Cyan Magenta Yellow Black Wednesday, February 16, 2005 BUSINESS BRIEFS ... Compiled by John Hales Zions Bank report predicts growth SALT LAKE CITY— Utah’s economy still looks to be headed for growth despite raises in short-term interest rates, states a report published by Zions Bank. The bank’s January release of the Small Business Index for Utah reports that the state’s economy should strengthen even as the Federal Reserve continues to push up short-term rates. The report also states that Utah’s unemployment rate for January was estimated to be 4.4 percent, down from the previous month’s 4.6 percent rate. One year ago, the unemployment rate was 5.3 percent, indicating that fewer people are out of work this year as compared to last, but also that businesses have decreased access to potential workers. According to the report, Utah saw a revised net gain of 34,600 jobs in 2004, and predicts that those gains should have a positive impact on the economy. Business financing seminar to be held RICHFIELD—“Meet the money people,” a seminar designed to introduce entrepreneurs to sources of business financing, will be presented Wednesday, Feb. 23 at Snow College at Richfield. The event will run from 13 p.m. in Room 147C of the Administration Building. Ad- mission and parking are free. Sponsored by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Snow, the program will feature panelists from the Small Business Administration, Utah Business Lending Corporation, USDA and SixCounty Revolving Loan Fund, among others. Motor sports business opens in Ephraim EPHRAIM—A Utah Valley mother and son have opened up a new motor sports business in Ephraim. Former Orem residents Diane Wilkes and her son, Nate Brown, have opened up Sanpete Family Motor Sports on Main Street in Ephraim. The business sells motorbikes and four-wheelers manufactured by Maxfine, which Brown says are made from 90 percent after market Honda parts. Brown says the bikes have all the quality of bigger named brands like Honda, but at a fraction of the price. For example, he says the Maxfine Defiant, which is comparable to the Honda Shadow, sells for $2,500; about $4,000 less than its Honda counterpart. The business will also offer service on all its bikes and protective gear and accessories. For more information call Sanpete Family Motor Sports at 283-2060, or click on the advertisement at www.sanpetemessenger.com. Ephraim business strong as steel CO Building Systems finds formula for profitability outside urban area By Geoffrey Pace Staff writer EPHRAIM—What started as just a small construction operation has blossomed into a unique and profitable manufacturing business in Ephraim. Craig Oberg is the president of CO Building Systems, a growing steel building fabrication business. “We are a little bit like the Lone Ranger,” Oberg says, “It is very unusual that somebody sets up a company like we have here in Ephraim. But it works for us.” Ten years ago, his firm was only a construction company. But Oberg got frustrated when he bid on large projects and lost by 1 or 2 percent. He saw opportunities in pre-fab and by the mid-1990s had redirected his business into pre-engineered metal buildings. He struggled at first with a series of test projects such as buying ready-made buildings from a source in central California. But when he ventured into building the buildings himself, he saw real potential. What makes CO different from any competitors? Oberg says that his business and crew of 35 (and growing) are a “cut above” others in the industry because of attitude. “We plan to give our customers the absolute best customer service, anywhere,” he says. Every structure is generated in-house. The company makes the main frame, roof and wall panels in the same shop. Oberg says his company can now produce buildings to meet any specification in the market. Another aspect that differentiates CO is time. Oberg says his response time to a job site—within 24 hours—will be shorter than Carpet cleaning and counseling businesses open STERLING—Two new businesses have moved into the county with the arrival of Michael Blair, who relocated to Sterling Jan. 1 after having lived in St. George for the last nine years. Blair has opened a carpet cleaning business, Prestige Carpet and Tile Care— Water Restoration. Blair says his method uses truckmounted hot-water extraction, which he says is the carpet-cleaning technique recommended by manufacturers for color restoration and soil extraction. Blair, who has been involved in the carpet-cleaning industry for 25 years, offers other cleaning methods as well, including dry-cleaning. A slogan he likes to use is “We clean up after pets, floods and two-year-olds.” Blair’s second business provides counseling and coaching services. Blair is a licensed marriage and family therapist and has other accreditations as well. He says before his arrival, Sanpete County did not have anyone who provided full-time, private counseling. “If you have a problem and are willing to work on it, I’ll work with you,” he says. “I like being a bridge to better things for people.” He says he plans to hold occasional workshops for couples, families and single people, and he is seeking input from the community about topics people would like the workshops to address. Business center reports decline in clients EPHRAIM—The Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Snow College cites “lack of outreach capacity” for a decline in the number of clients served by the center in 2004. An annual report published by the SBDC states that 116 clients received the center’s services, fewer than the number served in 2003. Other factors identified as reasons for the decline are funding that has not increased for several years and limited human resources. A9 Sanpete Messenger-Gunnison Valley Edition However, the SBDC reports that the number of people who attended SBDC training events—such as workshops or classes—increased by 92 percent. The report states that a commonality among its clients is the lack of a satisfactory business plan, something that has been a trend for the last three years. Recognizing that trend, the SBDC is creating a program to assist clients with business planning. The program will be tested in the six-county area in 2005. Professional Tax Service at a Great Value! H&R BLOCK ® Remember we’re located at: 71 South Main 750 S. State Ephraim Mt. Pleasant 283-2002 462-2785 10am-7pm, Mon.-Fri. 9am-6pm, Mon.-Fri. 10am-5pm, Sat. 9am-5pm, Sat. Come in now or call for an appointment Maximum Refund Guaranteed or Your Return is Free!! BRUCE VAN DER RIET/MESSENGER PHOTO Workers at CO Building Systems slice sheet metal to size at the Ephraim plant. BRUCE VAN DER RIET/MESSENGER PHOTO Craig Oberg, of CO Building Systems, Ephraim, stands with some rolls of sheet metal in his workshop. The rolls are shipped in large quantities, cut and shaped to size on the premises. other businesses. Sometimes he can get there the same day. Other companies struggle with schedule coordination and can take three to four weeks to respond to a customer, Oberg says. But at CO, “if a customer needs a replacement part, it is readily available, now.” CO has competitors in other parts of the United States. But his company is the only one of its kind in Utah, and no other similar company has been in business in Utah as long as CO Building Systems. There’s a huge demand for small metal buildings that sit in people’s backyards, says Oberg. But his structures are not Tough Sheds, although Oberg says he may eventually move into that market niche. For now, he sees his market as being anything from 20 feet by 20 feet to massive million-squarefoot structures, such as a truss and warehouse facility his firm built for Burton Lumber on the west side of Salt Lake City. The building measured 998,000 square feet. Other customers include the military and state government. “They have waived some requirements for us to allow us to bid on projects,” he says. Hill Air Force Base has contracted with CO Building Systems on high-security projects. The Utah Department of Natural Resources contracted with him to construct a seed warehouse in the Ephraim Industrial Park. Oberg is also a shrewd businessman, who saw the potential problem of rapid expansion in a totally new industry. “In the early years, I held back the growth of the company so we would not outgrow our ability. We were fortunate not to have a competitor come in and take over.” Oberg believes local entrepreneurship is the key to economic growth in Sanpete County. “I’ve watched businesses come and go in Sanpete. What needs to happen here is for us to realize that we are not going to import huge corporations to this area. If we want to be constructive in Sanpete, we need to do it ourselves. People who live here need to step up to the plate and do it themselves.” He’s watched businesses come and go and outright fail in Sanpete County. And while others might fail, he succeeds. “This country is full of opportunity,” he says. “The thing I have learned is that you have to be in the right place at the right time. Know what the circumstances are and act accordingly.” New ag commissioner hopes to help farmers with ‘opportunities’ By Scott Bishop Staff writer SALT LAKE CITY—“The most difficult issue for agriculture is to remain viable—profitable— in other words, for the producers and farmers and ranchers,” said Leonard Blackham, Moroni native and now Utah commissioner of Agriculture and Food. On Jan. 5, Gov. Jon Huntsman, Jr. named Leonard Blackham the state’s sixth commissioner of the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food. Blackham enters the office after serving in state government for 12 years. Blackham has a long background in agriculture. He grew up raising turkeys on his family’s farm and earned a degree in agriculture economics from Utah State University. Prior to his appointment, Blackham was a vice president at Moroni Feed Co. as well as a state senator representing Tooele, Juab, Sanpete, Sevier, Piute and Garfield counties. Blackham feels marketing Utah agriculture is an important aspect of his position. He plans to create a new marketing department to replace a department lost to budget cuts in years past. “What we’re going to do is try to help our ag community with more local opportunities, more national opportunities, and more international opportunities,” Blackham said. Owners of small farms find it difficult to sell their products with the consolidation of buying in mod- ern retail chains. Blackham hopes to change this through the Utah’s Own program. This program helps identify products grown or produced in Utah. One of the program’s goals is encouraging consumers to buy locally produced products first. This helps the small farmers and, in turn, helps local communities. An additional goal is to show local retailers the advantages of selling items produced locally. By supporting local farmers, retailers have stronger markets in the smaller communities. “The economic vitality of those communities needs to be bolstered up if we can,” Blackham said. Another concern for Blackham is conservation. He supports the watershed education program promoted by former governor Olene Walker. He feels protecting watersheds and improving stream flows is necessary to improve water quality. “Almost always it has been shown that if you improve the quality it also improves the quantity,” Blackham said. With the recent occurrence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease in the United States and Canada, animal identification programs have become more important. According to Blackham, Utah is one of the leaders in animal identification. Within the next couple of weeks, the elk in Sanpete County’s elk farms will have small computer chips inserted just below the skin. Using a scanner to read the chip, SCOTT BISHOP / MESSENGER PHOTO Former Sen. Leonard Blackham in his new office as Utah Department of Agriculture and Food commissioner. the animal’s entire life history will be available. It will be possible to trace “where it was born, where it was shipped, who bought it, where it was slaughtered, and where the meat went,” said Larry Lewis, public information officer for the Department of Agriculture and Food. “With the recent mad cow situation in Washington, it took thousands of people four months to find where that animal was associated with,” Lewis said, “where it came from, what animals it associated with and where those were dispersed to.” Once the new chips are in place, should an animal contract a disease, its history can be traced in no more than 48 hours. Although the program is beginning with the elk farms, plans are to implement it in cattle, sheep, and hogs. There are even plans to carry the concept over to poultry, (See “Blackham” on A13) Pay Less Tax es axes Tax Return Preparation Free Utah Sta Statte Tax Re Retturn Form TC-40 when we do your Federal Tax Return Prices: 1040 EZ..$25 1040..$40 1040 Itemized..$50 Call Shawn Ledingham 361 E 700 South Mt. Pleasant 435.462.9578 or 435.851.1236 Don’t pay more, Pay Less!