Temperatures weren't the only things hot in the Research Triangle Region of North Carolina this summer.

New and expanding companies announced more than $1 billion in new investments in the 13-county region from June-August for projects estimated to create nearly 1,700 new jobs.

The summer investment total exceeded the robust $819 million in regional investments announced for all of 2007.

"It's an extraordinary level of investment for a region under any conditions, but even more significant in light of the weaker national economy," says Charles A. Hayes, president and CEO of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP), which coordinates economic development for the Research Triangle Region.

The region comprises the central North Carolina counties of Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Moore, Orange, Person, Vance, Wake and Warren.

"We see these announcements as a strong endorsement of our region's economy," Hayes said.

The brisk pace of summer announcements followed welcome news last spring that the region added nearly 102,000 jobs in the first four years of implementing a five-year comprehensive regional economic development strategy, called Staying on Top: Winning the Job Wars of the Future.

It outlines five strategies and 30 action items to ensure the region remains globally competitive and to boost employment in all 13 counties in the region.

If economic conditions hold in 2008, the region will have achieved its goal of adding 100,000 new jobs during the five years of the plan.

"These results reaffirm our strategy of focusing economic development on expanding clusters, like life sciences and technology, where we have a world-leading research and development advantage and high probability of creating jobs in the future," Hayes said.

New Investments Diversify Regional Economy

The region's 30 announced investments come from both new (12) and existing (18) companies and represent a mix of targeted industry sectors and business types, from R&D and contract research to advanced manufacturing.

Among the new investments were $373 million from informatics companies (528 jobs), $302 million in life sciences (382 jobs), and $150 million in advanced medical care (328 jobs) - all targets of regional economic development.

Four companies relocated their corporate, U.S. or North American headquarters to the region: Cheminova, Medis Medical Imaging Systems Inc., Patheon Inc. and Tryton Medical. Attracting headquarters is a regional economic development priority because companies tend to be more engaged in the communities in which their top executives live.

Their presence often leads to additional investments by both the company and those that service and supply them.

New investments were announced in seven of the region's 13 counties.

"We're delighted to see companies investing across our region, not only in the urban core but also in the 10 rural, outlying counties," Hayes says. "This creates jobs closer to home for residents in all of our 13 counties, which is a regional economic development priority."

Investing companies represented six foreign countries from three continents (Canada, Denmark, Germany, India, Netherlands and Switzerland).

The region's global economic development strategy focuses on attracting investment from companies located in countries with long-standing regional ties, like Canada and northern Europe, and new international targets in Asia, particularly India and China.

Strategic Planning Launched

The region's latest successes from its Staying on Top plan provide a strong foundation as RTRP begins planning for the second five-year strategic plan, dubbed "Staying on Top 2."

Two regional business leaders, SAS Community Relations Director Ann Goodnight and Manpower President and CEO Jeff Stocks, co-chair the CEO Leadership Committee that is advising the development of that plan.

The plan is expected to be completed by and announced at RTRP's State of the Research Triangle Region event in May. It will guide regional economic development from July 2009 through June 2014.

For more information on the region's economic development strategy and activities, visit www.researchtriangle.org or call RTRP at (919) 840-7372.