With the U.S. Department of Defense (dod) publicly announcing plans in october (2008) to spend an impressive $360 billion over original estimates within over the next six years, the WestGate @ Crane Technology Park is ideally positioned to to attract billions of new dollars to flow into Indiana’s economy. However, according to site selection experts in the commercial defense industry, there exist five important considerations that the WestGate region must address to be competitive. these are:

Talent Availability—the existence of a critical mass of talent remains foremost in considering a region for technology-related defense work expansion. This talent includes engineers, programmers, scientists and technology professionals, as well as the attendant support workforce for advanced manufacturing and other areas.

With a large number of nsa civilian engineers and scientists either approaching, at, or past the age of retirement, the issues of attracting and educating the workforce for growing this commercial defense sector remain critical to the success of this region.

Clustering—the presence of related suppliers and vendors to support commercial defense growth represent important decision factors to send new work to a new region. While major defense-related corporations may already be present, smaller companies providing key supply-chain products and services for production are essential.

Education Centers of Excellence—the presence of highly organized defense-related academic centers represents a critical factor in being considered for the expansion of services. Sufficient research and development-focused faculty must be available to aid in defense-related technology development and commercialization. existing public private K-12 systems, with a focus on attracting students into engineering, math and science programs (stem) figure into the attraction equation.

The westgate is currently reviewing key recommendations for the development of a technology center —the westgate institute— that would serve as a home for major centers of excellence, workforce and training programs, technology transfer opportunities, as well as other programs to address the overall sustainability and growth of a successful regional defense cluster. (the technology center is outlined in more detail later).

Cost of Doing Business—Quality of life and tax/regulatory issues figure highly here, as evidenced by the literal flight of operations of major aerospace companies out of southern california a decade ago. The WestGate region is ideally located only minutes from the median center of the U.S. population, in a state known as the crossroads of america for its myriad of major highways and easy access to all major u.s. cities. Indiana has a nationally recognized low cost of doing business and tax policies that are continually ranked by economic development experts as some of the most favorable for businesses in the nation.

Infrastructure—having shovel-ready sites, interstate access, an operating airport, sufficient power, water access, and transportation networks remain essential to operating a successful commercial defense operation and subsequently servicing major department of defense contracts. The state of Indiana is currently extending interstate 69 from Evansville to Indianapolis. When this large, multi-state project is completed, Indiana will be connected via i-69 from Detroit to Houston.

The first part of this project is now underway and will extend i-69 from Evansville to Crane. The Indiana Department of Transportation specifically targeted Crane as a critical location for the new i-69 route. The WestGate @ Crane Technology Park is also considering various infrastructure projects to improve access and additional improvements to the region. Potential projects include:

• Creating a direct corridor (“super two” highway) from NSA Crane to the nearest i-69 exit, approximately one mile from the Crane WestGate.
• Improving water, sewer, and local roads around the WestGate Technology Park.
• Improving broadband telecommunication services in the westgate region for business, secure military, and quality-of-life purposes.