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Business Florida 2011 - The Regions
Northwest - Growing Strong
Entrepreneurs find solid support, right sites and plenty of room for expansion in Northwest Florida.
Key market sector growth
Life sciences: Pensacola-based Pall Life Sciences, manufacturer of grade filtration membranes, has completed a $37.5-million capital investment in Ellyson Industrial Park, expanding its manufacturing and lab space by 40,000 square feet and hiring an additional 50 employees.
Aviation/aerospace and defense: With seven military bases, Florida’s Northwest is highly dependent on the aviation/aerospace and defense sectors for its economic well-being; in fact, aviation/aerospace and defense support service companies number approximately 1,900 across the 16-county region. One of them is Applied Research Associates in Panama City, where researchers have developed and refined a biofuel process that converts renewable oils from plants and algae into jet and diesel fuel. While developed specifically for military use, the process is expected to also have commercial applications.
Entrepreneurial Spirit
 Arthur and Pamela Aveling built a booming tool business around their shared passion for King Arthur. [Photo: King Arthur's Tools] |
In 1990, while tinkering in his garage, Aveling came up with the “Lancelot,” a revolutionary woodworking tool that consists of a 4-inch chainsaw blade between two steel discs attached to a hand-held angle grinder. Thanks to this tool, carpenters and artisans can toss their chisels and hammers, yet still perform fine detailing work and in half the time.
Over the last 20 years, King Arthur’s Tools has expanded from that single garage to an 8,000-square-foot facility where more than 200 tools — all named after Knights of the Round Table or other medieval period characters — are assembled and shipped to more than 50 countries. Why the King Arthur theme? It’s a play on Aveling’s own first name and, he says, just clever branding.
In December 2009 King Arthur’s Tools increased the size of its Tallahassee assembly plant by 50% and grew its staff by three. In the first half of 2010, company revenues were up 24% from the same period in 2009, and the company was pre-approved to do business with the federal government.
Aveling, a native Australian who came to Florida via Saudi Arabia, finds Tallahassee ideally situated for his tool assembly and distribution company. While the parts for his tools are made elsewhere, all assembly and distribution operations are headquartered in Northwest Florida, largely due to the ready availability of a skilled and affordable full-time workforce. For specialty projects, Aveling also is able to draw interns from nearby Florida State University.
“Entrepreneurs or businesses looking to come here will find great resources to draw on,” says Aveling. “Also the costs of land and buildings are very affordable. This is an ideal place to do business.”
