SRMA

State Legislature Passes Tax Exemption on Equipment for Florida Manufacturers

David — Sat, 04 May 2013 05:57:24 +0000

The recently-passed legislation marking a tax holiday on manufacturing equipment is a victory on the part of the SRMA and every other group in Florida looking out for the best interests of manufacturers in general and Florida economy growth in general. Below is the email we’ve received from the Manufacturers Association of Florida (MAF), including links to some very important documents — not the least of which is a list of NAICS codes for equipment that will be recognized under the exemption:

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Dear MAF Members:

Attached is the MAF press release about the manufacturing sales tax exemption that passed, the complete list of 2007 NAICS codes referenced in the bill, and a copy of the bill for your reading pleasure!

NAICS 2007 List of Codes for Exempted Manufacturing Equipment

Legislation Paves the Way for Manufacturing Growth

7007ER

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If you’re a manufacturer in Southwest Florida or a member of the media and would like more information, please contact the President and CEO of the SRMA, Betsy Allen, at (239) 898-1623, or use our SRMA contact form.

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Florida Chamber Applauds Action to Eliminate Manufacturing Sales Tax

Grant Goodman — Sat, 04 May 2013 05:51:46 +0000

Florida Chamber Applauds Action to Eliminate Manufacturing Sales Tax

The Florida Legislature has taken steps to make Florida more competitive by passing Governor Rick Scott’s proposal to eliminate the manufacturing sales tax. The Florida Chamber of Commerce has been a longtime supporter of reducing the manufacturing sales tax and worked closely with our partners at the Manufacturing Association of Florida to support Governor Scott’s proposal.

“For far too long, Florida has been at a competitive disadvantage by being the only state on the Atlantic seaboard and on the Gulf coast to charge sales taxes on manufacturing equipment,” said Mark Wilson, President and CEO of the Florida Chamber. “As Florida’s trade and logistics industry grows, and as we are poised to take advantage of the expansion of the Panama Canal, lifting the manufacturing and equipment sales tax will help ensure Florida is prepared to take full advantage of these new opportunities, to double Florida-origin exports in the years to come, and to create more high-skill, high-wage manufacturing jobs.”

The impact of manufacturing on Florida’s economy can’t be understated:

More than 17,500 manufacturing companies employ more than 300,000 Floridians, and
Manufacturing-industry jobs pay above average salaries – 122% of the average annual state wage.

According to the Florida Chamber Foundation, while the rest of the state’s economy grew .5% from 2010-2011, Florida’s manufacturing industry grew 3.3% in that time.

Appearing on The Florida Chamber’s Bottom Line last week, Governor Scott explained Florida’s current competitive disadvantage with the existing tax.

“We only have 4.3 percent of our jobs in manufacturing. That’s way below the national average,” Governor Scott said. “With our 15 seaports and investment in our seaports, the fact that we’re a right to work state, and have lower business taxes, we should have way more manufacturing jobs than the rest of the country as a percentage. This is our opportunity to level the playing field.”

Join Us:

To join the Florida Chamber’s efforts on this issue or others, contact Greg Blose at 850-521-1243 or gblose@flchamber.com.
Please take the Florida Chamber’s survey on manufacturing, trade, and logistics by clicking here.

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Sales Tax Exemption Passes the Legislature Tonight

Grant Goodman — Sat, 04 May 2013 05:50:15 +0000

Sales Tax Exemption Passes the Legislature Tonight

Dear MAF Members:

With lots of political drama this week, a manufacturing sales tax exemption passed the Senate and House and is on its way to the Governor. In short, the measure, amended to HB 7007, provides for a three-year sales tax exemption on manufacturing machinery and equipment for businesses in SIC Codes 31, 32 and 33. The measure would go into effect in April 2014 and sunset in April 2017. There would be no productivity showing required during that period. The purchaser would have to provide an affadavit of eligibility to the seller at the time of purchase.

A big thanks to Govenror Scott, President Gaetz, Speaker Weatherford, Rep. Magar and Sen. Hukill for their hard work on this. There are so many people that helped with this bill we were humbled by the outpouring of support from a wide variety of interests and those legislators who spoke in favor of it during its final consideration.

A more detailed report will follow in this week’s newsletter. Congratulations to all of you for all the work you put into this!

Start planning your purchases!!!!

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Pelican Wire a Reason and a Destination for Governor Scott’s Visit to Southwest Florida

David — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:23:33 +0000

Friday, April 19 is likely to be a day that Ted Bill and the rest of SRMA member Pelican Wire remembers for a long, long time. Not only did Florida governor Rick Scott stop by to hold a press conference announcing Florida’s latest unemployment numbers were not only down but also under the national average, he also took the opportunity to tour the Pelican Wire facility, congratulate the company for being named the first SRMA Manufacturer of the Year, meet and greet many of its employees, and present Pelican Wire President Ted Bill with the Governor’s Business Ambassador Award.

Governor Scott also addressed a topic near and dear to the hearts of not only Pelican Wire but of the Southwest Regional Manufacturing Association itself: The proposed elimination of sales tax on manufacturing equipment. Eliminating the state tax — which only a handful of states besides Florida still assess — would not only save manufacturers substantial money on equipment purchases but also eliminate a potential reason for manufacturers not to relocate to Southwest Florida.

SRMA members made the trip to south Naples to show support for fellow member Pelican Wire. Those in attendance from the SRMA included Matt Chambers of Marine Concepts / JRL Ventures, Brian Rist from Smart Companies, Peter Bagwell from Polygon Solutions, Larry Hart of Lighthouse Media Productions, David and Natalie Dewhirst from ThreeTwelve Creative, and SRMA’s first-ever student member Austin McCauley.

Interested in possibly becoming a member? Check out SRMA member benefits, shoot us a message, or give us a call at 239-898-1623. We’d love to hear from you!

Brian Rist, Natalie Dewhirst, Matt Chambers, and Austin McCauley

News Coverage of the Governor’s Visit to Pelican Wire

Southwest Florida Business Today: Pelican Wire named 2012 manufacturer of the year

NBC-2: Gov. Scott announces new unemployment stats in Naples

FOX 4: Governor Scott announces unemployment at 7.5% in March

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Pelican Wire Named Manufacturer of the Year

David — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:31:14 +0000

Inaugural SRMA Awards Gala Names SWFL’s Top Manufacturer and Employees

Fort Myers—At the Inaugural SRMA Recognition of Excellence Award Banquet held on April 6, 2013 in Fort Myers, Florida, the Southwest Regional Manufacturers Association announced the winners of this year’s Manufacturer of the Year competitions.

Our four judges narrowed the competition to four finalists; one winner and two honorable mentions were selected. Each company was judged on leadership; strategic planning; customer and market focus; measurement, analysis and knowledge management; workforce focus; and process management. In addition to the evaluation of applications, tours of finalists’ facilities were made by the judges.

And the Winner Is

We are pleased to announce that the 2012 SWFL Manufacturer of the Year is the Pelican Wire Company, Inc., of Naples. Pelican Wire Company, Inc. is an Employee Stock Ownership Plan Company (ESOP). It is a custom insulator of wire that has grown by leaps and bounds since it was founded in Illinois in 1969. It currently staffs 65 dedicated employee-owners working around the clock to produce and ship the highest quality products for their customers in defense/aerospace, medical devices, plastic cutting machines, dentistry and ceramic shops. Pelican Wire has an expert in-house engineering team made up of professionals across the country. Pelican Wire is an ISO9001:2008 certified company with internal quality standards that are a top priority for its employees.

Pelican Wire’s goal is to achieve customer satisfaction through excellence in design, supply chain management and wire manufacturing solutions. Through their culture, and the drive and expertise of each individual employee, they are uniquely positioned to provide best-in-class quality and services to a global customer base.

Please join the SRMA in congratulating Pelican Wire on this great achievement. For more information, please visit their website at http://www.pelicanwire.com/.

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5th Annual Tech Awards go to dESCO LLC and Polygon Solutions

David — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 00:45:59 +0000

The Southwest Florida Regional Technology Partnership selected dESCO LLC and Polygon Solutions for top recognition at its Fifth Annual Technology Awards Ceremony brought to you by CenturyLink Wednesday, March 20^th, 2013.

Polygon Solutions was honored in the “Transformation” category for its development of the most advanced rotary broaching tool holder on the market. Adjustment free with low maintenance, this tool fits nearly every turning machine on the market today. The other finalists in this category were T3Communications that meets demands for enhanced communication services and Video Career Finder who had developed an innovative method for candidates to introduce themselves to employers.

dESCO LLC of Fort Myers was honored in the “Savvis Direct Innovention” category for its service management suite. The other finalists in this category were Naples Network Services with devices used to monitor homes and business to provide alerts for flooding / HVAC failure and Position Logic that provides both hosted and enterprise GPS tracking platform software and location-based services.

A third award, for “Partnership,” was presented to SWFRTP Programs Chair Volunteer Stephen Craig, for his endless hours committed to providing quality, monthly events to educate and connect the SWFL technology professional community. Finalists in this category were board member Marc Farron of Surround Technologies and board member Kim Brown of Diversified Services.

The Awards Ceremony is Southwest Florida’s longest-running, high-profile “excellence in technology” event. This year’s keynote Speaker was Gary Beach, Publisher Emeritus of CIO Magazine, who spoke to the educational dismemberment of America and encourage attendees to engage with the youth of today through mentoring or teaching and encouraging interest in technology fields.

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