Category: Blog

Manufacturing in San Diego: More vital than you think

By Lindsey Silvia and Emily Irion,

This blog post is a part of a larger series in celebration of Manufacturing Month, sharing key trends from our report on San Diego’s Manufacturing sector.

READ THE full REPORT

San Diego is known for its sunny coastlines, vibrant tourism, and thriving biotech industry, but its Manufacturing sector is equally as diverse and dynamic. Manufacturing in the region is done using the most cutting-edge technology as well as traditional craftsmanship. This diversity reflects the region’s ability to adapt and evolve while creating a robust economic landscape with opportunities across a variety of industries.

The impact of the Manufacturing sector on San Diego’s economy may go unnoticed, but it’s a crucial contributor to the region, generating more than $47 billion annually when accounting for direct, indirect, and induced effects on the economy.

By the Numbers

 

With significant job concentration in Life Sciences, Technology, and Aerospace and Navigation technologies industries, manufacturing in San Diego is both sophisticated and advanced.

Why San Diego stands out

Three key factors set San Diego apart as a Manufacturing hub: talent, innovation, and proximity to key customers. See how local companies are taking advantage of all three below:

    1. Staying close to key customer base

      Stone Brewing is a unique story and part of a larger narrative of the region’s diverse Manufacturing landscape. A homegrown brewery, Stone Brewing was founded in San Diego County in 1996, playing a key role in establishing the region as a thriving craft beer hub. Its strategic location keeps it close to target customers and suppliers, while the vibrant brewing community attracts top talent. Now the largest craft brewery in California and the ninth-largest overall in the U.S., Stone continues to expand, reinforcing its presence in San Diego. Acquired by Japanese brewery Sapporo in 2022, Stone invested $20 million to expand its Escondido brewery. Now branded Sapporo-Stone Brewing, the brewer makes Sapporo’s beers in addition to its own, doubling output and expanding the Japanese brewery’s reach into the U.S. market. Its San Diego presence remains a strategic asset, benefiting from the region’s collaborative brewing community and loyal customer base.

    1. A hub for cutting-edge ideas

      San Diego consistently ranks in the top three Life Sciences markets in the U.S., often recognized as a hub for research and development (R&D). However, the region’s strength in manufacturing frequently goes overlooked.

      Founded in San Diego in 2017 by former Illumina leadership, Element Biosciences develops genetic analysis tools and human genome sequencing, reflecting the region’s cutting-edge genomics work. One of the key advantages to San Diego is the robust biotech ecosystem, specifically within Genomics, which fosters continuous innovation and cutting-edge ideas, creating an environment where a startup like Element can thrive. Element’s rapid growth in under seven years is partly due to the decision to continue manufacturing key components in San Diego, driven by proximity to critical R&D activities, access to top talent and reliable industry partners, and collaboration with local universities and industry giants. Like many Life Sciences companies in the region, Element stands out as both an R&D innovator and precision manufacturer, solidifying its role in San Diego’s innovation Manufacturing landscape.

    1. Driving San Diego’s next innovation cluster

      When people think of Manufacturing, they often picture large-scale assembly lines. In San Diego, smaller-scale Manufacturing with a greater emphasis on quality and precision is the region’s sweet spot.

      Aptera launched in 2019 out of co-CEO Steve Fambro’s garage. The solar electric vehicle company embodies the region’s burgeoning Cleantech hub, utilizing a micro-factory model. Aptera opts for smaller-scale operations and strategically selects markets close to its customer base. California’s environmental goals made the state an ideal fit for its innovative product. San Diego was also a natural choice for its founders, who had prior experience launching companies in the region.

      Beyond being a key market for customers, San Diego’s innovation ecosystem continues to provide access to top-tier talent for high-tech, cutting-edge roles. It also offers strategic supply chain advantages due to proximity to Los Angeles and, more importantly, to Tijuana, Mexico.

Supporting the ecosystem

Manufacturing in San Diego is a vital sector that supports more than 100,000 jobs, contributes significantly to local GDP, and fosters a thriving environment for innovation and growth. By focusing on nurturing talent, fueling innovation, and leveraging its strategic location, San Diego is well-positioned to sustain and grow its manufacturing expertise.

Local industry resources:

To read our full analytical manufacturing report click here.

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – October 4, 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by ACE Parking.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of October 4, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

From our partners:

Case study: Cascade Energy helps local businesses decarbonize, reduce costs

Cascade Energy’s Strategic Energy Management program has helped regional businesses like GD NASSCO and Bimbo Bakeries decarbonize and lower utility costs. Following its latest successful cohort, Cascade is opening the program to new participants—and your business might be a good fit.

Read More and Get in Touch

 

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Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

Monthly Report – October 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

This month together with Congressman Scott Peters and 40 high-level delegates, World Trade Center San Diego led its seventh international trade mission—this time to another innovative, binational region by the sea and the world’s premier gateway to Asia: Singapore.

As we begin to celebrate Manufacturing Month, Singapore’s advanced manufacturing prowess can serve as inspiration of what is possible and what is to come in the San Diego region—because we are just getting started.

Reflections from our Executive Director

By the numbers

  • 40 Delegates joined WTCSD in Singapore
  • 15 Meetings across 3 days un Singapore
  • $12.8B FDI into the US from Singapore since 2019
  • 450K Singapore-Johor border crossing per day

Featured case study

Featured stories

New and renewing investors

  • ASML
  • Arcadis
  • ArkusNexus
  • CMTC
  • Federal Reserve of San Francisco
  • HomeFed Corporation
  • Junior Achievement
  • MAAC
  • Manpower
  • Momentus Capital
  • National University
  • Novo Brazil Brewing
  • Port of San Diego
  • PCL Construction
  • Red Door Interactive
  • San Diego Workforce Partnership
  • Systran by Chapsvision
  • The Clay Co

See our current monthly report

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – September 27, 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of September 27, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

From our partners:

Case study: EDC’s Life Sciences Task Force spurs creation of City of San Diego permit program

In partnership with Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. and Biocom, EDC launched the Life Sciences Task Force in 2020 to better help the region’s Life Sciences sector growth. Amid continued permitting challenges, EDC collaborated with the City of San Diego’s Development Services Department to create a new pilot program dedicated to expediting Life Sciences permit processing—which helped permitting times drop 11 percent after just one month.

Learn How

 

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Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

Rep. Peters, WTCSD to lead Singapore trade mission to strengthen economic ties in Asia

By Bree Burris,

WORLD TRADE CENTER SAN DIEGO CONVENES REGIONAL LEADERS TO HELP BUSINESSES IN SAN DIEGO MEGA-REGION EXPAND GLOBALLY, CREATE LOCAL JOBS

In order to foster vital global economic partnerships, Congressman Scott Peters, San Diego Councilmember Raul Campillo, and World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD), the international arm of San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation (EDC), are leading the 2024 trade delegation to Singapore. During the September 30—October 4 trade mission, business and civic leaders will promote the region’s key industries and seek to establish and strengthen business relationships across biotechnology, medical devices, advanced manufacturing, and urban infrastructure.

A generational shift in U.S. industrial strategy aimed at reducing reliance on China, coupled with federal legislation like the Chips and Science and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Acts, position Singapore as a natural partner in advanced industries. As national governments continue to incentivize the reshoring and nearshoring of activities, gateway regions like Singapore-Malaysia in Asia and San Diego-Tijuana in the Americas are perfectly positioned to take advantage of these global shifts.                                                    

“Singapore’s strategic position and expertise in innovation industries make it an ideal partner for our San Diego-Tijuana binational region,” said Congressman Scott Peters. “This trip with World Trade Center San Diego will help strengthen our global brand, drive investment, and bolster the resilience of our local businesses.”

Home to the world’s busiest transshipment port and border crossing, Singapore is a highly developed center for global trade and a hub for U.S. companies conducting business in Asia. Situated in one of the most strategically important locations on the planet, the city-state boasts a free and business-friendly economy with low corruption, low tax rates, a skilled workforce, and world-class infrastructure.

As the U.S. strengthens its alliances in Southeast Asia, San Diego finds in Singapore an economy with shared expertise in knowledge-intensive industries, including artificial intelligence, medical device manufacturing, and information communications technology. Singapore boasts satellite operations for some of San Diego’s premier innovators including Qualcomm, ResMed, and Illumina. Further, Singapore has poured $12.8 billion in FDI into the U.S. since 2019 in industries such as manufacturing, information communications technology, and energy. The U.S. has matched that amount, investing $12.5 billion during the same time period. Looking closer, Singapore is the #10 country investing venture capital into San Diego by deal count, just behind Denmark and India (2014—2020), primarily in the medical equipment and technology industries. Singapore also shares in San Diego’s binational identity, with Singapore-Johor seeing nearly 1.6x the number of border crossings per day compared to San Diego-Tijuana’s border (450,000 and 283,000, respectively).

“Guided by data and shifting geopolitics, each year WTCSD leads a trade mission to a strategic international metro. For 2024, Singapore was a standout choice for our delegation of public-private leaders,” said Nikia Clarke, executive director of World Trade Center San Diego and senior vice president at San Diego Regional EDC. “As gateway regions, Singapore-Malaysia in Asia and San Diego-Tijuana in the Americas will anchor the critical supply chains of the future. We’re here to deepen international ties and maximize our economic impact.”

Over the four-day trade mission across Singapore, San Diego will look to build lasting institutional relationships and attract foreign investment in industries critical to the future.

Agenda items include:

  • The celebration of a recent partnership between UC San Diego and National University Singapore, as well the exploration of new opportunities around soft-landing space with Singapore commercial real estate developer CapitaLand
  • Opportunities to showcase San Diego-Tijuana and major regional development projects for foreign investors, including innovation developments by San Diego State University and Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.
  • Local, small- to mid-sized businesses Biolinq and Visaic will pitch to global investment firm Temasek
  • Meetings with Port, Airport, Border, and infrastructure partners to better connect our regions through nonstop air and liner service, as well as sharing energy transition and urban development innovations
  • Government convenings with Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Gan Kim Yong and other dignitaries
  • Formal meetings and tours of major employers in both regions, including Illumina, ResMed, as well as the Mandai Wildlife Group—a peer of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

Delegates will participate in upwards of 15 meetings over the course of the trade mission, sharing best practices and driving business connectivity across many verticals. The two dozen San Diego delegates include representatives from Cubic, Mitsubishi Electric, Qualcomm, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, and smaller businesses including Visaic and Biolinq. Also in attendance are delegates from key agencies, academic institutions, and civic organizations such as Port of San Diego, San Diego International Airport, UC San Diego, San Diego State University, MiraCosta College, Tijuana EDC, San Diego Tourism Authority, Connect, and others.

“As San Diego’s Economic Development Chair, I have two key goals: creating high-paying jobs and lowering costs for families in our city,” said San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo. “International trade and partnerships with businesses in Singapore and elsewhere bring advanced technology, high-skill workers, and robust tourism and investment to our local region. This strengthens our economy and delivers benefits like more affordable products that our citizens will see in their day-to-day lives.”

The trade mission is organized by World Trade Center San Diego, the international team at EDC, with assistance and support provided by the U.S. Embassy in Singapore, and sponsorship by Qualcomm, Ambix Ventures, San Diego Tourism Authority, and the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

Learn more about Singapore and San Diego’s connection here, and follow along during the trade mission: #SDinSG. 

WTCSD has previously led trade missions to South Korea, The Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, Vancouver, and more.

For media queries or other questions, contact:

Bree Burris
Bree Burris

Sr. Director, Communications & Community Engagement

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – September 20, 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of September 20, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

From our partners:

Apply: Advancing San Diego Verified Program Designation

Education programs: Apply to be recognized among EDC’s Verified Programs by September 27. Vetted by industry and informed by Talent Demand Reports, the region’s Verified Programs benefit from an employer-recognized curriculum, networking opportunities, internships, and visibility through EDC’s marketing channels.

Apply Today!

 

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Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – September 13, 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of September 13, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

From our partners:

Investor Spotlight: ArkusNexus

Supported by more than 150 organizations like ArkusNexus, EDC helps companies of all sizes achieve economic prosperity in line with regional Inclusive Growth goals. This monthy, we spoke with Younes Aatif, CEO of ArkusNexus—a cross-border software development company—about San Diego’s unique value proposition as a binational mega-region.

Read More

 

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Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

Investor Spotlight: ArkusNexus

By Enya Castañeda,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by the investment of more than 150 public agencies, private organizations, and service providers like ArkusNexus.

With the investment, EDC provides direct support, aligned with regional Inclusive Growth goals, to companies of all sizes to drive economic prosperity and global competitiveness across the binational mega-region.

One of San Diego’s unique value propositions is our proximity to and relationship with Mexico; it is weaved into the fabric of our economy and communities. To learn more, EDC sat down with Younes Aatif, CEO of ArkusNexus, who shared more on the region’s cross-border advantage and the benefits for the software development company.

Read more about ArkusNexus’s success and support of EDC below.

Tell us about ArkusNexus and its mission.

ArkusNexus is a cross-border software development company based in San Diego, with clients across the U.S. and resources throughout Latin America. We celebrate our 21st anniversary this summer, with a team of more than 550 developers and engineers dedicated to driving innovation and helping businesses thrive in the digital age. Our mission is to transform businesses through affordable and high-quality software solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of our clients–from startups to established enterprises.

With more than two decades of experience, we have honed our expertise in managing the complexities of software development, perfecting our engagement model and operational execution, to deliver best-in-class results.

Why San Diego?

San Diego is a strategic location for ArkusNexus due to its proximity to major markets in the U.S. where there is a growing demand for value-driven software development. It serves as a gateway to the LATAM market and an entry point to the U.S. market, offering ArkusNexus unique opportunities for cross-border collaboration. San Diego’s evolving tech scene is rapidly becoming a hub for digital innovation, driven by dynamic companies, academia, and a relentless pursuit of cutting-edge technologies. The region embodies the traits of a modern knowledge economy: diverse economic activities, excellent educational institutions, a unique entrepreneurial spirit, and a deep commitment from all stakeholders to the region’s success. San Diego also provides access to a diverse talent pool and a robust innovation ecosystem, making it the ideal environment for ArkusNexus to grow and innovate.

Finally, San Diego is ArkusNexus’s home. We’re personally invested in its success—it’s not just business; it’s personal.

Describe ArkusNexus’s collaboration and partnership with EDC.

EDC embodies the binational character of the San Diego-Baja region, articulating the opportunities and challenges local companies face. EDC works tirelessly to raise awareness of key issues, foster conversations to find solutions, and encourage local collaboration. It plays a critical role in connecting local efforts to the global stage, and we are thrilled to be part of this conversation.

Through our collaboration with EDC, ArkusNexus actively promotes the San Diego’s unique advantage as a fully integrated binational region. We participate in various EDC initiatives, including events, roundtables discussions, economic updates, and site visits, helping us understand what it takes to serve the region effectively while contributing to regional growth and competitiveness. By aligning with EDC’s vision, ArkusNexus is able to turn insights into actionable strategies that benefit the local ecosystem and build global connections. For us, what’s good for San Diego is good for all businesses operating in its vicinity.

How has San Diego positioned you for cross-border success?

As a binational economic gateway, San Diego has been instrumental in our growth. As the first company to implement the nearshore model, we remain committed to our mission as strongly as we did on day one. Our offices, just 30 minutes from downtown San Diego, provide a significant advantage for clients who want to interact with our team in person, fostering real-time collaboration essential in software development.

Cultural alignment also plays a crucial role. Our team members, who have grown up exposed to Southern California culture, seamlessly connect with clients’ needs. For example, ArkusNexus takes pride as we integrated the engineering operations of a unicorn startup, helping it scale quickly and cost-effectively. The startup has now exceeded a $2 billion valuation. Throughout the last 20 years, ArkusNexus has helped many clients achieve successful exit events, with a total valuation of $14 billion. This value creation reflects a commitment to supporting both sides of the border and celebrating shared success across the region. We thrive because of this unique cross-border dynamic, leveraging San Diego’s strategic location to drive innovation for local and global businesses alike.

What is on the horizon for ArkusNexus?

Business professionals often spend 20-30 percent of their workweek searching for information, sifting through multiple documents for a single answer. ArkusNexus is changing that by making information accessible at their fingertips. Leveraging AI, we provide users with immediate, secure access to their corporate data, without compromising security or data integrity.

We are soon launching our new Chipotle platform, which allows businesses to securely leverage large language models (LLMs) to mine their private data, combining AI’s power with robust security. This will enable businesses to benefit from AI advancements while maintaining strong security standards.

We’re also committed to the AI revolution by supporting open-source AI projects and developing safe, responsible solutions for individuals and businesses. Recognizing the skills gap in AI, our platform ensures safe interactions with LLMs for handling secure corporate data, regardless of its form or location.

Meanwhile, we’re adapting to the changes AI brings to the workplace, transforming how we work and communicate. By embracing these shifts, ArkusNexus remains agile and innovative, and continues to support San Diego’s growth as a hub for technology and business excellence.

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series and join ArkusNexus and 150 investors committed to supporting the region’s inclusive economic development by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – September 6, 2024

By Enya Castañeda,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of September 6, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

From our partners:

San Diego’s demand for talent in business

This summer, EDC’s Advancing San Diego program, in partnership with the Border Region Talent Pipeline K-16 Collaborative, launched the 2024 Business Talent Demand Report. We gathered insights from six leading San Diego employers and surveyed 120 businesses to identify key skill gaps and in-demand entry-level roles. The report highlights high-demand positions, alongside turnover and training challenges, which emphasize the need for more intentional talent pipeline development.

Learn More

 

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Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

Small, localized commitments mean huge economic impacts in San Diego

By Eduardo Velasquez and Jennie Brooks,

Op-ed originally published by San Diego Business Journal

Authored by Eduardo Velasquez, Sr. Research & Economic Development Director at San Diego Regional EDC, and Jennie Brooks, EDC Board Chair and Executive Vice President at Booz Allen Hamilton

Hosted in San Diego last month, the Department of the Navy Gold Coast Small Business Exposition brings together hundreds of government and defense contracting leaders to talk all things DOD procurement. Self-proclaimed as the big business event for small businesses, Navy Gold Coast serves to ‘leverage small business capabilities to seize opportunities for strengthening national security.’

Boasting the largest concentration of military assets in the world, San Diego has an incredible and important opportunity to tap our region’s small businesses not only to support military interests, but also to drive inclusive economic growth across the region.

As we track toward our region’s 2030 Inclusive Growth goals, it is imperative that our economic development strategies prioritize small businesses, which represent more than 98 percent of all local businesses and employ 59 percent of San Diego’s workforce. They are not just contributors to the local economy; they support jobs for 807,540 San Diegans across industries. But they are challenged to remain competitive. Small businesses pay on average 38 percent less than their large business counterparts, and in 2023, under one-third (or 244,794) of small business jobs were considered quality jobs—those paying $46,846 plus healthcare benefits. Not to mention the challenge small businesses face in succession planning, accessing capital, and generally staying afloat in one of the most costly regions in the country.

Together, San Diego’s large employers can have enormous impacts on our region’s small business community. In fact, a 2021 EDC study found that anchor institutions—such as universities and hospitals, as well as utilities, local government, and even sports teams—that are physically bound to the region collectively purchase tens of billions of dollars in goods and services every year. Yet, it is estimated that local anchors spend about one-quarter of all procurement dollars on suppliers from outside the region, with a fraction going to small and minority-owned businesses. EDC found that if anchors shifted just one percent to local, small, or diverse suppliers, San Diego would see millions of dollars in economic impact and thousands of jobs.

Booz Allen Hamilton has been committed to partnering with small and diverse suppliers across the San Diego region. In 2023, the firm’s local spend in the San Diego area with small businesses was more than $50 million, a 24 percent increase from 2022. We’re also inspired by San Diego Gas & Electric, the County of San Diego, and others making measured and meaningful commitments to support our region’s small and diverse businesses.

So, what can you do? To maximize their collective economic development impact, we need three key things from the region’s anchors.

First, we need consistency and coordination, both in terms of definitions and processes, to increase accessibility. Every institution tracks its spending differently, and each has its own requirements and processes for bidding out contracts. A consistent set of definitions and even some coordination in bidding processes will not only facilitate tracking and collective goal setting, but also increase access to a new pool of potential vendors and suppliers.

Second, leadership and resourcing are needed to establish and meet procurement goals. It is important that both organizational leadership and procurement staff agree on the value of these goals, thus creating accountability, aligning incentives, and implementing change.

Last, anchors leverage their large prime contractors to meet procurement goals. Take construction for example: large projects are often sub-contracted out by prime contractors to smaller suppliers and vendors, and many anchors lack visibility into these sub-contractors. Engaging primes in anchors’ goal setting increases visibility and opportunity for smaller suppliers while also ensuring that prime contractors have the capacity to fulfill project deliverables.

With intentional and localized commitments, we can create an economy that benefits more San Diegans, grows more jobs, and helps small businesses become the Qualcomms, Dexcoms, and Booz Allen Hamiltons of the future.

Let Navy Gold Coast serve as a potent and timely reminder to prioritize small businesses and inclusion for the betterment of our economy.

To learn more and get involved, contact:

Eduardo Velasquez
Eduardo Velasquez

Sr. Director, Research & Economic Development