Via Graziella DiNuzzo, WTCGP Director of Communications and Development, as featured in Technically Philly

Ruth Frey and CHOP Chief of Oncology Dr. Stephen Hunger were on their way to Philadelphia International Airport to catch a flight to Saudi Arabia to meet with Ministers of Health and referring physicians.
Their mission: Bring patients in need of specialized care to Philadelphia.

“Families in many countries around the world can’t access specialized care for their children, in many instances, it’s a difference between life and death,” said Frey, CHOP’s Executive Director for International Relationships and Programs.
Frey has traveled to the Middle East and other countries before, working with their embassies to pave the way to CHOP for patients such as Abdulrahman Abanemi from Saudi Arabia who has Holt-Oram syndrome, an extremely rare genetic disorder that causes heart and limb abnormalities.

Approximately 100 countries have sent their critically ill patients to CHOP’s Department of Global Medicine for complex medical care. That’s because CHOP is a quaternary care hospital, which means the hospital offers treatment for rare disorders and uncommon specialized surgeries.

CHOP’s reputation for specialized care is noted by physicians across the world. Endocrinologists at Princess Margaret Hospital for Children in Subiaco, Australia, for instance, have referred patients to CHOP’s Congenital Hyperinsulinism Center — patients such as 8-week-old Lachlan Cooper, who was born with the pancreatic disease. Three weeks after taking the 35-hour journey from Perth to Philadelphia, baby Lachlan was cured.

Leonard Karp, president and CEO of Philadelphia International Medicine (PIM), has dedicated over 25 years of his career establishing the Philadelphia region as an international healthcare destination of choice. PIM provides international patients and physicians with access to doctors and surgeons from Temple, Jefferson, Fox Chase Cancer Center, WillsEye Hospital and beyond, and patients have been received from across the globe, from the Caribbean and Latin America to Europe and Asia.

PIM recently entered into a partnership with the Sociedad Mexicana de Oncología (SMeO) that will allow physicians at the two institutions to collaborate on treatments. The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia helped PIM connect with the appropriate representative in Mexico to make the partnership happen.

“We want to assist on the expansion of SMeO’s mission of advancing Mexico’s healthcare community by providing the opportunity to engage and establish relationships with PIM hospitals,” said Karp.
​
The region’s health systems are even helping to fill the need for lifesaving treatments for China’s growing middle class. Companies such as Premier Global Care, based in King of Prussia, are helping to serve the average of 60,000 Chinese citizens who seek medical assistance abroad every year.

The bottom line: Philadelphia has top doctors and surgeons that are actively sought out by  international patients, and the economic impact for the region is huge.

When patients travel to Philadelphia, they oftentimes bring their entire family. Outside of the cost of medical treatment, which may be covered by governments or insurance, international patients and their families staying in Philadelphia contribute to regional economy. With some hospital stays as long as a year or more, families are spending on airline travel, housing, food, clothing, education for young family members, tourism and more.
Not to mention the importance of delivering care to those who typically can not access it.

Frey told a story of a 7-year-old CHOP patient currently learning to walk who asked one of the hospital’s patient navigators for “something special” — sneakers.

“Yesterday, [the patient navigator] alerted our staff to join him on a Skype call. He had something to show us. While our staff and her parents watched via Skype, our girl gently stepped into a pair of sneakers she had always dreamed of wearing — and took her first steps,” said Frey. “That’s why we do what we do every day. That’s why I love my job. ”

Click here for the article in Technically Philly.

To download a copy of the presentation, click here.

Via VideoRay LLC

The latest product of VideoRay’s Mission Specialist Series, the Defender, is now shipping to Commercial, Military, and Law Enforcement organizations throughout the world.
 
Incorporating both highly advanced Mission Specialist components like thrusters and cameras, and the experience of our deployments of Mission Specialist vehicles over the last 18 months, the Mission Specialist configuration is by far the most powerful and portable vehicle in its class. 
 
With the Defender, you have a versatile, powerful, portable, and dependable system that can replace vehicles much larger and more expensive to purchase, deploy, and maintain.  The Defender’s standard configuration:

• 6 degrees of freedom – including auto attitude (depth, heading, pitch, roll)
• Sets new standards for size, weight, and power consumption –
  only 18 kgs (40 lbs) in air
• Handles incredible payloads with powerful lifting capability –
  (up to 23 kgs / 50 lbs)
• Modular design means thrusters, cameras, sensors, tooling can all be added, removed, or replaced easily

Defender Data Sheet

The range of tasks is too large to list in this email – but Defender does come with VideoRay’s reliability and support that thousands of users around the world rely on.

Video

​There are “serious environmental problems in China,” said Mr. Hai Bo Li, managing partner of Winners Law Firm, during his presentation at the Executive Roundtable meeting of the  WTCGP CEOs’ China Operations Club, where he addressed developments in Environmental Law in China.  Over 20 members of WTCGP’s exclusive award- winning club,  dedicated to companies doing business in China, attended the meeting on October 17th at White and Williams Law firm to hear from Mr. Hai Bo Li and Andrew XU, Director of Intellectual Property Committee of Tianjin Bar Association, of Winners Law Firm, based in Tianjin, China.  Mr. XU provided advice on intellectual property issues, including trademark infringement and the role of China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law. Frank Bruno, Partner, White and Williams, also presented a brief summary of a recent intellectual property case he handled in China. White and Williams, LLC and Winners Law Firm, created a strategic alliance in 2010 to provide cross-border services to US and Chinese international companies.
 
The meeting was followed by a reception. Photos available here.

​In June, the WTCGP and WTC Tianjin, China signed an MOU to introduce our member companies to opportunities in Tianjin – and on September 22nd,  we did just that.
 
Dr. John Bennett, WTCGP board member and Chairman and CEO, Devon International Group recently returned from a productive meeting at World Trade Center, Tianjin, China, where he met with Mr. Eric Cao, WTC, Tianjin,  Executive Director and Tiejun Zhang, Deputy Director-General, Tianjin Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning.
 
The discussion? Healthcare coverage or lack thereof. Extending healthcare benefits to all citizens is a hot topic, not only in the US, but also in the Peoples Republic of China. Mr. Zhang would like to provide expanded healthcare benefits to include coverage of approved specialty drugs and some medical procedures that are not covered by China’s Social Security Program.
 
Devon International Group was also glad to report some confirmed steps forward, “We have received approval to offer Catastrophic Health Coverage to the People’s Republic of China,” says CEO, Dr. John Bennett. “We are the second US Company to offer coverage for severe medical problems in the US, and are glad to be partnering with world- renowned reinsurance company, Munich Reinsurance America.”
 
Next steps? Mr. Zhang will provide additional information to the Devon International Team and together they will move closer to providing extended healthcare coverage to the citizens of Tianjin, China. 

Join the US Commercial Service Philadelphia along with Temple University Fox CIBER, and our partners; the World Trade Centers of Greater Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Delaware to learn how to apply for and win projects from international development organizations. Read more.

Via U.S. Trade and Development Agency Press Release

DATE:
October 4, 2017

ARLINGTON, VA - Today, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency announced its largest return on investment since the agency was created by the Jobs Through Exports Act of 1992.  Far surpassing all previous results, USTDA identified $95 in exports of U.S.-manufactured goods and services for every $1 invested in infrastructure projects in emerging economies. 
 
The increase in USTDA's return on investment is the direct result of over $4.6 billion in exports of U.S.-manufactured goods, technologies, and services.  These exports include the sale of transportation, energy, ICT and agricultural products, technologies and services.  This historic return represents more than double the Agency's return from just eight years ago, when the export multiplier was $40 for every $1 programmed.  USTDA's continued success comes from facilitating mutually beneficial commercial partnerships between leading U.S. providers and overseas project sponsors.  These partnerships directly advance President Trump's priorities of creating new U.S. jobs through the opening of markets for increased exports of U.S.-manufactured goods and services.
 
"USTDA's unprecedented results demonstrate the commitment by this Administration to reduce barriers to the export of U.S.-manufactured goods and services that support high-paying export-related job creation in America," said Acting Director Thomas R. Hardy. "The Agency again exceeded expectations and will continue working tirelessly to introduce emerging markets to the most innovative and appropriate U.S. solutions as countries invest in the development of their infrastructure priorities." 
 
As the U.S. government's project preparation agency, USTDA supports a diverse portfolio of projects, from energy development in Africa to transportation linkages in Latin America.  Many of these projects are advanced by innovative small U.S. businesses and the cutting-edge goods and services they have to offer. Through USTDA's programs, these businesses gain access to new overseas markets and USTDA's overseas partners are introduced to innovative U.S. solutions that are most appropriate to their development needs.

​Media Inquiries:
Allison Getty | (703) 875-4357 

This story is part of Grow PA, a reported series on economic development across 10 Pennsylvania counties underwritten by the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. Sign up for our weekly curated email here.

What does an underwater robotic vehicle manufacturer have in common with an organic bug spray company, a manufacturer of stainless steel and an ice cream shop?
All four are successful Pennsylvania exporters who are growing their business and strengthening Pennsylvania’s economy.

According to the Greater Philadelphia Export Plan, launched by the Economy League of Philadelphia and the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP) in April 2016, manufacturing and services firms that export enjoy higher revenues, faster growth, a stronger labor pool and higher profitability than non-exporters.

Raising the region’s export intensity to the average for the 100 largest U.S. metros — an ambitious but realistic goal — would translate into $6.3 billion in new economic activity every year and 35,000 additional jobs.

This represents enormous untapped potential to strengthen our economy. According to WTCGP President Linda Conlin, the region’s export economy is “well-positioned” for success.
“We’ve been counseling companies since 2002. As one of 320 World Trade Centers, WTCGP has helped area companies generate over $1.6 billion in incremental export sales, supporting over 20,200 jobs,” said Conlin. “Global opportunities exist, and it is up to organizations like the WTCGP, U.S. Commercial Service, Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center (DVIRC) and state, county and local governments to continue to support these small to medium sized businesses.”

So, how do we get more Pa. companies on board? First, consider these tips from a recent event on going global.
Here are four Pa. companies that have found success in exporting:

VideoRay

Pottstown-based VideoRay is the largest volume producer of portable inspection-class underwater robots used in port security, law enforcement, offshore oil and gas drilling and ship inspection. Just recently, VideoRay fulfilled two large orders for Autonomous Remote Vehicle Systems — one for the French Navy for $1.5 million and another for the Indian Navy for $1 million. Today, VideoRay products are used on every continent.

Sandmeyer Steel

“If you had told me nine or 10 years ago that we’d be doing business overseas, I would have told you that you were crazy. And yet today, we are all over the world,” says John Curley, Vice President of International Sales for Sandmeyer Steel, a stainless steel and nickel alloy manufacturer located in Northeast Philly. Sandmeyer currently maintains 10 international sales locations and business is good.


GreenerWays

In April 2017, GreenerWays was named Exporter of the Year in Bucks County by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Founded in 2010, Greenerways LLC is a Langhorne-based company that develops, produces (via consignment manufacturing) and wholesales organic household cleaning and insect repellent products. GreenerWays is currently exporting to Japan, Hong Kong, Aruba and Mexico.
“Greenerways, LLC, is an outstanding example of a small business that starts, grows and goes on to success in the global exporting market,” said SBA Eastern Pa. Director Antonio Leta.

Bassetts Ice Cream

In December, Bassetts, America’s oldest ice cream company and a hometown favorite, shipped its first container of ice cream to South Korea, and has opened its first store. Bassetts is also selling in China and the Caribbean and China accounts for 20 percent of Bassetts revenue. Bassetts has reportedly experienced double-digit growth in the last three years, and President Michael Strange expects that growth to continue.

Read here.

Via U.S. Trade and Development Agency Press Release

​DATE:
September 29, 2017

​ARLINGTON, VA - Today, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency launched its Global Freight Rail Initiative to bolster the competitiveness of American exporters that are vying to supply U.S.-manufactured rail equipment and services to high-growth emerging markets around the world. Under the Initiative, USTDA will utilize the full breadth of its proven toolkit to support American rail industry jobs including: early stage project preparation assistance that informs how emerging market rail projects will ultimately be designed, financed and implemented; and reverse trade missions (RTM) that bring overseas decision-makers to the United States to showcase the technological edge and Made-in-the-USA quality and reliability that American rail companies offer. 
 
"USTDA is excited to launch the Rail Initiative, which will support high-paying U.S. manufacturing jobs across the country," said USTDA Acting Director Thomas R. Hardy. "American rail companies have outstanding products and services that can advance the infrastructure goals of our partner countries. Through the Rail Initiative, USTDA will help to make these products and services accessible by introducing our partner countries to innovative, world-class American-made rail goods, technologies and services."
 
USTDA has a history of success generating exports of U.S.-manufactured rail equipment. Recently, the Agency hosted a Brazilian delegation interested in rail efficiency technologies that could support the safety and operational efficiency of Brazil's passenger and freight rail systems. The USTDA-hosted visit has, to date, resulted in more than $50 million in U.S. exports of rail maintenance equipment.
 
The projects supported under the Global Freight Rail Initiative will continue building on this success, beginning with the recently completed China Freight Rail Operations Reverse Trade Mission, which visited Indiana, Illinois and Washington, D.C.

Media Inquiries:
Allison Getty | (703) 875-4357