Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Trade Promotion and Director General of the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service (U.S. Commercial Service) Suresh Kumar presented the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Export Achievement Certificate to Schaefer Ventilation Equipment of Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. The award recognizes businesses that have benefited from Commercial Service export assistance to make its first export sale or expand to new foreign markets. “Schaefer Ventilation is a prime example of how innovative Minnesota businesses are tapping global markets to increase their sales which support jobs and economic growth here at home,” Kumar said. “Ninety-five percent of the world’s consumers are beyond U.S. borders, and we must continue to give small -and medium-sized U.S. businesses a competitive edge by making the necessary investments that will lead America into the future. I commend Schaefer Ventilation on its outstanding export accomplishments.”

The 60-year-old firm manufactures efficient and reliable thermal comfort products for agricultural, horticultural, industrial, commercial and rental applications. With assistance from the U.S. Commercial Service staff in Minneapolis and abroad, Schaefer Ventilation has made sales to Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, enabling the firm to buffer the ups-and-downs of the global economy much better than if they had been selling only domestically.

“With the assistance and support of the U.S. Commercial Service, Schaefer is on a path to triple international sales over a two-year period,” Schaefer Ventilation President Neil Crocker said. “Schaefer has utilized the ExporTech development program, Gold Key Services, and ‘reverse trade missions’ through the USTDA to identify attractive markets, and find pre-screened local partners to represent our products.”

In January 2010, President Obama announced the National Export Initiative, which aims to double U.S. exports by the end of 2014 while supporting millions of new jobs. Last year, overall U.S. exports grew by 17 percent. PD

—From U.S. Commercial Service news release