12:10 pm CCT members tour Borla Performance facility
The Carter County Tomorrow Joint Economic Development Board toured one of the area’s top manufacturing facilities Monday night. CCT members were given a tour of Borla Performance’s plant on Bill Armstrong Road yesterday. The facility is located at the former site of Texas Instruments and Siemens at the Okolona Road exit off Interstate 26.
Photo by Brandon Hicks - Borla’s Chief Financial Officer Alan Stoner said in addition to Borla’s manufacturing facility, the plant features a video production center where many automotive repair shows are produced. The CCT board was given a brief tour of the unit, which features antique sports cars that are in the process of being rebuilt and equipped with new exhaust systems.
Photo by Brandon Hicks - Borla’s Chief Financial Officer Alan Stoner directed a tour of the plant Monday for Carter County Tomorrow board members. Borla Performance manufactures after-market mufflers and exhaust systems for various makes and models of American and import vehicles. Their stainless steel mufflers and exhaust systems have a one-million-mile lifetime warranty.
Borla’s Chief Financial Officer Alan Stoner provided the group an overview of the facility. He told them that the plant’s size makes it a perfect location for other businesses that are looking to expand. The former TI plant provides over 325,000 square feet of space for light manufacturing, call centers and even medical offices. Borla is currently utilizing less than half of the facility, but has leased portions of the plant to various companies during their tenure in the building.
Stoner said during the federal government used a portion of the building during the 2010 United States Census effort. They are currently leasing a portion of the plant to a company that manufactures Christmas lighting. He said the flexibility of the building’s construction make it ideal for any company looking for a turn-key operation that requires little to no construction costs.
The Borla plant also features a video production center where many automotive repair shows are produced. The CCT board was given a brief tour of the unit, which features antique sports cars that are in the process of being rebuilt and equipped with new exhaust systems.
The building, which was built in the 1970’s for use by Texas Instruments, was purchased by Alex Borla three years ago. Borla Performance was originally located in Oxnard, Ca. before they moved their manufacturing process to Carter County. CCT Chairman Steve Lowrance said Borla chose to relocate to the area because the facility was a perfect fit for the company’s needs. “Mr. Borla was also impressed with the local workforce and their ability to meet the needs of the company,” said Lowrance.
Stoner said Borla is committed to being a part of the Carter County economy on a long-term basis. “We’re looking forward to all sorts of future possibilities in this area,” Stoner commented.
Borla Performance manufactures after-market mufflers and exhaust systems for various makes and models of American and import vehicles. Stoner said Borla builds exhaust systems for Ford, General Motors and Mopar vehicles. They also have systems for luxury and sports models such as Jaguar and Maserati. Their stainless steel mufflers and exhaust systems have a one-million mile lifetime warranty.
Lowrance said he would like to continue holding CCT meetings at local businesses and industrial facilities in Carter County. The group met at the Snap-On Tools plant two months ago and received a similar tour of their facility. Lowrance said the tours give Carter County Tomorrow an opportunity to see the impact of local industries on the area economy.
Following the tour, ETSU Bureau of Business and Economic Research Director Dr. Jon Smith discussed the state-sponsored effort to encourage new businesses in the East Tennessee region. The Northeast Regional Business Accelerator is part of Governor Bill Haslam’s focus on bringing business and jobs to Tennessee.
“What our accelerator is going to do is identify individuals who have high-potential business concepts within the eight county region,” said Smith. He said the accelerator will focus on the entire region, including the rural counties in East Tennessee. “Too often our efforts have focused entirely on Sullivan and Washington Counties. That’s not what we are about.”
Smith said the business accelerator program will partner with economic development task forces across the region to identify entrepreneurs with business concepts that have potential to create jobs. Once potential entrepreneurs are located in area communities, Smith said the business accelerator will begin the vetting process to determine if the idea is viable. “Those ideas will be given a grade from A to D,” said Smith. Ideas falling in the A-category are considered high-value with a strong business plan. Business plans falling in the B and C categories have potential for growth, but have not reached the point where they are viable. Smith said ideas that fall in the D-category have a low potential for success. Aspiring entrepreneurs will be encouraged to continue to work on other ideas and may be counseled to attend business classes or seminars to focus their efforts.
Smith told CCT members the accelerator program will place aspiring entrepreneurs with mentors in the community with experience in the business world. “Once we identify people with high-potential concepts, we’re going to help them build a business plan and help develop their skills,” Smith commented. “Once they have reached a point where they have an understanding of what it takes to start a business, we’re going to help them nurture a plan to refine their business plan.”
When entrepreneurs have a working business strategy, Smith wants to use the accelerator to connect them to people who can provide start-up capital. He said identifying people with capital is an important part of the project. Smith noted that they plan to assist participants from the beginning of the process until the business is started.
The business accelerator is being funded by $250,000 in state money. “That money is focused on providing services to clients. We’re not going to ask the clients to spend their money,” said Smith. He told Carter County Tomorrow’s board members that the quarter-million dollar investment will assist entrepreneurs with legal fees and other services necessary to start a business.
Smith said he encourages local business leaders and economic development boards to help them reach people with ideas on creating new businesses. He said the “best way to find a good idea is through a lot of ideas.”
“We feel this could help Northeast Tennessee change. We feel this could create the businesses that replace the businesses that have left and that are also going to help create the new East Tennessee,” Smith argued.
The Carter County Tomorrow board will not meet in December. The group typically meets the last Monday of each month. Lowrance said they will take the month off due to the Christmas holiday. They will meet again on Monday, Jan. 23 at 5 p.m. at the Carter County/Elizabethton Chamber of Commerce board room. The public is welcome to attend the meeting.
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