Hartford Business Journal

12 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | MAY 29, 2023 Founder Christian Tidona (left) and America CEO Mark Johnston lead Germany-based biomedical research institute BioMed X, which recently established a U.S. foothold in New Haven, near Yale University's campus. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED International Relations German company expansions reflect European country's strong trade, business ties to CT comes to precision and advanced manufacturing, and if you think about the Connecticut base of manufac- turing, it's the exact same thing," Denious said. "We're not just making widgets here, we're making highly sophisticated machinery and lever- aging technology." Hartford attorney Jeff White, a partner at law firm Robinson+- Cole, has several German company clients. He said Germany's economy is primarily made of "mittelstand" firms — the German word for small and medium-sized enterprises — much like Connecticut. "The German economy, while very big, is mostly made up of small to midsize companies, … especially in manufacturing," White said. "I think that similarity and level of comfort" is a big factor in the strong trade rela- tionship and business ties between Connecticut and Germany. Since 2018, Connecticut has annually exported more than $2 billion in goods to Germany, even during the pandemic, which signifi- cantly hampered foreign trade amid economic disruptions caused by lock- downs, production and labor issues and supply chain bottlenecks. Connecticut's overall commodity exports grew to $15.3 billion in 2022, up 5.5% from a year earlier; 14% of those goods valued at $2.1 billion were shipped to Germany, according to ITA data. Nationally, Germany is the U.S.' fifth-largest export market, behind China, Canada, Mexico and Japan. Conversely, Connecticut imported $1.5 billion in goods from German companies last year, making the country the state's fourth-largest import partner behind Canada, Mexico and China. Connecticut's biggest exports are, unsurprisingly, transportation equip- ment, spurred by the presence of large aerospace and defense compa- nies like Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and Electric Boat, makers of jet engines, helicopters and submarines, respectively. About $5.3 billion worth of trans- portation equipment passed through Connecticut in 2022, and ended up in a foreign country, ITA data shows. Similarly, Germany has the third- largest aerospace and defense market in Europe. Of course, there is a caveat to export trade data. Not everything that counts as an export from the state was actually made in Connecticut — some goods simply passed through the state's borders after being built or developed elsewhere. Regardless, there is significant trade activity between Connecticut and Germany, officials agree. "Even beyond manufacturing to areas like drug discovery and drug CT TOP GOODS EXPORT PARTNERS IN 2022 Country 1. GERMANY 2. CANADA 3. UNITED KINGDOM 4. MEXICO 5. FRANCE Export totals $2.09B $2.05B $1.4B $1.1B $1.1B Source: U.S. Dept of Commerce International Trade Administration By Skyler Frazer sfrazer@hartfordbusiness.com O ver the past several years, Germany has established itself as Connecticut's largest export partner, further building on a relationship that has led to a number of the European country's busi- nesses expanding within the state. In 2022, 14% of Connecticut exports were shipped to Germany, and the state has annually sent more than $2 billion in goods to the country over the last five years. That's allowed Germany to surpass other countries, including Canada and France, that previously were Connecticut's top export destina- tions, according to U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration (ITA) data. And the ties between the two countries — strengthened by similar advanced manufacturing bases, skilled workforces and cost structures — go beyond just trading goods and services. Connecticut is home to 98 German companies, according to state economic development officials, several of which recently announced or completed major expansions: • In March, TRUMPF North America — a maker of laser-cutting, bending and welding machinery — announced plans to hire 55 new employees while adding 55,800 square feet of advanced manufac- turing space in Farmington. The $40-million project is the German manufacturer's sixth expansion on its growing Connecticut campus. • German specialty chemicals manu- facturer Roehm recently debuted a new 15,000-square-foot innova- tion center adjacent to its existing Wallingford facility that will add eight employees and now be the headquarters for its global medical research and development. • Earlier this month, Hamburg, Germany-based laboratory equip- ment manufacturer Eppendorf debuted its new Enfield distribution center. The company now employs 450 workers in the northern Connecticut town, which serves as its American headquarters. • German biomedical institute BioMed X recently launched its first operation in New Haven, which will focus on immunology and tissue engineering research. BioMed will employ six researchers located near Yale University. Combined, these projects have added dozens of new jobs and tens of millions of dollars in capital invest- ment, according to AdvanceCT, the state's nonprofit economic develop- ment arm. The expansions also provide examples of how Connecticut can serve as an attractive regional hub to international companies looking to expand in the U.S., particularly within the Northeast's knowledge corridor, economic development officials said. "You always want to attract compa- nies, but the ultimate validation on if you're doing something right is if a company expands," said Ron Angelo, president and CEO of the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology (CCAT) and a former deputy commissioner of the state Department of Economic and Community Development. "When you get companies like TRUMPF, Eppendorf and Boehringer Ingelheim that have been here for years now doubling and tripling on their invest- ment, it shows what you're doing is working — you've got the right business environment and you've got the right workforce for these compa- nies to grow." The makings of a trade partnership AdvanceCT CEO Peter Denious said a like-minded business environ- ment is key to a good relationship between foreign trade partners like Connecticut and Germany. "Our economies are well aligned — to start with the obvious, Germany is an epicenter for Europe when it

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