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Distribution & Logistics For more information about our capabilities or to confidentially request information or a site search in our region, contact Dave Porter, Sr. VP, Economic Development, at 512.322.5650 or dporter@austinchamber.com.

As one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas, with 1.4 million residents, in one of the fastest growing, business-friendly states in the U.S., Austin is primed for growth in the distribution and logistics industry.

“Anybody serious about their business needs to take a good look at Texas, especially when it comes to moving cargo in and out of this state.”
—Bill Webb, President and CEO, Texas Motor Transportation Association

• Consistently ranked as one of the nation’s most favorable business climates based on its low tax burden and competitive regulatory environment
• Aggregate costs for real estate, energy, wages and taxes below most states in the country
• Centrally located and recognized for having the best roads in the nation for trucking

Austin

• Focused on maintaining a physical infrastructure that matches the needs of its vibrant economy
• Nurturing a highly competitive supply chain management industry that features experienced third party logistics (3PL) services and a robust business management and supply chain execution software industry
• A young and well educated workforce renewed annually by the University of Texas at Austin with nearly 50,000 students, Austin Community College with nearly 32,000 students, other area colleges and universities and highly rated public school systems

For more information about our capabilities or to confidentially request information or a site search in our region, contact Dave Porter, Sr. VP/Economic Development, at 512.322.5650 or dporter@austinchamber.com.

Austin’s central location in the Texas hill country is within hours of Mexico, four of the nation’s largest sea ports and Texas’ four largest cities: Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth and San Antonio. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, opened in 1999, is a valuable asset for business travelers and shippers, and Central Texas is served by two Class I rail carriers. Major new highway construction underway will open up new avenues for industrial development.

Interstate & Highway Access
North-South & the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Corridor
The Austin metropolitan area, book-ended by Round Rock and Georgetown to the north and San Marcos to the south, sits on Interstate 35, the primary trade route between Mexico and Canada—the NAFTA corridor. Austin is within a four hour drive of Laredo, TX and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, minutes from San Antonio and a few hours from the Dallas-Fort Worth metro.
East-West
Interstate 10 passes about 20 miles south of San Marcos and 45 miles south of central Austin, making Houston and three other major sea ports accessible in less than four hours.
Coming Online
By late 2007, the Austin metro will have three new highways:

• State Highway 130, paralleling I-35 and already generating more industrial growth in the high tech manufacturing corridor east and north of Austin, will be traffic ready by late 2007. TX-130 will also speed traffic to Austin’s international airport.
• State Highways 45 North and 45 South will be new east-west corridors.
• State Highway 183A will add capacity to northwest Austin and its high tech sector.
• Commuter rail service will begin in 2008 and connect Austin’s vibrant downtown with rapidly growing satellite cities and high tech clusters north.

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport: State of the Art Facility
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) is a fully functional state-of-the-art international airport recognized in the freight industry for its highly effective cargo port design. Nearly 260 million pounds of air cargo shipments and 8.3 million passengers passed through ABIA in 2006. Primary air cargo carriers include BAX Global, DHL, FedEx, Lone Star Overnight and UPS. Major carriers offer nonstop passenger service to 44 domestic destinations. Same-plane service is offered to 99 destinations including six international cities.

Roughly 10 minutes from downtown Austin, the airport is located near major arterials including I-35, US-183, TX-71 and TX-130 (currently under construction). ABIA has a permanent U.S. Customs and Border Protection port of entry permitting full clearance of international cargo and passengers on site. Surge capacity at ABIA is extensive, and real estate is available on ABIA’s large cargo ramp.

General aviation airports in Austin, Georgetown, Leander, San Marcos and Taylor offer alternatives for executive travelers.

“Everything about ABIA’s cargo facilities is attractive for freight carriers and manufacturers. Coming improvements to area highways will only make it better and perhaps the number one air freight port just below the ice belt.”
— Ray Brimble, President and Owner, Lynxs Group Austin

Freight Railroads Serving Austin
Class 1 Railroads
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway
Union Pacific Railroad
Regional Railroads
Georgetown Railroad
Austin Area Terminal Railroad

Port Access
Austin is within 250 miles of 4 of the top 10 U.S. ports:
2. Houston (175 miles via I-10, BNSF, UP)
4. Beaumont (250 miles via I-10, BNSF, UP)
7. Corpus Christi (219 miles via I-35, UP)
9. Texas City (207 miles via I-10, BNSF, UP)

Sites & Buildings
The Austin area real estate market has more than 72.7 million square feet of industrial space, 19.4 million square feet being flex and 53.2 million in warehouse/distribution space, much of it centered around the I-35 corridor. New industrial space added in the first three quarters of 2007 totals more than 1.6 million square feet with another 1.5 million more under construction. A preliminary search of real estate opportunities is available on the Real Estate page, and personalized, professional site selection assistance is available from the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce.

Foreign Trade Zones
Central Texas currently has approximately 2,854 acres in Foreign Trade Zone 183. Nine different sites are located in Austin, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Round Rock and San Marcos, and each site has excellent access to ground transportation. Most of the acreage has direct access to I-35.

State & Local Incentives
Texas has a fair and competitive tax environment. State and local governments offer a variety of incentive programs designed to make capital more available for businesses looking to expand or locate in the state, as well as for companies already doing business in Texas. For detailed information on benefits like the Enterprise Zone Program, freeport exemptions, tax credit programs, financing programs and other incentives to business, see the Taxes & Incentives page.

“Samsung is a global company and must have a global transportation facility to operate effectively. Austin has such a facility at the ABIA. The airport connects us to our vendors, our employees and our headquarters. We would be hard-pressed to survive without such a wonderful port. “
— Bill Cryer, Executive Counsel for Public Affairs, Samsung Austin Semiconductor

Interstate System Near Austin

Trucking
Historically a major limestone and granite mining area, Austin is no stranger to long-haul trucking. Now much more diverse in the types of goods it ships, Austin features a portfolio of over-the-road freight forwarders with terminal facilities in town. Selected companies include:

Metro Austin has nearly 40,000 workers employed in transportation and material moving occupations. The average wage for these occupations in Austin is 12% lower than the average wage for these occupations nationally. Austin’s transportation and warehousing industry numbers nearly 500 firms and a workforce of more than 9,000. The wholesale trade sector includes more than 1,700 firms and a workforce of more than 38,000. Employment in both sectors in 2005 is up more than 10% from the year before. Manufacturing held steady in 2005 with some 1,200 firms and a workforce of 57,000. The dominant segment of Austin’s wholesale trade sector is computer and computer equipment and software merchant wholesalers who employ nearly 20,000. Computers and electronic equipment is the dominant manufacturing sector, employing approximately 30,000.

The University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business offers two undergraduate majors focusing on supply chain and operations management as well as a master’s of business administration and a Ph.D. in this area. UT is one of only a handful of public schools in the United States to offer post graduate degrees in this premier area of study and partners with a consortium of international business leaders to foster research in this field. As a top ranked university and a major research institution, UT is poised to become a leader in supply chain management research.

Commercial truck driving certifications and other training programs are offered through several approved training providers including Austin Community College. Financing for customized training and training support services is available via programs administered by the Texas Workforce Commission and Workforce Soutions Capital Area.

“Supply chain management has become a mainstay business practice necessitated by the globalization of markets and the need for businesses to stay as responsive, lean and efficient as possible. It is increasingly where the spend is for businesses as the coordination of global efforts becomes central to success.“
—Douglas Morrice, Professor and Director of the Supply Chain Management Consortium, University of Texas at Austin