Idaho. The aluminum casting company, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, has selected Eastern Idaho’s City of Idaho Falls to open its first U.S. office.
Sakae Casting specializes in castings for inserting stainless steel pipes into an aluminum casting product with minimized clearance, necessary for optimal performance of semi-conductors and super computers. The Idaho Falls office will give Sakae the best U.S. location to work directly with the University of Idaho, Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and the region’s extensive nuclear and advanced manufacturing sectors to further their research capabilities and U.S. product sales.
“It is my mission to create job opportunities in Eastern Idaho to support their strong science, research and education sectors,” said Mr. Takashi Suzuki, President and CEO Sakae Casting. “Additional employment opportunities will be created as we expand our business by working with our Japanese partner Ohzen to connect Japanese services and technologies with U.S. markets. We’re excited to have our first U.S. presence in Eastern Idaho,” he said.
Regional Economic Development for Eastern Idaho’s (REDI) CEO Jan Rogers first made contact with Sakae Casting during their March 2016 visit to Idaho Falls, thanks to a Sister City program between Idaho Falls and Tokai-Mura Japan. At the recommendation of Rogers, Sakae attended the federal foreign direct investment summit, SelectUSA, later that summer where further discussions took place.
“Sakae Casting representatives returned to Idaho Falls to meet with potential partners, including the University of Idaho, INL and local advanced manufacturing companies” Rogers explained. “With support from our contacts at SelectUSA, Sakae decided to open their first U.S. location here to focus on research and development and partner with our universities, nuclear and advanced manufacturing companies in product development and sales. We anticipate this will be the first step in a larger presence for Sakae Casting in Idaho Falls during future years,” she said.
REDI and state economic development staff also worked closely with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s SelectUSA program to facilitate the deal. SelectUSA works with economic development teams across the United States to attract business investment from foreign companies.
“This investment is further proof that global companies look at investing in the United States as a key step in their growth strategy, and recognize the U.S. heartland as having one of the most skilled and productive workforces in the world,” said SelectUSA Deputy Executive Director Peggy Philbin. “We have been honored to work with Governor Otter and economic development teams across the state to create jobs in Idaho, and we look forward to partnering on continued efforts to do so.”
REDI also worked closely with Idaho Department of Commerce to secure Sakae Casting’s first U.S. location,” said Megan Ronk, Director of Idaho Commerce. “I am thrilled that Sakae Casting USA has chosen Idaho Falls for their U.S. expansion. This project showcases Idaho’s ability to attract important foreign direct investment opportunities, and we are excited to be a part of Sakae Casting’s growth. The addition of this startup to our state’s economy is a great example of Team Idaho with partners across the state working together to make this project a reality.”
According to Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper, “Eastern Idaho is full of passionate innovators in nuclear research and development who will help channel our region’s creative energy to identify the best forward path with our international partners. We welcome Sakae Casting to Eastern Idaho and congratulate them on their accomplishments thus far. We look forward to working with them to grow and strengthen this vital industry and bring in still more creative partners.”