Known as the Sunflower State, Kansas boasts a highly skilled workforce, outstanding infrastructure, low operating costs and a location in the heart of America. Thanks to these advantages, the state has experienced significant growth in numerous industries and emerged as a leader in sectors such as advanced manufacturing, alternative energy, bioscience, distribution and food processing. Leaders in these sectors and in many others have decided that the best place to invest in their future growth is Kansas.

ADVANCED MANUFACTURING AND AEROSPACE

Kansas has a proud history as a manufacturing leader, particularly in the aerospace sector. The state’s largest city, Wichita, is known as the Air Capital of the World due to the prominent role it plays in aviation manufacturing. Home to companies such as Textron Aviation and Bombardier, Wichita produced 43% of all general aviation planes built in the United States in 2014. The city’s largest employer, Spirit AeroSystems, manufactures fuselage, propulsion and wing systems for many major commercial aviation manufacturers, including Airbus and Boeing. This year, GE Aviation and Figeac Aéro have also announced significant projects in the state.

Wichita’s aviation manufacturers are supported by the National Center for Aviation Training and Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research. These educational institutions help hone the skills of the workforce in south central Kansas, while also partnering closely with industry on research. The Innovation  Campus at Wichita State is a new and unique partnership that combines the university’s world class aviation research with industry expertise. In 2015, Airbus announced that it would locate a major engineering centre with 400 employees on the Innovation Campus.

In addition to aviation, numerous other advanced manufacturing sectors are thriving in Kansas. Companies such as General Motors, Goodyear Tire and Rubber and Newell Rubbermaid have achieved tremendous success with their manufacturing operations in Kansas.

RENEWABLE ENERGY

In western Kansas, winds whip across the prairie, providing the state with a valuable source of renewable energy. During the past decade, energy companies have started to capitalise on this resource by building a growing number of wind farms in the state, and Kansans continue to show increasing interest in expanding the use of large and small scale wind farms.

Since the beginning of 2008, wind generating capacity in Kansas has more than tripled to 2,967 megawatts. That capacity places Kansas in the top 10 in the US, and the state currently has more than 1,000 megawatts of additional wind energy projects under construction. Projections indicate that the state’s power system could potentially provide 7,000 megawatts from wind energy by 2030.

Beyond wind energy, Kansas has a growing biofuels sector. As an agricultural leader, the state offers affordable access to plentiful amounts of the raw materials needed to produce biofuels. Abengoa Bioenergy recently opened a cellulosic ethanol plant in southwest Kansas with a production capacity of 25 million gallons a year.

In order to support the continued expansion of the renewable energy industry, Kansas has a goal of generating 15% of the state’s electricity from renewable sources by 2016, and the state’s utilities are on track to meet this target. A further goal of 20% by 2020 has been set.

BIOSCIENCE

Bioscience is yet another emerging industry in Kansas. The Kansas City Animal Health Corridor is home to more than 300 animal health companies that account for 56% of worldwide animal health, diagnostics and pet food sales. The Corridor is anchored in the west by Manhattan, Kansas. This city is home to Kansas State University, which is respected across the country as a leader in animal health research. Due to Kansas State’s strengths in this area, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is constructing its new National Bio and Agro Defense Facility in Manhattan, a $1.25 billion state-of-the-art biosafety research laboratory.

The human health industry is also rapidly expanding in the Sunflower State. The University of Kansas Medical Center and Cancer Center are nationally recognised for their research and patient care. As a result, a number of clinical research companies and technology firms that serve the healthcare industry are expanding in the Kansas City area.

DISTRIBUTION

Geography is one of Kansas’s key assets. With a location at the centre of the US, the state offers easy access to clients across North America. Interstate 70, which runs from the East Coast to the western United States, cuts a swath through the middle of Kansas. So does Interstate 35, which stretches from Canada to Mexico and is a key component of the North American Free Trade Agreement Corridor. Beyond these major routes, the state is home  to a many additional miles of high quality highways, as only two states have more total road miles than Kansas.

The state also ranks in the top 10 in railroad miles, which helps facilitate second day freight delivery to every area of the continental US. This railroad system includes the Logistics Park Kansas City intermodal facility located in Edgerton, Kansas. The $1 billion state-of-the-art development is the only full-service facility in the western two-thirds of the country that offers the combination of domestic intermodal service, international intermodal service and direct-rail and carload service. It features 64,000 feet of track, 4,300 container stacking spots, and five wide-span cranes that are all electric to reduce the facility’s environmental impact.

Between the quality and extent of the state’s infrastructure and its central location, Kansas is unsurprisingly home  to distribution centres of many global firms, including Coleman, Home Depot, Foot Locker, Target and Walmart. Recently, Kubota Tractor Corporation joined these firms by opening its North American distribution centre at Logistics Park Kansas City.

VALUE ADDED AGRICULTURE AND FOOD PROCESSING

Known as the breadbasket of America for its wheat production, Kansas is also one of the United States’ leading producers of beef, corn and soya beans, and has one of the most rapidly growing dairy industries of any state. Because of this abundance of raw agricultural commodities, a growing number of value-added agriculture and food processing companies are opening facilities in Kansas.

Last year, Mars Chocolate North America opened its first new plant in the US in 35 years in Topeka, Kansas. The company has experienced such success with the facility that it announced a $100 million expansion project in the summer of 2015. Unilever joined Mars in making a substantial investment in the state with a $150 million expansion of its spreads manufacturing facility in Johnson County. These companies are joined by other major food processing firms such as Cargill, Frito Lay, Sara Lee, Reser’s, Tyson, Hostess, National Beef and Schwan’s.

In 2015, Dairy Farmers of America announced the relocation of its corporate headquarters to Kansas and also began construction of a $235 million milk powder plant that will process four million pounds of milk per day.

AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE

Businesses in Kansas are attaining remarkable success today, yet they are positioned for even stronger growth in the future. In an increasingly competitive global economy, innovation and forward thinking leadership is of the utmost importance. Recognising this, Kansas has focused on building a business environment that supports growth now and in the future.

Through innovative workforce programmes, cutting edge research institutions, outstanding infrastructure and reduced costs, the state is prepared to help companies achieve success for years to come. Business and industry leaders from around the world are investing in the Sunflower State because they recognise that an investment in Kansas is an investment in their future.