GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

The four target areas for economic growth are:

1. Digital Broadcasting and the Use of Media;
2. Marketing San Antonio as a Destination through Information Technology;
3. the Development of a Technologically Sophisticated Workforce; and
4. the Creation of an Inland Port to Facilitate International Commerce.

TARGET AREAS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

DIGITAL BROADCASTING AND THE USE OF MEDIA

Digital Broadcasting offers the following enhancement of broadcast capabilities:

• Doubles the number of broadcast channels
• Adds programs and services in the digital format
• Delivers high bandwidth digital services to off-network computers in the broadcast area
• Delivers rich media (audio/video/data services combined)
• Provides interactive television
• Provides a range of services, incorporating the best features of radio, television, telephone, fax, answering machine, and computer
• Extends interactive digital services beyond the reach of computer networks to unserved areas
• Provides low-cost delivery of sound, pictures, and other forms of data transmission into the home via a television receiver.

The creation of a Digital Broadcasting environment will simplify a broad range of telecommunications issues and simultaneously expand the capacity of existing media, such as telephone, satellite, broadcast and cable television, and high speed data networks. Digital makes it possible to encode, encrypt, compress, and manipulate data so that it can be delivered through a wide variety of transmission media (e.g., air, wire, and fiber) in ways that are invisible to the end-user.

Digital Broadcasting allows telecommunications service providers to deliver more content, richer content, and more secure content. The service provider will then have more control over who has access to the content. In addition, the service provider can meter the flow of the content, allowing for new income streams (i.e., pay-per-view, proprietary databases to which a company or individual may subscribe, or low cost pop music on demand).

Once San Antonio has established a Digital Broadcasting environment, the City will become an attractive market for companies that need the high-tech communications environment provided by this technology. For example, the health care industry needs a "smart city" to keep records confidential and still communicate easily among doctors, researchers, office personnel, and patients. The combination of controlled access and easy communication of essential information is a very attractive feature of the Digital Broadcasting environment. This feature appeals not only to the health care industry, but also to a wide range of other industries who have similar needs.

In summary, a Digital Broadcasting environment is the environment in which business will be conducted in the future. San Antonio has a window of opportunity to be among the leading edge cities to offer a digital environment.

MARKETING SAN ANTONIO AS A DESTINATION THROUGH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

It is critical that San Antonio has a superior website in order to distinguish itself from other destination cities. This can be accomplished in both the physical appearance of the site as well as in its features and utility: ease of access; number of connections to other related sites; flexibility of use; connection to an ultimate real person who is readily available and knowledgeable; and timeliness of response.

By having a world-class City website, San Antonio will have the opportunity to gain worldwide recognition for its innovation use of new technology. This will help create San Antonio's identity as a "smart city." Further, San Antonio's marketing efforts will be compounded by virtue of the attention a superior website will receive.

Internet as a Marketing Tool

The Internet is critical as a marketing tool, because it levels the playing field among all competing destination cities. Each city has an equal capacity to reach all participants in the Internet simultaneously. Because the Internet can now be used for one-to-one marketing, all cities are recognizing this fact and developing websites for marketing purposes, including San Antonio. It is the most cost efficient way to reach the world market with a minimal amount of physical labor or cost--and, for the world to reach San Antonio.

Current Status of San Antonio

As a point of reference, this Subcommittee looked at the websites of other destinations that are good examples of better than average destination websites. The websites identified were:

The Subcommittee found that there were no websites that it would consider outstanding. This void presents an excellent opportunity for San Antonio. However, the window of opportunity will only last for a short time, so San Antonio must act quickly.

DEVELOPMENT OF A TECHNOLOGICALLY SOPHISTICATED WORKFORCE

What is a Technologically Sophisticated Workforce?

A technologically sophisticated workforce is one that can work in an "agile manufacturing" environment, which is characterized by rapid changes made possible by cutting-edge technologies. This environment is characteristic of the service-oriented post-industrial manufacturing system. (See "Innovative Infrastructure for Agile Manufacturers," by John D. Kasarda and Dennis A Rondinelli in Sloan Management Review, Vol. 39, No. 2 (Winter 1998), pp. 72-82); for manufacturing as a service industry, see "Postindustrial Manufacturing" by Ramchandran Jaikumar in the Harvard Business Review, Nov.-Dec. 1986, No. 6, pp. 69-76.)

San Antonio as a city must establish a base of technological literacy. However, given the current competitive environment, San Antonio must simultaneously create a technologically sophisticated workforce. There are several anchors for achieving the latter goal: 1) Brooks Air Force Base; 2) the UT Health Science Center; 3) SBC, Inc. (Southwestern Bell); 4) the various universities located in San Antonio; and 5) the businesses engaged in high tech operations or those using advanced technologies to operate their businesses.

The City and the businesses currently located here --and those that will locate here in the future-- have a mutual interest in seeing the development of the technologically sophisticated workforce within the shortest timeframe possible. Therefore, San Antonio needs to develop a timeline and associated goals. Part of this endeavor could include forming strong bonds along the Corpus Christi, San Antonio, and Austin corridor.

What It Would Take for San Antonio to Build a Technologically Sophisticated Workforce

• San Antonio needs a long range plan, and the commitment of a cross-section of leaders in government, education, business, and labor, to achieve the goal of a technologically sophisticated workforce.

• The first objective should be achieving technological literacy. A goal for technological literacy could be that 80% of all San Antonian households have a computer with on-line capability and adequate training to know how to use it.

• Access to computer training and associated on-line applications should be made widely available to San Antonian residents. Sources for training could include, but should not be limited to, schools, public libraries, educational television, computer companies, and local businesses.

• San Antonio should create and conduct a campaign to entice people to become technologically sophisticated. This should include a variety of programs and incentives, both public and private, to encourage San Antonians to take advantage of the training and resources available. The character of the campaign should be similar to that for "Don't Mess with Texas" or "Go, Spurs, Go." It should be fun and challenging, motivating a total community effort. This campaign must have an adequate budget to make it a reality.

• San Antonio should further develop essential external infrastructure to attract agile manufacturing and other knowledge-based business. This external infrastructure should include those elements discussed by Kasarda and Rondinelli with regard to North Carolina's Global TransPark, a commercial, distribution, and agile manufacturing center (See reference above.):
  1. Multimodal transportation systems;
  2. Integrated telecommunications networks;
  3. Responsive commercial and service support (e.g., foreign trade zones, exposition centers, financial institutions, and harmonized electronic infrastructure); and
  4. Knowledge Centers (e.g., Austin and Houston in Texas).

CREATION OF AN INLAND PORT TO FACILITATE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE

In today's business environment, the total supply chain is a greater competitive force than the individual businesses that form the links in the supply chain. Therefore, a double advantage accrues from operating within the Inland Port. The first advantage is the location economies advantage obtained by being physically close to suppliers, markets, or needed services. The second is the supply chain integration advantage achieved by tightening the flow of information among participants separated by distance. An Inland Port confers this double advantage on its participating businesses. Establishing an Inland Port in a region enhances its attraction as a distribution hub; as a consolidation point; as a manufacturing subassembly area; or as a destination for imported and exported goods.

An Inland Port is different from a seaport in that the information required in the process of moving goods is separated from the physical goods themselves. In addition to being a physical space, an Inland Port is also a "virtual port" of free-flowing information. This, in essence, means that the paperwork associated with the movement of goods (i.e., customs documents, bills of lading, certificates of origin, invoices, etc.) can be processed at a different time and in a different space from the transference of goods. Intermodal transportation is the use of two or more modes of transportation (e.g., air, rail, truck, or ship) to move goods. Intermodal transportation permits a "virtual port" to effectively operate even though it is an information port and is not physically located at a seaport or on a border.

The functional and physical assets necessary for an Inland Port to operate successfully include the following:

1. Intermodal transportation capacity--air links, rail links with intermodal ramps, accessible highway system, and access to deep water port(s)
2. Demographic advantage--close to significant percentage of nation's manufacturing capacity and/or buying public
3. Geographic advantage--access to coastal ports, lack of barriers to efficient transportation, access to important markets, such as Mexico
4. Presence of large shippers who want to leverage the benefits of an Inland Port
5. Presence of an information technology infrastructure "that supports leading edge information technologies required to facilitate the efficient movement of goods into and out of the area" and "telecommunications networks and information service providers...[who]...can readily meet the needs of the international trade and transportation community"
6. Cooperation among public and private entities focused on the improvement of transportation and logistics services for the benefit of the whole community
7. Formation of councils to expand public and private involvement through groups of related participants who meet to address concerns that are shared by various entities in the international trade community--shippers, transportation providers, service providers
8. Will to aggressively market the Inland Port concept locally, nationally, and internationally, to obtain community support and to attract potential relocation prospects
9. Capable program management and strong leadership to bring together multiple entities from both the public and private sectors to move the Inland Port program forward. (See Trade Point USA website http://sys1.tpusaa.com/catlog/tpusa/00000089/impex19.htm)

San Antonio is strategically located and has many assets essential to being a successful Inland Port. Work is already underway at Kelly Air Force Base to develop some of those assets. Most recently, efforts under the direction of The Greater Kelly Development Corporation (GKDC) and the management of EG&G Management Services/San Antonio have been directed toward creating an International Trade Processing Center (see Appendix I). In addition, Ryder Integrated Logistics, located at Kelly Air Force Base, is testing the North American Trade Automated Prototype (NATAP), a harmonized, e-commerce system for clearing customs. The goal at Kelly AFB is to create a multimodal distribution center which will include a harmonized, e-commerce system for clearing customs similar to the NATAP model.

The Inland Port can be an engine for economic development in the San Antonio area. The San Antonio Inland Port geographic region could include the corridor from the city of Austin to the port of Corpus Christi, which is the ninth largest port in the United States. This idea has been discussed in great detail through the auspices of the Inland Port Logistics Task Force of the Free Trade Alliance San Antonio and previously by the same group working with the Economic Department of the City of San Antonio. One movement in this direction is the recent signing of an agreement among the GKDC, Union Pacific, and the Port of Corpus Christi to enhance its intermodal capabilities.

To ensure future economic development in San Antonio, it is important that the City create the information technology infrastructure necessary to make this virtual inland port a reality. Actions that the City can take to expedite the creation of the Inland Port in San Antonio are presented in the section on Recommendations.

The discussion of the concept of the Inland Port and supply chain management in this Subcommittee report is drawn from a more complete discussion of this topic in the article "Inland Ports and Supply Chain Management" by Ann Elizabeth Robinson, Ph.D., one of the authors of this report. For more details, this article can be found in the proceedings of the International Business Association 1999 annual meeting held in Cancun, Mexico.

Also, many activities conducted in an Inland Port are described in Appendix I: "The Components of an International Trade Processing Center,"Memorandum of May 17, 1997, to the Inland Port Logistics Task Force of the Free Trade Alliance San Antonio, by Madeleine Hamel and Elizabeth Robinson, Subcommittee for the International Trade Processing Center.

RECOMMENDATIONS BY TARGET AREAS

Digital Broadcasting and the Use of Media

1. The City should designate a private sector individual, who understands Digital Broadcasting and its potential impact on San Antonio, to chair an ad-hoc task force.

2. The ad-hoc task force should devise a plan for the City to develop Digital Broadcasting in San Antonio. This plan should specify precise legal, tax, and commercial incentives to facilitate the implementation of a digital environment in San Antonio.

3. The task force should include private sector and technical experts to ensure that the incentives for creating the digital environment are relevant to the needs of business.

4. A secondary responsibility of the task force should be to write a report for public dissemination about the applications of Digital Broadcasting. The report will show citizens, businesses, associations, and other institutions how they can take advantage of this technology. Such applications could include:
   a) Use of interactive TV to extend services beyond current computer networks;
   b) Provide City, businesses, and other organizations, a medium for training and professional development;
   c) Provide "live field trips" for students; and d) Enhance tourism marketing.

5. The task force should identify those areas where San Antonio already is a leader, or is aspiring to be, in order to prioritize the areas where the digital environment should be implemented. Such areas could include medical research, international commerce and distribution (i.e., "inland port"), telecommunications, higher education, agribusiness, the military, light manufacturing, and tourism.

6. The task force should devise a budget for the plan and also make recommendations as to how the private sector can participate financially.

7. The City should not micromanage Digital Broadcasting by acting as a public utility but should be a political force to create the kind of environment in which Digital Broadcasting can flourish.

8. The City should move quickly to take advantage of this window of opportunity to develop new market niches in Digital Broadcasting.

Marketing San Antonio as a Destination through Information Technology

1. The City should designate a City department, or contract with a private sector individual or firm, who specializes in website development and Internet marketing, to be in charge of orchestrating the City's marketing efforts through the Internet. The City should empower this designated department, firm, or individual with the necessary authority to carry out the duties and responsibilities of this assignment.

2. The City should work to galvanize a joint, mutually supportive marketing approach and international strategy among all organizations and departments of the City now promoting San Antonio as a destination for business relocation or tourism.

3. The City should develop a budget and allocate resources to implement a web-based marketing plan, fully integrating all participating communities in a globally oriented marketing strategy. The communities include: San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), the SAVE Committee, the Economic Development Foundation, the Free Trade Alliance, the Office of International Affairs for the City of San Antonio, the various chambers, and private enterprise. Private enterprise should be given incentives to contribute toward the financing of this effort.

4. The City should research all websites that promote San Antonio to discover any duplication of efforts. The City should determine ways to eliminate duplication of efforts and to efficiently manage and maintain these websites through a centralization of efforts. Alternatively, the City should find a way to create only one website.

5. The City should have a process of continually researching the Internet to ensure that San Antonio has a premier website which is offering cutting edge features.

6. The City should coordinate with existing contractors providing marketing services to San Antonio to ensure that they are using state of the art digital formats and technologies, and that materials can be offered on the website.

7. The City should make information packets and marketing materials available in digital formats for downloading from the City website.

8. San Antonio should create a state-of-the art website, which includes sound, animation, motion, and special effects. The site should literally come alive with animated, musical click-ons or hotlinks. Examples could be: a video message from the Mayor; scenes from events such as the River Parade, the Oyster Bake, the King William Fair; messages from the University of Texas Health Science Center, Southwest Research, or Southwestern Bell; a virtual walk-through of the Convention Center; or a talk with the Spurs. San Antonio should convey throughout its website that the City is alive and growing. The focus of the website should be on culture, service, and hospitality.

9. The San Antonio website should have hot-links to all key business information websites for the City.

10. The San Antonio website should be hot-linked to the websites of cities with whom San Antonio has joint marketing arrangements-whether in the US, in Mexico, or Asia. For example, San Antonio could market itself as an Inland Port on the websites of other ports, such as Hong Kong, since similar users will be attracted to those websites.

11. The City should encourage San Antonio businesses to advertise the address of the City website, or otherwise acknowledge that they are in support of the City's centralized marketing effort. This acknowledgement would be made in a way similar to the way in which businesses affirm that they are members of the local Chamber of Commerce, or the Better Business Bureau, in corporate literature.

12. The City should put the address of the City website on all official San Antonio correspondence, printed material, and visuals, as well as including it in radio and television ads.

13. A point of contact should be identified for each group who participates in the City website. The City should appoint one person with the primary responsibility of fielding incoming inquiries or comments. All participating organizations should do the same.

14. Inquiries through the City website should receive an immediate, personal response rather than an automated message. San Antonio should develop a reputation for immediate and gracious response--and one noted for its "human face."

15. The City website should have cross-platform operability and backward compatibility.

16. The City should provide appropriate information to the private sector that it may be used for marketing purposes.

Building A Technologically Sophisticated Workforce

1. The City should designate a public-private sector Working Group whose focus would be on building a technologically sophisticated workforce.

2. The purpose of the Working Group would be to devise and implement a long-range plan. This plan should cover 15 to 20 years and should focus on process as well as specific content.

3. The Working Group and the Mayor should involve international and national business leaders, not limited to those currently working in San Antonio, to develop the professional standards for the technologically sophisticated workforce they will need in five, ten, fifteen, or twenty years.

4. The Working Group, in conjunction with the City, should approach computer manufacturers for help in designing and implementing the long-range plan. The Working Group should invite these companies to assist with the goal of having an on-line computer in every home and providing the training to support households with the new technology.

5. The Working Group should identify incentives to motivate local businesses to get involved in the process of developing the technologically sophisticated workforce (e.g., training, public speaking, and high tech skills).

6. The City should provide incentives, identified by the Working Group, to encourage businesses to train and upgrade the labor force.
7. The City should provide expanded usage of the cable TV and other public access media, for business facilitation purposes, including training.

8. The Working Group should research and identify technology training grants which the City can pursue (e.g., retention grants through Department of Education).

9. The Working Group should develop, and the City should implement, a cooperative program with Austin and Corpus Christi to create a powerful Corpus Christi (water port)-San Antonio (distribution/info services and Inland Port)-Austin (electronics, computer industry, and Knowledge Center) corridor for international trade and information services.

10. The Working Group should identify and develop programs the City can undertake through local schools, neighborhood associations, and organizations such as Communities Organized for Public Service (COPS), to develop the technologically sophisticated workforce. The City should implement such programs.

11. The Working Group should develop a recycling program for older computers and modems for those without funds to purchase them. The City, possibly in conjunction with one or more computer manufacturers or retailers, should strive to implement the recycling program. As part of the recycling program, the City should develop business and governmental incentives for the donation of such assets. For example, the City could offer a tax credit for donating a computer or computer equipment of certain value.

12. The Working Group should research summer programs that other cities have developed for students to upgrade technological skills. The Working Group should then develop summer programs and workshops which the City can offer at recreation centers for students to upgrade technological skills. The City should implement the most appropriate programs for San Antonio.

13. The Working Group should identify easily accessible locations for public access to on-line computers which can be used for functions other than basic City services (e.g., the payment of bills or taxes). These locations should have flexible hours of usage. The Working Group should identify locations in all parts of the City that could be made accessible; it should also identify the times during which each location could be made available. The Working Group should identify specific locations for all-night usage for those who cannot gain access during the day. An example might be an all night post office or a university computer lab.

14. The City should provide special support for those over 60 to become technologically literate. The Working Group should identify what kinds of special support seniors may need; research and identify programs in other cities for seniors; and develop guidelines, as well as a program, for San Antonio to provide the special support seniors may need.

15. The Working Group should recommend incentives that the City can offer to businesses so that they will create Workers' Councils. The Workers' Councils will advise the City of the most important technological gaps that the work force faces as it tries to meet the demands of today's business environment. The Workers' Councils will also offer suggestions as to how to overcome these gaps.

16. The Working Group should develop a recommended budget for the proposed long-range plan to present with the plan to the City. The budget should also include a section on the sources, as well as uses, of funds.

Creation Of An Inland Port To Facilitate International Commerce

1. The City should create a public-private sector enterprise modeled after those at Columbus, Ohio, and Kinston, N.C., to support the efforts to make the Inland Port a reality. This enterprise would be partly publicly funded and partly privately funded.

2. The public-private sector enterprise should identify other locations within this geographic area which could use the facilities, use the services, or become a part of, the greater Inland Port of San Antonio.

3. The City should ensure that the technological infrastructure that is being built in San Antonio will permit the following:
   a. Data transmission via satellites (GEOS and LEOS);
   b. International financial services, with SWIFT capabilities;
   c. Use of electronic commerce for all transactions;
   d. Automated trade processing (the North American Trade Prototype is currently being tested by Ryder Integrated Logistics at Kelly AFB); and,
   e. Advanced telecommunications.

4. The public-private sector enterprise should propose a timeline; identify sources of funds (e.g., municipal bonds, taxes, and private sector contributions); and propose a budget to create the technological infrastructure discussed above.

5. The public-private sector enterprise should oversee a feasibility project to see if a relationship among San Antonio, Austin, and Corpus Christi can be created. It should make specific recommendations how to bring about this relationship.

6. The City should continue to support the harmonization of Canadian, Mexican, and US commercial policies, with local efforts enhancing those at the national and international level (e.g., NAFTA-led initiatives).

7. The public-private sector enterprise should advise the City on which high tech businesses San Antonio should target to attract. Such high tech businesses would include those necessary to conduct the trade and services associated with an Inland Port, as well as those who are on the cutting edge of new technology development relevant to the activities of an Inland Port. These businesses could also be instrumental in helping to build a technologically sophisticated workforce. The City should provide incentives for such companies to relocate to San Antonio and to invest in workforce training programs.

8. The public-private sector enterprise should actively seek the involvement of other San Antonio or Bexar County enterprises in this economic development effort.

9. The City should continue to lobby for, institute, and develop requisite legislation and/or permits for automated trade processing (e.g., Mexican customs clearance, as well as Food and Drug Administration and Dept. of Agriculture clearance in San Antonio).

10. The City should institute automated customs clearance in San Antonio and work with counterparts in Mexico to create the same in Monterrey, Mexico, as soon as it is legally possible. The City should work with the private sector to provide training for those upgrading to the new system.

11. The City should continue to attract companies with advanced telecommunication technology and services to relocate in San Antonio. The City should also convince banks to bring their trade financing functions to San Antonio.

12. The City should continue to lobby for US-Mexico uniform trucking standards so that drivers and trailers from both countries can easily cross the border while maintaining effective standards of safety and drug interdiction.

13. The City should begin to market San Antonio as an Inland Port, using the technology that the City wants to bring to San Antonio.

14. The City should create a technologically based marketing strategy, supported by participating private enterprises' and non-profit and governmental organizations' own efforts.

15. The City should create an image of San Antonio as a technologically sophisticated city in both the design and content of web pages and web linkages.

16. The City should create an image of San Antonio as a city prepared to engage in international trade and investment services via an Inland Port, and as a city which has a technologically sophisticated workforce.

17. The City should work with the cities of Austin and Corpus Christi to achieve the objectives above.

18. The City should assist Corpus Christi in raising the funds necessary to develop its seaport, with San Antonio obtaining a significant equity interest (i.e., more than 10%) in the venture.

19. The City should support ongoing transportation efforts to:
    a. Improve rail and intermodal connections to the Corpus Christi seaport
    b. Develop the deep water port of Corpus Christi
    c. Upgrade air links to other major cities, especially direct flights
    d. Expand accessibility of the wide body aircraft (C-5) runway and increase usability
    e. Attract large shippers as exporters and to find backhaul from those locations to which San Antonio ships
    f. Entice shippers to help develop Corpus as an alternative to Houston and Miami.

20. The City should galvanize all competing private sector groups and City government into a strong, well-focused organization, similar to those organizations which created The Greater Port of Columbus, Ohio (formerly Rickenbacker AFB), and the Global TransPark in Kinston, NC.

21. The City should seek the input and opinions of citizens who could be affected by the operation of the Inland Port.

22. The City should institute a major public campaign so that every schoolchild and every citizen will know what an Inland Port is and what benefits it can provide to individuals and to the City as a whole.

    APPENDIX I

    COMPONENTS OF AN INTERNATIONAL TRADE PROCESSING CENTER

    TO: Inland Port Logistics Task Force
    FROM: Madeleine Hamel and Elizabeth Robinson
    International Trade Processing Center Subcommittee
    DATE: May 17, 1997
    SUBJECT: Components of an International Trade Processing Center: Revised

    With the understanding that the ITPC provides the core international functions of a Logistics Center, the following are the components identified for an ITPC at a single site. Your comments and revisions would be appreciated.

    I. COMPONENTS OF AN INTERNATIONAL TRADE PROCESSING CENTER

    THE TRADEMART: INTERNATIONAL SALES & MARKETING SHOWROOM - Facility within a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) designated site for the display of merchandise; the placement of orders; and the housing of agent or seller representative offices or other businesses seeking to do business in a multi-national environment.

    TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS CENTER:
    TELECOMMUNICATIONS - An ITPC-wide state-of -the-art transmission system using satellites; signals carried by a selected international carrier to obtain volume discounts for service, installations and repairs; customers benefit from dedicated service providing increased responsiveness to clients including management and cost efficiencies.

    INFORMATION SYSTEMS - Integrated computer and information system services; staff personnel to integrate ITPC system with those of onsite client companies; objective to provide cost reduction, wider range of services, and total ITPC system integration; responsible for selection or development of appropriate software; needs to interface with the Integrated Logistics Management System as appropriate.

    INTEGRATED LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM - Online cargo tracking and monitoring system from procurement to final destination, using satellite communications and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to provide real time location and quality control data.

    SECURITY SYSTEM - All encompassing service, system, facilities and equipment protecting the entire physical plant and operating systems using guard gates, electronic surveillance, and building access control to ensure integrity of grounds and facility throughout the 24 hour day.

    FEDERAL INSPECTION SERVICES - Centrally located clearance facility to expedite all aspects of U.S. Customs clearance, including tariff classification, tariff rates, and enforcement of phyto-sanitary regulations of the DOA and FDA; facility will include operational space for customs house brokers, customs authorities and a central examination station; additionally, it will include holding areas for merchandise awaiting inspection or release. U.S. Customs (Treasury Dept.), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS, Agriculture Dept.); Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS, Justice Dept.) will be co-located at the site, and all federal inspection services will work in an integrated manner, eliminating duplication and expediting all services necessary to efficiently cross the border.

    TRUCK INSPECTION STATION: Station to inspect trucks to determine if they meet safety, environmental, and other regulatory requirements for US, Mexico, and Canada, as appropriate. (Describe more specifically: axle weights, length, gross weight, etc.)

    BROKERAGE SERVICES:
    CUSTOMS HOUSE BROKER SERVICES - Preparation of documentation and verification of import/export information including tariff classifications and rates; computation of tariffs and other taxes; and control of goods based on US government regulations, such as origin, treaties, trade marks and other NTB related regulations. Negotiation on behalf of clients with US Customs regarding above issues and discrepancies, including the filing of drawback claims, and applications for licenses and permits.

    FREIGHT FORWARDER/TRANSPORATATION BROKER SERVICES - Provides shippers with alternative costs based on transportation routes and modes. Prepares documentation (financial, transportation, inventory management). Oversees physical handling services for shipments e.g. stuffing containers, loading & loading cargo, marking & labeling, pick-up & delivery).

    FOREIGN TRADE ZONE PROGRAM SERVICES - A U.S. Dept. of Commerce program designed to facilitate international trade. A cost savings opportunity that enhances the chain of efficiencies of an ITPC resulting in deferral, reduction or elimination of duties and taxes for international businesses. Operations could range from storage to full scale manufacturing.

    NATAP SERVICES - North American Trade Automation Prototype - A trilateral electronic trade information system designed to streamline, standardize, and integrate customs information for surface transportation and thereby expedite shipments and reduce tariff barriers. (supports the spirit of NAFTA).

    II. RELATED ITPC SERVICES

    LAND FOR BUILD-TO-SUIT - Available land within the Logistics Center property which is free and clear of any encumbrances which would hinder development. Such land would be environmentally clean, and be properly zoned; have access to sufficient water resources for services and facilities planned; have developed infrastructure, e.g. sewer and utility connections; and be permitted, with easy access to transportation/ distribution systems.

    TENANT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM/SERVICES - Management service system for real estate or individual company sites located within the Logistics Center including the ITPC and corporate customer tenant properties. Information systems used to manage the property would be compatible with other information systems in the Logistics Center.

    WAREHOUSING AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM - Public and private warehousing and distribution services provided by at least one on-site operator and designed to meet the needs of : 1) individual shippers who want to hire inventory management services; or 2) shippers or manufacturers who want to manage or store their own inventory. Full spectrum of warehousing facilities and services that can handle international shipping requirements should be provided.

    OTHER CUSTOMS FACILITATION SERVICES -

    NCAP - National Customs Automated Program - a company specific program encompassing all countries of origin and all modes of transportation.

    • Carriers Initiative
    • BASC - Business Anti-Smuggling Coalition
    • Mexican Customs
    • Canadian Customs

    III. CONTEXT OF AN ITPC WITHIN A LOGISTICS CENTER

    An International Trade Processing Center is a subset of Logistics Center services and facilities dedicated and tailored to facilitating movement of international trade. By locating complementary services at one site, the ITPC streamlines the import/export process and reduces transit times and cost. The ITPC is the unique core of the Logistics Center. ITPC services and facilities interface with other Logistics Center services and facilities to avoid duplication and enhance their value.

    A Logistics Center is a broader complete concept inclusive of all facilities and services at one site, serving all trade - domestic as well as international (local, regional, national). Components include:

    • Warehousing & distribution
    • Manufacturing
    • Land for build-to-suit
    • Executive facilities
    • International sales and marketing
    • Air & rail center
    • Transportation
    • Equipment maintenance & services
    • Equipment control & storage
    • Telecommunications & computer and satellite communications center.
    • Integrated logistics management system
    • Distribution system
    • Staging and material/equipment laydown areas
    • Security system
    • Tenant management system/services
    • Federal Inspection Services (customs, agriculture, immigration)
    • Customs house broker services
    • Freight forwarding services/transportation brokerage services
    • Foreign Trade Zone program services
    • NATAP services