In 2014, the Florida High Tech Corridor (FHTC) was on the verge of recruiting a major high-tech manufacturing company. If successful, the company would bring in hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to the Orlando region. Over time, their operations would expand beyond manufacturing to include more of the industry supply chain. These operations would serve as the foundation for high-tech operations in the region and would catalyze further development in this industry.

To help close the deal on this project, FHTC went to the surrounding counties to raise funds. With a larger budget, a larger incentive package could be offered, increasing the chances of success. However, FHTC was met with resistance. The surrounding counties were skeptical of the level of impact that could reach their communities.

FHTC hired AngelouEconomics (AE) to measure and analyze the economic contribution that the recruitment of this company would have in the region. However, the project was highly confidential. Furthermore, a company location of that size to the region was unprecedented. To circumvent issues of privacy and accuracy, it was decided that AE would model the economic impact of SEMATECH on the Austin economy. SEMATECH would serve as a great example; as of the time of its location to Austin, it represented the largest investment of a high-tech firm in the Austin region.

By modeling SEMATECH’s impact on Austin’s surrounding counties, AE was able to build a case for FHTC to make in their own surrounding counties. The economic impacts of large-scale projects can reach far beyond the local community. In the case of SEMATECH, some of the largest semiconductor companies in the world subsequently located to Austin, including Samsung, Motorola, Applied Materials, AMD, and Tokyo Electron, just to name a few. Moreover, the supply chain grew to more than 200 semiconductor suppliers. Additional benefits include increased pool of skilled applicants, employees who choose to live in nearby counties and increased retail and entertainment revenues.

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As a result, the FHTC successfully recruited high-tech businesses.

SEMATECH 20-Year Economic Impact Analysis on Austin and surrounding counties.