Recipients to be recognized at 63rd Annual Governor’s Conference
NASHVILLE— The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development today announced Nanomechanics Inc., Expoquip, Inc. and the Greater Memphis Area Chamber as recipients of the Governor’s Award for Trade Excellence. The GATE Award honors companies that have achieved excellence in engaging in global trade. The winners will be presented their awards at the 63rd Annual Governor’s Conference on Economic and Community Development on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016 during the Governor’s Luncheon.
“These three companies have made a great impact on the state of Tennessee,” TNECD Commissioner Randy Boyd said. “I would like to congratulate this year’s GATE Award winner on their excellence in exporting. It is exciting to see Tennessee companies exporting products all over the world. In 2015, Tennessee companies exported nearly $32.6 billion worth of goods of services. These three companies are helping to bring Tennessee products all over the globe, and we plan to keep that number growing”
Nanomechanics, Inc., one of the small business winners, designs, produces and distributes instrumentation for testing the mechanical properties of materials and devices at the micro/nano scale. Founded in 2009, Nanomechanics is headquartered in Oak Ridge. The company exports to academic research labs and industry in foreign countries. It’s exports in 2015 were 65 percent of total product sales, and represented a 326 percent increase over 2014.
Expoquip Inc., the second small business winner, was founded as an export company with emphasis on international customers in the construction, earthmoving and mining industries. In the early years, Expoquip served customers in just a few foreign countries, but with dedication over the years to developing a broad international client base, Expoquip now serves customers in 35 countries worldwide. Expoquip’s sales staff consists of employees that collectively speak five different languages. The company regularly trains employees in cultural relationships and diversity in the international marketplace.
The Greater Memphis Area Chamber is the large size business winner. Memphis is the global marketplace for thriving international entities and to cater to these international needs, both domestically and internationally, the chamber has developed an International Division. The International Division at the Greater Memphis Chamber works to educate, eliminate any barriers and expand the domestic interests of our members globally through its re-emerged International Business Council. The International Business Council’s committees and task forces help to define the best practices to offer Chamber members and international constituents on the issues that are most critical to a business or organization. The Metro Memphis Export Alliance (MMEA) was created in order to increase exports from Memphis area manufacturers and distributors by helping companies begin and continue to export their goods in additional markets.
Tennessee companies exported nearly $32.6 billion worth of goods and services in 2015. Top export commodities include medical equipment and supplies, motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts, computer equipment and basic chemicals. Tennessee has offices currently in Japan, Germany, Italy and China with new offices opening in 2017 to continue to increase exports and Foreign Direct Investment.
For more information about trade in Tennessee, visit export.tnecd.com.
The 63rd Annual Governor’s Conference on Economic and Community Development will be held Oct. 27-28 at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel. For more information on the conference, visit govcon.tnecd.com.
About the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development
The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies that help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. To grow and strengthen Team Tennessee, the department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. Tennessee is the only three-time winner of “State of the Year” for economic development by Business Facilities magazine. Find us on the web: TNECD.com. Follow us on Twitter: @TNECD. Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/TNECD.
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