European Expansion

Overview: I work for an economic development agency. I?m looking to identify North American companies who are intending to establish direct operations in Europe (mainland europe - UK, Ireland, Switzerland, etc). Currently, I identify leads through relationships with large consulting firms, attending industry exhibitions, or direct contact with companies through phone calls and meetings. I narrow down my search for companies that are expanding by focusing on specific sectors that are drawn to our regions economic strengths. These include the following: 1. Medical Technologies/Medical Device companies 2. Precision engineering/component companies 3. Telecom companies - call centers, data centers 4. Financing, Services, or Headquarters 5. Information Technology - Internet/search engine, etc. In addition to calling on companies, I do a lot of research via the web. Quite often, companies do announce plans of opening a European office prior to actually setting up that office. Even companies that make definitive announcements may in fact have not yet set up the physical office. These are the type of companies that I'm looking to speak with. Requirement: I am looking for a list (minimum of seven to ten, with no max number) of US/Canadian companies (size of company does not matter, but will most likely be mid-to-large size) that have expressed interest in opening a European office. Quite often they will release press releases announcing European expansion. I would prefer the list to be current, within the past several months would be ideal as these companies usually react quite fast once an announcement is made.

Would mergers and acquisitions fit the bill as well? Or companies that already have a presence in one European country expanding to another?

For this assignment, I would not be interested in mergers & acquistions. The same applies to companies that already have a presence in Europe and are expanding within, this is not what my target is. On your second question, no, I would not be interested if they recently opened up an office either. My ultimate goal is to reach out to companies that are currently in the process of expanding, to catch them before the actual decision has been made on a specific location, so I can present my region of europe as a potential location for their new office or facility. Lastly, since we're talking about preferences, ideally (if I have a choice), I would prefer North American companies from the "Western part of the U.S." that are expanding to Europe. It just so happens that this will probably hold true anyway, that is, these days, there seems to be a greater concentration of Western U.S. companies expanding abroad, especially in the high tech and medical fields. I hope this helps.

Must the companies be limited to the sectors you have listed, or are you open to other industries?

Hello, er02-ga! OOPS. I had compiled 90% of my answer before your last two clarifications, which forced me to delete many of the companies I had listed. The fact that you want to find companies with plans to relocate, but which have no idea "where" - has substantially changed the nature of this question. I don't know that many companies would announce such plans in a press release without having a basic idea of the country, at the very least. Please look over what I have found and see if it meets your needs. Perhaps some of the most promising in terms of fertile ground for representing your locale are those I have listed as "companies to watch" from the 2004 Innovation World List as seeking European expansion in the future. Intelliden ============ "Intelliden To Create European R&D Center In UK." Press Release, 8 December 2005." http://www.uktradeinvestusa.com/news/articles_show.asp?Sarticletype=19&Article_ID=4935" "Intelliden, a provider of open, automated networking solutions, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is to invest US$4.25 million a European research and development center in Belfast. Invest Northern Ireland is also investing a further $1.15 million to support the facilities, training and skills expertise of local staff, as well as product development. The joint partnership reflects Belfast's growing international role as an advantageous European base for technology and manufacturing companies." "Alan Black, president and CEO of Intelliden, said: "Northern Ireland provides us with the critical elements to support our ongoing growth and momentum. The city has a highly skilled technical workforce, which makes it an ideal fit for our R&D center." "The new center will create local jobs and is expected to inject more than US$1.7 million annually into the local economy, to drive innovation, increase technology-led skills, and provide Intelliden with a strong foothold for serving and supporting its customer base across Europe." Website: http://www.intelliden.com/default.asp Headquarters: 90 South Cascade Ave. Colorado Springs, CO 80903 Phone: +1.719.785.0660 Toll-free: 888.906.0660 Fax: +1.719.785.0644 http://www.intelliden.com/page.asp?id=Company&subID=contact_us Precise Technology Inc ========================= "Precise Technology Opens State-of-the-Art Injection Molding Plant in Poland http://www.precisetech.com/news/headlines/2005_July_Plant_in_Poland.html NORTH VERSAILLES, PA- "In response to the expanding economic front in Europe, Precise Technology will open a new injection molding facility in Lodz, Poland ** during the first quarter of 2006. ** The move is also in support of a major Precise customer, according to President and COO Mike Farrell. "Poland is fast becoming one of the countries of choice for contract injection molding," Farrell says." "Precise will occupy the 3,500-square-meter facility, which will house 14 molding machines with high-speed robotics and assembly. The new Precise Poland facility will also cater to an expanding customer base and increase the company's exposure in the personal care and consumer packaging business, says Milt Francis, General Manager of European Operations." "The company began preparations for opening a plant in Poland in September 2004, according to Steve Stevens, Vice President of Manufacturing. The location, in Diamond Business Park, is chosen to be at the center of an expanding infrastructure in an area where many other companies are locating. The company has already identified some of the key personnel to be employed at the facility, according to Francis." Wombat ====== "Wombat to Establish UK Software Center." Press Release, 22 June 2005 http://www.uktradeinvestusa.com/news/articles_show.asp?Sarticletype=19&Article_ID=4898 "Wombat, US-based financial services group, is to establish a global center for software engineering excellence in Belfast, Northern Ireland." "The investment will allow Wombat to focus on product development and customer support, with the site becoming a base for European sales in the longer term. Wombat software is used to transfer stock exchange data to remote trading floors in banks." "Danny Moore, chief operations officer for Wombat Financial Software, says: ?Wombat intends to develop a world class engineering center of excellence in Belfast to support our growing customer base both in Europe and the financial centers in the North East US. We were searching for a location with talented engineers, most notably with C/C++ and Unix skills, but equally important customer facing experience, excellent English language communications skills, work ethic and a service ethos. Belfast scored very high on all these fronts." Website: http://www.wombatfs.com/index.htm Wombat Financial Software Inc 48 Wall Street, Suite 1100 New York, NY 10005 Phone: +1.646.775.2902 Fax: +1.212.208.2586 http://www.wombatfs.com/about/contact_new_york.htm Pronexus ========= "Pronexus Expands International Operations, Signs Agreement with CTI-PRO, Leading Eastern European Distributor of IVR and Telephony Resources." http://www.pronexus.com/corporate/news/2005/05102005.asp Ottawa, Canada, May 10, 2005 - "Pronexus Inc., an innovator of computer telephony and speech software solutions since 1993, and the first to bring the power of .NET to the field, today announced that it has signed a distribution agreement with CTI-PRO, a leading distributor of hardware and software resources for IVR and telephony in Eastern Europe. According to the terms of the agreement, CTI-PRO will be distributing VBVoice, Pronexus?award-winning Rapid Application Development environment for creating sophisticated IVRs, telephony and speech solutions." * "This is one of several developments in Pronexus? continued international expansion plans. Other distributor relationships are actively being pursued in West and Eastern Europe, as well as Asia. Dilon Technologies =================== (there is no news on the Dilon website about this new expansion so perhaps their office is not established yet) "NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Dec. 6, 2005 /PRNewswire/ Dilon Technologies, LLC -- "a U.S. manufacturer and supplier of high-resolution molecular imaging systems -- moves into Europe and Canada with new sales partnerships and camera installations this fall. The first European installation of the Dilon 6800 Gamma Camera will be December 2005 in the Royal Free Hospital in London. More installations will quickly follow into other EU countries and Canada." http://www.kpho.com/Global/story.asp?S=4207097 Website: http://www.dilon.com/ Dilon Technologies phone: 757.269.4910 fax: 757.269.4912 12050 Jefferson Ave. Newport News, VA 23606 info@dilon.com http://www.dilon.com/contact.html QLogic ====== "QLogic to Open Fulfillment Center in EMEA - Company's Presence in Ireland Expected to Dramatically Accelerate Order Fulfillment." http://www.qlogic.com/news-events/details/releases_details.asp?id=4251 ALISO VIEJO, Calif. - June 7, 2005 - "QLogic Corp. (Nasdaq:QLGC), the company that powers storage area networks (SANs), today announced that it will establish operations near Dublin, Ireland as an integral part of the QLogic Global Supply Chain Program. The center will deliver customer-specific "configure-on-demand" services, regionally based customer support, order fulfillment services, and reverse logistics to enhance fulfillment of demand from OEM and reseller customers for QLogic HBAs, switches and ASICs in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). The 20,000-square-foot facility is based in Blanchardstown, a suburb of Dublin, and is expected to employ up to 100 professionals over the next five years. QLogic has also contracted with several multi-national freight forwarders and transportation service providers to optimize the velocity of product delivery in EMEA. "QLogic is a welcome addition to the growing cluster of storage industry companies in Ireland," said Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Miche l Martin T.D. "The decision to locate its EMEA headquarters here is a powerful endorsement of Ireland's ability to support leading-edge, knowledge-intensive activities and to provide the people required for such high level activities. IDA Ireland worked closely with the company in assisting them in their decision to locate in Ireland and the employment it will offer will provide excellent opportunities for the skilled people of Dublin." Contact http://www.qlogic.com/contact/ DataMirror =========== "DataMirror Partners with QCL Technologies to Expand Reach in Ireland." http://www.datamirror.com/investors/pressrelease.aspx?newsId=120 TORONTO and SANTA CLARA, Calif., (June 8, 2005) - "DataMirror (Nasdaq: DMCX; TSX: DMC) today announced a partnership with QCL Technologies (QCL), a Cork, Ireland, based technology solutions reseller. As partners, DataMirror and QCL will jointly offer real-time data integration and regulatory compliance solutions to clients in the chemical, life sciences and pharmaceutical industries. The partnership leverages solutions built upon DataMirror Integration Suite and QCL's experience in the Irish market." "By forming a strategic sales and marketing alliance with Cork-based QCL, DataMirror expands its reach in Ireland and becomes QCL?s lead software provider for real-time data integration and regulatory compliance solutions. By adding DataMirror solutions to its menu of software, hardware and technology services, QCL expands its total solution offerings in the area of regulatory and corporate IT compliance." "With a strong reputation for delivering technology solutions in Ireland, QCL Technologies is a valuable addition to DataMirror?s ecosystem of integration partners, consulting firms, infrastructure providers and value added resellers," said Stewart Ritchie, Senior Vice-President, Worldwide Sales, DataMirror. "Partnering with a leading reseller like QCL will help DataMirror to deliver business technology solutions that Irish companies want and need." Contact http://www.datamirror.com/contact/directory.aspx Masterfile =========== "Tomas Speight joins Masterfile to lead European expansion." Toronto, Canada - September 26, 2005. http://www.masterfile.com/info/corporate/press/press_current.html "On January 1, 2006, Masterfile will launch direct sales operations in Germany, Italy, Netherlands and U.K. Integral to this initiative, the Canadian company has hired Tomas Speight as Senior Vice-President International. Mr. Speight will establish Masterfile?s European Headquarters in D sseldorf and will simultaneously open sales offices in London and Milan." Company website: http://www.masterfile.com/info/corporate/aboutmasterfile.html Masterfile Corporation - Corporate Headquarters 175 Bloor Street East South Tower, Second Floor Toronto, Ontario Canada M4W 3R8 Telephone: 1-800-387-9010 (Canada & USA) or 416-929-3000 Fax: 416-929-2104 E-mail: info@masterfile.com Masterfile USA Corporation 708 Third Avenue 5th Floor New York, NY USA 10017 Telephone: 1-800-387-9010 E-mail: info@masterfile.com http://www.masterfile.com/info/corporate/contactus.html Lombardi Software =================== "Lombardi Software Announces European Office to Meet Growing Market Demands; Lombardi Software, Ltd. First Step In Global Expansion." AUSTIN, Texas, Nov 15, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) http://www.austinventures.com/news/fullarticle.asp?id=16730 "Lombardi Software(R), the leader in pure play Business Process Management (BPM) software for Global 2000 companies, today announced that the company has established a subsidiary, Lombardi Software Ltd., to meet the rapidly growing demand for its TeamWorks BPM platform outside of North America. Lombardi's European headquarters * will be based in London. * Greg Pope, Vice President of European Operations, will manage the business and report to Olivier Gachot, Lombardi's Executive Vice-President of Worldwide Sales. Mr. Pope previously managed Lombardi's North American Sales Operations. The expansion to Europe is a further demonstration of Lombardi Software's strategy to increase its share of the $2 billion worldwide BPM market. As in North America, Lombardi will focus its business efforts on Global 2000 organizations seeking a BPM platform that can meet the multi-process, multi-function, multi-system requirements of a large enterprise. Thomas Equipment ================= "Thomas Announces Plans to Open a New European Sales and Logistics Centre." MILWAUKEE, WI -- 11/08/2005 http://home.nestor.minsk.by/build/press/2005/11/0909.html "Thomas Equipment Inc. ("Thomas") announced that the company will open a new European sales and logistics centre in a suburb of Brussels, Belgium." "The new 7, 000 sq meter facility will have showrooms for the full line up of Thomas Equipment skid steer machines as well as the new telescopic handling equipment. The centre will include a demonstration work area where customers can test drive equipment." "The new logistics centre will stock an extensive inventory of equipment to better serve the company's distribution network in Europe." Mythic Entertainment ===================== PRESS RELEASE: Mythic Entertainment Announces Plans To Expand Business Into Europe." MAY 10th, 2005. http://www.gamesindustry.biz/news.php?aid=8607 "Mythic Entertainment, developer and publisher of the massively multiplayer online role-playing game "Dark Age of Camelot," today announced plans to open a European office, and to launch their upcoming science-fiction MMORPG, "Imperator," simultaneously in North America and Europe." "The new office will oversee Mythic's European publishing operations including localization, marketing, distribution, customer support and billing for "Imperator" when it is released in the summer of 2006. Mythic is currently reviewing several possible locations for their European presence and is in discussions with a number of potential European distribution partners. As with "Dark Age of Camelot," "Imperator" will be published by Mythic Entertainment in North America." Companies to follow ==================== The following companies were selected for the 2004 Innovation World list, with mention of future expansion (at some date) into Europe. However, I could find no press releases on any of the company websites that expansion had occurred as of yet. From "InnovationWORLD announces the IW21: Twenty-one companies poised for growth this century." http://www.falconwaterfree.com/press/docs/IW21PR.pdf Apnano Materials ================= "ApNano Materials, New York, N.Y.: "Nanotechnology will find every nook and cranny in the industrial infrastructure, some of the first products will be lubricants built on engineered molecules. ApNano makes lubricant additives and anti-friction coatings for machine parts. Founded in Israel, ApNano moved its headquarters to the United States and is now raising funding for U.S. and European expansion." http://www.falconwaterfree.com/press/docs/IW21PR.pdf "ApNano Materials plans global expansion and it is in an advanced process of raising $4 million investment in the company. We already have firm commitments for a part of the investment," said Aharon Feuerstein, ApNano Materials? Chairman, CFO and Co-Founder. http://www.nanotech-now.com/news.cgi?story_id=06309 ApNano Materials, Inc. 22 W. 38th Street New York, NY 10018-6262 USA Telephone: +1-212-302-2070 Fax: +1-212-719-0893 http://www.apnano.com/ Plextronics ============ Plextronics, Pittsburgh, Pa.: A Carnegie-Mellon University incubated developer of inherently conductive polymers, Plextronics makes plastics that conduct electricity that could punch through design and cost barriers in a variety of industries. Earlier this year the company told our readers it plans for its 2005 European entry and Asian growth." Website: www.plextronics.com Plextronics, Inc. 2180 William Pitt Way Pittsburgh, PA 15238 Phone: (412) 423-2030 Fax: (412) 423-2039 http://www.plextronics.com/contactus.aspx?id=19 TiniAerospace ============== "TiNi Aerospace, San Leandro, Calif.: TiNi develops shape memory materials for use in aerospace, automotive, and other industries that are embracing advanced materials. Although a small, private company, it has won major contracts around the world and its components have traveled thoughout the solar system. TiNi plans to launch its European presence in 2005." http://www.falconwaterfree.com/press/docs/IW21PR.pdf Website: http://www.tiniaerospace.com/services.html TiNi Aerospace, Inc. 2235 Polvorosa Drive, Suite 280 San Leandro, CA 94577 Phone: 510.483.2564 Fax: 510.483.2032 Email: info@tiniaerospace.com http://www.tiniaerospace.com/contact.html Taser International ==================== "Taser International, Scottsdale, Ariz.: A controversial, revolutionary technology for subduing criminals using an electrical shock has made Taser a household name in the United States. The company's European business will launch with a major deal in Great Britain and it is set to expand to the Continent on that early win." Website: http://www.taser.com/index.asp TASER INTERNATIONAL, INC. 17800 N. 85th St. Scottsdale, AZ 85255-9603 USA 800.978.2737 - toll free 480.991.0791 - fax 480.905.2000 - main http://www.taser.com/about/contact.htm == As per your last clarification: Expansion plans of industries already present in Europe: Opeteros ========= Optaros Opens European Headquarters in Switzerland http://www.optaros.com/np/company_news_07-19-05.html CAMBRIDGE, Mass. & Geneva Switzerland - (BUSINESS WIRE) - July 19, 2005 -"Optaros Inc., an open source software consulting and integration firm, today announced its expansion into the European market. Optaros has opened a European office in Geneva, Switzerland, and appointed a veteran of the consulting and systems integration business, Frederic Weill, to run it." "The entry into Europe comes a year after Optaros launched its American business, which provides strategic advice and software development services that help major enterprises dramatically reduce their software costs and build critical systems faster. ** "Optaros plans to open additional European offices over the next year. ** Contact http://www.optaros.com/company_contact.html Affiliated Computer Services ============================== "ACS announces Brian Stones joins to lead European operations." 2/1/2005 http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=99443&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=668917&highlight= "Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., a premier provider of business process and information technology outsourcing solutions, announced today that Brian Stones has joined the company's senior leadership team and will oversee ACS operations in Europe." "Additionally, ACS is working to expand its European presence and will soon open new offices in Eastern Europe and other key locations. == I hope these references are helpful and will provide what you need. Sincerely, umiat Search Strategy (combined many of the search terms below with individual country names) 2005 "Press release" announces plans for European expansion 2005 telecom AND european expansion 2005 Canadian company plans european expansion 2005 AND financial company plans OR announces European expansion 2005 AND call center OR data center OR telecom announces European expansion software company announces plan to open headquarters in Europe U.S. company plans to expand to Europe Canadian company plans European expansion OR expand to Europe announces plans European headquarters to open European headquarters OR office AND 2005 2005 "Press release" will expand into other countries AND Europe

I will look it over but my initial impression is that it looks very good. I may have another research assignment for you, if it's possible to request "your google" services again?

In thinking this over, I think there is an exception to what I outlined in my previous clarification. If there's a North American company that recently opened a European office and the company explicitly says that they're looking at expanding further within Europe (to open additional locations), I think this would most definitely qualify. Thanks.

And you have absolutely no interest in companies that "recently" opened a European office, right? http://www.proficient.com/news/08232005.shtml

Certainly. Simply put "for Umiat" in the subject heading. I will gladly look into it. Thank you for you consideration!

Other industries would be fine as well. The industries listed are the strongest sectors for my region so they would obviously be my preference, but I am open.

#If you have any other info about this subject , Please add it free.#

Posted on at 2:22 am by smith.
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