U.S. Under Secretary for Technology Administration, Phil Bond,
Honors Utah Companies for Export Achievement

Phil Bond, U.S. Commerce Department Under Secretary for the Technology Administration today presented Lifetime Products, Inc of Clearfield and Robotronics of Springville with the U.S. Commerce Department’s Export Achievement Certificate. The award recognizes business clients of the Department’s Commercial Service Export Assistance Centers that have benefited from export assistance to make their first or a significant new market export sale. Robotronics and Lifetime Products are the first Utah companies to receive this honor.

“Most of the jobs in America are created by small businesses,” Bond said. “Small and medium-sized businesses are the engines of our economy and the driving force in growth of the exporter population. We will continue to be diligent in helping U.S. firms increase exports that generate high-wage jobs for the working people of Utah and across America.”

Lifetime Products, Inc., manufactures basketball equipment for residential use, as well as picnic tables and chairs.� The company has benefited from export counseling and a variety of export-related services from the Department’s Commercial Service trade specialists at the Salt Lake City U.S. Export Assistance Center for more than two years. As a result of these efforts, the company recently made an initial $30,000 sale of sporting goods to China and has since made additional export sales.�

Robotronics produces robots, puppets, and other educational materials for teaching children about safety, fire prevention, and more. Robots include characters like Safety Sam and Pluggie the Fire Plug.� By utilizing export counseling, market research, and other export services from the Salt Lake City U.S. Export Assistance Center, the company recently made an initial $8000 sale to Hong Kong with more to follow.

In FY 2001, the Department’s U.S. Export Assistance Center in Salt Lake City helped facilitate $6 million in export sales from Utah businesses.�� According to Commerce Department figures, Utah export sales totaled $2.8 billion last year.

The U.S. Export Assistance Center in Salt Lake City is part of the global network of the U.S. Commercial Service, a Commerce Department agency that helps small and medium-sized U.S. businesses sell their products and services around the world.

For more information on the U.S. Commercial Service, please visit www.buyusa.com. or call the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Salt Lake City at 801-524-5116.�

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