Connected to the World

With its prime geographic location, top-notch infrastructure, multilingual workforce and abundance of readily available financial resources, Florida is a leader in global trade.

And perhaps no one appreciates it more than Jean-Michel Caffin, chief executive officer for Bureau Veritas North America, part of an international group that provides certification, inspection, transportation and logistics services. Founded in Europe in 1828, Bureau Veritas has offices and laboratories in 140 countries, including 70 sites in the U.S., 12 of which are in Florida and employ 400 people.

Bureau Veritas works with retailers, manufacturers, traders, government agencies and civil engineering firms worldwide to ensure that their products, equipment and management systems meet regulatory, quality and performance requirements. In the early 1990s, Bureau Veritas opened its first Florida-based operation--the Western Hemisphere Head Office for its Government Services and International Division--in Miami. Within the decade, the firm moved its Marine Division from New York to south Florida, which put the company closer to Port Everglades, home to many of the cruise ships it inspects. Next, Bureau Veritas relocated its Aeronautics Division to Miami. Later, when it came time to find a North American headquarters for the company's fast-growing Industry and Facilities Division, Caffin says, Florida just made sense.

Why? Because the state offers easy access for both North American and Latin American clients and, with its East Coast location, allows for closer links and better communication with both European clients and the firm's global headquarters in Paris, he explains. Florida's business-friendly tax structure and talented labor pool were additional draws.

Not only has Florida proved ideal for Bureau Veritas, it's perfect for Caffin himself. Raised in Morocco by French parents, this CEO who has lived in eight countries admits to often feeling like a stranger in a strange land. In multicultural Miami, he and his wife, a British citizen raised in Zimbabwe, have found a home.

Trade boom
It's no wonder Caffin feels at home here. In recent years, Florida has become a hub for international commerce. Since 2003, Florida's total merchandise trade has increased by 31% and the total amount of exports has swelled by 36%. In 2005, Floridaorigin exports were $33.4 billion, making Florida one of the nation's primary players in the global marketplace.

The future for international trade here looks even brighter, due in large part to the Dominican Republic- Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA). Approved in mid-2005, the agreement eliminates barriers to trade and investment in the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua by immediately eliminating all tariffs on 80% of U.S. manufactured goods, with the balance to be phased out gradually over the coming years.

Formal agreements with four countries-- Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras--have been ratified and are now in effect. The trade agreement with the Dominican Republic is scheduled for completion by the end of 2006, and negotiations with Costa Rica are expected to be finalized by the end of 2007.

The fact that some 300 multinational firms have located their Latin American and Caribbean regional headquarters in Florida is proof that the state already enjoys solid trade relationships with these countries and more. In 2005, Florida's merchandise trade with DR-CAFTA countries exceeded $16 billion, more than half of which ($8.6 billion) was in export sales.

Economists predict that Florida is better situated than any other state to take advantage of DR-CAFTA. Indeed, they say, the environment here is so ripe that upwards of 36,000 jobs and an additional $1.2 billion in personal income could be generated over the next 10 years as a result.

From 1995 to 2005, the total value of merchandise trade flowing into and out of the country through Florida's U.S. customs districts grew by 83%, from $52.1 billion to $95.3 billion.

Meanwhile, trade agreements with both Colombia and Peru are signed and awaiting congressional approval. Under the Colombian trade agreement more than 80% of U.S. exports would be duty-free immediately and fees on the remaining 20% would be phased out over a 10-year period. Under the trade agreement with Peru, 80% of consumer and industrial products and more than two-thirds of current U.S. farm exports will become duty-free immediately.

Both agreements are good news for Florida business. That's because Florida- origin exports to Colombia increased 25% in just the last two years, and with $524 million in exports, Florida was one of the top two states sending goods to Peru in 2005.

Bilateral success
Approximately 2,000 companies based outside the United States have operations in Florida, including Alcon, Reed Elsevier, Siemens, Sodexho, Unilever United States and Zurich North America. The total value of holdings by foreign-affiliated companies reached $34.2 billion in 2003, making Florida the ninth largest state in foreign direct investment.

Better than half of the internationally owned companies are located in Southeast Florida, and with good reason. Forty-four percent of all U.S. trade with Central and South America and the Caribbean flows through Miami.

Foreign-affiliated companies are good for employment, too. Florida ranks fifth in the nation in total number of "insourced" jobs with some 282,000 Floridians working for foreign-affiliated firms.

According to a report by the Organization for International Investment (OFII), the number of insourced jobs in Florida has grown by 31% over the last five years. Approximately 14% of those working for international firms in Florida hold jobs in manufacturing.

On the move
A solid network of road, rail, sea and air transport systems helps keep Florida's global economy on the move.

In addition to 14 deepwater ports, the state has 20 commercial airports, which offer more direct flights from Florida to Latin America and the Caribbean than from all other cities in the U.S. combined. Construction on a new airport--the only one likely to be built in the U.S. for decades--will begin in Florida's Northwest region in 2007.

A total of 31 airports are certified for air carrier operations, and 56 officially designated multimodal connectors make possible the seamless movement of people and goods between Florida and almost any point on the planet. Florida also boasts 20 Foreign Trade Zones, mostly located at or near its seaports and international airports, where value may be added to foreign goods, tariff-free, before they are shipped on to another country.

Solid transportation options, including easy access to I-10, I-95 and rail service, were key factors in Paul Robbins' decision to launch his logistics firm in Jacksonville in 1994. Twelve years later, Caribbean Cold Storage and Shipping has blossomed into an asset-based, third-party logistics provider offering clients access to oceangoing, trucking and warehousing capabilities-- a kind of one-stop shop for shipping and warehousing with stateof- the-art tracking.

Since 1994, Robbins has grown his privately held company from $3.5 million to more than $35 million in revenue. Most of his clients are exporters, and his largest market is Puerto Rico. That could change, however, when Tokyo-based shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. (MOL) begins its Asia-Jacksonville route in 2008.

During its first year of operations, MOL is expected to bring to the Jacksonville Port Authority the equivalent of 200,000 20-foot-long containers (800,000 by 2011). His own keen business acumen aside, Robbins believes his company would not have blossomed as it did had he not decided to locate in Jacksonville.

"I could have done it somewhere other than Jacksonville, but not as successfully," he says. "And now look at the opportunities there are for us. Tomorrow is what is exciting."

High-tech exports
According to the AeA 2006 Cyberstates report, Florida leads the nation in dollar value of high-technology export growt3h. And GENICON is just one example of a globally connected high-tech company that has found Florida an ideal hub.

The company manufactures and sells laparoscopic surgical products to 48 different countries. Headquartered in Orlando, GENICON has already launched sales operations in Italy and Spain and expects to open a sales office in Brazil in 2007.

President and CEO Gary Haberland had worked for a medical manufacturing company in California before joining GENICON and moving to Florida. While he had the necessary healthcare background, Haberland admits he was no expert in the export business.

"It's an enigma, and you can easily do it all wrong," he says, giving high marks to Enterprise Florida staff and local economic development officials who, he adds, help startup businesses take the "baby steps" needed to be successful. "It's unheralded in other nations. People are amazed by the amount of support we get."

With the University of Central Florida nearby, tapping into an educated workforce in Orlando was no problem. Nor was recruiting professionals from other parts of the country.

The low cost of living in Florida compared to other states with high-tech sectors, like California and Massachusetts, has attracted talented people to GENICON, Haberland says, and once here, they're happy.

"You can do a different thing every weekend here and not live long enough to do all there is to do," he says.
AcuLux is another Florida high-tech medical manufacturer doing business on the international market. The Naples-based company designs and distributes innovative fiber optic surgical products to Europe and Japan.

Florida has been a right fit for AcuLux in part because of the solid transportation options available here. CEO Jim Davis says his company's products move easily by truck from Naples to Port Everglades and, from there, on to markets in Japan. Shipments to Europe flow smoothly through Miami International Airport. The hassle-free shipment of cargo, he says, translates into savings.

"You don't get delays in shipping from Florida; therefore, product isn't tied up somewhere incurring storage and handling charges to the extent that it would be in some other parts of the country," Davis says.

Florida has solid financial resources, too. The state is home to 354 financial institutions, with combined assets of $92.5 billion. Upwards of 13,000 Floridians are employed in international banking institutions, including the 56 foreign banks located here.

Tags: Around Florida, Business Services, Business Florida