GRENLAND

GOOD IDEAS DESERVE TO GROW

Welcome to Grenland in Telemark. We have all the help you need.

www.vig.no

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Good ideas deserve to grow!

Want to set up a new business somewhere where this philosophy is a hallmark?

Then Grenland in Telemark is the place to invest.

www.vig.no

June 2014

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Vekst i Grenland is the business devel-opment organisation for the Grenland region, which comprises the munici-palities of Skien, Porsgrunn, Bamble, Kragerø, Drangedal and Siljan. ViG’s prime focus and area of activity is pro-curing new jobs for the region in exist-ing and new businesses.

The strategic business plan document is the primary tool in our work. It is drawn up for a four-year period by the six municipalities in conjunction with the board of ViG. The plan designates a number of strategic focus areas for the region from a business perspec-tive, and these form the basis of our work.

In 2012 the focus was refined to con-centrate solely on business develop-ment, with the prime focus on pro-curing new jobs for the region. The residential dimension and focus on moving house and relocating to the region have been transferred to the individual municipalities.

SimpleWe think it should be simple to invest in our region, and we have put our money where our mouth is by mov-ing our entire operational set-up to Klosterøya. Here you will find the busi-ness development organisation along-

side representatives of the munici-palities, the business start-up office [Etablererkontoret] and the Grenland partnership [Grenlandssamarbeidet]. We also have a number of guest plac-es where we can accommodate key projects for the region, such as the

Trainee Telemark scheme and the Google project Telemark Online.

Klosterøya is also home to other play-ers active in business development that we work closely with, including Innovation Norway.

We wanted to create a gateway into the operational set-up, and all the measures on offer, and here is the proof – the door is open, so come on in!

FlexibleWe want you to find starting a busi-ness in our region flexible. We will respond quickly and accurately to enquiries and tailor proposals to the potential start-up. This requires us to work effectively and purposefully, in-cluding across municipal and depart-mental boundaries. We need to know who is doing what, and everyone must take responsibility for responding to enquiries in our region quickly and ac-curately.

DedicatedWe have the market insight, the net-work, the understanding and the over-view of what our region has to offer, and we are dedicated to making your business a success! We facilitate the right guidance, depending on your needs, quickly and in an appropri-ate manner. We want you to feel that we are doing everything we can for your project to succeed, because in Grenland good ideas deserve to grow!

Simple - flexible - dedicated

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10 advantages in Grenland

Location • close to centre of growth nationally, but far enough away to make start-ups more reasonable• favourable for passenger and goods transport into and out of the region by sea

Infrastructure highly specialised ports including a fully intermodal general cargo port, good road links to the east, south and west, rail lines (Bratsberg, the Vestfold line), high-capacity power supply with multiple sourc- es, industrial infrastructure, international airport within reasonable distance (30 minutes).

Expertise Significant graduate/postgraduate engineering expertise linked to institutes of higher education and industry, a large number of completed apprenticeships/skilled workers, large workforce with broad knowledge base.

Stability Stable workforce, 365 days a year, good public sector/business community dialogue, stable climate.

Housing Varied range of well-priced housing, steady growth in property values. Short distance to kindergartens, schools, work and trade. Good public transport.

Leisure Extensive open areas from the south coast idyll to high mountains and large areas of forest, broad and varied range of sports, significant selection of cultural activities for all ages, lots of clubs and societies.

Labour market Broad and varied range of work, including for those without a higher education.

Urban area One of Norway’s largest urban areas with great shopping and a rich city life – yet you can also take your fishing rod and hike in the great outdoors

Public services A broad and high-quality selection of schools, nurseries and healthcare/elderly care facilities. Regional hospital centrally situated in Grenland. Cost-efficient public infrastructure (VAR).

History Grenland has a rich industrial history through the centuries. We have always been at the forefront of new technology, which we will continue.

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Grenland

West-Telemark

East- Telemark

Grenland:www.vig.noSkienPorsgrunnBambleKragerøDrangedalSiljan

West-Telemark:www.vest-telemark.noVinjeTokkeSeljordKviteseidFyresdalNissedal

Central-Telemark:www.mtnu.noBøNomeSauherad

East-Telemark(Kongsbergregionen)www.nuas.nowww.rnu.noHjartalNotoddenTinn

We have several Business Development Agencies in Telemark

Central-Telemark

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”Good ideas deserve to grow” is the very essence of what we do and of our business community. But we didn’t just pluck these words out of thin air.

Grenland has a history of innovation stretching back a thousand years, but we prefer to look to the future.

We love to see the opportunities, and are experts at translating ideas into effective production and operation. In Grenland we have the expertise, the capacity and the infrastructure need-ed for commercial success.

Put another way: In Grenland we can make good ideas grow!

What does that actually mean?Good ideas deserve to grow. All well and good, you may be thinking, but what does that actually mean? What is it we actually want to convey to the world around us?To put it simply: We work to promote Grenland as the region in Norway where it is simplest to start and run a business, and to ensure that we have the best conditions for success, and attract people and businesses willing to invest!

Living in GrenlandGrenland may be small but it is actually

Norway’s fifth-largest urban area. The municipalities of Skien, Porsgrunn, Bamble, Kragerø and Drangedal have a population of over 120,000, and are so close together that we speak of Grenland as a continuous housing market, job market and commercial district.

The municipalities differ, and each has its own distinctive characteristics and qualities. What they have in common is being a good place to live – whether you prefer a flat in urban surroundings with café culture and everything you need within easy distance, a house where you can moor your boat on the veranda, or a quiet life with the forest as your only neighbour. Gren-land offers freedom: the freedom to say goodbye to high-density housing or the freedom to lower your housing costs and live more.

If you live here, help to build the brand!

Vekst i Grenland is, however, far from alone in shaping the Grenland brand, with the business community, among others, playing a decisive role. What do you say about Grenland when you’re talking to customers, partners and businesses outside the region? What do you say as a private individu-

al when you’re visiting old classmates in Oslo or Trondheim? And last but not least: what do we say to each other, those of us who live and work here in the fjord?If we all use basically the same narra-tive, this is an effective way of shap-ing Grenland’s reputation. We will do what we can to move things along. By working purposefully on the Grenland branch, we create better working conditions for the busi-ness community and other players who are working every day to gener-ate growth and development in our region. Together we are stronger. At the same time we salute all the good work being done to raise the profile of Telemark.

Simply by pulling in the same di-rection, we can build Grenland’s reputation as the best place for new businesses and smart people. Help us build the Grenland branch – this is where good ideas grow!

Good ideas deserve to grow!

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Good Helpers Grenland start-up office (Etablerer- kontoret) can help you get your busi-ness off the ground, with group cours-es and individual meetings to get you off to a good start. The service is free, so whatever your line of business and however far along you are – get in touch.

Grenland start-up office has branch-es at Klosterøya in Skien and in P.A. Heuchsgate in Kragerø.

www.etablererkontoret.no

Vekst i Grenland is the business development set-up for the Grenland municipalities.

Our prime focus is on procuring new jobs and helping to secure existing ones in Grenland. Moreover, we want to strengthen Grenland’s profile as a coordinated entity vis-à-vis central authorities and investors.

ViG markets Grenland as a first-class location for businesses seeking good opportunities for further growth and profitability. We cheer initiatives that put our region in focus, and we be-lieve in teamwork. Only by pulling in the same direction and maintaining a shared focus on building Grenland’s reputation as the best place for busi-ness start-ups and smart people can we make a difference.

ViG is based at Kunnskapsverkstedet – literally the ‘knowledge workshop’ – at Klosterøya in Skien.

www.vig.no

Innovasjon Norway Telemark contributes to innovation in the busi-ness community, and development in the districts and of competitive Norwegian companies. Innovation Norway raises the profile of the Norwegian business community and Norway as a destination.

By means of innovation, international-isation and profiling, our purpose is to help to create profitable businesses based on regional and local resourc-es and competitive advantages.

Innovation Norway has a large sphere of activity. Every day we work on a number of different tasks, initiatives, programmes, measures and events, which combine to form a whole. It’s about making the Norwegian busi-ness community better.

Nevertheless, we have three main areas of work • Entrepreneurship • Business growth • Innovation environments

www.innovasjonnorge.no

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Telemark has lots of people who can helpTelemark county municipality is a regional development player whose plan strategies contribute to a holistic and coordinated devel-opment policy for the county. The primary goals of Telemark county municipality are to consolidate the region as a place to live, destination and arena for business development. The county municipality administers regional development funding via grant schemes.

We have a strong focus on generating positive job development throughout the county by means of creativity and innovation. VRI Telemark has 13 researchers employed to help busi-nesses get started with research-driv-en innovation. The Oslo Fjord Fund is financing industrial research. Our Trainee Telemark scheme guaran-tees knowledge-based businesses a supply of the brightest people, while Invest in Telemark is our programme for attracting start-ups by new knowl-edge-based businesses. We also open doors to international arenas for the business community.

The industry incubator Proventia can help you turn your ideas into reality.

Proventia’s mission is to help Tele-mark develop new business ideas with the potential for significant growth. Do you or someone you know have a business idea that needs help to grow?

Business ideas have a higher suc-cess rate when they are developed through incubators. Incubation is an innovation process intended to improve the opportunities for new or established businesses with a new business idea to develop their idea into a profitable and viable business activity.

Proventia is based at Herøya Industri-park in Porsgrunn.

www.proventia.no

NAV, the Norwegian Labour and Wel-fare Administration, offers companies an overview of highly skilled labour available both in Norway and Europe. In addition, each NAV office in the county has its own recruitment partner who can help with customised recruit-ment. NAV’s European Employment Service (EURES) provides excellent support for high-tech companies that face chal-lenges in finding qualified employees in Norway.

Recruitment = NAV Telemark

Many people mull over a business idea during a period of unemployment. If you are receiving unemployment benefit, it’s important that you talk to both the start-up office and your local NAV office about payment of unem-ployment benefit while you’re in the process of starting your own business.

www.nav.no or follow us at Linkedin-NAV Telemark

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Used to tough challengesGrenland is the industrial heart of Norway Goods are exported world-wide from the ports around Fri-erfjorden. At Herøya Industripark, Yara produces fertiliser for the global market. Just across the fjord, at the Frier Vest industrial site, Ineos and Noretyl produce raw materials for the plastics industry. The process industry supports a large number of high-tech suppliers that likewise compete on the global stage.

The economy of southern Telemark has undergone major changes in re-cent years. Some long-established manufacturing plants have closed

down, while new, future-oriented busi-nesses have sprung up in their place.

Thanks to the dynamic local economy, Grenland’s workforce is unrivalled in its ability to adapt to change in the face of stiff global competition.

It’s no coincidence that other parts of the world turn to Grenland when faced with the challenge of economic

change. Our labour force is adaptable, used to shift work and familiar with complex processes.

International School Telemark is situat-ed in Porsgrunn.There’s a lot of know-how to be found in Grenland. The number of engineers per head of the population is one of the highest in Norway.

“I’ve been involved in some big changes. We handle change well here in Grenland. We have the strength and determination to see it through. We’ve always delivered the products our customers need”

Øyvind Lindgren, sheet metal worker for 40 years at BIS Production Partner

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Grenland has always led the wayNorway’s first big feat of engineering was the mill races blasted out of the rock in the 16th century to conduct water to power the sawmills in Skien. Timber from Telemark, cut in these sawmills, was used to rebuild London after the Great Fire of 1666. Ever since, industry in the region has been quick to spot opportunities and lead the way.

Two hundred years ago, local men Aall, Løvenskiold, Huvestad, Her-sleb Homeman, Cloumann, Schou Fabricius and Cappelen travelled to Eidsvoll to take part in the assembly of the King’s advisers. All these men had distinguished themselves by theircontribution to industry in our region.

Shipbuilding and sawmill activities meant that industrialisation gathered pace in the 1800s.

Today, technological progress is spearheaded, among others, by en-gineers researching CO2 capture. It’s no coincidence that the government located Gassnova, the Norwegian state enterprise for carbon capture and storage, in Grenland.

Telemark University College is the driving force for the cooperation be-

tween the college and the business community. There is also extensive research activity outside academia. Tel-Tek is a national R&D institute fo-cusing on energy-efficient production processes and low emissions, and the multiphase test rig at Herøya has been described as the jewel in Statoil’s re-search portfolio. Norner AS is the continuation of the success story that started 30 years ago as a world-leading research and development centre for plastics.

“The University College has always taken entrepreneurship se-riously. Our students have made a habit of winning national and international competitions for student businesses.”

Kristian Bogen, Rector of Telemark University College

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Space to expandGrenland is home to Norway’s leading industrial park. Herøya Industripark is home to 90 companies, which be- tween them employ 3,000 people pro-ducing goods and services for local, national and international customers. The infrastructure for new business-es is already in place, which makes Herøya more cost-effective than other locations for new manufacturing op-erations. Uniquely among industrial parks, Herøya has facilities and human resources that allow companies to un-dertake pilot manufacturing projects.

Kragerø Næringspark is centrally lo-cated halfway between Oslo and Kris-

tiansand, less than 1 km from Highway E18. Over 25 businesses from a wide range of sectors are based here, and there is room for more. The munici-palities of Kragerø and Drangedal are working together to expand the busi-ness park to keep pace with demand.

The local authorities in Grenland are constantly working to meet the needs of business. New commercial sites are being developed, and established business parks offer industrial and of-fice premises tailored to a variety of requirements.

Grenland’s economy is changing. At

Porsgrund Porselænsfabrik, the fa-mous straw pattern is still painted by hand. But, right next door to the world-famous china factory, new ur-ban spaces are taking shape with trendy shops, health and wellness businesses, fitness centres and com-mercial premises.

Klosterøya in Skien is being trans-formed from the site of a paper mill into a hub for the cultural sector, ICT and education. Modern premises in distinctive buildings, with access to shared meeting spaces, provide an excellent home for growing business-es.

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Getting to and froEvery week, three truckloads of quali-ty produce including duck, goose and eggs leave Holte Farm destined for gourmet restaurants in Oslo. The pro-duce is all organic, produced in a rural setting to ensure high standards of an-imal welfare and quality.

Grenland is centrally located in both a Norwegian and a European context. Well-developed road and rail infra-structure links the region with Oslo and the south coast of Norway.

In one of its most ambitious upgrade projects to date, the Norwegian Na-tional Rail Administration [Jernbanev-erket] is double-tracking the line be-tween Grenland and Oslo. High-speed trains will cut the present journey time by half. In the not too distant future, there are also plans to build the miss-ing link between the two main lines in

the region.

The next few years will see the open-ing of a four-lane motorway from Gren-land to Oslo. Road links to the south are also being upgraded to full mo-torway standard by 2020. No matter where people and goods are headed, Grenland is centrally located.

Continental Europe is closer than it has ever been, thanks to the ferry route from Langesund to Denmark and the region’s proximity to Sandefjord Air-port.

Port of Grenland is the largest port in the Oslofjord, handling more than 11 million tonnes of cargo each year

“So long as we’re through Asker before 5:40 in the morning, everything’s fine. That works well for us here in Drangedal. The road is not a problem.”

Halvor Olsen , farmer at Holte Gård in Drangedal

Gothenburg

Oslo

Kristiansand

Immingham

Ghent

Rotterdam

Hamburg

Bergen

Grenland: Connected to the world

Hirtshals

St. Petersburg

Stavanger

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In Grenland we work togetherIn Grenland and Telemark we work across organisations and municipal-ities to implement various projects. Among other things, in 2014 we are involved in:

Health Innovation Telemark is a project that has been running for the last two years, focusing on the health industry in Telemark. The pro-ject is a collaboration between Vekst i Grenland, the business develop-ment foundations Klosterøyafondet and Skien Næringsfond AS, Telemark

county municipality and Innovation Norway.

The overall goal of the project is for the individual business to succeed, leading to more jobs within the health industry in Telemark.Thanks to national and international collaboration, the project has market-ed Telemark as an attractive area for testing new technology and establish-ing a business.

Trainee Telemarkis a regional trainee scheme that recruits and engages master’s graduates for an 18-month period comprising placements in three different companies in the region. As a result, Telemark’s business commu-nity enhances its recruitment base, the young people gain an exciting, attractive and value-adding start to their career, and together we build our region.

Joining the Trainee Telemark scheme gives you a unique start to your career. You will have the chance to try out a fantastic area and exciting potential employers, and, not least, put yourself to the test. A candidate who has completed 3 x 6-month placements in three different compa-nies will have demonstrated adapt-ability, acquired valuable skills, and increased his/her value on the job market.

Trainee Telemark is a regional trainee program, run as a collaboration pro-ject among companies in the region and supported by the county munic-ipality, Telemark University College and Vekst i Grenland.

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Gründeruka, the Norwegian version of Global Entrepreneurship Week, takes place every November. Similar events are held in more than 120 countries worldwide.

Telemark was the first region in Norway to devote a whole week to innovation and entrepreneurship: a week full of opportunities for anyone considering starting their own busi-ness, anyone who has a good idea and is wondering what to do with it, anyone who already has their own business but is seeking new impetus and skills enhancement, and many, many more.

“Norway shall be one of the world’s most innovative countries, where companies and people with drive and creativity have good opportunities to develop a profitable business” (the government’s action plan for innova-tion).

Week 47 offers events for those who are just curious and those who aspire to run their own business!

Check out our website, www.grunderuka.no, to find one or more events to take part in; most are free.

Telemark Online According to a survey by Google of the business communities of various countries in Europe, Norway performs poorly when it comes to internet pres-

ence. Telemark Online was launched on 11 April 2014 and is a unique col-laboration between Telemark county municipality, Google and Innovation Norway.

The aim is to increase the level of competence in Telemark’s business community in terms of making stra-tegic use of digital media. Increasing internet presence will create growth, both for the business community and the county as a whole in the long term.

Project manager Hugo Pedersen is organising a series of courses in col-laboration with local partners working in the web and media industry in Tele-mark. His office is located at Vekst i Grenland.

Participants in Telemark Online gain access to detailed needs analysis, an extensive series of courses and indi-vidual advice sessions in between, enabling them to increase their own skills at the same time as putting them to use in their own business.

Layout: Vekst i Grenland Photo: Dag Jenssen, Tom Riis, Jørn Roar Bamle. Text: Vekst i Grenland & Ole Bjørn UlsnæsEditor and publisher: Vekst i Grenland IKS