Four Iowa corporations have joined forces with CIRAS to create the Iowa Sustainable Business Forum (ISBF)—a new nonprofit organization that will be dedicated to improving businesses while boosting environmental stewardship and social responsibility.
Month: May 2015
New CIRAS paper shows Iowa Industries may be at a Reshoring Tipping Point
Manufacturing jobs that fled U.S. soil decades ago for cheaper overseas labor might now be poised to come back – but only in certain sectors and only a little at a time, according to a newly released white paper from two CIRAS experts. The upshot for Iowa is that producers in a handful of tipping-point industries should be keeping a close eye on labor and energy prices. In some cases, CIRAS experts say, those numbers could prove that manufacturers are paying too much to foreign suppliers or that U.S.-based suppliers are missing an opportunity.
CIRAS DIGEST: Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Happy Tuesday. Welcome back to work. We greet you with a little deep thinking, some prognostication, and some advice on how to handle the booze:
CIRAS NEWS: Friday, May 22, 2015
Happy Friday. Ready for the holiday? We suggest you avoid any new projects this morning and instead spend today catching up on a few days’ worth of industry news. Here’s what you might learn while trying hard to look busy:
CIRAS DIGEST: Monday, May 18, 2015
Happy Monday. There are a few signs of optimism in the manufacturing news. Plus, one warning of doom and an example of technical experts showing off. Read about it all here:
CIRAS Innovation Service Cuts Costs, Boosts Business for Iowa Spring
An Adel-based manufacturer of springs for garage doors and agricultural equipment cut its costs by more than 30 percent and expects to boost sales by more than $1 million after adopting an innovative new technology that it tested as part of a CIRAS innovation service.
CIRAS Digest: Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Happy Tuesday. Lots of big thinking today – about machines, plants and what the heck we need to do to make the millennials happy in Iowa.
CIRAS Digest: Friday, May 8, 2015
Happy Friday. Today, as we patrol the Internet, we find an unusual stockpile of happy and/or hopeful news. Plus, some deep thinking about the future. Feel free to spend the weekend pondering it all. Start your studies here:
BREAKING: CIRAS, NICC Partner to Better Serve Northeast Iowa Businesses
DUBUQUE– Northeast Iowa businesses should now find it easier to get what they need to grow. Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) and Iowa State University’s Center for Industrial Research and Service (CIRAS) have announced a partnership to provide a single point of contact for businesses seeking help in that region. As part of this agreement, Seth Gilbert, J.D., has been named the NICC/CIRAS Account Manager for the Dubuque area and will be charged with helping businesses find the programs and support services they need in either or both entities.
CIRAS Digest: Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Happy Tuesday. Today we bring you whiplash – flat economic numbers, flat economic numbers that likely are heading bad…. and good tax receipts for the state. Plus, a planned surge in robots and a strong future for manufacturing. Here’s where to find it: