Our Target Industries are Primed for Expansion

The agribusiness, food processing, and technology cluster is important to the entire state of Nebraska so its prominence in our regional economy and culture is no surprise. Agriculture has been called the backbone of the Gering/Scottsbluff Twin Cities Region. Due to proximity to raw materials and a strong West Coast customer base, the region is primed for this industry cluster to prosper.

Contributing to the retention, export growth, and development of the industry cluster is the research conducted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension (UNL Extension) into the creation and deployment of technology and crops for the future. 

Agribusiness, Food Processing, and Technology Fast Facts:

• Crop production and animal production account for 56 percent of the top 16 industries in this cluster.
• There is a strong industry concentration and regional competitive advantage in beet sugar manufacturing.
• There is a high earning potential in postharvest crop activities, “other animal food” manufacturing, veterinary services, farm and garden machinery, and equipment merchant wholesalers.
• There are a high number of jobs currently available for individuals with a high school diploma or equivalent.

Based on the strength of the agribusiness cluster, there is ample opportunity for attracting manufacturing businesses and building on the current transportation and trucking industries in our Western Nebraska Panhandle region.

Advanced manufacturing and precision metals is an important industry cluster in the United States, creating over $2 trillion of output into the economy. This industry cluster significantly impacts our regional economy because of the prominence of existing companies. Continued emphasis on specialized technical training will help to ensure the future success of this industry cluster in our region. 

Our Twin Cities Region has good potential for many types of manufacturing operations, particularly those tied to agriculture, mining and drilling, and potentially, renewable wind energy-related manufacturing (e.g., nacelle units, gearbox, generator and transformer components, and blade assembly). The markets for steel buildings are ever-growing.  

Advanced Manufacturing Fast Facts:

• All sub-industries under Advanced Manufacturing and Precision Metals are strongly concentrated within our region. Each shows a very high earning potential, and most have a regional competitive advantage.
• All Advanced Manufacturing sub-industries are projected to have positive growth within the next decade.
• Most sub-industries require only a high school diploma or equivalent.

Currently, chemicals rank second in Nebraska’s manufacturing sectors. Our state produces more than $1.3 billion in output from chemicals such as fertilizer, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals. Likewise, plastics comprise a large part of the region’s manufacturing sector. This industry cluster finds success in the Western Nebraska Panhandle because of low transportation costs associated with direct access to the market and low labor costs. Our pool of unskilled and semiskilled workers vital for this industry is notable, with efforts focused on growing it even more.  

Plastics and Chemicals Fast Facts:

• Of the four key industries within Plastics and Chemicals, rubber and plastics hoses and belting manufacturing accounts for approximately 60 percent of the total jobs and has the largest projected growth.
• All sub-industries within this cluster have very high earning potential.
• All occupations in this industry cluster are forecasted to experience positive job growth.
• Our strong Agribusiness, Food Processing, and Technology industry cluster serves as a supplier for Plastics and Chemicals.

Health Services is the number six primary cluster driving Nebraska’s economy. This industry enjoys continued employment gains due to the growing need for healthcare. The Western Nebraska Panhandle is fortunate to be served by Regional West Medical Center, one of just three Level II Trauma Centers in the state of Nebraska. The clinical quality of this center enhances our overall quality of life and attracts patients from outside the region.

The industry is ripe for opportunity and primed for continued expansion. The National Center for
Healthcare Workforce Analysis has identified three major drivers of future demand for healthcare professionals:

• Demographics — nationally, the population segment aged 65 to 74 is expected to increase by 50 percent between 2008 and 2050. As people age, they consume more healthcare, particularly high-intensity services in the most expensive settings (hospitals and nursing homes).
• Expanded health insurance coverage, largely due to the Affordable Care Act, will reduce access barriers for a previously uninsured population and increase the demand for services.
• Rising chronic disease prevalence (such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer) in the general population will continue to require labor-intensive disease prevention and treatment services.

Independent third-party insurance administrators that process claims and employee benefit plans for clients throughout the U.S. will find a favorable home in our region as these and other insurance-related companies experience additional growth in the coming years.

Data Centers comprise a target industry with great potential in our Twin Cities Region. The industry has a tremendous advantage in our area because of specialized state incentives (Nebraska Advantage Act), the exceptionally low cost of power, and the available dark fiber access. Nearly every state in the U.S. has a public power utility, but Nebraska is the only state served 100 percent by publicly-owned utilities, which translates into superior reliability and affordable costs. Nebraskans pay some of the lowest electric rates in the nation year after year because not-for-profit, cost-of-service-based rates mean prices include only the cost of generating and delivering power. Furthermore, 20 percent of Nebraska’s power is from renewable sources.

Likewise, CNBC ranked Nebraska #1 for leading America in creating a crypto economy because of its excellent energy resources and the establishment of its own bank charter regime in 2021.

Due to a strong transportation cluster and access to highway and railroad lines, the Western Nebraska Panhandle has the tools necessary to support the oil and gas industries within the neighboring states of North Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana. Focusing on the upstream and midstream definition of the oil and gas cluster with a concentration on services, manufacturing, and logistics, our region is primed to engage in targeted business attraction and expansion efforts in this cluster.