Buffalo Wind Symposium to Focus on Energy Issues

The Buffalo Niagara Enterprise has a vision of building a thorough supply chain for a local wind energy industry. Already, the agency has identified 350 area companies that could be suppliers or manufacturers of components.

That vision will be explored in detail at the Wind Component Manufacturing Symposium, sponsored by the Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, on July 15 in Buffalo.

According to BNE spokesman Paul Pfeiffer, establishing a local wind energy industry will not only be a boon for local manufacturing, but also in luring other industries to the area.

"We think there's a lot of potential for us," said Pfeiffer, who also cited federal government encouragement, an influx of stimulus money, and the fact that predominant manufacturing entities are in the Midwest and West.
Western New York, he said, could become a natural wind energy business center.
"Our geographic location makes us a natural for manufacturing, logistics and distribution standpoints," Pfeiffer said. "And it's expensive to ship that stuff out this way."

Scheduled presenters include Carol Murphy, executive director for Alliance for Clean Energy New York, along with General Electric's Patrick Timon, and representatives from Moog Inc. and Phillips Lytle LLP.