ECD Accepting Entries for Governor’s Award for Trade Excellence

Tennessee Companies Will be Honored at 2011 Governor’s Conference

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty today announced the state will begin accepting applications for the 2011 Governor’s Award for Trade Excellence (GATE). The awards will be presented at the 58th Annual Governor’s Conference on Economic and Community Development at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel on September 22 and 23, 2011.

“The efforts made by Tennessee companies to extend their market reach globally help the state bring many of our exceptional products and services to areas all around the world,” said Haslam. “In turn, these efforts help produce high-quality jobs for Tennesseans, and I am honored to recognize these companies for their hard work.”

The awards are given to Tennessee companies that have shown strong export growth in three categories: large companies (250 or more employees), medium sized companies (26 - 250 employees) and small companies (25 employees or less). Businesses may nominate themselves or be nominated by a trade association, customer or a person familiar with the company’s achievements.

“In the past few years, Tennessee companies have set the bar high with regards to global trade,” said Hagerty. “In 2010, Tennessee exported more than $25.9 billion in merchandise to countries around the globe, compared to $20.4 billion in 2009. This figure reaffirms that Tennessee’s market is continually expanding not only across our state and country but around the world.”

Nominations may be submitted online by clicking here or an application may be downloaded and mailed to ECD, Attn.: Nicole Gagliano, 312 Rosa L. Parks Ave., 11th Floor, Nashville, TN 37243. Alternatively applications can be scanned and emailed to Nicole.gagliano@tn.gov. The deadline for applications is August 26, 2011. The department, along with international trade experts, will review applications and make recommendations to the Governor and Commissioner Hagerty for final approval.

Winners named in last year’s GATE ceremony were:

• Christie Medical Holdings, Inc. (small business category) leading product is VeinView, a vascular imaging system that allows health care professionals to clearly see accessible vasculature veins, making clinical treatments for varicose and spider veins much more effective. The product is exported to 40 countries around the globe, and Christie Medical Holdings has 28 international partnerships throughout the top medical markets in the world. In 2009, 60 percent of Christie Medical Holdings, Inc.’s annual sales were attributed to exports, up 5 percent from the previous year.

• DuPont Tate & Lyle BioProducts (medium business category) utilizes biotechnology to transform agricultural feedstocks such as corn sugar or glucose into functional ingredients for a variety of consumer and industrial applications. The Loudon facility’s primary product is an industrial form of the molecule propanediol marketed under the trade names Susterra and Zemea, used in the cosmetics and personal care industry. When products scented for the U.S. market proved to be a barrier to gaining market share for the Japanese and Korean markets, DuPont, Tate & Lyle devised a post production process which gave the product a different scent and Asian customers responded enthusiastically. Approximately 42 percent of DuPont Tate & Lyle BioProducts’ annual sales were direct export sales, up from 30 percent the previous year.

• Jarden Zinc Products, LLC (large business category) manufactures plated nickel, brass, bronze and copper over steel and zinc substrates for coinage, industrial and cathodic protection products worldwide. Originally, a producer of the historic Ball home canning jars, Jarden can trace its origins as a company back to 1880. Bolstered by a major contract to produce nickel-plated coin blanks for the treasury of the Philippines in 2009, Jarden overcame significant obstacles to win the business. More than half of Jarden Zinc Products, LLC’s 2009 sales were direct export sales. The company plans a multi-million dollar expansion to handle demand in 2011 adding 16 new jobs in Greeneville, Tennessee and preserving over 1,000 jobs among suppliers in Clarksville, Gordonsville and Strawberry Plains, Tennessee.

Questions related to the application process can be e-mailed at Nicole.Gagliano@tn.gov or by calling (615) 253-1390.

About the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development
The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies which help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. The department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. To find out more, go to www.tn.gov/ecd.

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Contact: Shannon Sumrall, ECD
Office: (615) 253-4897
E-mail: shannon.sumrall@tn.gov