Industry Veteran Named Director of the Georgia Center of Innovation-Manufacturing

ATLANTA, September 4, 2008 – Georgia's Centers of Innovation program recently named John Zegers director of the Center of Innovation-Manufacturing, with offices at Lanier Technical College in Oakwood. Zegers' expertise in the industry will enhance the Center's role as a critical resource for manufacturing in Georgia.

'John Zegers is well qualified to serve as an advocate for our state's manufacturing industry,' said Ken Stewart, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), which houses the Centers of Innovation program. 'The Centers of Innovation-Manufacturing is a key component of our strategy to reach out to Georgia's core industries and give them the tools to succeed.'

Zegers joins the center as an 18-year veteran in manufacturing, sales and consulting. He was formerly a statewide project manager with GDEcD, a manufacturer's representative and served as president of a manufacturer's representative agency. Zegers' career has touched on many aspects of manufacturing, including issues that involve working in a global marketplace.

Zegers received his Bachelor of Science degree from Florida State University while working summers in a steel coating, roll forming and assembly manufacturing plant as a production and quality control manager. He is a member of the Georgia Economic Developers Association.

'John has the wide-ranging industry experience to make him an effective leader of the Centers of Innovation-Manufacturing for the state of Georgia,' said Sterling Wharton, director of the Georgia Centers of Innovation. 'He will help increase the center's visibility and connect manufacturers with the resources they need to grow.'

The Centers of Innovation-Manufacturing is hosted by Lanier Technical College in Oakwood and provides statewide strategic industry expertise, accelerating growth among Georgia's manufacturing sector. For more information about the center, please visit Manufacturing.

The Centers of Innovation (COI) program focuses on six areas of strategic industry growth and expansion: agriculture, aerospace, energy, life sciences, logistics and manufacturing, located respectively in Tifton, Eastman, Atlanta, Augusta, Savannah and Oakwood. COI's services include access to deep industry expertise and university-level research; product commercialization, and client connections to key state resources including potential investor networks. For more information, visit www.georgiainnovation.org.

The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) is the state's sales and marketing arm, the lead agency for attracting new business investment, encouraging the expansion of existing industry and small businesses, locating new markets for Georgia products, attracting tourists to Georgia, and promoting the state as a location for film, video and music projects, as well as planning and mobilizing state resources for economic development.