special projects. And it paid for itself

in 35 months, he says. It has been expanded almost every year and is now operating with 150 collection wells.

Doug Morris, solid waste coordinator for Crow Wing County, Minn., says the Sioux Falls-Poet partnership is the best-case scenario. “They did it right. They can expand their program without any cost to the taxpayers. That was a great win-win for those guys.”

Crow Wing’s landfill has a system that collects LFG to heat on-site facilities in the winter and provides revenue through carbon credits. Since the system began operation in 2009, the landfill has gained $325,000 in credits and has saved around $10,000 in heating bills. Crow Wing initially intended to sell its LFG to a lumber manufacturer, securing that crucial direct user, but the plant closed before the project was completed. “It would have been great for us because they operated

The Sioux Falls landfill compressor building processes and pressurizes LFG to pipe to poet. IMAGE: BURNS & MCDONNELL

24/7. They’d use 100 percent of our gas.” Another option was using the LFG to produce electricity to sell to the grid, but the payback wasn’t good, Morris says.

“The benefit is using it in-house,” says Dean Frederickson, general manager of the Chancellor Poet plant. “If we were to produce electricity, we’d use that in-house, as well.”

The majority of the ethanol produced at the Chancellor plant is sold in California, which has strict rules on carbon intensity. The LFG lowers that intensity in Poet’s ethanol, making it attractive for that market, as well as qualifying Poet for the state’s green credits. The only limitation with the project is the amount of LFG available.

“The landfill is tapped out as far as LFG that can be produced,” Frederickson says. “And we could use more.”

Even with low natural gas prices, the system is a boon for both parties. “With the current energy market, it’s a bit harder to justify,” Hansen says. “But there are always ups and downs.”

Morris agrees. “Three years ago, it was a pretty good deal. It’s still a good deal, but it’s harder to make it. In another three years, we might have a user.”

‘In the Black’

In a more conventional agreement, Fargo and Cargill split the cost of the force main running the 1.5 miles between the landfill and the plant. Like the Sioux Falls system, each covered their own on-site costs for a total initial investment of about $1.3 million each, Ludlum says. Cargill is contracted to the amount of LFG produced by the 20 collection wells installed initially, but the landfill can send more from the multiple expansion wells, Ludlum says. The landfill also uses its LFG to heat on-site buildings and to run an electricity generator, selling power to the grid.

“We got our capital costs back,” Ludlum says. “So now we’re in the black on the project.”

The plant was built in 1990 in an area that was then rural. “Quickly, we got neighbors all around us. Some of the challenges with that are odor and blowing debris.” Flaring was studied as a solution but was not a good option.

The nearby Cargill plant approached the city with its proposal to buy the LFG at a price that would benefit Cargill and return the city’s capital investment. A 20-year contract was signed between the city of Fargo and Cargill in 2002, so negotiations for a new contract could begin in the next

This diagram shows how the LFG is collected from the Fargo, N.D., landfill, processed and piped to Cargill as an energy source. IMAGE: FARGO LANDFILL

few years. The good working relationship and advantages to both parties make continuing the partnership a given, Ludlum says.

With greenhouse gas reduction a federal requirement, landfills without those systems to capture gas are investing in processes now. “There’s a very strong possibility we would have had to install a landfill gas collection system,” Ludlum says.

Wastewater Win

In Minnesota, public utilities also have been directed to lower their carbon footprint. The Grand Rapids Public Utilities Commission projects using wastewater effluent are significantly boosting that renewable component, says AE2S’s Jason Benson. The effluent from the wastewater treatment plant is passed through a heat exchanger to provide heat and cool air for the administration building on-site.

Another heat exchanger was installed at an industrial lift station that sits near the city’s library. The industrial waste, which averages about 130 degrees Fahrenheit, is used to heat the library, which is owned by the city and generates more savings.

The city also had a new force main project installed recently that conveniently sits near the YMCA. The heat exchanger there makes it possible to preheat water, as well as maintain comfortable temperatures in the pool and hot tub. Soon, the heat exchanger will also provide heat and cooling for the entire YMCA building, Benson adds.

AE2S also is working on a system in Williston, N.D., that will use wastewater treatment effluent to heat and cool its administrative building.

“There are opportunities to take a waste stream and utilize it for heat or cooling, or energy,” Benson says. “A lot of facilities that have digestion use biogas for energy, as well. It’s another source.” PB

Lisa Gibson Editor, Prairie Business 701.787.6753 lgibson@prairiebizmag.com

Building a Network

Midcontinent Communications’ expansion to Fargo, N.D., more than half finished

BY KAYLA PRASEK

When Midcontinent Communications finishes its expansion into Fargo, N.D., by the end of 2016, the company will have invested more than $72 million in the Fargo metro area from 2014 to 2016 and will have doubled the size of its West Fargo facility.

“We’ve been doing business in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota for years and have been expanding in the Fargo metro area for a while,” says Justin Forde, director of public affairs. “We’ve really built up our presence in Moorhead and West Fargo. Going into Fargo is a big commitment but it came together at the right time.”

Midcontinent first announced its expansion to the city of Fargo Nov. 26, 2013. At the time, President and CEO Pat McAdaragh said “considering the growth and opportunities available, combined with the number of requests we’ve received, the time is right to focus our resources and expand our service area to include Fargo.”

The company unveiled a three-year build plan, with the first phase starting in spring 2014 and infra-

structure going in around and west of Interstate 29. In 2015, construction was completed in south Fargo, with north and downtown Fargo scheduled for 2016. Construction should be completed by the end of 2016. In early December, the infrastructural work was about 60 percent complete, with 1.7 million feet of the fiber-optic network in the ground. In the parts of the city where the build-out is complete, Midcontinent’s services are available for potential customers.

The infrastructure, which will provide Internet, phone and cable service to residential and business customers throughout the city, is mainly a fiber-optic network with cables running to homes. Fargo-MoorheadWest Fargo will also be the first of the Midcontinent footprint to receive gigabit Internet. McAdaragh says the company chose the area as the first for Midco Gig “because of the state-of-the-art technology we’ve been installing in the metro area during our Fargo build-out.”

To support the build-out, Midcontinent has plans to hire up to 120 employees during the next couple years, particularly in the company’s call center

Workmen bury cable for Midcontinent in Fargo’s Woodbury neighborhood.

IMAGE: DAVE WALLIS, FORUM NEWS SERVICE

and as field technicians. More than 60 employees have already been hired, Forde says.

To accommodate that growth, Midcontinent broke ground in May on an addition to the existing facility in West Fargo. The $3 million, 15,000-square-foot facility will double the size of the current building, adding a client center, training center, warehouse space and TV studio and production space for Midco Sports Network and commercial production. The addition, designed and constructed by Fargo-based Olaf

Anderson, was recently completed. The second phase of the project — renovating the original building to match the addition — will now begin.

The highlight of the new addition is the Midco Sports Network studio, Forde says. “Midco Sports Network has grown tremendously, and this addition means we’ll have another team to go out and cover teams. It also means there will be expanded sports coverage in the region. The team will also provide commercial advertising support, as well.” Before the West Fargo addition, Midco Sports Network had studios in Sioux Falls, S.D., and Grand Forks, N.D.

“Midcontinent has had a lot of growth, and Fargo was the one large community Midcontinent wasn’t in, so we’re in all the major cities in our footprint now,” Forde says. The company also completed its expansion to Dickinson, N.D., in 2015.

As for the future, Midcontinent will be bringing its gigabit Internet services to its entire footprint by the end of 2017. “It’s a huge commitment, but it’s about us staying one step ahead of technology,” Forde says. “Everything is connected and helps us be able to serve our customers better going forward.” That expansion will cost $75 million in the next two years. PB

Midcontinent Communications’ West Fargo, N.D., facility will double in size and will include the company’s third TV studio for Midco Sports Network. IMAGE: MIDCONTINENT

Interest Rates

Employment

Gas Captured/Sold

Data provided by David Flynn, chair of the University of North Dakota Department of Economics. Reach him at david.flynn@business.und.edu.

the businesses in the Dakotas and Minnesota

drive the regional economy, including agriculture, energy, health care, construction, architecture and engineering, higher education and more.

New-well gas production per rig thousand cubic

New-well gas production per rig

January-2015

New-well gas production per rig thousand cubic

719 717

Monthly additions from one average rig

BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermianUtica

Legacy oil production change

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Oil +2 Gas

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Indicated monthly change in oil production (Jan vs. Dec)

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Indicated monthly change in oil production (Jan vs. Dec)

thousand barrels/day

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BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermian Utica

Legacy gas production change

BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermian Utica

Indicated monthly change in gas production (Jan vs. Dec)

January-2015 January-2016

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million cubic feet/day

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BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermianUtica

BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermian Utica

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BakkenEagle FordHaynesvilleMarcellusNiobraraPermian Utica

Oil -27 Gas-19

January-2015