Industry-Specific Information

San Bernardino County has a large and diverse business base, ranging from agriculture to advanced research.  Featured here you’ll find more information and resources on a select group of industries, including alternative energy, logistics, technology, and manufacturing.  Please choose from the list to the left.  Please also check back frequently to see our ever-growing list of resources for these and other industries.

Alternative Energy
Logistics
Technology
Manufacturing


Alternative Energy

The County’s sunny, vast open spaces are suitable for research & development and mass production of different types of alternative energy, including photovoltaic, solar thermal, wind, and algae fuel.

Our desert areas have groundwater that can be used for solar thermal or algae cultivation after appropriate filtration.  Our urban areas also generate municipal waste water that can be re-used after proper treatment.

U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management

California is at the forefront of this country's hopes for renewable energy. The State's wind, solar, geothermal and biomass resources, many on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), hold tremendous promise for a secure and reliable energy future. More energy will be needed to drive the economic engines of this powerful and growing region.  The public lands administered by the BLM will continue to play a critical role.

Information on Renewable Energy on Public Lands -- This page also includes information on projects in progress.
BLM Renewable Energy Applications Summary (in the middle of this page) -- Applications to BLM for land release/exchange.

California Energy Commission

The California Energy Commission is the state's primary energy policy and planning agency.  It has many documents related to siting issues of energy projects.



Additional Data


Please verify all data with the County's Planning Department before proceeding.  Although we make our best effort to ensure that the data presented here is accurate and up-to-date, we cannot guarantee its accuracy.

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Logistics

San Bernardino County has unparalleled competitive advantages in logistics.  Its access to a market of 22 million within a 3-hour drive, proximity to the seaports of LA and Long Beach, three large airports with spare capacity, rail connections, available modern spaces, and lower costs make it a highly desirable choice for locating the southwestern regional or even the western regional distribution center for national companies, both large and small.  Please check out the following data files for more details.

General Information

Map of Southern California Logistics Corridors (PDF) -- shows key highways, railroad lines, airports, seaports.

The following data files compare the following markets:
  • San Bernardino County
  • Los Angeles
  • San Francisco Bay Area (more precisely: Oakland/East Bay)
  • Phoenix
  • Reno
  • Salt Lake City
Location Comparison (Microsoft Excel) -- This file shows population & household coverage by hours or days of driving, average warehouse/distribution rents for the largest sub-markets in the areas covered, and the overall industrial vacancy rates for the areas covered.

Drive Time Coverage Maps (Google Earth KMZ files) -- These files show how far a truck can reach for different amounts of drive time.  You can use the maps to estimate the total amount of driving based on your store locations and resupply frequency.
  • San Bernardino County -- starting point: the I-10/I-15 junction (near LA/Ontario International Airport)
  • Los Angeles -- starting point: the I-5/I-710 junction (City of Commerce -- a major distribution hub)
  • Oakland/East Bay -- starting point: the I-80/I-880 junction (near the Port of Oakland)
  • Phoenix -- starting point: the I-10/I-17 junction (near the Sky Harbor Airport)
  • Reno -- starting point: the I-80/SR-385 junction
  • Salt Lake City -- starting point: the I-80/I-15 junction
Note: these drive time analyses are based on low traffic conditions.  Traffic in certain urban areas can be very difficult during certain times of the day.  Here's a Google traffic status map at 9am, Tuesday, 4/21/09, for the Greater Los Angeles Metro Area.

UPS Shipping Cost Analysis  -- These Excel spreadsheets have the UPS shipping rates from the studied areas and includes a worksheet to help estimate your total monthly shipping costs.  Just plug in your current shipping volume to the various Western U.S. markets, copy the rates from the shipping rate chart, and you can see the estimates.  (Note: since this analysis is based on the relative population sizes of major markets, the one with UPS Ground data may be a good proxy of the logistics costs for doing one's own distribution...)

Labor Costs

Compared to the coastal areas, wage rates for comparable logistics occupations in San Bernardino County are lower because of the generally lower cost of living.  For wages data in California, please review the wage data from the California Employment Development Department: Occupational Employment & Wages.

Since labor costs are really the product of (wage rates x amount of labor used), the true labor costs are not easily identifiable without knowing the exact volume of workers needed for each occupation.  Since a logistics operator is likely to need fewer workers when based in San Bernardino County (due to the minimization of total distance traveled), the firm's total labor costs may be lower here even if the wage rates are comparable to another area.  A realistic estimation can only be made if one has a clear idea of the amount of labor required at different prospective sites.  Furthermore, the larger, more modern facilities in San Bernardino County can better accommodate trucks and automated processes and thus reduce the need for warehouse labor.

Facility Costs

Cost and availability of industrial properties vary greatly across different markets.  The following data are market averages and are good for general comparison purposes only.

Location Comparison -- This Excel spreadsheet shown previously also shows sample rates of the largest submarkets in those metro areas.  While Los Angeles has the advantage in the immediate market, its high costs and low availability are issues that deter many logistics operators.  In San Bernardino County, logistics operators can find large, modern facilities at rates far below the comparable facilities in Los Angeles, yet still enjoy easy access to the ports and rail services.

While lease rates are shown by square footage, storage capacity is actually volumetric.  Planar space measured in square feet do not completely reveal the amount of products that can be stored.  The larger, more modern facilities in San Bernardino County tend to be taller and thus can accommodate more products through better utilization of vertical space.   This can thus reduce the need for warehouse square footage.


For more up-to-date and detailed data, please check out the reports from major brokerage houses:
Infrastructure and 3PL Considerations
Highways

San Bernardino County enjoys a well-developed interstate freeway system.  All Greater Los Angeles highway traffic to the rest of the Continental U.S. east of the Rocky Mountains goes through San Bernardino County.  And since freeways here are generally far less congested than in the coastal counties, trucking products to the rest of the southwestern U.S. is more convenient when originating in San Bernardino County.  For instance, traffic to San Diego through I-15 is far less congested than through I-5 which passes through the heavily congested Orange County.

Airports

San Bernardino County has three large airports: LA/Ontario International Airport (ONT), San Bernardino International Airport (SBD), and Southern California Logistics Airport (VCV).  Currently, ONT has scheduled cargo service by several all-cargo and passenger airlines.

Rail Roads

Locations of Transloaders in/near San Bernardino County -- These are the locations where you can load your non-containerized cargo (e.g., building materials) onto railcars.  This brochure details the names of service providers, their locations, the rail roads they serve (Union Pacific or BNSF), type of products, car spots, and warehouse capacity (if any).

Railroad yards in/near San Bernardino County -- This map shows the 20-mile radii of Union Pacific's and BNSF's main yards in City of Industry and City of San Bernardino, respectively.  Please call the railroads for a list of trucking companies that can bring your cargo to their yards.

Third-Party Logistics (3PL)

UPS Shipping Cost Analysis (Microsoft Excel) -- This file has the UPS shipping rates from the studied areas and includes a worksheet to help you estimate your total monthly shipping costs.  Just plug in your current shipping volume to the various Western U.S. markets, copy the rates from the shipping rate chart, and you can see the estimates.

One will be able to serve the clients or stores more promptly by being closer to them.  From the I-10/I-15 intersection, one can serve over 25 million people without paying for overnight stays for the truckers.  Speedier delivery can give one an advantage over competitors. 

For example, based on the aforementioned UPS shipping analysis, the average number of days for a package to arrive via UPS Ground are:
  • San Bernardino County: 2.10 days
  • Oakland/East Bay: 2.53 days
  • Phoenix: 2.43 days
  • Reno, NV: 2.53 days
  • Salt Lake City: 2.26 days
  • Seattle: 2.94 days
(Please see the UPS Ground analysis for the package volume for each of the destinations.)

Don't have Google Earth?  You can download and use it for free from Google.  Want more San Bernardino information for use in Google Earth?  Please check out our Google Earth data collection.

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Technology

The County of San Bernardino is home to an ever-increasing range of high technology firms. A major attraction is our access to an innovation corridor of colleges and universities.

To expand business development activities, a variety of resources are available to assist local, national and international technology firms and life science companies, as well as entrepreneurs seeking to launch innovative, new products.


Top 10 Technology Companies in San Bernardino County

(Ranked by estimated annual revenue)
  • Esri, Redlands
  • Emrise Corporation, Rancho Cucamonga
  • Penwal Industries Inc., Rancho Cucamonga
  • Optivus Proton Therapy Inc., Loma Linda
  • Advatech Pacific Inc., Redlands
  • Mindrum Precision, Rancho Cucamonga
  • Able Industrial Products, Inc., Ontario
  • Macroair Technologies, LLC, San Bernardino
  • Pure Water Technology, Redlands
  • Garner Holt Productions, Inc., San Bernardino
Source: The Book of Lists by The Business Press, January 11, 2010

Local and Regional Technology Resources for Business

NASA Commercialization Center
(909) 869-4477
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Cal Poly Pomona join forces to provide entrepreneurs with the expertise and resources to successfully access and commercialize NASA technology.  The NASA Commercialization Center provides access to emerging technology and resources without many of the associated risks and costs of research and development, and the expertise to form technology into a tangible product that is attractive to customers in terms of features and price.


Technology Council of Southern California (TCOSC)
(310) 325-4000
The Technology Council has a 15 year history of supporting technology companies across throughout the region. It develops targeted, content-driven programs that encourage interactive discussions between presenters and attendees, as well as two flagship events - VentureNet™ and the annual Industry Awards – that are regarded as among the most influential in the region.


California Technology Investment Partnership (CalTIP)
(916) 324-8215
CalTIP matching grants support projects that leverage private sector, state, and federal resources to create new, globally competitive, commercial products and services, with particular emphasis on industry sectors critical to California's growth. These include: information technology and multimedia; electronics; healthcare; biotechnology; telecommunications; energy; aerospace; defense; and transportation.


Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC – Far West Region)
(805) 989-9208
With more than 700 federal laboratories and centers, departments and agencies participating, the FLC provides organizations with the opportunity to improve and innovate the Technology Transfer Process. The FLC provides fundamental and advanced education and training, and allows potential partners to contact a federal laboratory that can provide expertise and capability in a specific area of interest.


American Technology Alliances (AmTech)
(650) 569-3838
A non-profit corporation, AMTech is dedicated to research, education and the formation of partnerships between government laboratories and the private sector. Services include: reducing the cost of product development by leveraging research and development expenditures with the government; and providing access to research and development undertaken at universities, non-profit research institutions and government laboratories.


National Technology Transfer Center (NTTC)
(800) 678-6882
An independent organization created by Congress to provide U.S. businesses and industries with access to federal research and development information, the NTTC aspires to strengthen U.S. industries' competitiveness by promoting efficient indentification, management, development and commercialization of marketable research and technologies. The NTTC provides access to federal agencies and laboratory research as well as state and local programs offering extensive technical services.


National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
(301) 975-6478
An agency of the U.S. Commerce Department’s Technology Administration, NIST promotes U.S. economic growth by working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements and standards.  NIST’s portfolio of programs feature four approaches to fulfill its mission and serve U.S. industry:  Advanced Technology Program, Manufacturing Extension Partnership, NIST Laboratories, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program, Patent and Trademark Depository Library Program (PTDLP).


California Alliance For Advanced Transportation Systems (CAATS)
(916) 325-0470
CAATS was launched in 1993, to address the deployment and commercialization of advanced transportation technologies which includes use of intelligent transportation systems, alternative fuels, advanced vehicle systems, and telecommunications.  CAATS provides a statewide focus to implement programs, policies, products and partnerships necessary to successfully deploy these technologies in California, and further more, to promote California as the leader in their research, development, deployment, and commercialization.  CAATS was designated as the California Chapter of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America), a national initiative on advanced transportation systems in November 1994.

The Office of Technology Transfer and Commercialization (OTTC)
OTTC at CSUSB developed through a partnership with the Center for Commercialization of Advanced Technology (CCAT) program in San Diego, CA.  OTTC offers clients a number of services designed to expedite the transition of new technologies to the marketplace or to the government for defense- or homeland security-related procurement purposes. Our services fall under two general categories: business related and research services. Clients seeking CCAT assistance can apply under one or both service categories, and will be evaluated on the basis of merit and relevance to the overall program.


University of California – Office of Technology Transfer (OTT)
(510) 587-6000
OTT overseas UC systemwide efforts to encourage the utilization of University research for the public benefit.  The Office assists faculty and staff in working with industry, especially commercial companies looking for partnership, licensing or other technology related opportunities with the University.


Caltech Industrial Relations Center – California Institute of Technology
(626) 395-4041
The Caltech Industrial Relations Center provides executive education programs which focus on strategic and competitive issues of technology-based organizations.  The Center’s intensive short courses and membership forums address topics such as strategic thinking and global perspective, customer and market focus, operations and manufacturing excellence, technology innovation and new product development, and developing managerial potential.


Software Council of Southern California
(310) 328-0043
The Software Council of Southern California is a non-profit trade association comprised of software development companies, as well as companies that provide support and services to the local software industry.  The Council voices the concerns of the software, multi-media and Internet industries in Southern California and serves as a clearinghouse for industry information.  The Council brings together people and information to strengthen member companies and to enhance the business climate for the growth and quality of the software industry.


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Manufacturing

Manufacturing has long been an important industry in the County of San Bernardino because of our strategic infrastructure that puts companies at the center of a global supply chain. We have many resources to support this business sector.

Top 10 Manufacturers in San Bernardino County

(Ranked by estimated annual revenue)
  • Northrop Grumman Corporation, San Bernardino
  • California Steel Industries, Inc., Fontana
  • Vista Metals, Fontana
  • American Eagle Wheel Corp., Chino
  • Authentic Specialty Foods, Inc., Chino
  • Mag Instrument Inc., Ontario
  • Al’s Garden Art, Colton
  • California Exotic Novelties, Chino
  • Emrise Corporation, Rancho Cucamonga
  • Jon Lin Frozen Foods, Colton

Source: The Book of Lists by The Business Press, January 11, 2010

Resources for Manufacturers


Industrial Development Bonds are tax-exempt Private Activity Bonds issued by a state or local governmental entity on behalf of manufacturing facilities to finance qualified capital projects. The private user benefits from the governmental entity’s tax-exempt status and its ability to issue debt obligations at tax-exempt rates. As a result, the manufacturer receives a lower interest rate on the financing than comparable taxable or conventional financing.  Industrial Development Bonds are limited to $20 million.  These are available to manufacturers who produce a tangible product and must show that there is a public benefit to the issuing bonds. (ie. job growth).  For specific information regarding the benefits of IDBs, please contact: Mr. Sam S. Balisy, Esq. Kutak Rock LLP, 213-312-4009


California Manufacturing Technology Center (CMTC)
(310) 263-3060
To improve methods of management and manufacturing, the non-profit CMTC provides high-value consulting to manufacturers, such as those in the industries of aerospace, electronics and biomedical as well as others including apparel, food processing, entertainment, paper, plastics, wood and the automobile after-market. Highly skilled CMTC consultants help manufacturers increase sales, reduce costs, reduce inventories, comply with environmental regulations and boost profits. Unlike many other consulting firms, CMTC's quality and impact per client are audited every quarter by an independent third-party firm. Survey results rank CMTC in the top 5% nationally.


California Manufacturers Investment Credit (MIC)
(916) 845-6500
MIC is a credit of 6% of qualified costs paid or incurred for acquiring, construction or reconstructing qualified property. It is available to qualified individuals, partnerships, corporations, S corporations or limited liability companies (LLCs) engaged in at least one line of business that is classified as an operating establishment under Division D, Manufacturing, of the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Manual including SIC code numbers 2011 through 3999, inclusive. Qualified also is any taxpayer engaged in activities related to computer programming or computer software design described under SIC codes 7371 to 7373.


Best Manufacturing Practices Program (BMP)
(301) 403-8100
The BMP Center of Excellence has become a national resource in helping organizations learn from others’ attempts and avoid costly duplication.  The program identifies and validates best practices used in the areas of design, testing, production, facilities, logistics and management, then documents the applications and shares such best practices.


Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)
(301) 975-5020
Through  the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the not-for-profit, MEP network offers manufacturers the help they need to succeed with a variety of program development activities including:  process improvement, human resource development, market development, financial planning, energy audits and environmental.


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