Wyoming Business: Lowe’s Cheyenne project moves full speed ahead

CHEYENNE — A slower national economy isn’t slowing plans by Lowe’s Cos. to gain a greater share of the national home-improvement market, especially here in the West.

The North Carolina-based company, the 14th largest retailer in the United States last year and 34th in the world with 700-plus stores, plans to open some 120 new stores this year, and it’s ninth regional distribution center is taking shape rapidly in Cheyenne.

“It’s full speed ahead; there’s absolutely no retrenchment,” Lowe’s senior vice president Lee Herring told The Northern Colorado Business Report during a recent visit to Cheyenne. “We had a strong first quarter, and we’re not altering our schedule of opening stores.”

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Symbolizing Lowe’s rapid growth is its $60 million distribution center in the Cheyenne Business Parkway. The facility was taking shape even as formal ground-breaking ceremonies were held in August.

When operational late in 2002, the Cheyenne center will be the largest building in Wyoming at more than 1 million square feet, the size of 20 football fields or 25 acres under roof. It will handle more than 200 trucks a day to serve some 85 Lowe’s stores throughout the West and Midwest.

The interior will have five miles of conveyors, will hold $25 million in inventory and have 30,000 different products. The center will be “part of one of the most sophisticated and low-cost distribution networks in retail,” Herring said.

Manufacturers will gather for industry pulse taking

CASPER — Wyoming’s manufacturers will gather in Casper Sept. 13 to 15 for the first Wyoming Manufacturers’ Conference at the Parkway Plaza.

“This is a great opportunity for manufacturers in the state to find out what’s happening in the industry, get new ideas for their businesses and network with fellow manufacturers,´ said Bruce Brown, president of the Wyoming Manufacturers’ Association.

Workshops will cover topics such as using electronic commerce in business, analyzing marketing plans, cutting business energy costs, finding monetary resources to improve business, maximizing technology investments and getting the most out of employees.

The conference is being sponsored by the WMA, Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center, Small Business Development Center, the Wyoming Business Council and the University of Wyoming. For more information contact Carol Stearns at the Business Council, (304) 777-2882 or e-mail cstear@state.wy.us.

UW students move ahead with NASA biofilm testing

LARAMIE — Experiments being performed during simulated weightlessness by University of Wyoming students could help deal with corrosion caused by biofilms on industrial equipment.

The group of students were accepted by NASA for a program at the Johnson Space Center in which they do experiments during periods of micro gravity on KC135-A flights over the Gulf of Mexico.

The experiment planned by the students is designed to determine whether bacteria bind to objects more rapidly during weightlessness than at normal gravity. The most important step in the formation of a biofilm is the initial adhesion of the bacteria to a given surface.

According to a report from Buckman Laboratories, biofilms cause a wide range of industrial problems, such as corrosion.

Wyoming’s assets touted in development magazine

CHEYENNE — Wyoming’s “favorable cost of doing business” and “cooperative government” are the focus of an article appearing in Area Development magazine.

The monthly magazine circulates to more than 45,000 business executives, site selectors and facility planners and focuses on factors necessary for successful corporate expansion or relocation, such as labor, taxes, incentives, quality of life and transportation.

“Favorable costs of doing business and a cooperative government are major inducements for companies to relocate to or expand in the Equality State,” writes author Mali Schantz-Feld in the August issue.

Wyoming’s accelerating economy is compared to the slower pace of the nation, and its recent high ranking by the Small Business Survival Foundation as the fourth most entrepreneur-friendly state is outlined. The article also highlights recent business expansions by firms, including Allwire Corp., Grobet File Co., Sento Corp. Aspen Media and Market Research, Ouray Sportswear and Lowe’s.