ej · 2015. 8. 11. · china, brazil, netherlands, south africa, and india. the company, which...

Spring 2015EJ

recalculating

The Borderplex, a key link in the realignedNorth American “auto alley”

route

BroWnSville-MataMoroS Borderplex

texaS

Central & Bajio regionS in MexiCo

U.S. MidWeStregion

WHAT’S INSIDE

EJBrownsvilleEconomic Journal

Safest Metro in TexasBrownsville provides vibrant environment for recreation,health and economic development .....................Page 5

Recalculating RouteThe Borderplex, a key link in the realigned North American “auto alley”..........................................................Page 12

Prepping for launchSpaceX receives its first two confirmed payloads assigned to launch from Boca Chica Beach ...........Page 8

Seeking competitive edgeParagon D&E moves to Brownsville to be close to clients ...............Page 16

Satisfying demandBrownsville airport adds newcarrier and flights...........Page 11

Expansion modeAllied Mineral Products doubles the size of its facility ....................Page 6

Port of BrownsvilleFive companies are looking toset up LNG facility.......Page 20

Brownsville economic journalSpring 2015BEDC.com 3

editor in CHieFGilberto [email protected]

editorial Content &deSign CoordinatorJorge i. [email protected]

CopY editorSylvia [email protected]

pHotograpHYBEDC Editorial team

CirCUlation Sylvia [email protected]

advertiSingJorge i. [email protected]

Corporate ContaCtLizzy de la Garza [email protected]

reSearCH & eConoMiC indiCatorSDaniela [email protected]

editorial oFFiCeBrownsville Economic Development Council301 Mexico Boulevard, Suite F1 (itEC Campus)Brownsville, texas 78520tel. (956) 541-1183 Fax: (956) 546-3938

viSit US onlinewww.BEDC.com

FroM YoUr MoBile deviCe:

FolloW US

eleCtroniC verSion:A free electronic versionof this issue is availableat: www.issuu.comkeyword: brownsville economic

Traditionally, the Brownsville-Matamoros Borderplex has beena magnet for companies in the

automotive industry. Many companies have established their

operations here to take advantage of the re-gion’s competitiveness in logistics andabundant young workforce available withbasic and advanced skill sets required forthe industry. For decades, automotive manufacturing

has been one of Brownsville’s top target in-dustries and an important component of theregion’s maquiladora sector found in Mata-moros.With the realignment of the North

American “auto alley” and the resurgenceof Mexico as a top manufacturer of auto-mobiles, the Borderplex sits in an enviableposition to further expand its role in thesupply-chain-logistics of the automotive in-dustrial corridor in North America.The Borderplex is home to Tier 1,

OEMs and leading global suppliers withmanufacturing, warehousing, and distribu-tion facilities located on both sides of theRio Grande.For several decades, companies like

Trico Products Corporation and Delphi Au-tomotive PLC have enjoyed the benefits ofcalling the Brownsville-Matamoros areahome.And now new companies, such as CK

Technologies and Paragon D&E havefound in Brownsville that competitive edgethey were seeking to enhance the servicesthey provide to their clients. EJ

a target industryPRESIDENT’SCORNER

EJ

jason HiltsPrESiDEnt & CEO

The Economic Journal of the Brownsville Borderplex is pub-lished on a quarterly basis and distributed according to the fair-use doctrine of U.S. copyright laws related to non-profitinstitutions, such as the BEDC, and for educational purposes.

Brownsville economic journal Spring 2015 BEDC.com 4

Brownsville provides vibrant environment forrecreation, health and economic development

pro-Business Climate EJQUalitY oF liFe

The Brownsville MetropolitanStatistical Area has been recog-nized as the safest metro in the

state of Texas, according to FBI data re-leased in January.The FBI Uniform Crime Report for

2013 revealed that from the 24 Texasmetro areas, ranked from most to leastdangerous, Brownsville garnered the lastspot at number 24.The violent crime rate of the

Brownsville MSA has been steadily de-creasing for the past 6 years, according tothe FBI’s Crime in the United States An-nual Report. From 2008 to 2012, theBrownsville MSA has experienced a 39percent decrease in violent crimes, making

it one of the safest metros not only inTexas, but also in the U.S. “Brownsville is a safe place to be. If

you ask most people if they feel safe walk-ing down the street, the majority will sayyes,” Brownsville Police Chief OrlandoRodriguez told the Brownsville Herald ina recent interview.A safe community provides a vibrant

environment for many aspects of the city,including recreation, health and economicdevelopment.Last year, Brownsville became one of

10 cities in the U.S. and the only city inTexas to receive the All-America Cityaward. This award given by the NationalCivic League recognizes communities forsuccessfully addressing pressing chal-lenges such as housing, government inno-vation, job development, educational

improvement and neighborhood revitaliza-tion.The pro-business environment has

helped Brownsville be recognized by Wal-letHub.com as one of the best cities tostart a business and one of the most reces-sion recovered communities in the U.S.Recent investments in Brownsville,

valued at over $600 million, includeSpaceX’ construction of the world’s firstvertical rocket launch site. According toElon Musk, founder of the company, thecapital investment for this project exceeds$100 million.Other important projects in

Brownsville include Hunt Consolidatedinvesting $200 million in infrastructureenhancements, and the Broe Group devel-opment of a 1,200 acre industrial park ad-jacent to the Port of Brownsville. EJ

Safest Metro in texas

Staff reports

Courtesy Photo


Allied Mineral Productsdoubles the size of facility in Brownsville

Written byjorge i. Montero

the company, which began operating from the port of Brownsville in 2003, expanded its building to 65,000 square feet almost doublingthe size of its original structure.

Staff Photo

expansion mode

the facility in Brownsville manufactures refractory cement for therefractory industry, with Mexico being its primary market.

Staff Photo

Growing Market EJLOCAL INDUSTRY


The expansion is part of Allied Min-eral’s efforts to be in close proximity to itscustomers, according to John Tabor, thecompany’s President and CEO.Allied Mineral Products is the world

leader in the design and manufacture ofmonolithic refractories and precast refrac-tory shapes. The company has a strongpresence in the foundry, aluminum, steeland industrial markets worldwide, provid-ing goods and services to more than 100countries through their 8 manufacturingfacilities located in six countries, the U.S.,China, Brazil, Netherlands, South Africa,and India.The company, which began operating

from the Port of Brownsville in 2003, ex-panded its building to 65,000 square feet,almost doubling the size of its originalstructure of 35,000 square feet.“It’s not often when we see a local

company expand double its size. That’svery commendable,” said Lizzy Putegnat,Business Retention and Expansion Direc-tor for the Brownsville Economic Devel-opment Council.“Since 2003 they have committed to

this community and we are very gratefulfor that,” Putegnat added.The expansion of the Brownsville fa-

cility is one the several projects that Alliedhas underway for 2014-2015, Tabor said,adding that company has also expandedfacilities in Netherlands and Ohio, includ-ing their administrative building based inColumbus.“They’re a global company with many

locations around the world, and we feelvery proud that Brownsville was one ofthe locations where they wanted to ex-pand,” Putegnat said. “We at the BEDCcommend the work that they’ve done. It isvital that we remind our companies thatwe care about them and that we supportthem.”

NAFTA paved the wayThe establishment of the North Ameri-

can Free Trade Agreement in 1994 createdthe opportunity for Allied Mineral to in-vest in the U.S. and export its products toMexico, rather than build facilities southof the border, Tabor said.“That’s why we invested here in

Brownsville,” he added. The facility in Brownsville manufac-

tures refractory cement for the refractoryindustry, with Mexico being its primarymarket.“Almost all of what is done in

Brownsville ships to Mexico with veryfew exceptions,” Tabor said. The first product that came out of

Brownsville in October 2003 was shippedto Cifunsa in Mexico, the largest ironfoundry in North America at the time, hesaid.

“The ability to supply material quicklyis something that our customers in Mexicorely on. Our team here (in Brownsville)has never let anybody down,” he said.Tabor noted that their success could

not have been made possible without thesupport of local officials in Brownsville.“The Port of Brownsville is a great lo-

cation to do business,” Tabor said.Ralph Cowen, Chairman of the Port of

Brownsville Commission, said that AlliedMineral’s facility is one of the first newbuildings that has come to the Port in re-cent years.“We are at the threshold of a new era

at the port,” Cowen said. “We are a grow-ing port and we need to let people knowwhat a jewel we have here. We at the portare willing to work for you and willing towork with you.” EJ

allied Mineral products, inc. kicked off 2015 with agrand opening ceremony to showcase the expan-sion of its manufacturing facility located at the

port of Brownsville.

john tabor, allied Mineral product’s president and Ceo, speaks during the grandopening ceremony held in january.

Staff Photo


preppingforlaunch

SpaceX receives its first two confirmed payloadsassigned to launch from Boca Chica Beach

growing Manifest EJSpaCe indUStrY


Two communications satellitesowned by SES are booked to flyinto orbit from South Texas on a

pair of Falcon 9 rockets in 2017, givingSpaceX its first two confirmed payloadsassigned to launch from the new commer-cial spaceport, officials said.SES announced SpaceX’s Falcon 9

rocket will launch the two satellites —SES 14 and SES 16/GovSat — nine daysafter the company unveiled an order forthree spacecraft to be manufactured byAirbus Defense and Space, Boeing Satel-lite Systems and Orbital ATK.Officials said the Airbus-built SES 14

satellite and the SES 16/GovSat spacecraftproduced by Orbital ATK will launch ontwo Falcon 9 rockets in 2017. Launchservices for the SES 15 satellite made byBoeing have not been disclosed.“SpaceX is an important launch part-

ner to realize our new fleet investment andgrowth programme,” said Martin Halli-well, chief technology officer of SES.“With SpaceX, we share the mission of in-novating the space segment and technol-ogy, achieving step changes in the designand economics of launchers, and leverag-

ing them to the advantage of our satellites,their profile, flexibility and performance,and, above all, our customers. We arelooking forward to working with theSpaceX team on these two new missions.”Based in Luxembourg, SES is the

largest satellite operator in the world asmeasured by revenue.Industry officials familiar with the

launch deal said both satellites are plannedto lift off from SpaceX’s new launch siteat Boca Chica Beach near Brownsville,Texas.It was not clear whether another com-

mercial SpaceX launch could occur fromthe Texas spaceport before the SES 14 andSES 16/GovSat missions are ready forliftoff in 2017.SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk

said at a September groundbreaking forthe South Texas spaceport that the firstlaunch from the facility was expected noearlier than late 2016.The commercial launch site is one of

the first of its kind, operating under the li-censing authority of the Federal AviationAdministration, which holds responsibilityfor public safety. The U.S. Air Force hasthat job at SpaceX’s current launch sites atCape Canaveral, Florida, and VandenbergAir Force Base, California.Musk said SpaceX plans to move

many of its commercial satellite launchesinto geostationary transfer orbit to theSouth Texas site, which sits on the Gulf ofMexico about 20 miles east of

Brownsville and three miles north of theU.S.-Mexico border.“Our preference is to try to move par-

ticularly the commercial GTO (geostation-ary transfer orbit) missions to the BocaChica launch site as soon as we can be-cause there’s a significant benefit by beingsouth,” Musk said.Geostationary transfer orbit — an el-

liptical orbit with a high point typicallyabout 22,300 miles above Earth — is acommon drop-off point for large commu-nications satellites.Communications satellites use on-

board thrusters to circularize their orbits atgeostationary altitude — 22,300 miles —and move over the equator, where their or-bital velocity matches the speed of Earth’srotation, causing the spacecraft to hoverover a fixed location on the planet.Rockets launching into such orbits re-

ceive a performance boost from launchpads at lower latitudes because of thefaster spin of Earth closer to the equator.Launching closer to the equator allowsrockets to use less fuel to put satellites inorbit.“We’re two-and-a-half degrees south

of Cape Canaveral, and those two-and-a-half degrees are actually helpful for GTOmissions,” Musk said. “We have a strongincentive to try to get Boca Chica active assoon as possible.”The Boca Chica launch site lies at

about 26 degrees north latitude, whileCape Canaveral sits at approximately 28.5degrees.SpaceX’s rockets will launch to the

east from Boca Chica Beach, flying overthe Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Straitsbetween the Florida Keys and Cuba toavoid flying over land en route to geosta-tionary transfer orbit with commercialsatellites.The SES 14 satellite assigned to

launch with SpaceX will carry C -band,Ku-band and Ka-band payloads to coverthe Americas and the North Atlantic withdirect-to-home television programmingand mobile, maritime and aeronauticalcommunications. The spacecraft is basedon the Eurostar E3000e platform from Air-bus, and its all-electric propulsion systemwill place the satellite into a circular oper-ating orbit a few months after launch.

This article was written by Stephen Clark and appeared

in www.spaceflightnow.com on February 25, 2015

the Falcon 9launches are scheduled for 2017

artist’s rendering of Spacex’s launch pad in Boca Chica Beach (Courtesy of Spacex).


The first infrastructure project that willlink the University of Texas System toSpaceX’s rocket-launch complex at BocaChica in Cameron County is on the hori-zon, public records show.The project will tie UT buildings and

Elon Musk’s complex, which will housethe world’s first commercial, vertical andorbital rocket launch facility.UT also owns land at Boca Chica that

will house the STARGATE research facil-ity.UT has been requesting proposals for a

fiber optic infrastructure project — whichwould provide a high-speed communica-tion system — linking university facilitiesin Brownsville to its facility at Boca Chicaand to the nearby site of SpaceX’s controlcenter and to the rocketlaunch pad. This isgleaned from the request for proposals thatUT issued March 4. A team from the uni-versity will evaluate the proposals. The UT System will pay for the fiber

optic cable infrastructure that will providetwo pathways along Highway 4 betweenuniversity facilities in Brownsville and atBoca Chica and SpaceX’s control centerand launch pad. Upon completion, the uni-versity system will own the entire cablesystem, the request for proposals states. UT will be obtaining the easements

while the contractor would obtain the re-quired permits from the city ofBrownsville, Cameron County and theTexas Department of Transportation. UTwould provide installation oversight to en-sure compliance with UT, CameronCounty and TxDOT requirements. Earlier this year and in a collaborative

research initiative with SpaceX, theBrownsville Economic DevelopmentCouncil donated property at Boca Chica tothe UT system for the STARGATE Tech-

nology Park. STARGATE, which stands for Space-

craft Tracking and Astronomical Researchinto Giga-Hertz Astrophysical TransientEmission, has been designated as the firstresearch Center for Excellence at the Uni-versity of Texas Rio Grande Valley, thenew university formed by the merger ofthe University of Texas at Brownsville andthe University of Texas–Pan American inEdinburg. STARGATE’s aim is to develop, test

and use radio frequency technologies forboth scientific and commercial purposesand to track spacecraft. It will be housedin a 12,000-square-foot research facilitythat will be constructed near SpaceX’scommand center. UTRGV has said thatwhen not used for launches, STARGATE

faculty and student researchers will useSpaceX facilities for training, scientific re-search and technology development. The research center is being funded

with $4.4 million from the Texas Emerg-ing Technology Fund, $4.6 million fromthe UT System, $500,000 from the GreaterBrownsville Incentives Corp., and $1.2million from the U.S. Economic Develop-ment Administration. UT has said that the facility would be

completed by September this year.

This article was written by Emma Perez-Treviño and was

published in the Friday March 13,2015 edition of The Brownsville Herald

Fiber optics to link Spacex, Ut

Courtesy of SpaceX

infrastructure is essential for research facility and launch site complex

Stargate project EJSpaCe indUStrY


An increase in passenger activity hashelped the Brownsville South Padre IslandInternational Airport expand its commer-cial services, picking up another airlinecarrier and adding new flights to theschedule.Airport officials made two major an-

nouncements in February, confirming thearrival of Allegiant Airlines to Brownsvilleand the addition of a new American Air-lines flight to Dallas-Fort Worth.The newest nonstop flight to

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport isthe fourth daily flight that departsBrownsville to the Metroplex area.Allegiant will offer nonstop jet service

between Brownsville and Las Vegas twice

a week beginning in June.“We’re excited to be debuting in

Brownsville and connecting travelers tothe Entertainment Capital of the World,”said Jude Bricker, Allegiant Travel Com-pany vice president of planning. “We’reproud to be offering the only nonstoptravel option to Vegas in CameronCounty.”Brownsville joins Allegiant as one of

its newest cities and is the company’sfourth market in Texas.“Allegiant is the latest major company

to join in Brownsville's dynamic growth,”said Brownsville Mayor Tony Martinez.“Now passengers from Brownsville, Mata-moros and our neighboring cities canenjoy nonstop, low-cost travel to LasVegas. We are proud to welcome Allegiantto the Valley’s largest city.”

The airport had a remarkable 2014,recording over 207,000 passenger en-planements, the highest number of en-planements in its 86-year history. Officialsexpect to surpass that number in 2015.In a recent interview with The

Brownsville Herald, Larry Brown, the air-port’s director of aviation, said that theeconomic impact of each additional flightis significant: 200 permanent jobs,$300,000 in extra sales tax revenue and a$20 million impact on the region, accord-ing to an analysis from the University ofTexas at Brownsville that considered di-rect economic impact as well as its rippleeffect. “One flight has an economic impact

with a spinoff effect,” he told the Herald.“You’re bringing new income into thecommunity from other places.” EJ

Staff reports

Brownsville airport breaks record for passengerenplanements; adds new carrier and flights

expanding Services EJtranSportation

Satisfying demandthe Brownsville Southpadre island internationalairport reported a remark-able 2014, recording over207,000 passenger en-planements, the highestnumber of enplanementsin its 86-year history.larry Brown, the airport’sdirector of aviation, saidthat the economic impactof each additional flight issignificant to the commu-nity.

Courtesy photo


recalculating route

MexiCo89 out of the world’s top 100 auto part manufacturersare present in Mexico.

The Borderplex, a key link in the realigned North American “auto alley”

EJaUtoMotive indUStrY

Mexico was the largest supplier of auto parts and trucksto the US market in 2013.

texaSranks no. 7 nationallyfor automotive manufacturing employment.

texas is also part of the grow-ing naFta auto corridor, wherebillions of dollars of assembledvehicles and auto parts areshipped between Mexico andthe lone Star State.


Texas is home to a well-estab-lished automotive manufac-turing sector that has seen

continued growth in the last five yearsthanks to the realignment of the NorthAmerican “auto alley” and the resur-gence of Mexico as a top manufacturerof automobiles.The traditional U.S. automotive cor-

ridor that once concentrated heavily onDetroit and nearby locations has rapidlyshifted toward the Midwest and South-ern parts of the country, facilitating theLone Star State and the Brownsville-Matamoros Borderplex in playing a keyrole in the supply-chain-logistics of theautomotive industrial corridor in NorthAmerica.The Borderplex is home to Tier 1,

OEMs and leading global suppliers aswell as warehousing and distributing fa-cilities for the industry. A total of 50companies form the automotive cluster

in Matamoros, and that numbernearly doubles when we add

the existing companiesoperating out of

Brownsville.

The Borderplex’ proximity to Mex-ico has made the region an ideal candi-date for companies seeking to supplythe automotive market in Mexico, or toestablish automotive manufacturing op-erations as stand-alone entities. And since the passage of the North

American Free Trade Agreement(NAFTA) in 1992, Texas has served as

a strong trade partner and pri-

mary link between Mexico’s automo-tive plants and the rest of the U.S. au-tomotive industry with billions ofdollars in automotive goodsbeing shipped annually tothe U.S. by way of theTexan border.


THE TEXAS AUTOMOTIVE PARTS MANUFACTURING SECTOR produces a range of vehicle components:from car seats, to air conditioning units, to engines, to microcontrollers. The sector’s 16,288 workers ac-count for 45% of Texas’ total automotive manufacturing employment. Many of the state’s 269 automotiveparts companies are small businesses, with an average of 60 employees each.

BroWnSvilleBorderplexthe Borderplex is home to tier 1,oeMs and leading global suppliersas well as warehousing and dis-tributing facilities for the industry.

the i-69 Corridor runs fromBrownsville all the waynorth to port Huron, Michi-gan, connecting Mexico,U.S. and Canada markets.

practically all the componentsthat form a dashboard in a vehicle are manufactured in Matamoros.

Source: Texas Automotive Manufacturing Industry 2014 report from theOffice of the Governor Economic Development and Tourism


According to Scotiabank’s GlobalAuto Report from March 2014, a vehiclemade in the U.S. contains on average morethan $4,000 worth of Mexican-made parts.

A target industryTraditionally, the Borderplex has been

a magnet for companies that manufactureautomotive components. Companies have established their oper-

ations here to take advantage of the re-gion’s competitiveness in logistics andabundant young workforce available withbasic and advanced skill sets required forthe industry. For decades, automotive manufactur-

ing has been one of Brownsville’s top tar-get industries and an important componentof the region’s maquiladora sector foundin Matamoros.“The auto parts sector encompasses

35% of all the maquiladora industry inMatamoros. Practically all the parts thatcreate a dashboard in a vehicle are manu-factured in Matamoros,” said RobertoMattus Rivera, Executive Director for theMatamoros Maquiladora Association(AMMAC), giving the reason why thiscommunity earns the title of “DashboardCity.” And after the most recent economic

downturn, when the automotive industryin the country needed to be reshaped, theBrownsville-Matamoros region saw an in-creased presence in the manufacturing ofcomponents of emerging automotive tech-nologies.Toyoda Gosei is one of the newest ad-

ditions to the area’s automotive cluster. In2014, the Japanese company invested $8.5million to establish their Matamoros plantin order to strengthen its automotive rub-ber hose production in the U.S. ToyodaGosei manufactures hoses for Toyota’sfull-size pickup truck assembled at its SanAntonio plant.The Borderplex competitiveness and

business opportunities have helped com-panies in this sector thrive throughout theyears. Such is the case of Trico Products Cor-

poration and Delphi Automotive PLC,who for decades have been servicing theirclients from the Brownsville-Matamorosarea.Trico has called the Borderplex home

since 1986. The company is a global OEMand aftermarket supplier of windshieldwiper systems, assemblies, and compo-nents for the auto industry. It is also one ofthe top motor vehicle parts manufacturing

companies in Texas with 420 employees.Trico has eight facilities throughout

North America, South American, Europe,Asia, and Australia, with two of them lo-cated in the Borderplex. The Brownsvillefacility is their North American manufac-turing headquarters that serves both theOE and aftermarket sectors. It is also thecompany’s warehouse and distributioncenter for American, Canadian, and Mexi-can OE customers. The Matamoros facilityis the largest windshield wiper systemsand wiper blade manufacturing facility inNorth America. The Matamoros plant, as-sembles, packages, and paints for NorthAmerican OE and aftermarket customers. Delphi has also been manufacturing

and assembling automobile componentsfrom Matamoros since the 1980’s. Thecompany is a Tier 1 supplier of technolo-gies for the automotive and commercialvehicle markets and operates severalplants in the region.Delphi, which was formerly GM’s

parts division, is one of several parts man-ufacturers that have shifted a significantportion of their North American produc-tion to Mexico from the U.S.

With information from www.areadevelopment.com

and the Office of the Governor Eco-nomic Development and Tourism Division


ENHANCING LOGISTICSA new trend has suppliers moving

closer to their clients in an effort toboost and economize their services,making the Borderplex a prime desti-nation for these companies since it isconsidered a link between the industryin Mexico and the U.S.

One such case in the Borderplexis that of Paragon D&E, whose cus-tomer base in Brownsville includesheavy truck supplier CK TechnologiesLLC, a division of Cascade Engineer-ing Inc., as well as other automotivesuppliers nearby.

Paragon, a company based out ofGrand Rapids, Mich., recently ac-quired Brownsville Rio Grande ToolsCompany and plans to service all itsindustry lines, which include the auto-motive and heavy truck industries,from its Brownsville facility. The com-pany designs, engineers and manu-factures highly complex toolingsystems for its customers.

Courtesy of www.areadevelopment.com


Michigan-based company moves to Brownsville to be closer to its clients

paragon d&e EJaUtoMotive indUStrY

Paragon Die and Engineering Co. hasfound in Brownsville that competitiveedge the company was seeking to enhancethe services they provide to their clients.“This acquisition fulfills a growth

strategy aimed at closing shipping dis-tances from our company in Michigan toour large customer base in the southernU.S. and Northern Mexico.” said AndrewSamrick, managing director of Paragon’sAdvanced Manufacturing Division as he

explained why they chose to expand theircompany in Brownsville.In August 2014, Paragon D&E ac-

quired the assets of Brownsville RioGrande Tool Company and renamed it RioGrande A Paragon Company. Paragon D&E, based out of Grand

Rapids, Michigan, designs, engineers, andmanufactures highly complex tooling sys-tems for the automotive, heavy truck,aerospace, agriculture, and oil and gas in-dustries. They specialize in engineeringand manufacturing plastic injection andcompression molds. Rio Grande Paragon’s 19,000 SF facil-

ity in Brownsville will primarily serve as atool and mold repair shop for customerslocated within the region.Being in Brownsville gives Paragon

D&E a competitive edge as many of theirsouthern customers would rather servicetooling equipment locally versus shippingit back to Michigan for work.“Lengthy supply lines mean longer

downtimes for customers, which makesservicing equipment particularly costly.By opening a servicing facility close to itscustomer base, Paragon plans to eliminatethese transportation-related costs and re-main more competitive,” said Samrick.

Seeking competitive edgeWritten by

lizzy putegnat

jon Hamming, right, general Manager of rio grande paragon, shows examples of molding tools to lizzy putegnat, BedC’sdirector for Business retention and expansion, and ankjaer jensen, a BedC executive Committee Board Member.

Staff Photo


paragon d&e EJaUtoMotive indUStrY

Jon Hamming, General Managerof Rio Grande A Paragon Company,sees a very bright future for the facil-ity. “We’re excited to continue to

service our current customers and atthe same time gain new customers aswe see more and more opportunitiesdeveloping here in the area. Thecompany’s equipment and technol-ogy improvements have placed us ata level where we can pursue othertarget markets in industries like aero-space and oil & gas,” he said.Paragon’s local customers include

heavy truck supplier, CK Technolo-gies and SpaceX, among others closeto the region. Paragon is already acertified supplier to SpaceX and haspreviously worked on bolt systemsfor SpaceX rocket segments. Theyare excited about the opportunity tocontinue developing that relationshipthrough the Brownsville launch site.Rio Grande A Paragon Company

currently has 10 employees. They es-timate that by the end of the yearthey will reach 30 employees. When asked what impressed him

the most about Brownsville, Ham-ming answered, “The people, in par-ticular the employees. These peopleare eager to work. They are respect-ful, talented, and results-oriented.They are more than willing to go theextra mile.”Paragon D&E is not the only

company that has seen an expansionto Brownsville as a strategic movethat gives the company a competitiveedge. There are many manufacturing

companies within the Brownsville-Matamoros Borderplex that are talk-ing and working to bring supplierscloser in efforts to cut transportationtime and costs. Suppliers are keepingan eye on Brownsville. In manycases, it’s not a matter of “if,” butrather “when.” EJ

paragon has shipped a number of pieces of equipment to the Brownsville facility since theacquisition. the facility here will primarily serve as a tool and mold repair shop for customerslocated within the region.

one of the newest equipment is a laser welder, the only one in the rio grande valley.

Staff Photo

Staff Photo


rail bridge will enhance the transportationinfrastructure in the Borderplex

new railway EJtranSportation

Authorities ready to open the first new railbridge to Mexico in more than a century

Connecting Markets

the new international railroad runs around the west side ofBrownsville and into the Mexican state of tamaulipas. it isexpected to reduce more than two hours of travel time be-tween the port of Brownsville and the manufacturing sectorin Monterrey, Mexico.

Staff Photo


They have pushed to build a new rail-road bridge spanning the Rio Grande out-side Brownsville, Texas, which is nowlargely completed. When it opens, it willmark the end of a 15-year effort by localofficials to move freight trains crossinginto Matamoros, Mexico, out of down-town Brownsville, the southernmost cityin Texas. Many localities have dealt withsimilar problems, but the internationalborder crossing added a new dimension ofcomplexity to the effort.Local officials -- including at least

three Brownsville mayors and threecounty “judges,” or executives, on theAmerican side, plus more in Mexico --stuck with the project because of the bene-fits they hope it will bring.Diverting freight trains west of the city

will eliminate 14 railroad street crossings.The current route takes freight trainsthrough residential areas, along neighbor-hood parks and through commercial areas,said County Judge Pete Sepulveda, Jr.“The problem is that a lot of times, be-

fore the train is allowed to go into Mexico,they have to stage it. That blocks off sev-eral areas of downtown Brownsville,”while also making it harder for fire en-gines and police cars to respond to emer-gencies, he said.Most of the work on the new crossing

is done, but the Mexican government is inthe process of setting up its securitycheckpoint, which will screen traffic inboth directions until the U.S. can move itsequipment once the existing rail crossingis closed.Sepulveda, who was just promoted to

the county’s executive post last month,first started working on the crossing aftera neighborhood hearing 15 years ago,when it was clear that the community op-

posed adding a series of bridges throughdowntown to separate the railroad tracksfrom the streets it crossed. An engineerfrom the state first raised the idea of mov-ing the tracks entirely.That turned out to mean building

nearly six miles of new track startingnorth of Brownsville and around to thewest, crossing into Mexico in a rural areaand joining with an existing rail linenearby. The most expensive part of theproject is on the Mexican side, because itrequired the relocation of a switchyard.Mexico paid $80 million for the

changes, which will also help the Mexicancity of Matamoros -- which, at half a mil-lion people, has more than 2.5 times thepopulation of Brownsville -- reduce con-gestion too.But paying for the American share was

the most difficult part of the project, saidSepulveda, who has helped develop threeother bridges on the U.S.-Mexico border.With bridges carrying vehicles, the gov-ernment can normally charge tolls to helpcover the costs. But that doesn’t work forfreight rail, where the railroad owns thetracks.So Brownsville and Cameron County

officials cobbled together $40 millionfrom other sources. Most of the moneycame from the federal government, al-though that was divided among severalagencies. The state of Texas, local govern-ments and Union Pacific also picked uppart of the costs, Sepulveda said.The federal money, and the fact that

the project is an international port of entry,came with a lot of extra regulation. TheState Department, the Federal RailroadAdministration and the state of Texas hadto review the project for environmentalimpacts. Local officials in the border town

are used to dealing with the U.S. Customsand Border Patrol, but they found that railcrossings were overseen by a different setof regulators within Customs those whooversee vehicle crossings.“It was difficult from the standpoint

that it hadn’t been done before. We had alot of difficulties from [the Department ofHomeland Security, which includes Cus-toms], because they hadn’t done anotherbridge in 100 years. That was pretty frus-trating,” Sepulveda said.Union Pacific, which also operates at

the five other rail crossings between theU.S. and Mexico, has supported thecounty in shifting rail traffic out of down-town Brownsville, but the railroad doesnot expect it to boost capacity, said com-pany spokesman Jeff DeGraff.The change was made easier by the

fact that Cameron County was able to ac-quire the land for the alternate route,which many communities cannot, he said.Unlike in many areas, the path for a newroute runs through mostly open space andgenerated little controversy.“This was something that was brought

forward by the county. They spearheadedthe project. They took it on themselves.We’re happy to work with them,” DeGraffsaid. “It shows what can be accomplishedwhen these different levels of government,both in the U.S. and across the border,work together on a project like this.”

This article was written by Daniel C. Vock and appeared

in www.Governing.com on April 8, 2015

Mexico and the United States haven't built a newcrossing point for freight trains between thecountries for more than a century. that’s about

to change in the next few weeks, largely because of theefforts of local governments in South texas.


Five liquefied natural gas companiesare looking to build an export terminal atthe Port of Brownsville, with three ofthem taking a big step in further advancingtheir projects.Three companies, Texas LNG, Annova

LNG, and NextDecade LLC, have submit-ted pre-filing letters to the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission asking regulatorsto approve their proposed terminals alongthe Brownsville Ship Channel.Two more companies: Gulf Coast

LNG and SEG Sideco LNG are also look-ing to build facilities in the Port ofBrownsville, but have not filed letters tothe FERC asking for approval of theirprojects.“The submission of our pre-filing re-

quest to FERC is a major milestone for theproject. We now join a select group ofprojects that have entered this phase ofproject development,” said Vivek Chan-dra, CEO of Texas LNG, through a pressrelease.

Texas LNG is proposing to build itsterminal in a 625 acre site with deepwaterfrontage to the Port of Brownsville ship-ping channel. The new site, located ap-proximately 5 miles from the mouth of theGulf of Mexico on the north side of thechannel, facilitates construction, willallow safer reduced LNG tanker naviga-tion within the channel, and allows theproject to plan for future expansion.Brownsville’s strategic location has

helped the Port become one of the mostpopular locations for LNG export projects.All of the companies looking to set upshop here plan to take advantage of thearea’s proximity to the Eagle Ford Shale. According to the Texas Railroad Com-

mission, the Eagle Ford Shale produced4.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas per dayin 2014.“Brownsville is an ideal location for

this potential facility,” said Annova Presi-dent David Chung, who also serves as vicepresident, LNG, for Exelon Generation,the majority owner of the Annova LNGBrownsville Project.If built, the LNG terminal would sit

beside the Brownsville Ship Channel on650 acres designated by the Port ofBrownsville for industrial use.In a prepared statement, Kathleen Eis-

brenner, founder and CEO of NextDecade,said the company is very excited to initiatethe FERC process for their Rio GrandeLNG project. “Not only is this an important mile-

stone, but it also signals the beginning of acrucial process that will lead to the bestpossible project. NextDecade is activelyworking with the FERC, our partners andcommunities throughout the Rio GrandeValley to bring this exceptional project tofruition,” she said.“Since first visiting the Port of

Brownsville in 2013, we have been work-ing tirelessly to make this project a reality.Brownsville is a wonderful location forour facility,” added Eisbrenner. “With its position on the Gulf of Mex-

ico, access to abundant gas supplies, andexisting infrastructure, the Rio GrandeValley presents a fantastic opportunity forour project,” said Eisbrenner. EJ

A total of five companies are seeking to build LnG export terminals

port of Brownsville EJenergY projeCtS

race to build lng plant continues

Staff reports

the port ofBrownsville is look-ing to become a hubfor lng export ter-minals, taking ad-vantage of the area’sproximity to theeagle Ford Shale inCentral texas.

Courtesy Photo


About $1.2 billion in transmission construction upgrades being invested

electrical infrastructure EJenergY SeCtor

Amajor project to bring addi-tional electric transmission ca-pacity to Brownsville and the

Rio Grande Valley made strides in 2014,with the Public Utility Commission ofTexas in April approving the final routefor a new 345kV (kilovolt) transmissionline to be erected between the North Edin-burg Substation and the Loma Alta Sub-station near the Brownsville Ship Channel.The so-called “Cross Valley Project”

will link to a separate project: a 156-mile,345kV transmission line being built be-tween Laredo and the Edinburg substation.The Electrical Reliability Council of

Texas deemed the Cross Valley Projectcritical to the reliability of its system gridin the Lower Valley after rolling poweroutages in February 2011. ERCOT man-ages the electric grid and deregulated elec-tricity market covering somethree-quarters of the state.The Valley currently gets most of its

power from two 345kV lines that run par-allel from Corpus Christi. Due to theirnearness to the coast, those lines are con-sidered vulnerable to impact from hurri-canes. The Cross Valley line is a joint project

of Electric Transmission Texas LLC andSharyland Utilities LP. Sharyland, pri-vately owned by Hunter L. Hunt and othermembers of the Ray L. Hunt family, willbuild the Cameron County portion of theline. The Hidalgo County segment is the re-

sponsibility of Electric TransmissionTexas, a joint venture between subsidiariesof American Electric Power and BerkshireHathaway Energy Company. Cross Valley’s total cost, estimated at

$309 million, will be roughly split be-tween ETT and Sharyland. ETT is alsoconstructing the 345kV transmission line

from Laredo to Edinburg, a project esti-mated at $398 million. Further bolstering the Valley’s power

supply is a complete upgrade by AEP ofthe twin 345kV lines from Corpus Christi.That project, with an estimated construc-tion cost of $349 million, is unusual in thatthe work is being performed while thelines are “hot,” said AEP spokesman LarryJones. “It’s needed for ERCOT reliability,” he

said. “That’s one of the reasons we can’ttake the line off-grid for any amount oftime.” Working the line hot means crews have

to erect temporary lines in order to reroutepower away from the section of permanentline being upgraded, he said. Another

challenge of the project is Africanizedbees: Workers on the project frequentlyhave to wear protective suits to avoidbeing stung, Jones said. “It’s a very unique project,” he said. All told, ETT and AEP are investing

some $1.2 billion in transmission con-struction upgrades leading to Brownsvilleand the Valley. That cost, as well as Shary-land’s investment in Cross Valley, will ul-timately be spread among ERCOTcustomers statewide over decades, saidAEP spokesman Larry Jones. “Any investment in transmission is

shared among all customers withinERCOT,” he said. “Everybody shares thecost because transmission is considered ashared resource.” Jones said the goal is for all the trans-

mission projects to be complete about thesame time, possibly by summer 2016. Besides helping prevent future power

outages, economic development officialssay improving the city’s power grid willhelp the economy. Gilberto Salinas, executive vice presi-

dent of the Brownsville Economic Devel-opment Council, said investment inelectrical infrastructure will generate eco-nomic activity and help ensure the city’sfuture industrial growth, which dependson an adequate, reliable power supply. “Ultimately, the infrastructure is giving

Brownsville a competitive edge over othercities in South Texas,” he said. “Certainprojects we are working today is a directresult of the added power capacity andelectrical distribution.”

This article was written by Steve Clark and appeared

in the Thursday, November 21, 2014 issue of The Brownsville Herald

project expected to generate economic activity and industrial growth

“”

Ultimately, theinfrastructure

is givingBrownsville a

competitive edgeover other citiesin South Texas

- Gilberto SalinasExecutive Vice President

of the BEDC


Most people think of Portland, Austin andSan Francisco as some of the up and comingeconomic centers that cater to hipsters and busi-ness investors alike. There is another popularsite known as Brownsville, Texas. While itspoverty rate is double that of the nation, thetown makes good use of its 147.5 square miles.It’s only 30 miles from the beach, has warmweather year round and a fantastic location thatis drawing interest from investors.Elon Musk chose Brownsville’s Boca Chica

Beach as its launch complex for orbital mis-sions. Musk selected Brownsville for its vast re-sources, convenient border location, tropicalweather and international access. Musk’s devel-opment in Brownsville has spurred job growthamongst Latinos and other groups. It has infused600 jobs into the area and jolted tourism.Projects like the one that Musk built in

Brownsville really have the potential to trans-form communities like Brownsville. The Uni-versity of Texas at Brownsville is attempting towork with SpaceX to provide a series of newscience initiatives. The University aims to addphysics professors and seats to its classes inorder prepare students to work directly withSpaceX.There is no doubt that such a rapidly grow-

ing and notable University presence will attractLatinos from here in Texas as well as fromacross the border. Instead of crossing the borderin search of minimum wage work, Latinosmight soon cross with grander dreams of be-

coming an engineer or physicist and working atBrownsville’s launch site. Brownsville is serv-ing as a sort of hub and possibly a bridge forLatinos to make their influence felt and con-tribute toward rocket launches and other localdevelopments.Many attribute the presence of large compa-

nies like Musk as the reason for UTBrownsville’s rapid expanse. In the last decadealone, the school has added 75 new degree pro-grams, a brand new gym, new dorms and audi-torium and the campus now spreads across 450acres compared to its old 47. The UT Systemactually chose UT Brownsville’s Center for Ad-vanced Radio Astronomy as the center for itsStargate radio frequency technology program.These facilities will empower students and fac-ulty to study and develop technologies. It willmotivate hundreds and thousands to pursue sci-ence degrees and make an impact on the localcommunity.Rockets will soon be launching from

Brownsville. Soon, about a dozen will blast offacross a year’s time. The rocket launches will bean accomplishment that all locals can be proudof. In a few years, we’ll hopefully be able to saythat diverse groups of scientists worked on therockets with several Latinos at the forefront.

This article was written by Patrick Ryan and appeared

in www.WiredLatinos.com on February 17, 2015

a burgeoning center for economicgrowth and latino development After two decades of po-

litical posturing, a cross-bor-der trucking program willsoon be ready to roll, open-ing up an avenue to expandtrade between Texas andMexico.The U.S.-Mexico cross-

border trucking program al-lows Mexican truckingcompanies to apply for per-mission to travel with theirU.S.-bound goods beyondthe current 20- to 25-milelimit past the border. Cur-rently, most trucks haulgoods to the border, wherethe products are warehousedand reloaded by Americancarriers for shipment to theirfinal destinations.But trade and union

groups in the U.S. say a re-cent pilot program thattested the policy — a com-ponent of the North Ameri-can Free Trade Agreement— did not compile enoughreliable data and that Ameri-can drivers could be at riskas a result.After a second, three-

year pilot program was com-pleted in October, theFederal Motor CarrierSafety Administration an-nounced in January thatMexican carriers are ontrack to enroll in the pro-gram if they meet varioussafety and training stan-dards.The program could add

to an already booming traderelationship between Texasand Mexico.

Visitwww.texastribune.org

to view complete article

EJBorderplex

Cross-Bordertrucking programmoving forward

Brownsville, texas:


project updates

Sunrise Mall to undergo renovation

EJBroWnSville Borderplex

State Highway 550 near completionConstruction of State High-

way 550 is almost completeand authorities expect the proj-ect to be finalized before thesummer.The new highway will con-

nect the Port of Brownsvillewith the I-69 East Corridor.

The new corridor, a $48million project, will be of greatbenefit to freight transport bytruck, since trucks will have adirect connection to the Port ofBrownsville and would avoidcrossing through the city, sav-ing time and money. EJ

CBL & Associates Proper-ties, Inc., the owner and man-ager of Sunrise Mall inBrownsville, will begin amulti-million dollar renova-tion of the shopping center. The renovations expected

to begin in March and will becompleted just in time for hol-iday shopping this November.The renovation at Sunrise

Mall will involve modern up-dates including many contem-porary design improvements.These include: fresh paint,

new flooring and tile, up-graded lighting elements, up-graded restrooms with newamenities, new benches andplants throughout the com-mon areas. EJ

new toyota dealership

expected to openin the summer

The new BrownsvilleToyota dealership, operateby the Zamora AutomotiveGroup, is set to open to thepublic in the summer.Brownsville Toyota will

be housed in a 50,000-square-foot facility on 12acres of land. Zamora Automotive has

invested $15.5 million inland acquisition, construc-tion, furniture, fixtures andequipment, and will have in-vested $24 million by thetime the facility is fullystocked with inventory.The dealership aims to

hire 50 employees initiallyand estimates that by thethird year it will employ 100people, with the goal of 150employees by the seventhyear in operation. EJ

Courtesy Photo Cameron County RMA

Courtesy Photo Cameron County RMA


Twitter: @LaunchBville

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