January 2018

Business Intelligence for the New North

Gearing Up: Manufacturing Talent Gap Northeast Wisconsin employers find creative approaches to attract and train next generation of manufacturing workers

Top Ten of 2017

Year in Review

Medical Cost Comparisons

Health Care

Wellness passed up again?

From the Publisher

January 2018 | $3.95

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Business Intelligence for the New North

16

January Features 16 COVER STORY

Manufacturing Talent Gap

Northeast Wisconsin employers find creative ways to proactively attract and train the next generation of manufacturing workers

20 HEALTH CARE

Medical Cost Comparisons

20

Our annual chart comparing the real costs of procedures common to employers in the region

24 YEAR IN REVIEW

Top Ten of 2017

Near record unemployment and the high number of jobs created tops our list of big stories from the region in the past year

Departments 24

4

From the Publisher

6

Since We Last Met

10 Build Up Pages 31

Professionally Speaking

32

Who’s News

37 Business Calendar 37 Advertising Index 38 Key Statistics

On the cover Cover illustration by Candeo Creative www.newnorthb2b.com

NNB2B | January 2018 | 3

From the Publisher

Wellness passed up again?

Recent efforts to revamp the Affordable Care Act still miss out on a golden opportunity to drive meaningful change in health care

by Sean Fitzgerald, New North B2B publisher

Efforts to repeal the American Affordable Care Act struggled during 2017, with the last endeavor in July marking the 61st attempt to dismantle the law since it was enacted in 2010.

In lieu of an ability to nullify the law completely, President Trump and Congressional Republicans have spent the past couple of months chipping away at parts of the law that are a bit more attainable and more malleable. The recent removal of the individual mandate destabilized the federal health care program slightly, but most recent polls on the topic show Americans still increasingly support what’s been dubbed “ObamaCare.”

But all these efforts may ultimately be for naught.

Just the same as when Congressional Democrats created ObamaCare more than seven years ago, these most recent efforts by Washington Republicans completely miss out on a golden opportunity to completely revolutionize health care in the United States. Our county’s entire history of health care has been a paradigm in which patients simply react to illness and injury rather than proactively working on being well.

Focusing on wellness as a national health care strategy – just as many forward-thinking businesses have done with their employees – provides not only a long-term solution to improve the health of Americans, but also delivers a promise of lower health care costs in the end.

While nearly every strategy imaginable has been attempted during the past two decades in an effort to control the skyrocketing costs of health care, the only approach to consistently hold down health care expenses over time is for patients to remain healthy.

To that end, savvy employers have increasingly adopted wellness plans since the late 1990s, equipping employees and their families with the tools to lead healthier lifestyles, be safer and use health care more proactively - all aimed at improving overall health and lowering group health insurance costs.

The federal government could achieve similar results for Americans on a national health care program, yet the introduction of wellness plan components into such a program haven’t even entered the political conversation at this point. Thay’s simply baffling.

4 | January 2018 | NNB2B

A number of northeast Wisconsin employers know better, and would likely agree that a federal government health care program in any shape or form would prove more effective if it includes a measured wellness initiative aimed at improving group population health over time.

Since 2006, B2B magazine has celebrated the wellness achievements of northeast Wisconsin companies who’ve successfully created a culture of wellness among their workforce and demonstrated measured improvements in employee health over an extended period.

Celebrating our 13th year in the coming June 2018 edition, B2B’s Corporate Wellness Awards sponsored by Network Health shine a light on the region’s leading employer-based wellness plans. During the past 12 years the awards have recognized more than 30 employers which have successfully reduced lost productivity due to employee sick days, lowered instances of chronic health issues among employees and their families, and ultimately gained control of rising group health insurance premiums.

In doing so, we’ve illustrated specific and innovative approaches companies have taken to invest modest wellness budgets into staggering returns. Ideas such as placing hand sanitizers at all workplace entrances, conducting random seatbelt checks when employees pull into the parking lot each morning, or offering routine preventative care at no cost to employees.

B2B magazine has used these awards to share the ideas from other employer-sponsored wellness plans who’ve developed fun and engaging activities geared toward encouraging employees to become more active in a manner they might not have explored otherwise, such as running in one of the region’s notable 5-kilometer races or taking a yoga class. In many cases, these activities take the form of friendly competitions among departments or even against neighboring businesses down the street to help encourage employees to take pride in their own health improvements.

While wellness plans started out mostly as the domain of large corporations, an increasing number of other employers – including small businesses and not-for-profit organizations – have recognized it’s possible to implement a wellness program without exorbitant cost or commitment of staff time.

So with all the historical success of employer-based wellness programs illustrated in corporate America, can’t the federal government take the hint that such a proven health care strategy would be beneficial to all Americans?

Fortunately, there’s still time for Congress to figure it out.

n

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Sean Fitzgerald Publisher & President x sean@newnorthb2b.com Kate Erbach Production x graphics@newnorthb2b.com Rachel Yelk Sales and Marketing Intern x intern@newnorthb2b.com Contributing writers Rick Berg Lee Marie Reinsch

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Since We Last Met

Since We Last Met

Since We Last Met is a digest of business related news occurring in the Greater Green Bay, Fox Cities, Oshkosh and Fond du Lac areas in the one month since the previous issue of New North B2B.

2003 January 6 – Rates on parking meters in downtown Fond du Lac were raised from 25 cents an hour to 35 cents. On nearly 900 meters in the downtown, the change is expected to generate annual parking revenues of $198,000, up from the $145,000 brought in during 2002.

2005 January 4 – State officials launched the Wisconsin Angel Network, a program designed to spur the growth of early-stage investing in Wisconsin by linking entrepreneurs with seed-stage equity investment.

2007 January 10 – The U.S. House of Representatives approved a $2.10 an hour increase in the federal minimum wage which would raise the rate from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour in three steps over 26 months.

2008 January 30 – The Federal Reserve Board lowered its target for the federal funds rate 50 basis points to 3 percent, the third such slashing since mid-December 2007 when the rate stood at 4.5 percent. In making its decision, the Fed said these cuts should help to promote moderate growth over time and mitigate the risks of an economic fallout.

2009 January 28 – The U.S. House of Representatives approved the $819 billion economic stimulus package which includes an estimated $544 billion in federal spending and an additional $275 billion in tax cuts.

2013 January 4 – Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. reported it will add nearly 100 jobs at its Outagamie Country Regional Airport facility in Greenville to support work on large-cabin aircraft.

2014 January 5 – The Wisconsin Department of Transportation reopened the Interstate 43 Leo Frigo Bridge in Green Bay to traffic following a more than 100-day closure since one of the support piers unexpectedly sank on Sept. 25, causing the highly traveled span over the Fox River to sag.

6 | January 2018 | NNB2B

November 21 Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmitt announced he would not seek a fifth four-year term as the city’s top elected official in the next mayor’s race scheduled for April 2019. Schmitt was first elected to office in April 2003 after previously serving two terms on the Brown County Board of Supervisors.

November 22 The board of directors for Oshkosh Corp. accepted a proposal from the City of Oshkosh to build its new global headquarters on the site of the Lakeshore Municipal Golf Course property near the Interstate 41 bridge crossing Lake Butte des Morts.

The heavy-duty truck manufacturer had sought legitimate proposals this past fall from other cities across Wisconsin and around the country to host a new headquarters facility.

Under the terms of the proposal, the city will sell about 35 acres of the property to Oshkosh Corp. for $3.5 million and will provide roughly $7.2 million in municipal infrastructure improvements in and around the property. The city also offered an incentive of $6 million in tax incremental financing returns if Oshkosh Corp. constructs a headquarters facility valued at $18.5 million or more by the end of 2019. The company plans to begin construction this coming spring.

November 27 Gov. Scott Walker signed Senate Bill 298 into law enabling Wisconsin companies to seek benefit corporation status, which includes a provision aimed at creating a positive impact on society, the company’s workers and the community – in addition to turning a profit – as its legally defined goals.

Benefit corporations differ from traditional C-Corps. in purpose, accountability and transparency, but not in taxation.

November 27 The governor signed Senate Bill 221 into law creating additional criteria for job access loan recipients to be awarded short-term, no-interest loans to assist them in meeting emergency needs that support employment. This new law puts protections in place to ensure loan applicants can legally drive and are not at risk of revocation by their probation or parole agent. The bill was co-authored by 57th District Assembly Rep. Amanda Stuck (D-Appleton).

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December 1 Appleton International Airport began construction on a $6.8 million terminal upgrade to expand the Transportation Security Administration checkpoint; provide a new restaurant, gift shop, conference room and mother’s room; and to enhance ticket counters, baggage claim and the customer service center.

The terminal upgrade project is funded by a mix of federal and state aid and airport funds. Completion is expected by July.

December 8 The Basic Needs Giving Partnership awarded $5.56 million in grants to 163 nonprofit organizations across northeast Wisconsin which provide programs addressing the root causes of poverty. Funds were provided to the region’s community foundations to distribute to local service providers and break down in this manner: $3.5 million to the Fox Valley Region; $1.02 million to Greater Green Bay; and $1.04 million to the Oshkosh Area. The Giving Partnership is collaboration between the U.S. Venture Open, J. J. Keller Foundation, and the three regional community foundations.

December 8 The U.S. Labor Department reported 228,000 new jobs were created across the country in November, nudging the national unemployment rate down 4.1 percent. Employment continued to trend up in professional and business services, manufacturing and health care.

December 12 Port of Green Bay officials reported 140,300 metric tons of cargo passed through the port in November, down substantially from November 2016 cargo and down 7 percent year-to-date from the same time a year ago. The year-to-date decline is mostly attributed to a drop in petroleum product imports and limestone imports. A total of 145 ships have come through the port as of the end of November, four less than the same time in 2016.

December 13 Annie’s Fountain City Café in downtown Fond du Lac and K Sera Salon and Spa in downtown De Pere were among five businesses statewide named finalists in the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.’s Main Street Makeover Contest.

The contest will determine a winner in January which will receive up to $10,000 in upgrades for their retail façade. The two-day business “makeover” event is scheduled for late spring.

December 13 Fox Cities Sports Development, Inc., a not-for-profit subsidiary of the Fox Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau, announced plans for what could be as much as a $25 million, 150,000-sq. ft. indoor sports complex in Grand Chute. Fox Cities Sports Facility will include a combination of ice and hard-court surfaces, and will be located on a 20-acre property near the intersection of McCarthy Road and County Road GV

S TA R T I N G 2 0 1 8 WITH A BANG Our Small Business of the Year award from the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce is just the beginning. We’re sparking monumental change in 2018 – breaking out of our marketing box and igniting fireworks in our world. Our vision is to be the best and brightest.

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NNB2B | January 2018 | 7

Since We Last Met on land donated by the Town of Grand Chute. A final design of the facility will be determined this spring, with construction expected to begin shortly after and be completed by fall 2019.

The project is being funded through hotel room tax revenues generated across Fox Cities communities.

December 14 The Internal Revenue Service set the 2018 standard mileage rate at 54.5 cents for every mile of business travel driven, up 1 cent from the rate of 53.5 cents per mile during 2017. The new rate for calculating the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business purposes took effect on Jan. 1.

December 13 The Federal Reserve Board voted to raise the target for the federal funds rate by a quarter point to a range of 1.25 to 1.5 percent. The decision marked the committee’s third such rate increase during 2017 and just the fifth increase since interest rates were essentially at their lowest possible point following the 2009 recession. The committee hinted at the possibility of further rate increases during 2018 in order to help inflation rise above 2 percent and to maintain maximum employment.

December 13 Lakeland University in Sheboygan County – with outreach campuses in Bellevue and Neenah – received a $500,000 donation from Johnsonville to fund the nation’s first food safety and quality bachelor’s degree program. The four-year program will focus on the safe production of food by blending the science of biology and chemistry with best business and management practices. The donation from Johnsonville will finance the creation of a state-of-the-art food processing lab, among other amenities.

December 18 Wisconsin Department of Transportation announced plans to accelerate several major highway construction projects across the state, including plans to complete the five-year, $550 million WIS 441 expansion project in the fall of 2018, a year earlier than planned. State officials indicated cost savings realized in previous years from this and other projects allowed additional resources to be allocated toward the Tri-County Expressway reconstruction project, which widens six miles of WIS 441/U.S. 10 from four lanes to six between Cold Spring Road and Oneida Street in Menasha and Fox Crossing. The project also reconstructs five interchanges along that route – including the major interchange with Interstate 41 – and constructed two bridges crossing Little Lake Butte des Morts.

The new project timeline calls for the WIS 441/Oneida Street interchange to be completed in 2018, as well as the critical system interchange with I-41.

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December 19 The City of Green Bay Common Council approved an agreement for the proposed Shipyard development on the west side of the Fox River near the Mason Street Bridge.

Proposed improvements to the current blighted property include a 4,000-seat outdoor stadium and event center, which will be the new home to the Green Bay Bullfrogs baseball team; a new Anduzzi’s restaurant; and a 2,000-seat indoor concert venue to be developed by Festival Foods CEO Mark Skogen.

During 2016 the city approved a tax incremental finance district for the project area to support much of the upfront costs to construct the $9 million stadium. Ownership for the Bullfrogs will contribute another $1 million toward the project and will lease the stadium from the city for 20 years at an approximate cost of $4.5 million to pay back a portion of the TIF borrowing. Construction could begin this spring and be completed in time for the 2019 baseball season.

December 19 The City of Appleton Common Council approved a development agreement with U.S. Venture Inc. of Kimberly to construct a nearly $50 million new corporate headquarters on a portion of the Fox River bluff site in downtown Appleton.

The distributor of energy, automotive and lubricant products currently houses 335 employees in its corporate operations, well beyond the capacity of the relatively new headquarters facility built in Kimberly in 2010. The new facility will be

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built to accommodate up to 780 employees and include underground parking. Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. is providing as much as $20 million to U.S. Venture over the next seven years in the form of job creation tax credits and capital investment tax credits. Construction on the project could begin in 2018 and is expected to take three years.

December 20 Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. awarded up to $575,000 in state job creation tax credits to Cintas Corp. toward its new 54,000-sq. ft. laundry and maintenance facility under construction near State Highway 15 in the town of Greenville. Once complete this summer, the company expects to add 60 jobs at the new facility, bringing total employment up to 140.

December 21 Oshkosh Corp. received a $100 million order from the U.S. Army for 258 joint light tactical vehicles and associated installed and packaged kits. It’s the seventh order the company received from the federal Department of Defense under a contract awarded in August 2015. n

NNB2B | January 2018 | 9

Build Up Fond du Lac

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Build Up

Fond du Lac

Indicates a new listing

1 - 545 W. Pioneer Road, Fond du Lac Mercury Marine, an addition to an office building on the manufacturing campus.

2 - 45 S. National Ave., Fond du Lac Marian University, a two-story, 18,200-sq. ft. addition to the existing science bulding on campus. Project completion expected in late summer.

Listen better. Plan better. Build better.

Coldwell Banker The Real Estate Group, Appleton

920.733.7305 www.crstructures.com 571 Marcella St. Kimberly, WI 54135 10 | January 2018 | NNB2B

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Design-build Commercial Industrial www.newnorthb2b.com

Build Up Oshkosh

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Oshkosh

Indicates a new listing

3 - 1041 Emmers Lane, Oshkosh Choice Bank, a two-story, 30,000-sq. ft. financial institution building. Project completion expected in June.

Projects completed since our December issue: • BCI Burke, 660 Van Dyne Road, Fond du Lac. • A.P. Nonweiler, 3321 County Road A, Oshkosh.

4 - 5827 Green Valley Road, town of Vinland Team Winnebagoland, a new boat service and storage facility.

5 - 100 Osceola St., Oshkosh University of Wisconsin Oshkosh RecPlex, a 181,000-sq. ft. intramural sports complex. Project completion expected in spring.

6 - 495 W. Waukau Ave., Oshkosh Fox Valley Metrology, an addition to the existing industrial facility. Project completion expected in January.

Coming to B2B in February 2018 Mergers & Acquisitions

Unique Approaches to Marrying Local Businesses

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NNB2B | January 2018 | 11

Build Up Fox Cities

Build Up

Fox Cities

Indicates a new listing

1 - County CB & State Road 15, town of Greenville Cintas, a 54,000-sq. ft. industrial facility for laundry and maintenance. Project completion expected in July.

2 - N912 Craftsmen Dr., town of Greenville Fox Valley Spring Co., a 24,500-sq. ft. addition for expanded manufacturing and office space. Project completion expected in February. General contractor is Consolidated Construction Company of Appleton.

3 - 3000 W. Wisconsin Ave., town of Grand Chute Kolosso Toyota, a 68,732-sq. ft. automotive dealership and offices. Project completion expected in late 2018.

4 - 3801 N. Richmond St., town of Grand Chute Meijer, a 200,206-sq. ft. department and grocery superstore and a separate 3,366-sq. ft. convenience store. Project completion expected in January.

5 - 3912 N. Lightning Dr., Appleton GLK Foods, a new commercial office building. Project completion expected in January.

6 - 400 Randolph Dr., Little Chute Memories Antique Mall, a 10,800-sq. ft. addition to the existing retail building.

7 - 327 Randolph St., Little Chute Trigger Action Sports and CR Structures Group, a 36,946sq. ft. multi-tenant commercial building. Project completion expected in April. General contractor is CR Structures Group of Kimberly.

8 - 1402 Freedom Road, Little Chute Little Chute Area School District, a two-story addition to the existing middle and high schools for combined administrative offices. Project completion expected in summer.

9 - 311 Oak Grove Road, Kaukauna Poly Flex, a 36,000-sq. ft. addition to the existing industrial building for expanded warehousing space. Project completion expected in February. General contractor is CR Structures Group of Kimberly.

10 - N9690 County Road N, Harrison Darboy Corner Store, an addition to the existing convenience store. Project completion expected in February. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

12 | January 2018 | NNB2B

11 - 3921 E. Endeavor Dr., Appleton Security Luebke Roofing, a 20,000-sq. ft. commercial building and warehouse. Project completion expected in June. General contractor is Millennium Construction of Appleton.

12 - 2310 S. Kensington Dr., Appleton Aldi, a new retail grocery building. Project completion expected in spring.

13 - 410 S. Walnut St., Appleton Outagamie County, an 87,000-sq. ft. addition to the existing county administrative office building.

14 - 720 W. Fifth St., Appleton Harbor House, an addition to increase bed capacity at the existing community services facility.

15 - 660 Watermark Ct., Fox Crossing Precision Installations, an 18,902-sq. ft. manufacturing assembly facility and offices. Project completion expected in January. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

16 - County Road CB, Fox Crossing Secura Insurance, a 350,000-sq. ft. corporate headquarters office building. Project completion expected in early 2019.

17 - 1265 W. American Dr., Fox Crossing Wisconsin Institute of Urology, a 34,837-sq. ft. medical clinic.

Project completion expected in February.

18 - 1251 Jacobson Road, Fox Crossing Wisconsin Department of Corrections, a 13,040-sq. ft. commercial office building. Project completion expected in January.

19 - 590 Enterprise Dr., Neenah Horseshoe Beverage Co., a 20,000-sq. ft. addition to the existing manufacturing facility for a bottling plant. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

Projects completed since our December issue: • Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, 4531 W. Wisconsin Ave., town of Grand Chute.

• Gordon Bubolz Nature Preserve, 4815 N. Lynndale Dr., town of Grand Chute.

• Custom Offsets, 3989 E. Endeavor Dr., Appleton.

• Fox Cities Exhibition Center, 355 W. Lawrence St., Appleton.

• Michels Power, 1775 E. Shady Lane, Fox Crossing.

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Education Religious Government Assisted Living Meeting the needs of your business future

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NNB2B | January 2018 | 13

Build Up Greater Green Bay area 1 &2

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Build Up

Greater Green Bay area

Indicates a new listing

1 - 1803 Condor Lane, Howard Feldstein’s Jewelers, a 5,918-sq. ft. retail building. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay.

4 - 2231 N. Quincy St., Green Bay Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District, a wastewater treatment facility. Completion expected in spring.

2 - 1510 Brookfield Ave., Howard BCS International, a 92,400-sq. ft. warehouse and office building. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay.

5 - 2999 E. Mason St., Green Bay Uncle Mike’s Bake Shoppe, a new retail bakery and shop.

3 - 2740 W. Mason St., Green Bay Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, a two-story Great Lakes Energy Education Center. Project completion expected in late winter.

14 | January 2018 | NNB2B

6 - 2629 Eaton Road, Bellevue Dorsch Collision Center, an automotive collision repair facility.

Project completion expected in January.

7 - 1751 Allouez Ave., Bellevue Eagle III, addition to the existing ambulance dispatch facility.

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WE’RE GROWING! M O R E LO C AT I O N S TO S E R V E YO U CHETEK CLINTONVILLE IOLA

SEYMOUR

WAUPACA

8 - 1695 Bellevue St., Bellevue Cedar Corp., an 8,487-sq. ft. office building. Project completion expected in spring.

9 - 2800 Ashland Ave., Ashwaubenon Wisconsin Public Service, a 31,788-sq. ft. regional employee training center. Project completion expected in March.

WEYAUWEGA

BELLEVUE

ASHWAUBENON APPLETON

MISHICOT TWO RIVERS

OSHKOSH

VALDERS MANITOWOC KIEL PLYMOUTH

SHEBOYGAN

10 - 1040 Circle Dr., Ashwaubenon Circle Kennel Club, a 10,000-sq. ft. dog kennel.

11 - 1901 Airport Dr., Ashwaubenon Jet Air, a 42,504-sq. ft. aviation hangar.

12 - 1200 Flightway Dr., Hobart Synergy Sports Performance, an 18,000-sq. ft. indoor athletic training facility. Project completion expected in spring.

General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. 13 - 4400 block of County Road U, Wrightstown Tweet/Garot Mechanical, a 90,000-sq. ft. manufacturing facility. Project completion expected in late summer.

I T ’ S D I F F E R E N T AT F I R S T

BankFirstNational.com

MillenniuM ConstruCtion, inC.

14 - 1450 Poplar St., Wrightstown Print Pro, a 65,000-sq. ft. manufacturing and warehousing facility. Project completion expected in April. General contractor is CR Structures Group of Kimberly.

15 - 2125 American Blvd., De Pere Battlehouse/Ninja Warrior, a two-story, 17,152-sq. ft. indoor recreation facility.

16 - 1400 Richco Ct., De Pere Midland Plastics, a new manufacturing and warehouse facility with offices. Project completion expected in summer. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

Featured Project: Security Luebke Roofing Appleton, WI

17 - 1881 Commerce Dr., De Pere Kay Distributing Co., a 25,008-sq. ft. addition to the existing beverage distribution facility.

Projects completed since our December issue: • La Java Express, 1250 Velp Ave., Green Bay. • Starbucks, 2230 Main St., Green Bay. • Cerebral Palsy Inc., 2801 S. Webster Ave., Allouez.

• Wrightstown Community Center, 600 High St., Wrightstown.

• 8 Line Supply, 2210 American Blvd., De Pere.

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425 W Wisconsin Ave. • Appleton 920.882.8700 millenniumconstructionwi.com NNB2B | January 2018 | 15

Cover Story

Gearing Up: Manufacturing Talent Gap Northeast Wisconsin employers find creative approaches to attract and train the next generation of manufacturing workers Story by Rick Berg

It came as a shock to no one that northeast Wisconsin manufacturers responding to a recent survey said they face a critical shortage of skilled employees. They’ve been reporting that scenario for at least eight years now in the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance Manufacturing Vitality Index survey.

The biggest difference heading into 2018 is that nearly 9 out of 10 companies (88 percent) say they will have trouble finding talent in 2018 – up from 80 percent a year ago and up from just 29 percent in 2011, the first year of the survey. The percentage has climbed every year since then.

Some may have been surprised the percentage of companies having trouble finding talent was that low in 2011. Hobart-based EMT International CEO Paul Rauscher and 11 other manufacturing leaders saw that talent shortage coming over a decade ago, in 2006, when they founded the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance. At the time, Rauscher and his colleagues foresaw the looming talent gap that would be driven largely by the retirement of the aging workforce and by the shortage of young people who saw manufacturing as a viable employment option.

“We have to be able to tell our story and improve our image,” Rauscher said at the time.

The Manufacturing Alliance’s mission from the beginning has been to tell that story, largely through partnerships with technical colleges and school districts to re-educate students and parents to improve the image of manufacturing as a career.

16 | January 2018 | NNB2B

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Those efforts appear to be paying off on some levels. Jim Golembeski, executive director of the Bay Area Workforce Development Board, noted that area technical colleges now produce four times as many welding graduates as they did 10 years ago and three times as many machinists.

“We are doing a pretty good job of refilling the pipeline,” Golembeski said.

Still, the staffing challenges remain. One of the surprising results reported in the 2018 Vitality Index was that the “most difficult to fill” occupation for manufacturers was general labor. That’s a function of the shrinking labor pool overall, said Mark Kaiser, CEO of Ashwaubenon-based Lindquist Machine.

“We’re basically at full employment right now, so even filling the most basic jobs has become challenging,” Kaiser said.

“With the Baby Boomers retiring, we’re seeing a very large exodus from the workforce – unlike anything we’ve seen before. Combine that with the fact that the state of Wisconsin is not growing population-wise and you can see the extent of the challenge. I think you’re going to see more of the kinds of things we’ve been doing here – collaborating to do workforce development. We’re doing a better job of that now than we have in the past, but we need to continue to improve.”

Getting proactive about finding talent

Companies are finding proactive ways to fill the skills gap.

Lindquist Machine, for example, reaches into the high schools to find potential future employees. After high school graduation, they are hired by Lindquist to work part time while they pursue a manufacturing-related degree at a technical college or four-year college – paid for by Lindquist, with the expectation that they will work fulltime for Lindquist after college graduation.

It doesn’t have to be a foreign language.

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“We’ve made an investment in reaching back further in the education system to identify and develop talent for the future,” said Kaiser. “A lot of other companies are already doing things like that and I think you’re going to continue to see more of that in the future.”

Multiple northeast Wisconsin companies such as KI in Bellevue; LDI Industries of Manitowoc; Tweet/Garot, Belmark and Robison Metal of De Pere; and Kohler Co. are taking advantage of established youth apprenticeship programs – some of which are organized through area technical colleges or chambers of commerce.

One leading youth apprenticeship program is through Lakeshore Technical College, which offers apprenticeships for industrial manufacturing technicians, machinists and industrial electricians, among others. Lakeshore’s manufacturing partners include Ariens Company in Brillion, Curt G. Joa Inc. in Sheboygan Falls, LDI Industries and Manitowoc Tool & Machining.

Alison Chatman, youth apprenticeship manager at Lakeshore, said the college’s manufacturing partners are typically looking to be proactive in locating and developing their future workforce. In the Lakeshore program, students begin working part time at a participating company while they finish their high school education and take related courses at the technical college. www.newnorthb2b.com

Exceeding Your Staffing Expectations

Career-Options.com

920.832.4500 NNB2B | January 2018 | 17

Cover Story The program requires 450 or more hours of work at the participating company. After high school graduation, the students may be offered fulltime employment at the participating company or another employer. Chatman said roughly 86 percent of youth apprenticeship students end up employed in their occupational training area.

The cost of the educational component of the program is covered by a grant from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Most years, Lakeshore has 30 to 40 students enrolled in the program. The employers pay only the cost of the part-time wages for the students.

Mike Kawleski, public affairs manager at Green Bay-based Georgia-Pacific and chair of the Manufacturing Alliance’s communications task force, said that challenge is reflected in the survey’s finding that 74 percent of companies plan to modernize their plants during 2018, while only 26 percent plan to expand their facilities.

“The reality is that a lot of companies don’t have the workforce bandwidth to expand, so they are modernizing their facilities to increase efficiency and productivity and thus reduce their workforce needs, but also making their plants more attractive for the workers they are trying to attract.”

Tempered optimism

Kaiser said that continuing plant modernization has already served the manufacturing sector in northeast Wisconsin well in terms of companies’ ability to compete on a global stage characterized by advanced manufacturing.

By the Numbers

“Manufacturers here have invested in technology improvements and workforce development and so those investments have put us in a position to compete very favorably,” Kaiser said. “I think that’s part of what made Wisconsin so attractive to Foxconn. I think they were impressed by the entrenched manufacturing workforce we have here. Manufacturing is in our DNA, as someone said.

They were also impressed by the technology investments we’ve made, because that is so crucial to them in terms of looking at their supply chain. Foxconn is going to be a huge opportunity and have a wide impact on the supply base in Wisconsin.”

The rhetorical good news/bad news scenario facing manufacturers is that the manufacturing economy is doing well and companies are expecting it to do even better – constrained only by their ability to attract enough workers to fuel the continued growth and meet production capacity needs.

2018 Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Vitality Index

The survey was administered in October and November 2017 by the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh’s Business Success Center. The sample drew from 601 manufacturers in northeast Wisconsin with $3 million or more in annual revenue and 25 or more employees. A total of 147 companies completed either a telephone or online survey. Responses are at 95 percent confidence level.

The survey found evidence of optimism about growth in the next year: P 99 percent of respondents said they expect their company’s financial position to be healthy or quite healthy in the next six to 12 months.

P 59 percent of respondents reported increased sales in 2017.

P Over three-quarters of participating manufacturers expect increased revenues in 2018.

P 59 percent expect to add new customers in 2017.

P 2018 plant expansion plans are slightly lower than those projected for 2017, with 26 percent planning to expand, compared to 30 percent a year ago.

P However, plant modernization plans continue to increase, with 74 percent planning to modernize their facilities during 2018, compared to 68 percent last year and 46 percent in 2013.

P

The workforce challenge must be attacked on multiple levels, Kaiser said. Individual companies need to be creative in identifying and developing talent. Collaborative efforts like the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance – along with the technical colleges, workforce development boards and school districts – also need to continue developing programs to attract potential talent to the manufacturing sector and then train those workers in the skills they need to succeed.

Finally, he said, statewide efforts provide additional assistance to help meet the challenge. The state Department of Workforce Development’s Youth Apprenticeship Program grants offer communities some financial resources to develop new young talent. The state’s Wisconsin Fast Forward program fills another gap by retraining incumbent workers on the higher-level skills manufacturing now demands. And the state’s proposed $7 million marketing campaign to attract workers to the Badger State would help offset the existing population and demographic challenges faced by Wisconsin manufacturers.

Plant Modernization

57 percent of respondents anticipate hiring new personnel during the first quarter of 2018, with more than 40 percent of all manufacturers responding they plan to hire in each quarter throughout the year.

P Slightly more manufacturers anticipate hiring in 2018 than in years past, pointing to increased activity.

18 | January 2018 | NNB2B

www.newnorthb2b.com

“This would be the first time the State of Wisconsin has made a significant investment, committed real dollars, to market and brand the state as a place to work,” Kaiser said. “Look what Iowa and Michigan and Minnesota have done with similar programs.”

Kawleski said the tempered optimism identified in the region’s 2018 Manufacturing Index survey is easy to understand.

“Short-term, the challenge is going to be tough, because we probably should have begun filling the talent pipeline 20 years ago instead of 11 years ago when the alliance was started,” Kawleski said. “We recognized the problem back then and decided to do something about it. It would certainly be much worse if we hadn’t taken that step at that time. Also, it’s not just a training problem – it’s a demographic problem. We’re in a population trough and everyone is looking for workers.

“Long term, we have some great opportunities to grow because we’ve been talking about manufacturing as a high-tech, highskill and high-pay occupation, and we need to make sure we continue to tell that story,” Kawleski added. “That’s going to change the narrative for manufacturing.”

Similarly, it’s “all of the above” as far as Kaiser is concerned.

“The future is really bright and we’ve positioned ourselves well, but we have to continue to do all those things we’ve been talking about.” Kaiser said. “It’s going to be a huge challenge and that’s the only way we’re going to be able to deal with this crisis that’s coming. And it is coming.” n Rick Berg is a freelance writer and editor based in Green Bay.

By the Numbers

2018 Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Vitality Index

The optimism about growth is tempered by concerns about workforce skill shortages: P Nearly nine out of ten of companies will have trouble finding talent in 2018.

P The skills shortage has increased from the first year of the study during 2011 in which 29 percent of manufacturers could not find the talent they needed compared now with 88 percent in 2018.

P Companies are having difficulty finding general machinists and CNC machinists, which have been among the most difficult-to-fill position every year the study asked this question.

P Unlike previous years, however, general labor topped the list of occupations most difficult to fill.

P Many employers are finding the workforce deficient in “soft skills,” or those non-technical skills.

P Communication skills and attendance accounted for some of the deficiencies recognized by more than half of the responding manufacturers.

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NNB2B | January 2018 | 19

Health Care

Comparing health care costs The Wisconsin Hospital Association Information Center regularly collects and publishes data about charges and services provided by Wisconsin hospitals and outpatient surgery centers. Providing this cost and quality data was part of a state government and WHA initiative to make health care more transparent to Wisconsin patients.

Each year since 2002, New North B2B magazine has published average charges from each facility in our readership area for sample services and procedures common to employers.

To compare cost figures from other health care facilities or for other procedures, visit Wisconsin’s PricePoint System online at www.wipricepoint.org. ~ Research conducted by Kate Erbach for New North B2B Normal Newborn*........................ Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton.............. 1,009 $2,097 $1,927 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London..... 89 $2,386 $2,254 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........ 1,081 $2,327 $2,203 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton...... 1,111 $2,275 $2,180 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 513 $1,884 $1,960 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............. 739 $2,492 $2,350 Bellin Health, Green Bay.......................... 1,253 $2,748 $2,334 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 910 $3,213 $3,011 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay...................... 1,484 $3,641 $3,616 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay........ 473 $3,042 $2,914 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 575 $3,708 $3,659 State Average.................................................. $2,710 $2,583 * Birthweight of 2,500 grams or more

Knee Replacement...................... Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........... 170 $24,996 $25,150 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton......... 456 $28,192 $28,203 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 466 $30,237 $28,245 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London..... 36 $30,626 $30,075 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................. 375 $33,545 $30,962 Bellin Health, Green Bay.......................... 1,014 $32,241 $30,676 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay......................... 317 $38,809 $38,540 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 191 $43,957 $43,784 Ripon Medical Center................................... 39 $41,989 $44,342 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 193 $36,746 $36,178 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............. 185 $38,268 $39,182 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay........ 275 $35,391 $36,141 State Average.................................................. $34,583 $34,290

20 | January 2018 | NNB2B

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Angioplasty w/o heart attack..... Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........... N/A N/A N/A ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton........... 97 $75,089 $44,670 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh..................... 8 $51,494 $59,878 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 11 $55,563 $44,304 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay........................... 42 $71,647 $54,407 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................. 120 $84,614 $82,648 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................... 31 $58,925 $50,547 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 241 $94,335 $72,271 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............... 70 $53,499 $51,036 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.......... 69 $63,424 $63,322 State Average.................................................. $46,090 $58,120 Vaginal Delivery........................... Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton......... 820 $4,069 $3,892 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London..... 56 $4,692 $4,191 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........... 794 $4,356 $4,057 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................. 869 $3,846 $3,859 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 426 $3,638 $3,571 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 412 $6,154 $6,313 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................. 978 $8,090 $6,275 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay........ 396 $9,188 $8,356 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay...................... 1,021 $6,772 $6,638 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 781 $9,616 $9,030 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............. 542 $7,425 $7,164 Ripon Medical Center................................... 24 $6,712 $5,722 State Average.................................................. $6,213 $5,755 Cesarean Delivery....................... Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton......... 280 $10,098 $9,923 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 123 $8,451 $8,504 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................. 254 $8,711 $8,500 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........... 445 $11,143 $10,605 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 167 $12,159 $12,501 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London..... 30 $12,535 $11,863 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................. 355 $12,644 $14,368 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 253 $14,680 $14,066 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay......................... 463 $17,347 $16,465 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.......... 74 $15,370 $16,060 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............. 198 $17,250 $16,298 Ripon Medical Center..................................... 9 $15,536 $14,470 State Average.................................................. $12,993 $12,801 www.newnorthb2b.com

NNB2B | January 2018 | 21

Health Care Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary. Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah............. 54 $10,523 $8,520 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton........... 75 $10,899 $8,479 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London..... 20

$7,491 $6,273 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................... 55 $12,085 $11,375 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................... 91 $10,897 $12,410 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................... 46 $18,432 $18,756 Ripon Medical Center................................... 21 $9,852 $12,258 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 68 $18,491 $18,509 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.......... 70 $15,361 $15,248 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay........................... 89 $15,070 $15,793 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay......... 59 $17,209 $18,006 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............... 98 $22,004 $16,275 State Average.................................................. $14,026 $13,492 Major Bowel Procedure.............. Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton......... 132 $30,018 $29,694 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah............. 79 $30,905 $25,847 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................. 108 $31,991 $31,050 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London... N/A N/A N/A Ripon Medical Center................................... 15 $38,984 $36,394 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 58 $37,765 $34,450 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................... 44 $32,327 $33,581 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay......................... 131 $46,059 $46,675 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................. 175 $49,852 $55,020 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............... 59 $46,740 $46,686 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.......... 22 $63,583 $61,443 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay....... 164 $50,067 $45,948 State Average.................................................. $41,662 $40,617

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Mammography............................. Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........ 4,539 $298 $298 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London.1,458

$298 $298 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh.............. 5,353 $254 $246 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton.............. 8,405 $254 $246 Bellin Health, Green Bay........................ 16,632 $214 $216 Ripon Medical Center................................. 657 $275 $184 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh............. 6,868 $261 $209 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay........ 921 $250 $245 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay...................... 5,546 $278 $278 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac.......... 9,093 $191 $184 State Average.................................................. $257 $240 CAT Scan (abdomen).................. Discharges Median 2017 Median 2016 ThedaCare Medical Center, Appleton......... 761 $1,550 $1,550 ThedaCare Medical Center, Neenah........... 818 $1,550 $1,550 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................. 797 $2,072 $1,949 ThedaCare Medical Center, New London... 297 $1,550 $1,550 Ripon Medical Center................................. 119 $3,855 $3,707 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 633 $4,250 $4,250 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 658 $2,072 $1,949 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay...................... 1,377 $4,680 $5,220 Bellin Health, Green Bay.......................... 1,562 $1,823 $3,225 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac.......... 1,049 $3,855 $3,707 HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay........ 640 $3,800 $3,465 HSHS St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay.... 1,132 $3,800 $3,465 State Average.................................................. $2,905 $2,966

www.newnorthb2b.com

NNB2B | January 2018 | 23

Year in Review

TOP TEN of

2017

The headlines and developments from 2017 have set the stage for tremendous opportunity for northeast Wisconsin businesses in the year to come.

In line with our annual retrospective tradition, New North B2B presents our list of the Top Ten stories affecting the region’s business community during the past year.

By Sean Fitzgerald, New North B2B publisher

1

Workforce woes – Low unemployment

Finding workers to fill open positions at many employers across northeast Wisconsin during 2017 was as tough as it’s been in more than a generation.

The good news is that lots of new jobs were created – more than 2.1 million nationally during the past year, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, driving the country’s unemployment rate down from 4.7 to 4.1 percent.

In Wisconsin, more than 32,000 new jobs were created in the period from July 2016 to July 2017, driving the unemployment rate down from 3.7 percent to 2.8 percent in October. Local unemployment rates dropped below the 3.0 percent threshold as well by the end of the year, with Fond du Lac County registering the lowest rate of unemployment at 2.4 percent.

24 | January 2018 | NNB2B

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1. Workforce woes – Low unemployment 2. Milwaukee Bucks – Oshkosh Arena 3. Oshkosh Corp. headquarters retained 4. Brown County Arena rebuild 5. Brown County reinstitutes sales tax 6. Northland Hotel back on track?

7. Foxconn plants its flag 8. Appleton Coated receivership 9. UW Oshkosh Foundation bankruptcy 10. Titletown District opens

2

Wisconsin Herd – Oshkosh Arena

In one of the most prominent economic development victories from the region this past year, the Milwaukee Bucks announced in February it would locate its new NBA Development League team in Oshkosh beginning with the 2017-18 season. As part of the deal, Oshkosh-based Fox Valley Pro Basketball constructed a new $20 million, 3,500-seat arena in the city’s newly designated Sawdust District near Lake Winnebago.

Now called the Menominee Nation Arena, the facility is hosting the Wisconsin Herd franchise for the Bucks as well as various other concerts and regional sporting events. City leaders expect the facility to attract other commercial and mixed-use development to the neighborhood.

In February the city’s common council approved $7.25 million in tax incremental finance assistance for various environmental remediation and municipal infrastructure improvements on the 8-acre site of a former wood furniture manufacturer on South Main Street.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. also awarded the city a $250,000 grant to help finance some of the public infrastructure at the arena, which eventually opened in early December. www.newnorthb2b.com

3

Oshkosh Corp. headquarters retained

Oshkosh Corp., one of the region’s largest employers with an estimated more than 4,000 employees in the Fox Valley, sought legitimate proposals this past fall from other communities across Wisconsin and around the country to host a new headquarters facility it plans to construct.

In early November the City of Oshkosh Common Council made its pitch to retain the city’s namesake employer, offering to sell about 35 acres of its Lakeshore Municipal Golf Course near the Interstate 41 Bridge crossing Lake Butte des Morts to the An artist’s rendering of the proposed redevelopement of company for Lakeshore Golf Course for the Oshkosh Corp. headquarters. $3.5 million.

The city also extended an offer to provide roughly $7.2 million in municipal infrastructure improvements in and around the property, as well as an incentive of $6 million in tax incremental financing returns if Oshkosh Corp. constructs a headquarters facility valued at $18.5 million or more by the end of 2019.

The company’s board of directors apparently evaluated several options when it met in late November and eventually decided to remain in Oshkosh. It plans to break ground on the construction of its new headquarters facility sometime in spring 2018.

NNB2B | January 2018 | 25

Year in Review

4

Brown County Arena Rebuild

When Brown County and Village of Ashwaubenon officials received the results of a facilities study on the aging Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena and Shopko Hall in early March, they learned a more modern, larger exhibit hall could increase annual economic impact to the region by as much as $13 million each year. The study noted the 60-year-old arena and 30-year-old Shopko Hall have various deficiencies to host modern conventions that would likely not be improved by remodeling the facilities, and it offered various recommendations to demolish the arena and former Packers Hall of Fame building and build a 100,000- to 120,000-sq. ft. exhibition center in its place.

The recommendations of that study were fast-tracked over the next two months and developed into a proposal to construct a $93 million, 120,000-sq. ft. multipurpose exposition building in Ashwaubenon to replace the arena and Shopko Hall. The proposed plan received a $1 million

Notable retirements this past year: Appleton Area School District Superintendent Lee Allinger retired in June after 10 years at the helm of northeast Wisconsin’s second largest school district.

Ashwaubenon Village President Michael Aubinger passed away at the age of 63 after succumbing to cancer. Aubinger was elected to the village’s top post in 2009 and was credited with leading the charge on several economic development and community improvements, including the expansion of Green Bay Packaging, the Titletown District development and Ashwaubenon High School.

ThedaCare President and CEO Dr. Dean Gruner retired in June after leading northeast Wisconsin’s largest employer for the past nine years.

Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corp.

Executive Director Steve Jenkins left the organization in June to take a position with another economic development agency in New Mexico.

26 | January 2018 | NNB2B

pledge from the Green Bay/Brown County Professional Football Stadium District in late April, while later in the summer seven municipalities across the Greater Green Bay area agreed to use a portion of collected hotel room tax revenues to help pay for the construction debts on the proposed facility after paying off the existing debts associated with the Resch Center.

The project will also receive a nearly $15 million financial boost from the half-percent county sales tax approved by the Brown County Board of Supervisors in May. That same board eventually approved a massive capital expansion package in August, which included a green light on the proposed expo center, which is expected to begin construction in 2020.

5

Brown County reinstitutes sales tax

In May the Brown County Board of Supervisors overwhelmingly approved a measure to implement a half-percent county sales tax for as many as six years between 2018 through 2023 to fund various capital improvement projects in the county, as well as to help lower the annual property tax levy.

The new sales tax started Jan. 1 and is expected to generate as much as $147 million over the next six years. It would contribute proceeds toward various proposed projects, including $60 million for roads and infrastructure, $20 million to revamp four libraries, $15 million toward a new exposition center, and $20 million for a jail and mental health center expansion, among other smaller projects.

Brown County previously imposed a half-percent sales tax from 2001 to 2015 to help finance the $295 million renovation of Lambeau Field completed in 2003. It was repealed after the bonds were paid off and enough additional revenue was generated to finance maintenance responsibilities at Lambeau Field through the end of the Green Bay Packers current lease in 2031.

The resolution adopting the current sales tax includes a provision that if property tax rates increase at any point during the next six years, the county sales tax would cease at the end of that year.

www.newnorthb2b.com

6

Northland Hotel back on track?

The estimated $35 million renovation of the historic Hotel Northland in downtown Green Bay had more than its share of bumps in the road during 2017, halting progress on the project for more than 12 months while various issues of ownership, unpaid contractors and concerns over the city’s investment ultimately led to the property going into receivership.

In January, an agreement between Frantz Community Investors – the development group which hatched the project – and Milwaukee-based KPH Northland Hotel left many with the impression that the Frantz group was divesting itself from the project altogether, but a subsequent civil case indicated Frantz intended joint ownership with KPH. Meanwhile, financing for the project had diminished as First Merit Bank (now Huntington Bank) – the senior financier on the project – withdrew $12.8 million it committed toward the project.

7

Foxconn plants its flag

In what’s hailed as the largest private investment ever by a foreign company on U.S. soil, Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group – the world’s largest manufacturer of electronics – selected southeast Wisconsin in July as the destination for a $10 billion production campus it intends to develop in the U.S. by 2020. Wisconsin was in competition with several other states across the country attempting to lure the technology giant, which promised to create as many as 13,000 new jobs producing LCD (liquid crystal display) screens for computers, healthcare, self-driving cars, safety and surveillance, education and entertainment.

The effort to finalize details of the incentive package occupied much of the state legislature’s time in August and September, which resulted in a bill that provides up to $1.5 billion in payroll tax credits to Foxconn as it creates and maintains jobs in the state. The package also includes up to $1.35 billion in capital investment credits, as well as $150 million in sales tax exemptions on the materials used in the construction of the facility. Economic development leaders across the state are encouraged that Foxconn’s operations will utilize a vast supply chain of other Wisconsin businesses.

www.newnorthb2b.com

The City of Green Bay had already committed $4.7 million toward the project to redevelop the century-old building into a 160-room boutique hotel, and in March it approved a $500,000 bridge loan to KPH Northland to help strengthen its position as its sought additional financing in an effort to resume work. Following a lull in progress through most of the summer, the Green Bay Common Council approved a plan from Virginia-based Octagon Partners to send the project into court-appointed receivership if Octagon would provide $16.5 million to take a principal equity position on the project. The court approved a receivership plan in early October aimed at paying money owed to various contractors, vendors and other lien holders.

Construction resumed once again late in the year with hopes the project could be completed this coming summer.

8

Appleton Coated receivership

In August, Appleton Coated of Combined Locks filed for Chapter 128 bankruptcy protection while it sought a buyer to help it continue operating its coated paper mill and restructure what company officials called “burdensome debt.” They cited a decline in demand for graphics paper products as well as currency exchange rates that favor imports of coated paper stock as reasons for the company’s financial struggles.

Within a month after going into receivership, Appleton Coated had shut down five of its seven papermaking machines and laid off nearly 80 percent of its 620 employees. In early October a court approved the sale of Appleton Coated to Los Angeles-based Industrial Assets Corp. for $21.5 million with the intention of finding a buyer to continue operating the paper mill. Industrial Assets had indicated if it couldn’t identify a buyer to continue operating the mill by the end of December, it would likely liquidate the equipment and the 55-acre property along the Fox River to recoup its investment. No announcement had been made prior to B2B’s press deadline for this edition.

NNB2B | January 2018 | 27

February 18 – May 13, 2018 Flashback to the 80s. A time when blockbuster movies, cable networks, and video games reigned. The golden era where superheroes and supervillains ruled.

REPLAY draws inspiration from these popular science fiction, movies, comics, and games, bringing your favorite characters to life.

With more than 30 pieces on display, creatively using both traditional and unexpected media, REPLAY is delightful, whimsical, and incredibly striking. The exhibition is intended to be nostalgic as it harkens back to the stories, games and experiences of this iconic era.

From Teletubbies to Tie Fighters, from LEGO® bricks to Rubix Cubes, the artwork in the REPLAY exhibition features something for the entire family.

REPLAY is the ultimate throwback, combining mediums and artists the world over. This fun and lively exhibition will make you feel like a kid again!

Twenty Moves or Less by The Collective, plastic bricks. Alice by Greg Guillemin, acrylic on canvas. Untitled by The Collective, plastic bricks.

Photos courtesy of REPLAY.

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9

UW Oshkosh Foundation bankruptcy

The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Foundation filed for bankruptcy in August after several months of difficulties stemming from improper financing and credit backing for a handful of real estate developments it initiated between 2010 and 2014.

The matter became public in January when the Wisconsin Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit against former UW Oshkosh Chancellor Richard Wells and former Vice Chancellor of Administrative Services Thomas Sonnleitner claiming both misappropriated millions of dollars of university funds to finance five UW Oshkosh Foundation real estate projects: Best Western Waterfront Hotel in downtown Oshkosh, Oshkosh Sports Complex, UW Oshkosh Alumni Welcome and Conference Center, and two dry-fermentation biodigestors in Oshkosh and Rosendale. The suit was part of an ongoing investigation that began in April 2015 at the urging of the UW System Board of Regents and Current UW Oshkosh Chancellor Andy Leavitt.

10

The interior of the UW Oshkosh Alumni Welcome and Conference Center.

The University of Wisconsin System was considering a potential settlement with creditors to avoid filing bankruptcy, but withdrew involvement earlier in August after facing political pressure from state legislators. The foundation reported $15.9 million in total liabilities when it filed for bankruptcy, including $6.7 million owed on the biodigestor in Rosendale and $5.7 million in debt associated with the alumni welcome center.

Titletown District opens

The Green Bay Packers opened the first phase of its $65 million Titletown District in September, unveiling the results of more than two years of construction on the 35-acre entertainment and hospitality development immediately adjacent to Lambeau Field. The year-round tourism attraction features a 10-acre public plaza with a full-sized football field, winter ice skating rink, three-story tubing hill and playground among other amenities. The development is flanked by a new six-story Lodge Kohler hotel, restaurant and spa, as well a 20,000-sq. ft. Hinterland Restaurant & Brewery and a 30,000-sq. ft. Bellin Health Sports Medicine Clinic.

Above, the ice skating rink at the new Titletown District development adjacent to Lambeau Field.

Below, the interior of the new Hinterland Brewery & Restaurant located on the grounds of the Titletown District.

In July the Village of Ashwaubenon Board of Trustees approved a tax incremental finance district for the development which could reimburse the Packers up to $12.5 million during the next 15 years to help cover various infrastructure costs such as water mains, sanitary sewer, roads and sidewalks. The Packers are considering a residential development for the second phase of the district. Once complete, the total Titletown District development could add as much as $95 million in taxable property value.

www.newnorthb2b.com

NNB2B | January 2018 | 29

Year in Review

2017 Honorable Mention (in no particular order)

Kimberly starts to redevelop old mill site

UW System reshuffled

Appleton-based Integrity Construction began construction of 49 residential townhomes on the site of the former NewPage paper mill along the Fox River in Kimberly, marking the first development on the 90-acre site since the mill closed in 2008. The Village of Kimberly Board of Trustees approved as much as $840,000 in tax incremental finance assistance if the developer creates at least $10.5 million in improvements at Papermaker Estates.

In November the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents approved a plan to merge administration of the state’s two-year UW Colleges with four-year UW institutions beginning in July 2018. In northeast Wisconsin, the plan calls for UW Fond du Lac and UW Fox Valley in Menasha to operate under the umbrella of UW Oshkosh, while UW Green Bay will provide oversight of UW Marinette, UW Manitowoc and UW Sheboygan.

Various business closures

Successful school referenda

In April, VF Corp., the parent company of JanSport in Greenville, sold its licensed sportswear business to Floridabased Fanatics, Inc., which shut down the Fox Cities screen printing facility, laying off 380 employees. Pioneer Metal Finishing closed its Oshkosh plant in November, laying off 52 employees, while PolyOne in Ripon announced plans to close its extruded plastic sheet and packaging facility in early 2018, and began laying off its 70 employees beginning in December.

On April 4, voters in the Green Bay Area Public School District approved a $68.25 million borrowing referendum to improve facilities at six elementary schools across the district, including construction of a new Baird Elementary School for $25.8 million. Green Bay voters also authorized the district to exceed state spending caps by $16.5 million a year for the next 10 years for various operational expenses. Separately, voters in the Little Chute School District approved a request to borrow $17.8 million to renovate and expand classroom space at the high school/middle school campus, as well as a new addition for school and district offices.

Appleton-based U.S. Paper Converters Inc. closed its paper and film converting facility at the end of the year, displacing 52 employees, and Ryder Integrated Logistics closed its Greenville offices and warehouse, laying off 159 employees.

Lastly, Canadian cheesemaker Saputo announced it will close its Fond du Lac manufacturing facility this spring and move operations to western Wisconsin, laying off 126 employees.

West Shore fuel pipeline closed indefinitely In April, Illinois-based West Shore Pipe Line Co. informed state officials it will not replace its deteriorating petroleum pipeline to Green Bay which has been shut down since March 2016, leading to higher gasoline prices in northeast Wisconsin.

The 110-mile pipeline which connects a terminal in Milwaukee to the Port of Green Bay was originally built in 1961, but needs repairs at several points which will require millions of dollars in expenses.

Appvion Chapter 11 and layoffs In early October, Appleton-based specialty papermaker Appvion, Inc. went into Chapter 11 federal bankruptcy protection in an effort to restructure its debts and develop a sustainable capital structure. In September the company announced a layoff of 61 employees from its warehouse and distribution center, and in November it announced plans to consolidate its carbonless paper coating and rewinding operations into a facility it owns in Pennsylvania in 2018, effectively trimming its Fox Valley workforce by 200 hourly and salaried jobs in Appleton.

30 | January 2018 | NNB2B

Schneider National trades public Schneider National Inc. of Ashwaubenon held its initial public stock offering in April, raising $550 million by selling nearly 29 million shares at $19 apiece. The trucking and logistics company trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SNDR.

St. Norbert College record gift St. Norbert College in De Pere received a $30 million gift toward its endowment in October from the Donald J. and Patricia A. Schneider Family, marking the single largest financial gift ever received by the school. The gift is one of many the school has received from the family of the former president and CEO of Schneider National in Ashwaubenon, who was a St. Norbert College alumnus, former trustee and adjunct instructor.

TitletownTech announced In October, the Green Bay Packers and Microsoft Corp. unveiled plans for TitletownTech, which will include a start-up business accelerator, a venture capital fund and a boot camp for established companies to develop new digital technology products and services. The Packers and Microsoft committed $5 million each toward TitletownTech over the next five years, including constructing a facility in the Titletown District adjacent to Lambeau Field during 2018. n www.newnorthb2b.com

Professionally Speaking

Professionally Speaking is a paid promotional spot in B2B.

Spring Cleaning for Your Business

by John W. Schuster of Caliber Law, s.c.

I frequently get asked by my clients if their business and legal documents are upto-date. Below is a quick list of the most important items that every business owner should go through each spring to make sure the prior year was closed out successfully, and ensure they have a legallycompliant start to the new year: Consent Resolutions – State law requires that all major decisions made by your corporation over the course of the year get properly documented.

Many times these can be approved through special resolutions, but you will want to make sure that all major decisions have been properly documented, that your corporation

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920.292.0000 has held an annual meeting, and that you have the proper resolutions approving all major corporate decisions, transactions, and meetings for the past and current years.

Your Buy-Sell Agreement – Spring is the perfect time to make sure all requirements of your buy-sell agreements have been met, especially if you have a buy-sell which provides for a yearly agreement upon the value of the business. There is nothing worse than forgetting to do this each year, and then finding out five years down the line that the purchase price to buy you out is more than five years old.

Contracts – Have you had someone review your standard contract and purchase agreements lately? Do you

have adequate enforcement and default terms in your agreements?

Having the right default terms can really affect your ability to collect – or not collect – if a customer decides not to pay you.

Spring is a perfect time to do a little spring cleaning and make sure your legal documents, processes, and decisions are up-to-date before you officially launch into the new year.

Atty. John W. Schuster, J.D., MBA is the owner and an attorney at Caliber Law, S.C., a law firm located in Oshkosh which specializes in business law and real estate. Schuster helps business owners start, protect, buy, sell and grow their businesses.

NNB2B | January 2018 | 31

Who’s News

You have Questions...

We have Answers!

Developing OshkoshRemarkable Growth

Several key private Oshkosh developers will participate in a panel discussion about their visions and plans for some of the most asked-about properties in the Oshkosh area.

Thursday, February 15, 2018 Registration 7:30am / Program 7:45-9:00am

LaSure’s Banquet Hall 3225 S. Washburn St. • Oshkosh Complimentary Continental Breakfast Limited Seating RSVP to Rachel Hansen rachelh@belvillechiro.com or 920-232-2294 Are there other plans for development on Oshkosh Avenue?

When is Oshkosh Corp. going to start building the new HQ? Is the senior housing market adequate for the next decade?

32 | January 2018 | NNB2B

Incorporations

New North B2B publishes monthly new business incorporations filed with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions.

Brown County

LINDGREN FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE LLC, Kristen Ann Lindgren, M.D., 3663 Kendlewood Ct., De Pere 54115.

BADGERLAND LUMBER LLC, Christopher Cichocki, 2137 Potter Dr., De Pere 54115.

HILLCREST HOMES AND PROPERTIES LLC, Mark Macco, 2986 County Road PP, De Pere 54115.

RYAN’S LAWN SERVICE LLC, Ryan Zelhofer, 3981 N. Parker Way, De Pere 54115.

HARDIN AUTO SALES LLC, Daron Hardin, 1926 Dallas Lane, De Pere 54115.

AR HORSE SALES LLC, Aubry Lee Riggins, 1775 Ridgeway Dr., De Pere 54115.

PALMER MEDICAL CONSULTING LLC, Lisa C. Palmer, 825 Spooner Ct., De Pere 54115.

ALLEN’S AFFORDABLE REMODELING LLC, Shaun Allen, 1422 O’Keefe Road, De Pere 54115.

TITLETOWN REALTORS LLC, Raymond Scott Dollinger, 1674 Eisenhower Dr., De Pere 54115.

VIVID HAIR LLC, Bailee Hunter, 1984 Terry Lane, De Pere 54115.

4 SEASONS SERVICES LAWN CARE AND SNOW REMOVAL LLC, Brandon David DeMeuse, 2831 Gemini Road, Green Bay 54311.

SUNNY’S RESTAURANT INC., Xiu Qing Wu, 2754 Chaska Ct., Green Bay 54313.

MG AUTO BODY LLC, Jose Jesus Morales Gonzalez, 2673 Humboldt Road, Green Bay 54311.

DARK NINJA SECURITY LLC, Gary McCully, 1485 Crystal Lake Cir., Apt. 5, Green Bay 54311.

OLD 29 CAFE LLC, Daniel J. Bacon, 1238 Porlier St., Green Bay 54301.

J & J PAINTING LLC, Joel Wilke, 1251 Blue Ridge Dr., Green Bay 54304.

DAIRYLAND SPECIALTY CHEESES LLC, Saribek Yayloyan, 3166 Meadow Cir., Green Bay 54311.

7 SEVEN CUSTOMS AND AUTO LLC, Kelly Jo Van Dreel, 1014 Gallagher St., Green Bay 54303.

MEISTERS INK LLC, Justin Edward Meister, 2221 S. Webster Ave., Green Bay 54301.

ALL SAINTS CHURCH INC., Rev. Chad Baudhuin, 352 Orchard Lane, Green Bay 54301.

MY ROLLS STATION INC., Jingfei Zheng, 651 Bay Park Square, Green Bay 54304.

MORALES PAINTING SERVICES LLC, Aaron Alberto Morales, 572 Alrose St., Green Bay 54302.

LONG SCOOTER CO. LLC, Rodney Daniels, 2762 Westpoint Road, Green Bay 54304.

WOODMEN COLLEGE FUNDING SOLUTIONS LLC, Heather L. Lindsley, 1234 S. Ridge Road, Green Bay 54304.

FUSION ELECTRIC LLC, Eduardo Gutierrez, 126 Gray St., Green Bay 54303.

DE LA ROSA JANITORIAL SERVICES LLC, Jose De

La Rosa, 1211 Colonial Ave., Green Bay 54302.

AU NATURALE COSMETICS LLC, Maxwell Prange, 1263 Main St., #228, Green Bay 54302.

DEAN’S BUDGET AUTO LLC, Dean Beyer, 1617 Main St., Green Bay 54302.

HAIR DESIGNS BY KIM LLC, Kim Beyer, 1616 Main St., Green Bay 54302.

GB LIGHTING SOLUTIONS LLC, Jody A. Fuller, 1310 Hiawatha Cir., Green Bay 54313.

DON PIERCE AGENCY LLC, Don Pierce, 3257 Main St., Green Bay 54311.

EXPRESS AVIATION CHARTER MANAGEMENT LLC, Ken Fox, 1921 Airport Dr., Green Bay 54313.

QUALITY HOME RESTORATION LLC, Stanley S. Jacquet, Jr., 160 S. Fisk St., Apt. 18, Green Bay 54303.

JP CLEANING & HANDYMAN SERVICES LLC, Jose A. Palacios-Contreras, 1120 Elizabeth St., Lot 3, Green Bay 54302.

SURFACES PAINTING COMPANY LLC, Michelle Pigeon, 1260 Cass St., Green Bay 54301.

SWILLEY’S SMOKIN BBQ LLC, Michael T. Podnar, 3180 Claymore Lane, New Franken 54229.

PEM HANDY HOME SOLUTIONS LLC, Peter McCabe, 2031 Fescue Way, Suamico 54313.

DR. DAVE THE BARBER LLC, David Wickert, 1084 Velsen Road, Green Bay 54313.

Calumet County

NORTHERN GLOBAL DESIGN & PACKAGING LLC, Angela M. Clinefelter, W5004 Golf Course Road, Unit 609, Sherwood 54169.

Fond du Lac County

LEUSINK CONSTRUCTION LLC, Kyle Leusink, 307A E. Main St., Brandon 53919.

COPPER TOP SELF STORAGE LLC, Tyler L. Page, N4548 Mink Road, Eden 53019.

QUICK & SMART PHOTOGRAPHY LLC, Francis Joseph Quick, N7609 County Road WH, Fond du Lac 54937.

MADISON’S TREE CARE SERVICE LLC, Lamar Madison, 593 Ledgeview Blvd., Fond du Lac 54935.

TROY SCHMIDT TRUCKING LLC, Lisa Mueller, W4920 Emery Lane, Fond du Lac 54937.

VICARRI HOMES LLC, Christopher Cary, 54 E. Rees St., Fond du Lac 54935.

FOND DU LAC STONE INC., Dennis F. Buechel, 390 W. Rolling Meadows Dr., Fond du Lac 54937.

SHEAR MANIA LLC, Laura Anthonasin, 500 Ruggles St., Fond du Lac 54935.

ACCEL WEB SOLUTIONS LLC, Zachary M. Meyers, W3281 Silica Road, Malone 53049.

ASPEN CONSTRUCTION LLC, Randy Michael Schmitz, N9271 County Road W, Malone 53049.

THE BAKERS BAR LLC, Heidi Zaehringer, 110 Stoney Ridge Road, Ripon 54971.

CRETE WORXS AND PLOWING LLC, Ross David Baumhardt, N5109 Merrill Road, Rosendale 54974.

PINPOINT BUSINESS SERVICES LLC, Roderick J. Strobel, W6656 E. Lone Elm Road, Van Dyne 54979.

STILLWATER HOME IMPROVEMENTS LLC, Scott Orlebeke, 221 S. Madison St., Waupun 53963.

HP NAILS LLC, Heidi Potratz, 430 E. Spring St., Waupun 53963. www.newnorthb2b.com

Outagamie County

PRIMUS SECURITY SERVICES INC., Alexander Bebris, 4764 Integrity Way, Ste. 201, Appleton 54913.

MPH FITNESS LLC, Michael P. Hertziger II, 1200 Mayflower Dr., Appleton 54913.

THAI MASSAGE OF LAN INC., Rong Lan Luo, 2575 S. Memorial Dr., #105, Appleton 54915.

TINKER DESIGN STUDIOS LLC, Travis Wayne Tooley, 2300 Pheasant Run Ct., Appleton 54914.

QUEEN CITY PIZZA LLC, Brent Weed, 5014 N. Meade St., Appleton 54915.

ZIEMANN COUNSELING AND WELLNESS LLC, Kelly Anna Ziemann, 800 S. Lawe St., Appleton 54911.

AKA CONSTRUCTION LLC, Jennifer Nabbefeld, 2529 S. Kerry Lane, Appleton 54915.

T & H VENDING LLC, Terry McCarville, 3310 E. Paris Way, Apt. 4, Appleton 54913.

LUXURY DETAILING SHOP LLC, Orlando Cancel Muniz, 6341/2 W. Wisconsin Ave., Appleton 54911.

STREAMLINE FRAMING LLC, Sonny Dennis Hudson, 938 W. Frances St., Appleton 54914.

ALTA EMERGENCY RESPONSE VEHICLES LLC, Jon Krueger, 821 E. 1st Ave., Ste. 1, Appleton 54911.

GENTLE PAWS PET GROOMING LLC, Erin Schmitz, 1820 S. Jefferson St., Appleton 54915.

BARLIN GALLERY LLC, Victoria Nowak, 1403 N. Ullman St., Appleton 54911.

RELIABLE TOWING LLC, Robert Wade Carmichael, 4321 W. College Ave., Appleton 54914.

LARACUENTE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LLC, Yesenia Laracuente, 2820 W. Hiawatha Dr., Appleton 54914.

ASIAN THAI OF APPLETON INC., Xuechun Liu, 201 W. Northland Ave., Appleton 54911.

ASHLEY J ROTH IMMIGRATION LAW LLC, Ashley Jolene Roth, 1835 E. Edgewood Dr., Appleton 54913.

CITY’S ADULT RESIDENTIAL CARE LLC, Dan Richard Scholz, W6050 Greystone Ct., Appleton 54915.

FREEDOM BASEBALL CLUB INC., Adam J. Fox, W2086 Finnigans Ridge Lane, Freedom 54130.

SWEET CREATIONS BY STACY LLC, Stacy Marie Beduhn, W6572 Talon Dr., Greenville 54942.

NEW HYDRAULICS INC., Paul E. Konopa, N1681 Ridgeway Dr., Greenville 54942.

COMPTON ELECTRICAL SERVICES LLC, Robert A. Compton, N3185 Market Road, Hortonville 54944.

FIRE PROTECTION SPECIALIST LLC, Jonathan Gorges, 825 W. Main St., Hortonville 54944.

COUNSELING AND CONSULTING PROFESSIONALS LLC, Neeley Kae WelchLamers, W229 County Road ZZ, Kaukauna 54130.

C C UPHOLSTERY LLC, Cesar Augusto Ballesteros, 558 Eisenhower Dr., Kimberly 54136.

JOHN KRAMER HEATING & COOLING LLC, John P. Kramer, 300 W. Florida Ave., Little Chute 54140.

DRIESSEN HOME REPAIR LLC, Mark Thomas Driessen, 521 E. Main St., Little Chute 54140.

QUERETARO ROOFING LLC, Joel Olvera Sanchez, 912 Washington St., Little Chute 54140.

MURCIA ROOFING LLC, Jorge Alberto Cruz Murcia, 912 Washington St., Little Chute 54140.

ROJAS ROOFING LLC, Francisco Rojas, 912 Washington St., Little Chute 54140.

GREAT LAKES FOOD SAFETY LLC, Brian David Joosten, 406 Kadinger Way, Little Chute 54140.

Winnebago County

FOX VALLEY HANDYMAN SERVICES LLC, Tim Honigschmidt, 948 Kernan Ave., Menasha 54952.

JC DELIVERY LLC, Joan M. Tavarez, 617 Racine St., Menasha 54952.

A TO Z AUTO SALES LLC, Linda Contreras, 714 Appleton Road, Menasha 54952.

WILZ MASONRY LLC, Nathan R. Wilz, 356 8th St., Menasha 54952.

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Business Intelligence for the New North

2018 Media Kit & Advertising Rates now available

Contact sean@newnorthb2b.com or go online to www.newnorthb2b.com More than 15 years serving the New North NNB2B | January 2018 | 33

Who’s News BAO’S NOODLES BAR LLC, Cheng Leng Thao, 14 Tayco St., Menasha 54952.

VALLEY STAMP AND SCRAP LLC, Linda D. Wiese, 1430 Fieldstone Ct., Neenah 54956.

JOHNSON & WEINAUG TAX & ACCOUNTING INC., Vicki A. Weinaug, 1424 S. Commercial St., Neenah 54956.

C&C MARINE SERVICE LLC, Charles J. Zolkoske, 1585 Deerwood Dr., Neenah 54956.

FOX VALLEY DUSTLESS BLASTING LLC, Robert Kenneth Johnson, 885 Higgins Ave., Neenah 54956.

EZ STORAGE WAREHOUSE LLC, Catherine Korth, 2360 American Dr., Neenah 54956.

LAMARCHE FARRIER SERVICES LLC, Joshua Kevin LaMarche, 7161 County Road D, Omro 54963.

HUDSON WOODWORKING LLC, Timothy Robert Hudson, 5294 Notre Dame Dr., Omro 54963.

J.E. BORST EQUIPMENT SERVICES INC., James E. Borst, 1639 Burdick St., Oshkosh 54901.

OUTDOOR SOLUTIONS PRESSURE WASHING LLC, Jordan Klemmer, 40 Farmstead Lane, Oshkosh 54901.

CULTURAL FINE ARTS AND JAZZ SOCIETY OF OSHKOSH CORP., Agnes Footman, P.O. Box 1674, Oshkosh 54903.

SILVER SALON LLC, Pa X. Yang, 130 Farmstead Lane, Oshkosh 54901.

PROEX HOME INSPECTIONS LLC, John K. Kleinschmit, Jr., 656 W. 17th Ave., Oshkosh 54902.

WISCONSIN RISK MANAGEMENT LLC, David Maas, 3970 Summerview Dr., Oshkosh 54901.

DOCKRY INSURANCE AGENCY INC., Shawn Michael Dockry, 1040 S. Koeller St., Oshkosh 54902.

DAPPER DOG GROOMING SALOON LLC, Hailey Binder, 542 Memorial Dr., Winneconne 54986.

34 | January 2018 | NNB2B

Building permits

B2B includes a monthly list of building permits (not to include residential projects) in excess of $400,000.

BCS INTERNATIONAL, 1510 Brookfield Ave., Howard. $3,500,000 for a 92,400-sq. ft. warehouse building with offices. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. November 8.

CIRCLE KENNEL CLUB, 1040 Circle Dr., Ashwaubenon. $765,000 for a 10,000-sq. ft. dog kennel. General contractor is Heyrman Construction of Ashwaubenon. November.

ST. ELIZABETH HOSPITAL, 1506 S. Oneida St., Appleton. $2,468,835 for an interior remodel of the existing hospital facility. General contractor is Boldt Construction of Appleton. November 14.

JET AIR, 1901 Airport Dr., Ashwaubenon. $2,500,000 for a 42,504-sq. ft. airplane hangar. General contractor is Rodac Development & Construction of Ashwaubenon.

November.

KOLOSSO TOYOTA, 3000 W. Wisconsin Ave., town of Grand Chute. $8,167,100 for a 68,732-sq. ft. automotive dealership and offices. General contractor is Utschig Inc. of Greenville. November 22.

KAY DISTRIBUTING CO., 1881 Commerce Dr., De Pere. $800,000 for a 25,008-sq. ft. addition to the existing beverage distribution facility. General contractor is Heyrman Construction of Ashwaubenon. November 29.

BCI BURKE CO., 660 Van Dyne Road, Fond du Lac. $400,000 for a new storage building. General contractor is Pinno Buildings of Rosendale. November 30.

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Jansen

Thillman

Korchagin

Frisch

Kirwan

New businesses

New hires

SKIN HAPPY opened as a new skin care salon inside Studio 40 at 40 E. Fourth St. in Fond du Lac. The salon was founded by Carrie Drexler, an esthetician with more than 15 years experience. The salon offers Skin Authority products and provides services such as facials, body waxing and eyelash extensions. The salon can be reached by calling 920.924.4002 or emailing skinhappy.cd@gmail.com.

BANK FIRST in Appleton hired Jody Jansen as vice president of business banking.

Jansen has more than 25 years of business banking experience, previously serving as senior vice president of commercial banking with a community bank.

FOX CITIES REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP in Appleton hired Peter Thillman as vice president of economic development. Thillman has 25 years of economic development experience, previously serving as vice president of workforce and economic development at Lakeshore Technical College in Sheboygan County.

Business honors

WERNER ELECTRIC SUPPLY in Appleton hired Anthony Korchagin as its datacom product manager. Korchagin has 15 years of industry experience, most recently working for an electrical contractor as a project manager and estimator.

BRANDDIRECTIONS of Neenah won Brand Experience Magazine’s 2017 Makeover Challenge package design competition for the new packaging it created for Indianabased Starlight Distillery.

H.J. MARTIN AND SON in Green Bay hired Jason Frisch as an estimator. Frisch has 15 years experience in construction, most recently working as a project manager for Joseph A. Interiors in De Pere.

Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce recently presented its annual awards to the following businesses: Small Business of the Year to CANDEO CREATIVE of Oshkosh; Chamber Outstanding Volunteer of the Year to STELLAR BLUE TECHNOLOGIES of Neenah; Enterprise of the Year to HOFFMASTER GROUP of Oshkosh; and Partners at Learning Award to OSHKOSH ROTARY SOUTHWEST and ROOSEVELT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.

RIVERHEATH in Appleton hired Bekka Smith as its marketing director to oversee sales and marketing strategies for RiverHeath Apartments and Menlo Park Co-Working Space. Smith previously worked at Kimberly-Clark Corp as a community manager for many of its diaper brands.

Wisconsin Sustainable Business Council recognized 33 companies statewide as 2017 Green Master, including the following from northeast Wisconsin: APPLETON COATED in Combined Locks; ESSITY, formerly SCA Tissue in Neenah; GREEN BAY PACKAGING in Ashwaubenon; KI in Bellevue; MENASHA CORP. of Neenah; MERCURY MARINE in Fond du Lac; and OSHKOSH CORP.

ORTHOPEDIC & SPORTS MEDICINE SPECIALISTS of Green Bay added Gregory Kirwan, D.O. as an orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon. Dr. Kirwan specializes in treating acute injuries and chronic conditions affecting the feet and ankles.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. presented nine Marketplace Governor’s Awards for 2017, including one to AMERICAN PRIDE INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT & SERVICES of Bellevue in the disabled veteran-owned business category.

GORDON BUBOLZ NATURE PRESERVE in Appleton hired Amber Crisp as its event manager. Crisp has eight years of event planning experience, most recently managing facility rentals for Green Bay Botanical Garden. She also worked in catering manager roles at Riverview Country Club and Radisson Paper Valley Hotel, both in Appleton.

New North Inc. recently presented its 2017 New North Workplace Excellence Awards to AMERICAN TRANSMISSION COMPANY of Waukesha, EXPERA SPECIALTY SOLUTIONS of Kaukauna and WERNER ELECTRIC SUPPLY of Appleton.

ENDOWMENT WEALTH MANAGEMENT in Appleton hired John Weninger as a wealth advisor. Weninger previously worked at Merrill Lynch as an advisor assistant, and had also founded his own advisory firm, Vision Wealth Partners.

O’NEIL & ASSOCIATES in Oshkosh received a Patriot Award from the U.S. Department of Defense for the company’s support of employees serving in the Wisconsin Guard and Reserve.

Oshkosh-based CANDEO CREATIVE hired Melissa Wurzer as a project manager, Kallias Szweda as a web developer, and Sergio Davila as a data analyst. Wurzer has six years of marketing experience, previously working as a marketing specialist

Crisp

www.newnorthb2b.com

Weninger

Plutz

Wiedeman

Pomeroy

NNB2B | January 2018 | 35

Who’s News at Transamerica in Denver and Gannett in Appleton. Szweda has five years of web development and marketing experience, while Davila has two years experience in data analysis.

Services for Business & Industry

Customized. Innovative. Solutions.

CONSOLIDATED CONSTRUCTION CO. in Appleton hired Paul Plutz as a senior project accountant and Ron Wiedeman as a project manager. Plutz has more than 30 years experience in accounting and finance, while Wiedeman has more than 15 years of project management experience.

Promotions WERNER ELECTRIC SUPPLY in Appleton promoted Tom Fechter to director of sales. Fechter has been with Werner Electric for 24 years, most recently as a territory sales manager.

THELMA SADOFF CENTER FOR THE ARTS in Fond du Lac promoted Amber Waas to manage rental sales. Waas has been with Thelma Center since 2016, most recently serving as manager of event services.

Individual awards To stay competitive, you need to find, select and train new and existing employees.

Let Fox Valley Technical College help you: • Find new employees • Evaluate with employee assessments • Enhance employee skills with seminars and customized training

Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce recently presented its annual awards to the following individuals: Alberta S. Kimball Community Service Award to LEON THOMPSON, community volunteer; Ambassador of the Year to JODI JENSEMA, sales and service manager for Oshkosh Convention & Visitors Bureau; Horizon Award to STAN F. MACK II, superintendent of Oshkosh Area School District; Lynne Webster Leadership Award to BETH WYMAN, community volunteer; Propel Young Professional Award to RACHEL HANSEN, practice operations supervisor for Belville & Associates Chiropractic Clinic in Oshkosh; and Stephen Mosling Commitment to Education Award to JODIE LARSEN, vice president of community engagement at Oshkosh Corp.

JACK J. PELTON, CEO and chairman for Experimental Aircraft Association in Oshkosh, received one of six Wesley McDonald Distinguished Statesman of Aviation Awards from the National Aeronautic Association, and he also recently received the Friend of Safety Award from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.

ROB POMEROY, a flooring installer with H.J. Martin and Son in Green Bay, received an Installation Award from Flooring Covering Installer magazine in the commercialcarpet category for his work on the 2016 remodel of Camera Corner Connecting Point in Green Bay.

Elections/appointments DEB JOHNSON, general manager of Copperleaf Boutique Hotel & Spa in downtown Appleton, was elected to the 2018 board of directors for the Wisconsin Hotel & Lodging Association.

Business calendar

New North B2B encourages businesses and organizations looking to attract interested persons to upcoming events to email sean@newnorthb2b.com.

Contact our industry experts today! www.fvtc.edu/EmployerResources • 920-735-2525

36 | January 2018 | NNB2B

JANUARY 2 Greater Green Bay Chamber Power Networking Breakfast, 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the chamber office, 300 N. Broadway, Ste. 3A in Green Bay. No cost to attend for chamber members and $35 for nonmembers. For more information, go online to www. greatergbc.org or email fyi@greatergbc.org.

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Business Calendar JANUARY 9 A.M. Oshkosh, a morning networking event from the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, 7:45 to 9 a.m. at the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, 120 Jackson St. in Oshkosh. No cost to attend for chamber members and $35 for nonmembers. For more information or to register, call 920.303.2266 or go online to www.oshkoshchamber.com.

JANUARY 9 Heart of the Valley Chamber of Commerce Business Before Hours, 8 to 9 a.m. at the chamber office, 101 E. Wisconsin Ave. in Kaukauna. No cost to attend. For more information or to register, go online to business.heartofthevalleychamber.com.

JANUARY 10 Greater Green Bay Chamber Business After Hours, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Green Bay Family Dental, 2069 Development Dr. in Green Bay. No cost to attend for chamber members and $35 for nonmembers. For more information, go online to www. greatergbc.org or email fyi@greatergbc.org.

JANUARY 11 Women in Management – Oshkosh chapter monthly meeting, 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. at La Sure’s Banquet Hall, 3125 S. Washburn St. in Oshkosh. Cost to attend is $12 for members or $15 for nonmembers. For more information or to register, visit www.wimiwi.org or email Susan at sbach@wisconsin.bbb.org.

JANUARY 11 Heart of the Valley Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours, 5 to 7 p.m. at Super Bowl/Sluggers, 2222 E. Northland Ave. in Appleton. No cost to attend for members. For more information or to register, visit business.heartofthevalleychamber.com.

JANUARY 16 Network Neenah, a networking event from Future Neenah, 5 to 7 p.m. at Doubletree

by Hilton Downtown Neenah, 123 E. Wisconsin Ave. in Neenah. No cost to attend, but registration is appreciated by going online to www.neenah.org or calling 920.722.1920.

JANUARY 18 Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Briefing: Employee Benefits Compliance and Opportunities, 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the law offices of von Briesen & Roper, 2905 Universal St. in Oshkosh. No cost to attend. For more information or to register, call 920.303.2266 or go online to www.oshkoshchamber.com.

JANUARY 18 Future 5 Awards, an event for Young Professionals of Fond du Lac, 5 to 8 p.m. at Holiday Inn, 625 W. Rolling Meadows Dr. in Fond du Lac. For more information or to register, go online to www.fdlac.com.

JANUARY 18 Heart of the Valley Chamber of Commerce Business Card Exchange, 8 to 9 a.m. at Drop Bar Cafe, 631 Saunders Road in Kaukauna. No cost to attend for members. For more information or to register, visit business.heartofthevalleychamber.com.

JANUARY 23 Financial Executives International of Northeastern Wisconsin chapter meeting, 2 to 7:30 p.m. at Rock Garden Conference Center, 1951 Bond St. in Green Bay. Speaker is Tim Bergstrom, president and chief operating officer of Bergstrom Automotive in Neenah. For more information or to register, go online to www.feinew.org/events.

JANUARY 25 Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce Business Expo 2018, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Oshkosh Convention Center, 2 N. Main St. in Oshkosh. For more information or to register a booth, email amber@oshkoshchamber.com or visit www.oshkoshchamber.com.

JANUARY 30 Current Connect, an event for young professionals in the Greater Green Bay area, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the chamber office, 300 N. Broadway, Ste. 3A in Green Bay. No cost to attend. For more information or to register, visit www.greatergbc.org.

JANUARY 31 A.M. Oshkosh, a morning networking event from the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, 7:45 to 9 a.m. at the Oshkosh North High School, 1100 W. Smith Ave. in Oshkosh. Cost to attend is $2 for members. For more information or to register, call 920.303.2266 or go online to www.oshkoshchamber.com.

FEBRUARY 6 Greater Green Bay Chamber Power Networking Breakfast, 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the chamber office, 300 N. Broadway, Ste. 3A in Green Bay. No cost to attend for chamber members and $35 for nonmembers. For more information, go online to www.greatergbc.org or email fyi@greatergbc.org. n

Thank you

to the advertisers who made the January 2018 issue of New North B2B possible.

Appleton International Airport ⎮atwairport.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Bank First National ⎮bankfirstnational.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Bayland Buildings ⎮baylandbuildings.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Caliber Law, s.c. ⎮caliberlaw.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Candeo Creative ⎮candeocreative.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Career Options ⎮Career-Options.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Consolidated Construction Company ⎮1call2build.com . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 CR Structures Group ⎮crstructures.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Fox Valley Technical College ⎮fvtc.edu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Guident Business Solutions ⎮guidentbusinesssolutions.com. . . . . . . 17 Investors Community Bank ⎮investorscommunitybank.com. . . . . . . . 34 Keller Inc. ⎮kellerbuilds.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

www.newnorthb2b.com

Millennium Construction Inc. ⎮millenniumconstructionwi.com. . . . . . 15 National Exchange Bank & Trust ⎮nebat.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Network Health ⎮networkhealth.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 NWTC Corporate Training & Economic Development ⎮ corporatetraining.nwtc.edu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Oshkosh Public Museum ⎮oshkoshmuseum.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Oshkosh West Side Association ⎮westsideassociation.com. . . . . . . . . 32 Prevea LeadWell ⎮prevea.com/LeadWell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 St. Norbert College MBA program ⎮snc.edu/mba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Stolley Studio ⎮stolleystudio.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Strang, Patteson, Renning, Lewis & Lacy ⎮strangpatteson.com. . . . . 22 Winnegamie Home Builders Association ⎮whba.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

NNB2B | January 2018 | 37

Key Statistics

If there are indicators you’d like to see in this space, contact our office at 920.237.0254 or email sean@newnorthb2b.com.

LOCAL GASOLINE PRICES

U.S. RETAIL SALES

Per gallon of regular unleaded gasoline.

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER 17. . . . . . . $2.31 DECEMBER 10. . . . . . . $2.34 DECEMBER 3. . . . . . . . $2.36 NOVEMBER 26 . . . . . . $2.42 DECEMBER 17, 2016. . $2.17

$492.7 BILLION 0.8% from October 5.8% from November 2016

Source: New North B2B observations

EXISTING HOME SALES

U.S. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION

NOVEMBER

(2012 = 100)

HOMES SOLD MEDIAN PRICE BROWN County .................263.......................$170,000 FOND du LAC County .......103 ......................$140,000 OUTAGAMIE County .........212 ......................$164,950 WINNEBAGO County ........168.......................$148,950 WI DEPT. REVENUE COLLECTIONS

NOVEMBER

106.4

0.2% from October 3.4% from November 2016 AIR PASSENGER TRAFFIC

OCTOBER FY 2018

$1.502 BILLION 18% from October FY 2017

(Local enplanements)

NOV. 2017 NOV. 2016 Appleton Int’l ATW.....................25,098......... 22,798 Austin Straubel GRB........................... xxx ...... 23,830

LOCAL UNEMPLOYMENT

OCTOBER SEPT. OCT. ‘16 APPLETON ........2.9% ...... 3.0% ........ 3.5% FOND du LAC ....2.6% ...... 2.8% ........ 3.2% GREEN BAY........2.8% ...... 3.0% .........3.7% NEENAH .............2.8% ...... 2.9%......... 3.4% OSHKOSH ..........2.8% ...... 2.9% ........ 3.5% WISCONSIN .......2.8% ...... 3.0% .........3.7%

NATURAL GAS PRICES Prices for small businesses using less than 20,000 therms. Listed price is per therm.

DECEMBER................... $0.505 NOVEMBER...................$0.473 DECEMBER 2016.......... $0.487 Source: Wisconsin Public Service

ISM INDEX Numbers above 50 mean expansion.

Numbers below 50 mean contraction.

NOVEMBER. . . . . . . . 58.2 OCTOBER . . . . . . . . . 58.7

ENHANCE MORE THAN YOUR RÉSUMÉ E L E VAT E

YOUR

CAREER

Get started at snc.edu/mba 38 | January 2018 | NNB2B

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CONTACT: Corporate Training & Economic Development corporatetraining@nwtc.edu (920) 498-6373 www.nwtc.edu/business-industry