So much for the “dog days” of summer and the warm summer evenings!!  As the daily temperatures drop and September draws to a close, so does the Commission’s fiscal year.  The fall months are always very busy at our organization as we prepare the year-end statements and new fiscal year budgets, as well as set performance goals for the upcoming year.   Staff members are currently developing five new strategic initiatives to implement next year, which will be released once the strategic plan is adopted by the Board of Directors.

Congratulations to Bob Skarada for receiving a NADO 2007 Excellence in Regional Transportation Award for the Long Range Transportation Plan.  Bob will be in Chattanooga, TN at the end of the month for the National Rural Transportation Peer Learning Conference to accept the award.

KB Pizza Gets Some Dough
The Northwest Commission presented KB Pizza with a check in the amount of $123,700 for a Small Business First loan for their expansion in Franklin, Venango County.  KB Pizza began operations in 1982 producing hand-made, pre baked pizza crust.  This expansion will create an additional four jobs for the company.

                                           
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Recapitalizing the Loan Funds
The United States Department of Agriculture awarded the Northwest Commission a loan in the amount of $250,000.  Gary H. Groves, PA State Director of USDA Rural Development, and staff, awarded Denise McCloskey, Executive Director of the Northwest Commission, and Daryl Coyne, Manager Loan Programs of the Northwest Commission, the check before a group of local legislators, legislative aides, and county officials.  These funds will be re-lent by the Northwest Commission to local businesses through the Commission’s Revolving Loan Fund.
                                        
                                          
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Commission Recognized at NADO Awards
The Northwest Commission recently sent representatives to Austin, Texas, for the National Association of Development Organizations 2007 Innovation Awards.  The Commission won three awards for programs that are offered to local businesses and municipalities.  The Broadband Aggregation program, managed by Randy Rice, won a technology award.  The Northwest Commission’s neighborhood GIS program, run by Matt Gilara, took another technology award, and the Breakfast of Champions program, organized by Dorte Heffernan, also took home one of the Business and Entrepreneurship awards.

                               
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I believe Northwest Pennsylvania is the most beautiful place on earth during the fall season.  Take the time to enjoy the work of art displayed by nature … it will speak to you. 

Happy autumn,
 

Nine Loans Approved in August

The loan Committee approved nine loans for eight companies in August: 

• Optical Filters USA LLC of Crawford County
• Jepson Precision Tool, Inc. of Erie County
• Moe’s Southwest Grill of Erie County
• Moonlight Packaging of Venango County
• Candy’s Notary Services of Erie County
• Organic’s and YOU of Mercer County
• BiBo’s Ice Cream of Venango County
• French Creek Group of Venango County

New Marketing Efforts Under Development
The Northwest Commission Loan Department will be incorporating new marketing techniques, designed to get the word out about loan services and programs to partners and potential clients as a result of recent attendance at the Economic Development Finance Service (EDFS) workshop in Austin, Texas, Aug. 23-24.  EDFS is an arm of the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO), providing training specific to the federal loan programs. This workshop provided training on the importance of strategic planning and how it relates to the loan programs. EDFS also provided marketing training for loan programs.     

Click Here for  Loan Workshop Details to be held on October 18th. 
 

On Sept. 5 and 6, the Northwest Commission hosted a Wide Area Workflow (WAWF) training event which provided businesses hands-on training with this electronic vendor payment system. The Commission had representatives from 7 regional companies attend this seminar. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) trained those attending the seminar on this web-based system which allows government contractors and employees to interact on a transaction level to execute contractor invoicing, government inspection, acceptance and payment for goods or services rendered to the federal government. For more detailed information on WAWF and additional training opportunities for accessing and using this new system please go to: http://www.wawftraining.com.  For additional information and a great list of resources regarding WAWF, please visit:
http://www.dfas.mil/contractorpay/electroniccommerce/ECToolBox.html

Resource Spotlight:  Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)
DLA is the largest U.S. Department of Defense agency.  DLA procures, manages, stores, and distributes almost every consumable item the military needs to operate. Commodities include:  Maritime and land weapons systems support, aviation support, energy, food, clothing, medical supplies, and general and industrial supplies.  DLA is comprised of four major Inventory Control Points or Defense Supply Centers that are responsible for purchasing commodities and services.  The centers are the Defense Supply Center Columbus, Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Defense Supply Center Richmond and the Defense Energy Support Center.  The Defense Supply Centers Small Business Offices are a great resource for small business and worth getting in touch with!  Click here to find more information on the DLA’s Small Business Offices: http://www.dla.mil/db/.  An overview on “Doing Business with the Defense Logistics Agency” can be found on the following web link: http://www.dla.mil/db/Small%20Business%20Vendor%20Course.pdf.

Information for PA Veterans:
For those of you who don’t already know it, the Pennsylvania State Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 87 which will require the Department of General Services to establish policies that each purchasing agency shall have an annual goal of not less than 5% of participation by veteran-owned businesses in all contracts entered into by the purchasing agency.  The participation goal shall apply to the overall dollar amount expended by the purchasing agency with respect to the contracts.  The Bill has gone to the State House for review and a possible vote.  If approved by the house in its current form, it will then go to the Governor for his signature and would become State law within 60 days from the date he signs it.  For more information on this Bill, please go to: http://www.legis.state.pa.us.  

Northwest Commission Upcoming Events:

Sept. 20 – Wide-Area Workflow training
One more chance for WAWF training!  The Northwest Commission is hosting one more session – free of charge – on Thursday, Sept. 20. Note that as of Oct. 1, the Department of Defense will no longer be funding WAWF training, and if your company would like to have free, hands-on training, this is your last chance! The one day training class will be at the Computer Lab at the Franklin Industrial & Commercial Development Authority (FICDA) located at 191 Howard St., Franklin, (directions are available via their website, www.ficda.org). The class will be from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with sign-in starting at 8:30 a.m.  There is no cost in attending this event.   To register for this training, please contact Lori Moore at (814) 677-4800, ext. 104 or by email: lorimo@nwcommission.org.   We hope to see you there!

Oct. 29 – Government Procurement Seminar
The Northwest Commission’s PTAC is working with U.S. Congressman Phil English to co-host a daylong government procurement seminar.  October 29^th is the date - watch for more detailed information on location and the agenda.
 

PA offers new trade offices in France and Qatar!
Effective Sept. 1, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has officially opened new authorized trade representation offices in France and Qatar. France will also cover Belgium. Qatar will cover Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Oman and Yemen.

For additional information, please contact Dorte Heffernan.

Mediphar Taipei 2007 – Taipei, Taiwan Nov. 8-11
Pennsylvania companies are invited to participate in this catalogue show. Pennsylvania’s authorized trade representative in Taiwan will be supporting a trade booth and catalogue show at this 19^th annual international show on Medical Equipment, Pharmaceuticals & Bio-Technology.

Over the years, the Taiwanese healthcare industry has been under vigorous development and is uniquely equipped to contribute to the continuing advancement of the pharmaceuticals and medical science industry. Its success is attributed to the support and efforts of government, educational and research institutes and many industry-related companies. For additional information and a copy of the registration form, please click here.

Pennsylvania Export Finance Program
The Export Finance Program (EFP or the “Program”) administered by the PA Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), is designed to increase the level of foreign exports and the number of exporting companies in Pennsylvania. Many creditworthy small businesses do not have access to adequate financing because they either lack a relationship with a financial institution with export finance capabilities or the size of the transaction makes it uneconomical for the private sector to participate, even when credit risks are insured. The program fills the export financing gap by lending on export contracts.

EFP provides assistance for two types of export financing projects. As a Delegated Authority Lender Authority under Ex-Im Bank’s Working Capital Guarantee Program, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is permitted to provide working capital financing for pre-export working capital needs. In addition, the program also provides accounts receivable financing for post-export assistance. This program is not intended to supplant or be a substitute for funds otherwise available from private lending sources. For additional information please click here.

Country Profile – Qatar
The government of Qatar (GOQ) is focused on developing a modern and diverse economy in partnership with the private sector. The State of Qatar is a sheikdom; the chief of state and head of government is the amir. The State of Qatar includes the whole Qatar peninsula, holding a strategic location in the central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits. Qatar’s only land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south. Qatar imports over 90% of its food. In addition to the US other major food suppliers to the Qatar market are the EU, Australia, and Saudi Arabia. Most of Qatar’s food product imports transit through the United Arab Emirates. The following sectors offer the most promise for U.S. exporters: Agricultural & Food Products (Qatar is importing a broad range of U.S. prepared foodstuffs, from sauces and mustard to bakery ingredients and cereal foods), Building Materials ( to include iron and steel products such as pipes and tubes; textiles and yarns; non-metallic products such as cement, tiles, glassware, tableware, floor coverings and plastic goods), Chemicals, Education Services & Equipment, Machinery & Transportation (to include valves, boiler shells, tanks, etc. motor vehicles (passenger types) and accessories; electrical distribution and control panels; building and construction machinery; and power generating machinery), Medical Equipment & Services, Oil and Gas Services, Security & Safety Equipment, Telecommunication, Water Resource Equipment.

English is widely spoken in the business community and many business people have an American education.
 

The Long Range Transportation Plan has been completed and is posted on the Northwest Commission’s website at
 http://www.nwcommission.org/transportation.html.  

A quarterly Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) meeting will be held on September 20, 2007 at the Business Innovation Center at 10:30 AM.
 

The following LTAP course was held in the northwest Pennsylvania region during August 2007:

• August 23, 2007  – Equipment and Worker Safety – Vernon Township, Crawford County (18 Attendees)

Upcoming LTAP Courses:

• September 27, 2007 (8 AM – 4 PM) – Winter Maintenance – Vernon Township, Crawford County
• November 7, 2007 (8 AM – Noon) – Posting and Bonding of Local Roads – Higher Ed Council, City of Corry, Erie County
• November 8, 2007 (8 AM – Noon) – Signing and Work Zone Rules for Local Governments – Vernon Township, Crawford County

To register, please contact Matt Gilara (814) 677-4800 x102, or by email at mattg@nwcommission.org.   You may also register for these courses online at https://www.ltap.state.pa.us
 

Northwest Commission worked with Perry Township, Clarion County to collect culvert locations with a GPS unit.  The data collected was used to create an interactive mapping website for the township (www.nwneighborhoodgis.com).  This project was to show Perry Township and other municipalities the benefits of using GIS/GPS technology.  GIS and GPS technology provides a means for municipalities to keep track of and maintain their inventory.

The Northwest Commission is looking into possible funding options for creating digital parcels in Clarion, Crawford, Forest, and Venango County.  This project is in the very early stages and Commission staff has been working with individuals from each of the aforementioned counties to get input and direction. 

Please contact Matt Gilara, GISP - Manager, Regional Planning at (814) 677-4800 x102 or mattg@nwcommission.org if you have any questions regarding GIS/GPS.