Texas Border Business
BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS – The Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC) and the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) at The University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) announces a unique partnership to deliver small- to medium-size manufacturing businesses coaching, training and project implementation to accelerate profitable growth and improve their bottom line. The partnership will enable small manufacturing enterprises (SME) that have struggled to overcome growth challenges to consider expanding or relocating to Brownsville, Texas through this newly announced workforce development program.
“We have an abundance of local companies in the Rio Grande Valley that have achieved a level of success which has provided the region with jobs and investment, however most of these companies know they can continue to grow and reach new markets through strategic expansion and technical assistance,” said Josh Mejia, Executive Director of the BCIC. “We firmly believe, as we continue to seek the correct partners to address these SME challenges in our region, that if we provide the necessary resources to our business owners and validate their potential, they will reach new heights.”
TMAC focuses on the success of the organizations they have the privilege to work with throughout Texas. The center delivers hands-on business management, technology and operations solutions to a wide range of businesses, including manufacturing, distribution, logistics, construction, health care and government. With over 4,447 companies served throughout the state, TMAC has been successful in helping businesses obtain over $1.9 billion in cost savings or reductions on materials, labor, inventory and equipment as well as retain or create over 60,000 jobs in Texas. TMAC is part of a nationwide network, Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), and it is funded by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) under the U.S. Department of Commerce.
“We are very excited to start this partnership with BCIC to provide local manufacturers and entrepreneurs the tools to become successful and strengthen the local economy,” states David Ortiz, Regional Director of TMAC South Texas at UTRGV. “Small- and mid-sized companies are the backbone of the U.S. economy and most do not have the same resources that big corporations do. Our program’s goal is to ensure these businesses get the assistance they need to address their pain points and areas of opportunity.”
A key strategy for the BCIC is to enable small businesses to become resilient, foster innovation, and begin to scale-up through equitable economic development opportunities that empower the region’s human capital first.
One successful case study that resulted from this new partnership has been the successful expansion of JOPA Corporation, D.B.A. “Tortillería Monterrey” to Brownsville, which was recently announced through a joint press release by the City of Brownsville, the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation, and the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation.
The unique workforce development program will not only provide technical assistance to promote operational efficiencies but will also include strategic planning for future objectives that will promote growth for the client.
 and the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) at The University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV)announces a unique partnership to deliver small- to medium-size manufacturing businesses coaching, training and project implementation to accelerate profitable growth and improve their bottom line.){kind=link}