wyoming

imageswyoming.com

business images
®

Brain Stormers
Entrepreneurial spirit
remains exciting here

America’s Fuel
State stokes the
nation’s coal industry

What’s
Online 
Learn some unique facts
and figures about
Wyoming in a
quick video.

Unparalleled Beauty,
Unrivaled Opportunity

Sponsored by the Wyoming Business Council | 2011

wyomingbusiness.org

 business
®

16

22 Workstyle
Unparalleled Beauty,
Unrivaled Opportunity 10
Wyoming makes it easy to
work where you want to live.

Brain Stormers 16
Entrepreneurial spirit
remains exciting here.

20 Novel Notion 20
Local manufacturers find
uncommon product niches.

26 Refining Land in Casper

Former refinery becomes
22
a signature development.

America’s Fuel 26
Wyoming stokes the
nation’s coal industry.

Table of Contents Continued

On the Cover Grand Teton National Park Photo by Jeff Adkins

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 3

 14 Insight
Business Almanac 10
Business Climate 14
Energy 30
Transportation 34
Economic Profile 47

30 Health 36
Education 38
Livability 42

All or part of this magazine is printed with soy ink on

recycled paper containing 10% post-consumer waste.

34 Please recycle this magazine

42

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 5
WYOMING COAL INFORMATION COMMITTEE
Wyoming
COAL

Wyoming has the most productive coal mines in the

United States. With over 50 billion tons of coal
reserves, Wyoming can continue to be the largest
coal producing state in the nation.

Mining coal in Wyoming is one of the

safest industries in the state.

Wyoming coal is shipped to 35 states

from New York to Washington and
from Minnesota to Texas.
www.wma-minelife.com
 wyoming wyomingONLINE
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201 1 Edition , volum e 3

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Brain Stormers
Senior Photographers Jeff Adkins, Brian McCord Entrepreneurial spirit
remains exciting here
Staff Photographers Todd Bennett, Antony Boshier
America’s Fuel
Web Content Managers John Hood, Kim Madlom State stokes the
nation’s coal industry

Web project manager noy fongnaly

Web Design Director Franco Scaramuzza What’s
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Learn some unique facts
and figures about

Web Designer Leigh Guarin

Wyoming in a
quick video.

Web Developer I Yamel Hall

Unparalleled Beauty,
Ad Production Manager Katie Middendorf Unrivaled Opportunity
Ad Traffic Assistants Krystin Lemmon, Patricia Moisan
I.T. Director Yancey Bond
Lifestyle SpOnSOred By the WyOming BUSineSS COUnCiL | 2011

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Find out what it’s like to live here and what WyOmingBUSineSS.Org

Regional Sales Manager Chris Sweeney makes the state such a special place to be.
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News and Notes >>
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Our editors give you the
Chairman Greg Thurman
President/Publisher Bob Schwartzman Inside Scoop on the latest
Executive Vice President Ray Langen
Senior V.P./Sales Todd Potter, Carla Thurman
development and trends
Senior V.P./Operations Casey Hester across the state.
Senior V.P./Client Development Jeff Heefner
V.P./external communications Teree Caruthers
V.P./Custom Publishing Kim Newsom
success
V.P./Visual Content Mark Forester Workstyle
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A spotlight on innovative companies breeds success >>
V.P./Sales Charles Fitzgibbon,
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Controller Chris Dudley
Content Director/Travel Publications
pace for business innovation.
Susan Chappell
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Bill McMeekin Dig Deeper >>
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Plug into the state with links
Executive Secretary Kristy Duncan to local websites and
Human Resources Manager Peggy Blake
Receptionist Linda Bishop resources to give you a big
picture of the region.

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i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 7
 Overview

Unparalleled Beauty, Unrivaled Opportunity

Wyoming makes it easy to work where you want to live

Wyoming offers a bounty of to enjoy higher earnings, the lack of Wyoming’s quality of life allows you
advantages for business relocation an individual income tax contributes to be part of a crowd only when you
and expansion, unparalleled natural to the state’s lower cost of labor. want to be, and its residents enjoy
beauty and a quality of life that gives Wyoming has ranked No. 1 for freedom from high crime, the
you the freedom to work where you business-friendly taxation on the pressures of big cities, traffic
want to live. Tax Foundation’s State Business jams, and noise and air pollution.
Though it is a state of wide-open Tax Climate Index every year from The New West of Wyoming offers
spaces, Wyoming boasts a superior 2003 to 2008. you the space to grow and thrive.
transportation system, cutting-edge The state ranked third on the Wyoming is often called the first
health providers, communities with 2010 Pollina Corporate Real Estate state in outdoor America. From
the latest technological and Top 10 Pro Business States list. The the thrill-seeker to the nature
communications infrastructure, Tax Foundation ranked Wyoming third lover, Wyoming has something to
and renowned educational assets, on its Top Business Tax Climate Index please everyone, including two
including the University of Wyoming and third for lowest state and local fantastic national parks and a
and a statewide network of tax burden among all states. 24/7 dozen state parks.
community colleges. Wall St. named Wyoming the From its broad high plains to its
Among Wyoming’s key benefits is nation’s Best-Run State based on soaring mountains, from its storied
a highly advantageous tax structure. a comprehensive analysis of state frontier past to its role in the ancient
Wyoming does not have corporate, financial management data, and its histories of native peoples, the
inventory or personal income taxes. property taxes are among the lowest Western spirit thrives to this day
Besides allowing business owners in the country. in the Cowboy State.

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8 wyoming
 Wyoming Economic Development Contacts
Wyoming Business Council Forward Sheridan Town of Pinedale
Cheyenne, WY Sheridan, WY, (307) 673-8004 Pinedale, WY
(307) 777-2800 www.ForwardSheridan.com (307) 367-4136
www.wyomingbusiness.org www.townofpinedale.com
Glenrock Economic Development Corp.
Big Horn County Economic Glenrock, WY Platte County
Development Inc. (307) 436-9294 x314 Economic Development
Basin, WY Wheatland, WY
Goshen County Economic Development
(307) 568-3055 (307) 322-4232
Torrington, WY, (307) 532-5162
www.developbighorncounty.com www.plattecountyedc.com
www.goshenwyo.com
Big Horn Mountain Powell Valley Chamber
Green River Futures
Country Coalition Powell, WY
Green River, WY
Kaycee, WY (307) 754-3494
(307) 875-4509
(307) 738-2269 www.powelled.org
www.greenriverfutures.com
www.bighornmountains.org City of Rawlins
IDEA Inc.
Campbell County Economic Rawlins, WY
Riverton, WY
Development Corp. (307) 321-0348
(307) 856-0952
Gillette, WY www.rawlins-wyoming.com
(307) 307-686-2603 Town of LaBarge
South Lincoln County
www.ccedc.net LaBarge, WY
Economic Development Corp.
(307) 386-2676
Carbon County Economic Diamondville, WY
Development Commission Town of LaGrange (307) 877-9781
Rawlins, WY LaGrange, WY www.kemmerer.org
(307) 324-3836 (307) 834-2466
Star Valley Chamber
www.ccwyed.net www.lagrangewyo.com
Afton, WY
Casper Area Economic City of Lander (307) 885-2759
Development Alliance Lander, WY www.starvalleychamber.com
Casper, WY (307) 332-2870
Sweetwater Economic
(307) 577-7011 www.landerwyoming.org
Development Association
www.casperworks.biz Laramie Economic Development Corp. Rock Springs, WY
Cheyenne LEADS Laramie, WY (307) 352-6874
Cheyenne, WY (307) 742-2212 www.sweda.net
(307) 638-6000 www.laramiewy.org
Thermopolis-Hot Springs County
www.cheyenneleads.org LEADER Corp. Economic Development Co.
Cokeville Development Corp. Lander, WY Thermopolis, WY
Cokeville, WY (307) 332-5181 (307) 864-2348
(307) 279-3227 www.leadercorporation.com www.thermopolis.com
Converse Area New Lovell Inc. Uinta County Economic
Development Organization Lovell, WY Development Commission
Douglas, WY (307) 548-6707 Evanston, WY
(307) 358-2000 www.townoflovell.com (307) 783-0378
www.candowyoming.com North East Wyoming Economic www.uintacounty.com
Dubois Volunteers Inc. Development Coalition Washakie
Dubois, WY Gillette, WY Development Association
(307) 455-2041 (307) 686-3672 Worland, WY
www.duboiswyoming.org/dvi.html www.newedc.com (307) 347-8900
Northern Arapaho Economic www.washakiedevelopment.com
City of
Evantson Development Committee Wind River Development Fund
Evanston, WY Arapahoe, WY Fort Washakie, WY
(307) 783-6309 (307) 857-3868 (307) 335-7330
www.evanstonwy.org www.northernarapaho.com www.wrdf.org
Forward Cody Pine Haven Economic Town of Wright
Cody, WY Development Board Wright, WY
(307) 587-3136 Pine Haven, WY (307) 464-1666
www.forwardcody.com (307) 756-3279 www.wrightwyoming.com

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 9
 Almanac Visitor-Friendly,
Eco-Friendly
The new Northeast Wyoming
Welcome Center near Sundance was
designed to be a zero-net energy
facility, meaning it will generate as
much energy as it uses, and likely
more. The building’s primary source
of power is a 50-kilowatt array of
photovoltaic panels mounted to its
roof. The primary source of winter
heating and summer cooling is a
series of 14 geothermal wells. The
geothermal system functions year
round to transfer heat between the
building and the wells. Automated
window ventilation systems, passive
shading, and highly insulated walls
and roof round out the integrated
energy efficiency. Inside, the gallery
space includes story lines that depict
Wyoming’s heritage in wildlife,
A Marvelous Spot ranching, rodeo, mining and outdoor

for the Moondance recreation, all illustrated with

regional events. A centerpiece of the
The fabled Moondance Diner in Manhattan was slated for the wrecking ball gallery is the ancient wildlife display,
before efforts by noted preservationist Michael Perlman led to the dominated by a life-size replica of
American Diner Museum’s nationwide campaign to find a buyer. Kelsey, the 65 million-year-old
triceratops found near Newcastle.
For $7,500 Vince and Cheryl Pierce bought the Moondance. Vince and
Cheryl’s father, Kent Profit, loaded the diner on a flatbed and drove the
Moondance more than 2,400 miles to LaBarge, Wyo., population 431.
The couple spent more than 18 months on renovations, using original
Moondance blueprints, salvaging what they could of the old structure and
incorporating it into a new building framework that can withstand
Wyoming’s winters. The interior retains the art deco stainless-steel look of
the original Moondance. The diner offers a menu for breakfast, lunch and
dinner, and it was named one of the nation’s 51 greatest burger joints by
USA Today in fall 2010. For more, go to www.historicmoondancediner.com.

Small Town, Big Chili

Chugwater Chili Corp. started in June 1986, when five
farm and ranch families purchased the Wyoming State
Championship Chili Recipe and turned it into a “for-
profit” enterprise to help boost the business fortunes
of Chugwater, a town of about 250 people 45 miles
north of Cheyenne.
From humble beginnings in a home basement for
an office and a ranch bunkhouse for packaging, the
company now sells its chili blends, jellies, rubs, dips
and dressings, as well as teas, jerky products, quilts
and kitchen wares online.
And for those who venture to Chugwater, the company
welcomes visitors to stop in for a free taste of its
products. Go to chugwaterchili.com/index.html for more.

10 wyoming
 Lumbering into a
New Opportunity
Centennial Woods in Laramie has been satisfying a growing market for
recycled lumber and green building products by dismantling old snow
Here’s to What
fencing. Wyoming maintains about 200 miles of 16-foot-tall snow Ales You
fencing, installed in windy areas to prevent snow from drifting onto
Who has the best beer in Pinedale,
highways. The company has secured maintenance contracts from the
Wyo.? Brewmasters Richie Strom
state to replace weathered boards on miles of snow fence with new
and Eric Berg think they’ve crafted
lumber. Centennial reclaims about 20 to 25 miles of snow fence each
the right answer. Their Wind River
year, trims the boards to remove rot and sells them to customers
Brewing Co. crafts 13 different ales,
around the United States. Formerly discarded as waste, the old lumber
most of them English-style and
is now sold to builders, mostly for use as board-and-batten siding.
several of them award winners
at national and international
competitions. The brewery uses a
20-barrel small-batch system, and
it notes that large-scale brewers will
“spill more beer in one day than we
can brew in one day.”
The water Wind Rivers uses in its
brewing process is from a glacier-fed
lake and tests 98.9 percent pure,
and the brewery does not alter or
adjust the chemistry of the water.
The brewery includes a restaurant
with a pub-style menu that includes
salads, homemade soups, appetizers
and steak. Visit www.windriver
brewingco.com/splash.html for more.

Natural Leadership
The National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), based in Lander, builds
leaders from hands-on experience. NOLS programs take people of all ages
on remote wilderness expeditions – from mountaineering, rock climbing and
kayaking, to rafting, sailing, skiing and horsepacking – in spectacular
outdoor locales across the world, including several in Wyoming.
NOLS adventurers facilitate outdoor skills development, leadership training
and an environmental ethics based on “leave no trace.” Founded by
legendary mountaineer Paul Petzoldt in 1965 on the banks of the Pop Agie
River in the foothills of the Wind River Mountains, the nonprofit educational
institution now has 14 operational bases worldwide, with courses ranging
from 10 days to a full academic year, with the standard model of a 30-day
expedition. For more on NOLS, go to www.nols.edu.

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 11
 555 General Brees Rd.
Laramie, WY 82070
(307) 742-4164
“Shovel ready” building sites
www.laramieairport.com available in our Airport Business Park

Washakie County … Imagine doing business in the place your family

wants to live. Make your home where you can
Come to work. Stay to play. live, work, grow and play. Discover Washakie
County, Wyoming, the most diversified economy
in the state of Wyoming on a per capita basis.
• Existing buildings or
build-to-suit opportunities
• Local and state incentives
• Taxes? What taxes?
• No corporate or personal state income tax
• No inventory tax
• World-class outdoor recreation
• Fun, safe community to raise a family

BuSINESS REaDY LoTS – .61-.63 acres to

be completed summer 2011.
Larger lots available in Phase 2.
510 S. 15th St., Ste. C
Worland, WY 82401
(307) 347-8900
wda@rtconnect.net
www.washakiedevelopment.com Located west of Worland on 15 Mile Rd.

12 wyoming
 They Know
Heavy Metal
Eagle Bronze Art Foundry in Landero,
Wyo., ships its sculptures all over the
world. The family-owned company,
founded in 1986, is involved in large
and complex sculpture projects,
using monumental castings in both
bronze and stainless-steel alloys.
Most of the sculptures from Eagle
Bronze are displayed outside large
buildings or in public gathering spots,
such as the bronze panther statues
that grace Bank of America Stadium
in Charlotte. For more about Eagle
Bronze Art Foundry, visit the website
at www.eaglebronze.com.

Spinning a Sustainable Yarn

Mountain Meadow Wool Co. in Buffalo, Wyo., produces merino wool used
in knitting and weaving yarns, handspinner roving, quilt batts, felt and
other products. The company, founded in 2007 by co-owners Karen
Hostetler and Valerie Spanomore, emphasizes sustainable processes
including washing its wool in environmentally friendly citrus-based
detergents, recycling its wash water and using natural dyes.
The company produces several varieties of yarn, including natural,
artisan-dyed and hand-painted artisan yarn, and its products are sold
at retail locations in several states. For more about Mountain Meadow
Wool Co., go to www.mountainmeadowwool.com.

Sweet on Meeteetse
Tim Kellogg started selling truffles and brownies at an Art in
the Park event in Meeteetse, Wyo., in 2004. From there, his
Meeteetse Chocolatier has grown into a retail and online operation
based in the small community near the Shoshone National Forest.
Meeteetse Chocolatier specialties include Belgian chocolates,
truffles and chocolate pretzels. The company is committed
to sustainability, and recycles its glass, aluminum, plastic
and cardboard.
The business also works with a master gardener to raise
many of its herbs and spices, and uses a variety of organic
ingredients in its products. For more on the company, go to
www.meeteetsechocolatier.com.

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 13
 EchoStar recently expanded
its facilities in Cheyenne.

14 wyoming
 Business Climate
Expansion Plans
Cost structure, power, connectivity fuel growth
Story by Kevin Litwin
Photography by Antony Boshier
I
f you are looking for a place to do business,
Wyoming offers the ideal combination of
a highly favorable cost structure and an
unparalleled quality of life.
Wyoming is one of only four other states
to collect no personal and no corporate
income taxes.
“For companies or entrepreneurs seeking
to relocate or expand their operations in
Wyoming, our governor and legislators
are very accessible and work hard with our
communities to prepare for business growth
and expansion,” says Robert Jensen, CEO of
the Wyoming Business Council.
The state also boasts an excellent
transportation infrastructure, strong fiber-
optic network, abundant low-cost power and
helpful business resources, including the
Wyoming Business Council, University of
Wyoming, other state agencies and economic
development entities that work together to
help entrepreneurs, businesses and
communities succeed, Jensen says.
Star Power
The state’s labor force has grown to
300,000, up more than 10 percent since
2000. The state’s favorable cost structure,
availability of low-cost power and far-reaching
broadband connectivity are paying off with
new investment and job creation.
EchoStar in 2010 decided to begin
expanding its presence in Cheyenne by
establishing a 77,000-square-foot data center
adjacent to its existing satellite uplink and
broadcast facility. EchoStar designs products
and delivers television services for satellite
and cable markets worldwide, with DISH
Network being one of its largest customers.
“We chose Wyoming for the great fiber optic
infrastructure that crosses the state, and the
low prices for power,” says Jeff McSchooler, Wyoming Gross
senior vice president of Engineering for
EchoStar. “Wyoming is clean and a great place Domestic
to live. Our workers can have high-tech jobs Product
while living in a relaxing environment.”
• 2009 $37.54 billion
In June 2010, construction began on the
National Center for Atmospheric Research • 2008 $38.58 billion
supercomputer in Cheyenne. The • 2007 $33.27 billion
supercomputer will give researchers a • 2006 $30.72 billion
powerful tool to study climate change, air • 2005 $26.23 billion
quality and severe weather. The center’s
construction is valued at around $60 million,
with the total investment in the project over Best State
a 20-year period reaching $500 million.
“Cheyenne’s good fiber optic connectivity Business Tax
and low-cost power are vital to run our Climates
supercomputer, since it will run on an
Fiscal Year 2011
immense amount of electricity,” says Krista
Laursen, project director for the NCAR- 1. South Dakota
Wyoming Supercomputing Center. 2. Alaska
3. Wyoming
A diversified economy
4. Nevada
Cate Street Capital opened Red Desert Water
Reclamation in Rawlins, a plant that treats 5. Florida
and purifies water used in the oil and gas Source: Tax
extraction process. Thought Equity Motion set Foundation
up operations in Laramie to digitize, deliver
and monetize high-quality video content over
the Internet. And PitchEngine, a company that
was founded in Wyoming, is a growing and
innovative leader in social media public
relations and marketing.
“Wyoming is also seeing a tremendous
amount of growth in the clean-energy sectors
and in the transportation and distribution
sectors as well,” Jensen says. “Rail and
business parks in Evanston, Upton, Cheyenne
and Casper demonstrate that Wyoming
continues to diversify its economy, and
position itself to compete not only on a
national level but internationally as well.”
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 15
 Success Stories
Written Here
Wyoming’s resources create
environment for entrepreneurship
Story by Kevin Litwin

W
ith its numerous cost advantages, cutting-edge
connectivity and communication infrastructure,
access to knowledgeable workers and hassle-free
quality of life, Wyoming is a natural choice for
entrepreneurs who want to locate or expand a business.
Wyoming was ranked among the top five entrepreneur-
friendly states in 2009 by the Small Business and
Entrepreneurship Council. And the state offers a complete
line of business and entrepreneurial services through a
business resource network, including the Wyoming Small
Business Development Center, that provides consultation on
a range of business subjects to 4,000 to 5,000 entrepreneurs
each year, says Ben Avery, business and industry director
with the Wyoming Business Council. The center offers
assistance in areas such as preparing business plans,
analyzing markets and customer bases, and understanding
P h o t o C o u r t e s y o f j ay m c l a u r i n

finances. The Business Council also provides help in

accessing important trade shows to help businesses and
entrepreneurs market products and services.
A n t o n y B o s h i er

Left: A signature project for Lander-based Eggli Bros. Millwork

is the legislative desks in the Wyoming State Capitol. Right:
Startup Wyoming Whiskey is the state’s first legal distillery.

16 wyoming
 i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 17
 English Is Commerce
Eleutian Technology, which is headquartered in Cody but
has operations throughout the state, is a good example. The
company utilizes high-speed Internet connections to help
students in South Korea and other Asian countries learn
the English language, and Eleutian has recently branched
into Japan and China.
“English is the global language of commerce,” says Kent
Holiday, Eleutian president. “Conversational English
instruction is a service that will not be outsourced from

A n t o n y B o s h i er
America to places like India and China. The reason for this
is that students from around the world who are looking to
improve their English conversational ability want to learn
from an American teacher.” Eleutian now employs more
than 500 English teachers and more than 40 corporate
employees statewide who earn annual salaries averaging
more than $50,000 per year.
In Lander, Eggli Bros. Millwork manufactures high-
quality architectural millwork found in hospitals, schools,
banks and office buildings. One of the company’s signature
projects was constructing new desks for the entire
Wyoming State Capitol.
Whiskey and Oats
Other entrepreneurial ventures that are experiencing
success these days include Wyoming Whiskey, which has
launched bourbon production at its new distillery in the
Big Horn Basin – the first legal distillery in the state. The
master distiller relocated from Kentucky to Wyoming and
the distillery has initial plans to produce 1,000 barrels of
Wyoming Whiskey a year.
Gluten Free Oats is a company in Powell that began as a
Future Farmers of America project by then-high-school-
freshman Forrest Smith, who suffered from celiac disease.
Smith began rolling and marketing gluten-free rolled oats
to a local celiac support group, and today his company’s
products are sold around the world.
Avery adds that other entrepreneurial achievements in
Wyoming are occurring in such fields as agribusiness and
travel and tourism.
“There are many entrepreneurial success stories in
Wyoming these days, and we are obviously pleased with
every one of them,” he says. “And now, the Wyoming
Business Council has contracted with a Denver/New York
finders company that is helping us analyze businesses
throughout America that would be ideally suited for
Wyoming. Our state is well on its way to creating a very
diverse economy.”

Clockwise from top left: Desks in the state capitol made by Eggli
Bros. Millwork; Forrest Smith, founder of Gluten Free Oats;
Teaching students in Korea via Skype at Eleutian Technology;
Corn, wheat and malted barley used at Wyoming Whiskey in Kirby.

18 wyoming


i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m
P h o t o C o u r t e s y o f j ay m c l a u r i n A n t o n y B o s h i er

19
 Novel Notion
Local manufacturers find uncommon product niches
A Real Shocker
It can take a minimum
of 8,000 hours of
apprenticeship training and
four years of classroom
time to become a licensed
journeyman electrician, and
since 1965, hundreds of
Wyoming workers have been
certified as such through
the Wyoming Electrical
Joint Apprenticeship
and Training Program.
The program is a
cooperative training effort
between the National
Electrical Contractors
Association (NECA) and
locals of the International
Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers (IBEW), whose
jurisdictions cover A soft economy almost meant the end of
all of Wyoming. Visit
wyojatc.org for more.
20 wyoming
Story by Betsy Williams
W
yoming has attracted remarkable
manufacturing and business concerns
with its favorable cost structure and
access to transportation networks.
For LBI Renewable (formerly Little Bits
Inc.), it took the daughter of owners Joseph
and Shelly St. Pierre bringing home a white cat
to launch the Buffalo business. The retired
couple – Joseph a veteran and Shelly from
manufacturing and accounting – named the
white ball of fur Little Bit and started a kitty
litter company in his name three years ago.
“When we began this, we wanted to make a
product that would be healthy for our cat and
the consumer that also kills odors and would
be environmentally friendly,” Joe says.
From Earth to Earth
LBI, but an oil spill, a little help and Shelly’s
penchant for money management soon turned
the cat litter manufacturer into LBI, a
developer of toxic substance bioremediation
products. “One day we had a spill of oil in the
plant, and we cleaned it up with our litter,” Joe
says. “We started looking at manufacturing an
environmentally friendly spill absorbent. It
exploded and moved us in a new direction,
helping us to grow into a viable and much-
needed industry.”
Marketed under the DualZorb, PondZorb,
DrainZorb and AcidZorb names, the patent-
pending products are made completely of
beetle-kill lodge pole pines. Company research
shows that they absorb petroleum
hydrocarbons, remediate contaminated soils
on site, suppress hazardous fumes and are 100
percent biodegradable.
“We take a product that would have rotted
in the forest and now we’re cleaning the
environment with the environment,’” Joe says.
Duration, the cat litter, is still part of the
product line, a green litter that works so well it
can be used as garden mulch after the cat has
finished with it.
In Casper, Defense Technology makes
so-called less-than-lethal products, including
gas canisters, chemical grenades and rubber
bullets for self defense for the police and
military markets. In Freedom, Freedom Arms
manufacturers a variety of revolvers and
accessories. Byan Systems in Lusk develops
and makes hydraulic gate components used
for commercial and residential applications.
Its products are in place in the gates in front
of the White House. And in a state known for
its open spaces and outdoor splendor, it’s no
surprise to find Riverton-based Brunton,
which makes a range of outdoor products,
from cooking gear, to compasses, binoculars
and portable power devices.
Bridging the gap
In 2008, Mike Lilygren, Brendon Weaver
and Cade Maestas combined their retail and
manufacturing backgrounds with their love
of the outdoors to form Lander-based Bridge
Outdoors, a wholesaler and product developer
of outerwear, outdoor equipment and
accessories focusing on the smaller retailer
and conservation organizations.
“We saw the major brands focusing on the
big-box stores,” explains Lilygren. “They were
cutting prices and building products
specifically for them and pushing the small
retailers to the side. We realized with our
expertise we could work with the small
independents and help them get their names
on their products.”
Why Lander? “I’ve lived lots of places,”
Lilygren says, “but Wyoming appeals to me
because of its pace and people. From a business
standpoint, the tax structure works well with
no individual or corporate income tax,
shipping costs are contained and the work
ethic is very strong.”
 A n t o n y B o s h i er
Soda, anyone?
Most folks may not know
what trona is, but they are
very familiar with what it
P h o t o C o u r t e s y o f L ee k j o s

can become: baking soda.

Church & Dwight, one
of the nation’s oldest
manufacturing companies,
has been mining and
manufacturing Sweetwater
County’s seemingly endless
Green River Basin trona
deposits since 1967 under
the iconic Arm & Hammer
label, employing almost 200
people in a 500,000-square-
foot facility. The sodium
bicarbonate produced from
this raw material is used in
a number of household
P h o t o C o u r t e s y o f s a fa r i l a n d

products, such as laundry

detergent, carpet deodorizer
and more. With five area
manufacturers, the trona
A n t o n y B o s h i er
industry has become a
major economic base for
Sweetwater County. Experts
predict that the Green River
basin is large enough to meet
the entire world’s needs for
soda ash and sodium
bicarbonate for thousands
of years.
A n t o n y B o s h i er

Clockwise from top: Brunton is a company based in Riverton that makes a wide range of outdoor products;
DualZorb is an organic absorbent created by LBI Renewable (formerly Little Bits Inc.), a Buffalo-based
company; Defense Technology’s products are used by police and military for self-defense.

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 21
 The former Amoco administration
building will house the Casper Business
Innovation Center, set to open in 2012.

22 wyoming
 Refining Land
in Casper
Former refinery becomes a signature development
Story by Betsy Williams
Photography by Antony Boshier
A
4,000-acre former Amoco refinery
complex in Casper is being transformed
from a brownfield site into a showpiece
business and recreational development that,
thanks to a new marketing/development
agreement and the vision of an innovation
center, is only gaining more traction.
The Amoco Reuse Agreement Joint Powers
Board (JPB) has signed a 25-year agreement
with Jona Inc. to improve and market the
BP-owned Platte River Commons and Salt
Creek Heights.
Platte River Commons Will Expand
Jona will act as the developer of the
property, says JPB Executive Director
Alice Kraft.
“This firm is more of a land management
company,” she says. “If we need roads or
buildings built, they will build them. The
profits will be shared between the two
parties. We’re also working with BP North
America to get the fee simple title of Salt
Creek Heights so that we can sell, rather
than lease, this property.”
The Commons is already home to a high-
end office building, the State Oil and Gas
Conservation Commission, the championship
Three Crowns Golf Course and a popular
restaurant. More office and retail development
is planned, particularly when the southwest
part of the Platte River Commons is opened
with better accessibility and aesthetic
improvements. The Platte River offers rich
recreational activities, from kayaking to
fly-fishing to bird-watching.
Casper Innovation Center in 2012 About the
JPB is also in partnership with the Casper
Area Economic Development Alliance Inc. Innovation
(CAEDA), a public-private economic Center
development organization, for the • Opening spring 2012 in
development of the Casper Business Platte River Commons
Innovation Center in the historical • $11 million project;
14,000-square-foot Amoco administration funding in place
building. An additional 30,000 square feet • Fertile ground of
will be added to the structure, which will be entrepreneurs in region
leased back to the innovation center for $1 a • Fully staffed; solid
year. The project surpassed its $10.5 million cadre of services
fundraising goal; construction begins in 2011, and assistance
with a targeted spring 2012 opening. • Extensive array of
“The economy of Wyoming is largely supportive partners
focused on energy and extractive minerals,
and for many years there has been a desire
to diversify the economy,” says CAEDA
President and CEO Robert Barnes, CEcD.
“This incubator will work toward that as a
knowledge-based, general-purpose innovation
center, with two wet labs, robotics labs,
conference and resource rooms, and a
multitude of offices.”
DeAnna Adams, a member of the National
Business Incubation Association, was hired
in 2010 by CAEDA as the center’s director.
“We are partnering with other entities
in the community to establish a business
accelerator that will jump-start new
businesses,” Adams says. “We have so much
to draw on here, from the medical community,
alternative energies, robotics, and oil and gas.
We will help our entrepreneurs establish good
business practices, move them forward in a
timely fashion and create jobs.”
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 23
 America’s Fuel
Wyoming stokes the nation’s coal industry

29,945 28,267 Story by Bill Lewis

33,748
35,093

E
35,655 ighty-five trains snake their way
39,486 out of the Powder River Basin
every day, each one hauling up
57,979 431,107 to 15,000 tons of coal that will keep
the lights on at homes and businesses
107,338 across the United States and help keep
Wyoming’s economy strong.
136,971 Wyoming’s coal contribution to
America’s energy goals can’t be
overstated, says Marion Loomis,
Coal Production by State executive director of the Wyoming
(2009 Total in Thousands of Tons)
Mining Association. Neither can its
Wyoming
importance to families and businesses
West Virginia
Kentucky
across the state.
Pennsylvania
“Wyoming’s coal industry has a
Montana major impact here and across the
Indiana nation,” Loomis says.
Texas As the United States explores
Illinois cleaner and greener energy sources,
North Dakota coal is expected to continue playing a
Abundant, Independent Energy
The facts speak for themselves:
• The United States has a 245-year
supply of coal at current rates of
use, according to the American
Coal Foundation. That makes it a
crucial resource in the country’s
quest for independence from
foreign energy sources.
• Half of the country’s electricity
comes from coal. More than a
third of the coal used to produce
electric power comes from the
Powder River Basin (PRB).
• PRB coal contains just a fraction of
the sulfur that eastern coal contains,
so it burns cleaner, helping America
reach its clean air goals.
“We ship Powder River Basin coal
coast to coast, New York, Washington,
Pennsylvania. We even ship some coal
Brian McCord

Colorado major role thanks to new technologies to West Virginia, a state with its own
Source: National Mining Association being explored by the University of historical mining industry,” Loomis says.
more at imageswyoming.com Wyoming and General Electric. In Wyoming, coal doesn’t just fuel

26 wyoming
 Powder River Basin
coal plant in Gillette.

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 27

Left and middle: Nearly 40 percent of the nation’s coal comes from Wyoming. Right: Wyoming coal.
power stations. It powers the economy,
Loomis says.
• The mining industry paid the
local, state and federal government
taxes, royalties and fees of $1.8
billion in 2009.
• 7,285 people are employed in
Wyoming’s coal mining industry.
• With an average wage of $20 to
$25 per hour, the industry has
a direct payroll of $730 million,
including benefits.
• Up to 21,855 additional workers
have jobs thanks to the mining
industry’s economic impact. Each
mining job creates up to three
additional jobs, Loomis says.
L&H Industrial
After-Market Parts
Two hundred of those spinoff jobs
are at the Gillette headquarters of
L&H Industrial, a major after-market
supplier of rebuilt and replacement
mining industry parts. The company
has an additional 200 employees at
locations worldwide.
“Coal built our company, and L&H
helped build coal,” Vice President Jeff
Wandler says. “I think coal is going to
be here as long as people want energy.
I don’t see any alternative to it.”
High Plains Coal Gasification
To ensure that Wyoming coal remains
a viable energy source in the future, GE
Energy and the University of Wyoming
have partnered to research advanced coal
gasification technologies. Together they
are developing the High Plains
28 wyoming
S ta ff P h o t o
S ta ff P h o t o
J eff A d k i n s
Gasification-Advanced Technology Center capturing carbon dioxide from coal-fired
in Laramie County. power plants and other industrial
The $100 million to $120 million facilities and storing it deep underground.
research and technology center will Managers of the multiyear, $17 million
explore methods of using Wyoming research project are conducting tests and
coal to produce electricity, hydrogen, preparing models to see if deep saline
chemicals and other forms of energy reservoirs in a geologic site known as the
while virtually eliminating air pollution Rock Springs Uplift are suitable for deep
and greenhouse gas emissions. CO2 storage (13,000 feet underground)
Scientists and engineers at the says Ron Surdam, director.
Wyoming Carbon Management Institute Storing CO2 securely underground will
are actively researching geologic storage reduce greenhouse gas emissions, says
of carbon dioxide, another promising Surdam, a goal that for Wyoming is
method of making fossil fuels greener “particularly important to the viability
energy sources. Geologic storage involves of the state’s energy industries.”
Wyoming Coal Production by Year (In Thousands of Tons)
500,000
400,000
300,000
200,000
100,000
0
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Source: U.S. Department of Energy
 Underground Economy
Mining industry creates opportunities for supplier businesses
I n a state that produces nearly
40 percent of the nation’s coal,
Wyoming has created significant
opportunities for companies that
serve its active mining sector.
About 7,000 Wyoming workers
are employed in the state’s mining
industry and an estimated 18,000
jobs are connected to servicing that
industry, supplying everything from
communications to explosives.
For more than 40 years, Wyoming
Machinery Company has been
the premiere Caterpillar dealer in
Wyoming, offering a complete line
J eff A d k i n s
of Caterpillar equipment as well as
an extensive fleet of used machines
for sale or rent. Its Equipment
Management Solutions department
(EMS) assists in the growing
technical needs of customers, and
the Parts Department carries a
massive inventory of on-the-shelf
Caterpillar parts. The company
delivers daily throughout its
16-county Wyoming territory.
The company, with locations in
Cheyenne, Casper and Gillette is
moving forward with plans to open a
fourth full-service location in a high-
traffic, heavy industrial area of Rock
Springs. It is the company’s first
completely new location in 20 years.
The company says the new location
will be uniquely suited to provide
products and service to oil and gas
customers in southwest Wyoming, as
well as additional on-highway truck
opportunities and construction
industry support.
Wyoming Machinery is also a large
employer in the state, with a
workforce of around 650, including
about 340 at its 170,000-square-
foot complex in Casper.
Wyoming Machinery Co. sells,
services and rents Caterpillar
products for the mining industry.
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 29
 30 wyoming
 Energy/Technology
Sweet Science
Wyoming project uses sugar cane waste to make ethanol
Story by Pamela Coyle
Photography by Antony Boshier
A find out more
n ndustrial demonstration plant in
Upton is converting sugar cane waste
into ethanol in a project that connects
Wyoming to Brazil, home to the world’s most
developed ethanol and sugar industries and a
huge sugar and ethanol exporter.
The partnership between Petrobras America
Inc., a subsidiary of Brazil’s state-run oil
company, and KL Energy Corp., an innovator
in second-generation biomass conversion and
biofuel technology, aims to test, demonstrate
and refine technology to make ethanol from
sugar cane bagasse, the waste created when
sugar cane is processed into sugar. The plant
began converting bagasse, which is shipped
from Louisiana, in March 2011.
As a feedstock for conversion, bagasse has
some advantages over other cellulosic
materials, says Peter Gross, CEO of KL Energy.
“The main advantage is that it is readily
available in very large quantities,” Gross says.
“And it is different than other materials in that
it is preprocessed. It is much easier to handle
with no additional logistics costs.”
Waste Matter Plentiful
Bagasse, left over from cane stalk after
sucrose is pressed out, accounts for one-
quarter of raw sugar cane, in wet weight. Most
modern sugar cane mills have a large excess
of it, says Gross, and there are two possible
applications: burning it to produce electricity
sold to the grid or converting it to ethanol.”
For example, a large sugar cane mill in
Petrobras America Inc.
Brazil will have more than 100,000 dry tons of A subsidiary of Brazil’s
bagasse available each year, which can produce state-run oil company
10 million gallons of ethanol a year, says Gross. www.petrobrasusa.us
Petrobras has had its own pilot plant in Brazil
since 2007, but the Wyoming project is part of KL Energy Corporation
An innovator in
an “industrial validation” to demonstrate biofuel processing
commercial viability. Both companies have www.klenergycorp.com
begun engineering work on South America’s
first commercial bagasse-to-ethanol project
that will be integrated with one of the 10
sugarcane mills operated by Petrobras in
Brazil. The plant, designed for a 100,000 dry
ton per year capacity, is slated to open in 2013.
The Brazilian company estimates cellulosic
ethanol could boost its ethanol output by up to
40 percent, without expanding land under
sugarcane crop and further shrinking the
carbon footprint from its sugarcane mills.
Bagasse Now, Pulp Next
KL Energy’s existing demonstration project
in Upton is what got the attention of Petrobras,
which is investing $11 million to upgrade the
facility as well as to conduct joint R&D and
industrial validation programs. The Upton
plant has been in operation since 2008,
making ethanol in small batches from woody
biomass, mainly forest debris. After the
bagasse phase, in June 2011, the same facility
will process diverse wood byproducts from the
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 31
 32 wyoming
 pulp and paper industry.
Linda Harris, executive director of the Northeast
Wyoming Economic Development Coalition, says the plant
has produced jobs, revenue and attention for the region,
where interest in biofuels and other energy projects,
including coal gasification, is growing. “It gets the
community noticed,” Harris says.
The area’s abundance of Ponderosa Pine feedstock made
Upton a good location for the first demonstration project,
and the bagasse conversion is considered a second-
generation process. The agreement between KL Energy and
Petrobras also gives the Brazilian company the option to
license KL Energy’s technology. Brazil has the world’s
largest and most sophisticated ethanol market, but the
research from Upton will have far broader reach. “Whatever
we learn now can be applied in the U.S.,” Gross says.
CELLULOSIC bioFUEL what is it?
The official definition of cellulosic biofuel
is renewable fuel derived from any cellulose,
hemicellulose, or lignin each of which must
originate from renewable biomass. Cellulose
is the most common organic compound on
the planet and the main component of plant
cell walls. Such material used in production
of cellulosic ethanol includes corn stover,
rice straw, wood chips, bagasse, and “energy
crops” of fast-growing trees and grasses
planted specifically for fuel conversion, such
as switch grass.
SOURCE: Renewable Fuels Association

Lighter Than Air

Helium facility uses new technology, leaves smaller footprint
High in the Wyoming mountains, of Wyoming’s petroleum engineering 200 million cubic feet of gas each
about 15 miles west of Big Piney, a department in the 1960s. He came day. The major commercial use for
$350 million project is preparing to up with the new plant’s design and liquid helium is to cool magnets in
produce liquid helium for multiple has testified about it at regulatory MRI machines. The material also is
high-tech applications. hearings. used in the space program to test for
The Riley Ridge Field is one of the Production at the new plant, at an leaks and to grow silicon crystals in
largest natural gas fields with elevation of about 8,800 feet in an inert environment.
abundant helium in the United Sublette County, is expected to start “This is an extremely long-term
States. Cimarex Energy Co., which in October 2011. The plant has the asset that will produce constantly for
is building the plant, will extract potential to scale from 100 million 50 years,” Scott Stinson says.
helium by processing natural gas cubic feet of gas each day to produce – Pamela Coyle
and, using new technology,
separating liquid hydrogen sulfide
and carbon dioxide from the gas
stream and re-injecting the waste
material back underground.
The design aims for minimal
impact, will produce virtually zero
carbon emissions and involve no
ponds or storage reservoirs for water
that is produced.
“I grew up hunting and camping
here, as did my father,” says Scott
Stinson, project manager of the Riley
Ridge Madison Gas Development
Project. “We are very proud that we
took landowners’ concerns into
consideration.”
Don Stinson, Scott’s father, is a
former chemical engineering
professor who started the University

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 33
 Transportation

Major Business
Connections
Road, rail, air, communications link Wyoming to the world

34 wyoming
 Story by Bill McMeekin
Photography by Antony Boshier
A Wyoming
sophisticated transportation
infrastructure, a phalanx of major
industrial parks and a highly developed
high-speed communications network keep
Wyoming connected.
Interstate 25 is a north-south corridor that
links Casper and Cheyenne to Denver and
Albuquerque, and provides access to the
Southwest. Midwest markets are within
easy reach via I-80, which passes through
population centers Cheyenne, Laramie,
Rawlins, Rock Springs, Green River and
Evanston, and is a gateway to Utah, Nevada
and California. I-90 runs along the northern
section of Wyoming through Gillette and
Sheridan, connecting the state to the upper
Midwest and northwest markets.
Wyoming’s Air – and rail – force
The state has 36 airports, including 10 with
commercial service to airline hubs such as
Denver and Salt Lake City. In Cody, a $12.5
million, LEED-certified passenger terminal
opened at Yellowstone Regional Airport.
Burlington Northern/Santa Fe and Union
Pacific provide Class I rail service with lines
that crisscross the state. In Laramie, the
Laramie Economic Development Corp. plans
to create a 5.6-acre transit site with rail access
for local businesses.
Wyoming Moves the Goods
Transportation and warehousing is among
the fastest-growing employment sectors in the
state. In fall 2010, it employed more than 16,000
people in Wyoming.
Sierra Trading Post, a catalog and online
closeout retailer in Cheyenne, ships 8 million
An American
Airlines jet
at Cheyenne
Regional Airport.
pieces of merchandise from Wyoming. Home
improvement chain Lowe’s supplies stores
within a 600-mile radius from a facility in Transportation
Cheyenne. And Walmart, whose distribution
facility in Cheyenne serves three states, added 36
airports in the state,
100 jobs to its nearly 600-member workforce including 10 with
in 2010. commercial service
Wyoming is home to a number of major
industrial parks, and almost every county in
the state has at least one such development. 16,000
workers in Wyoming in
The Casper Logistics Hub includes the CTRAN the Transportation and
rail yard and transloading facility. Cheyenne’s Warehousing sector
industrial parks include the Cheyenne
Business Parkway and North Range Business
Park. Smaller communities offer high-level 3
developments, too. Gillette has at least eight major interstates – I-25,
I-80 and I-90 – that pass
business or industrial parks with 50 acres or through Wyoming
more, such as Gillette Energy Park. Upton in
eastern Wyoming has the Upton Regional
Industrial Park. 913
miles of interstate
highway in Wyoming
Broadband Keeps state Connected
Wyoming invested $29 million in a
statewide high-speed telecommunications
network, the Wyoming Equality Network, to
connect the state’s public schools to additional
teaching and information resources. And
communications technology has bred some
homegrown success stories. Freedom-based
Silver Star Communications offers mobile,
Internet and wireless services in Star Valley,
Jackson Hole, Swan Valley and Teton Valley.
And Union Wireless in Mountain View
provides a range of telecom services, from
high-speed Internet to cable television to
mobile service, for customers in Wyoming,
northwestern Colorado and parts of Utah.
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 35
 H
36 wyoming
 Health

A Healthy Economy
Network of hospitals keep care accessible for Wyoming residents

Story by Jessica Walker

O
ffering quality care, advanced
technology and the latest
medical treatments, Wyoming’s
hospitals serve their communities and
enhance the state’s workforce.
The state is home to 29 hospitals,
with 22 owned by a county or special
district, and 15 are designated Critical
Access Hospitals, which work to
provide health care in rural areas.
Each year, these hospitals serve nearly
37 million patients, with an additional
117 million individuals treated in the
state’s emergency rooms.
centers of care, Services
Two of the larger hospitals in
Wyoming, Cheyenne Regional Medical
Center and Wyoming Medical Center,
work to provide patients with a wide
range of services. “These two are full-
scale regional medical centers,” says
Neil A. Hilton, Wyoming Hospital
Association vice president.
Cheyenne Regional, which began in
1867 to treat injured railroad workers
constructing the Union Pacific
Railroad, offers services in a variety of
areas, such as cardiovascular, cancer,
neurosciences, trauma and weight loss.
In addition, this medical center is
among the top eight percent of
hospitals in the nation that provide
cardiac patients with angioplasties
within 90 minutes of arriving at the ER.
Located in Casper, Wyoming
Medical Center is a 207-bed, acute care
hospital. This not-for-profit facility
offers Wyoming Life Flight, the only
air ambulance program in the state,
and is home to two Centers of
Excellence: the Heart Center of
Wyoming and the Wyoming
Neuroscience and Spine Institute.
In locations across the state,
additional facilities such as Ivinson
Memorial Hospital in Laramie,
Sheridan Memorial Hospital,
Campbell County Memorial Hospital
and St John’s Medical Center in
Jackson, serve as full-service
community hospitals.
“Many hospitals in Wyoming have
done an excellent job in securing a
variety of specialized services” Hilton
says, “Their strategic planning efforts
and commitment to delivering high-
quality care is unquestionably at the
core of their mission.”
Wyoming hospitals have invested
heavily in transitioning to digital
imaging within radiology
departments, giving them the ability
to digitally transmit MRI and CT
scans, ultrasounds and other images.
health care aids Economy
The state’s community hospitals and
regional medical centers also employ
top-notch doctors, nurses, and
professional support staff. “You can’t
deliver the goods in a hospital without a
rock-solid medical staff,” Hilton says.
“The demands are tremendous –
the personnel providing care really
make an incredible commitment to
their communities.”
The state’s health-care system
provides more than 23,000 full- and part-
time jobs, with hospitals having an
estimated economic impact of
approximately $1.45 billion each year.
Additionally, Wyoming’s health-care
sector is responsible for 10.3 percent of
the state’s employment, and the hospitals
contribute approximately $445 million to
the state’s economy annually.
“Health-care services certainly go
hand-in-hand with other forms of
economic impact,” Hilton says.

Wyoming’s Hospitals
• Carbon County Memorial
Hospital, Rawlins
• Cheyenne Regional
Medical Center
• Campbell County
Memorial Hospital, Gillette
• Community Hospital, Torrington
• Crook County Hospital, Sundance
• Elkhorn Valley
Rehabilitation Hospital, Casper
• Evanston Regional Hospital
• Powell Valley Healthcare, Powell
• Hot Springs County
Memorial Hospital, Thermopolis
• Ivinson Memorial
Hospital, Laramie
• Johnson County Memorial
Hospital, Buffalo
• Memorial Hospital of
Converse County, Douglas
• Memorial Hospital
Sheridan County, Sheridan
• Memorial Hospital Sweetwater
County, Rock Springs
• Lander Valley Medical Center
• Niobrara Health
and Life Center, Lusk
• North Big Horn Hospital, Lovell
• Platte County
Memorial Hospital, Wheatland
• St. John’s Medical
Center, Jackson
• South Big Horn County
Hospital District, Basin
• South Lincoln Medical
Center, Kemmerer
• Star Valley
Medical Center, Afton
• Veterans Affairs
Medical Center, Cheyenne
• Washakie Medical
Center, Worland
• West Park Hospital, Cody
• Weston County
Health Services, Newcastle
• Wyoming Medical Center, Casper
• Wyoming Behavioral
Institute, Casper

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 37
 38 wyoming
 Education

It Adds Up
to Expansion
University of Wyoming College of Business gets $54M upgrade

Story by Kevin Litwin

Photography by Antony Boshier

O
ne of the state’s major business
assets is the University of
Wyoming, a powerhouse
in research and a provider of
knowledgeable workers for
Wyoming businesses.
One of the university’s major
components, the College of Business,
recently underwent a complete
renovation of its existing 53,000
square-foot structure, plus added
112,000 square feet of new
construction. The revitalized College of
Business reopened its doors in August
2010 in time for the new academic year.
“This new facility will help our
students achieve their goals and has
been made possible by the
extraordinary generosity of the
Wyoming State Legislature,” says
Tom Buchanan, University of
Wyoming president.
Under One Roof, And Beyond
The renovation and expansion
reunited the college’s academic
departments, which were in two
different locations prior to the project.
The construction project is also
benefitting the college and state in a
number of other ways.
“While the upgraded building is an
integral part of the UW campus, its
benefits are not limited by our
geographical borders,” says Brent
Hathaway, College of Business dean.
“The building’s technological
advancements allow us to teach
students here or throughout the state
by using distance education capabilities
such as online education and two-way
video conferencing.”
even a stock ticker
The building on UW’s impressive
Laramie campus features amenities
such as a trading room, behavioral and
multimedia laboratories, an executive
boardroom, conference and seminar
rooms, an auditorium and the latest
wired and wireless technologies. Those

Wyoming’s Public Colleges and Universities

Casper College Eastern Wyoming College Northern Wyoming Comm. College University of Wyoming
Casper Torrington Sheridan Laramie
www.caspercollege.edu www.ewc.wy.edu www.sheridan.edu www.uwyo.edu

Central Wyoming College Laramie County Community College Northwest College Western Wyoming Comm. College
Riverton Cheyenne Powell Rock Springs
www.cwc.edu www.lccc.cc.wy.us www.northwestcollege.edu www.wwcc.cc.wy.us

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 39
 technologies include high-definition
playback and projection systems in
each classroom, a video production and
editing facility, and video conferencing
capabilities.
The centerpiece of the revamped
College of Business is the Jonah Bank
Atrium, which serves as a gathering
spot for students and faculty, a site for
hosting events, and a prominent
display area for recognizing the
achievements of the college’s faculty,
staff, students, alumni, and friends.
The atrium is also equipped with a
wall-to-wall stock ticker.
“The College of Business now has a
facility that better reflects the
excellence of our faculty, programs and
students,” Hathaway says. “It meets the
educational needs of our 1,300 business
majors, plus the 1,250 non-business
students enrolled in business classes.”
Think green thoughts
Sustainability was at the top of the
agenda during the building process.
For example, 95 percent of old material
was recycled to divert it from landfills,
and 10 percent of the new building is
made of recycled content.
“The university has made great
strides during the last several years in Jonah Bank Atrium at the The University
construction processes to meet LEED of Wyoming’s Collge of Business.
standards,” Hathaway says.

University of Wyoming College of Business facts and figures

Founded: 1899
Business majors: 1,300
Non-business student enrollment: 1,250
Academic departments: Accounting, Economics and Finance, Management and Marketing
Majors: Accounting, Business Administration, Economics, Finance, Management and Marketing. The
College offers curricula in areas such as business administration, banking and financial services,
entrepreneurship, international business and marketing communications.
Advanced degrees: MBA, master’s degrees in Accounting, Economics, Finance and doctorates in
Economics and in Marketing
Facilities: The College of Business added 112,000 square feet of classroom and meeting space to
its 53,000-square-foot main building in August 2010. Facilities include a trading room, behavioral
and multi-media laboratories, an executive boardroom, conference and seminar rooms and an
auditorium, the latest wired and wireless technologies including high-definition playback and
projection systems in each classroom, a video production and editing facility, video conferencing
capabilities, financial data feeds and a stock ticker in the atrium.

40 wyoming
 Fueled by
Innovation
Institute’s works lead to
energy breakthroughs
Coal, oil shale, tar sand,
unconventional fuels, refinery
efficiency, biomass gasification
and thermo-chemical production
are all energy systems that make
up a big part of Wyoming’s industry
and economy.
Western Research Institute,
located on the University of Wyoming
campus in Laramie, is a not-for-profit
organization that focuses on
advancements in energy systems,
environmental technologies and
highway materials research. The
institute prides itself on dealing with
real-world, on-the-ground conditions.

They’re There to Research

WRI was founded in 1983, and
its team of researchers is often
contacted by private-sector
businesses, government entities
and research organizations across
the globe to provide advice on a
variety of energy issues. WRI
officials offer expertise in the
fields of chemical, petroleum and
environmental engineering, as well
as organic, physical, analytical and
inorganic chemistry, and geology
and soil science.
Two organizations that Western
Research Institute is working closely
with in 2011 are the U.S. Department
of Energy and the Federal Highway
Administration. WRI researchers
are collaborating with the FHA on
research that will ultimately lead
to safer, longer-lasting roads. WRI
already has an internationally
recognized asphalt research program
that studies the chemical and physical
properties of asphalts, and their
performance in pavements over time.
Though the WRI’s headquarters
is on the University of Wyoming
campus, it also operates a 22-acre
Advanced Technology Center just
north of Laramie that provides
additional laboratories, plus pilot
facilities and room for new
development.
– Kevin Litwin

i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 41
 Livability
Checking Into History
Wyoming offers a suite of landmark lodgings
Story by Kevin Litwin
W
yoming has heritage links
to westward expansion, the
birth of the railroads, cattle,
commodities and minerals. It is also
home to a roster of historic hotels
that played host to some of the most
famous – and sometimes infamous –
names of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Those names include Butch
Cassidy, Buffalo Bill, Calamity Jane,
Teddy Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover and
Ernest Hemingway.
“The historic hotels each represent
different pieces in the story of
building the West,” says Jim Osterfoss,
president of Cheyenne-based Historic
Hotels of the Rockies. “Cattle barons,
railroaders, gold rushers, outlaws and
The morning sun illuminates the front of the historic Sheridan Inn on North Broadway.
42 wyoming
everyday folks – they all stayed at our
historic Wyoming hotels.”
Some of the most interesting venues
still exist today.
Elk Mountain Hotel
Elk Mountain debuted in 1905 and
was completely restored in 2002. It is
nestled between Laramie and Rawlins
just off Interstate 80, at an elevation
of 7,264 feet. The 12-bedroom hotel
is renowned for its food, thanks to
co-owner Susan Prescott-Havers, a
Cordon Bleu chef trained in Paris.
Historic Plains Hotel
Historic Plains Hotel across the
street from the Union Pacific Depot in
downtown Cheyenne has been around
since 1911 and was a favorite of
presidents, movie stars and cattle
ranchers. The building was renovated
in 2003 and is adorned with Western
artwork and cowboy high-style décor.
Also on-site is The Capital Grille.
Irma Hotel
The Irma, built in Cody in 1902,
was owned by town father William
“Buffalo Bill” Cody, who named the
hotel for his daughter, Irma. Guests
today can even stay in Buffalo Bill’s
private suite, and the cherry wood bar
in the lobby – a gift from England’s
Queen Victoria – is one of the most
photographed spots in town.
J eff A d k i n s
 i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 43
 Nagle Warren Mansion
Bed & Breakfast
The Nagle Warren Mansion was
built in 1888 by Erasmus Nagle, and
eventually became the home of
Senator Francis E. Warren, who
entertained the likes of Presidents
Teddy Roosevelt and William Taft.
Today, the AAA 4 Diamond award-
winning bed and breakfast in
downtown Cheyenne has been
fully restored to its original glory.
Occidental Hotel & Restaurant
The Occidental in Buffalo, Wyo.,
dates to the late 1800s, and current
Top left: Historic Plains Hotel in Cheyenne. Top middle: Occidental Hotel in Buffalo. Top right: The lobby of the Occidental Hotel.
44 wyoming
owners John and Dawn Wexo
purchased the building in 1997 to
begin a 10-year restoration process.
The couple kept interesting items
such as embossed tin ceilings, several
antique chairs and 23 bullet holes in
the saloon.
Sheridan Inn
The Sheridan opened in 1893 when
Buffalo Bill Cody established it as the first
property in his W.F. Cody Hotel Co. Today,
the Sheridan Inn hosts the 1893 Grille
and Spirits restaurant on its completely
restored first floor. A fundraising effort
is currently under way to renovate the
inn’s second and third floors, which
will eventually feature 22 rooms.
Hotel Wolf
Hotel Wolf in downtown Saratoga
is on the National Register of Historic
Places, having opened on New Year’s
Eve in 1893. Built by German
immigrant Frederick G. Wolf for
$6,000, the 2.5-story Victorian-style
structure has been the anchor for
downtown Saratoga for 118 years. The
rooms are known for their comfort
while the Hotel Wolf Restaurant is
acclaimed for its fine dining at
competitive prices.
p h o t o s b y A n t o n y B o s h i er

Room to Roam
Wyoming recreation appeals to busy bodies
Wyoming is home to some of
the nation’s most beloved outdoor
natural treasures – Yellowstone,
Devil’s Tower, Grand Teton and
Shoshone National Forest. Outdoor
adventurers and enthusiasts also
have several other recreational
endeavors to enjoy.
Whitewater Rafting
One of the most exciting summer
activities in all of Wyoming is going
whitewater rafting on the Snake River
in Jackson Hole. The river narrows just
south of town, and the whitewater will
undoubtedly create a day of thrills for
all rafting participants.
The state is home to thousands of
miles of cross-country skiing trails.
Downhill skiing, sleigh rides and
dogsled tours are also abundant,
especially in the northwest region,
such as Grand Teton National Park,
where snowfalls may total more than
400 inches per season, and Jackson
offers some of the nation’s best
skiing at its numerous resorts.
Camping/Hiking/Nature Loving
Wyoming is a virtual paradise for
anyone who loves to hike and camp.
Top venues to visit include Big Horn
Mountains, Bridger-Teton National
Forest, Curt Gowdy Trail, Green River
Lakes, New Fork Lakes, Glendo State
Park and, of course, Yellowstone
National Park.
Golf
There are 70 golf courses to choose
from in Wyoming, with a majority
of them in the cities of Cheyenne,
Casper, Jackson, Sheridan, Gillette
and Laramie. One of the nicest private
Devil’s Tower National Monument.
Brian McCord
venues is Cheyenne Country Club,
which spans 6,619 yards over 18
holes. A challenging and scenic public
course is Three Crowns Golf Club in
Casper, which measures 7,065 yards.
Festivals
More than 50 interesting festivals
occur in Wyoming each year, and the
largest is Cheyenne Frontier Days.
The 10-day celebration features a
world-class rodeo, a Chuckwagon
Cookoff, carnival midway, a Buckin’
A Saloon and concerts. The 2011
dates are July 22-31, and the concert
lineup will include Kid Rock, Toby
Keith, Charlie Daniels, Darius Rucker
and the Zac Brown Band.
For more information on outdoor
recreation options in Wyoming, go
to www.wyomingtourism.org.
– Kevin Litwin
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 45
 visit our
advertisers
Casper Area Economic Rocky Mountain Power
Development Alliance Inc. www.rockymountainpower.net
www.casperworks.biz

University of Wyoming
Central Wyoming College www.uwyo.edu
www.cwc.edu

Washakie Development Association

Cheyenne Leads www.washakiedevelopment.com
www.cheyenneleads.org

Wyoming Business Council

Cheyenne Regional Airport www.wyomingbusiness.org
www.cheyenneairport.com

Wyoming Department
Great Lakes Airlines of Workforce Services
www.flygreatlakes.com www.wyomingworkforce.org

“Success in business Laramie Regional Airport Wyoming Mining Association

www.laramieairport.com www.wma-minelife.com
requires training and
discipline and hard work.
But if you’re not
frightened by these
things, the opportunities
are just as great today
as they ever were.”
~ David Rockefeller

For your customized training

needs call: (307) 855-2089

46 wyoming

Population
2009: 544,270
2000: 493,782
Change: 10.2 percent
Largest Cities
Cheyenne: 57,478
Casper: 54,874
Laramie: 28,850
Economy
Gross Domestic Product (2009):
$37.5 billion
Retail sales (2008): $9 billion
Exports (2009): $926 million
Major Employers
Government
University of Wyoming: 5,225
F.E. Warren Air Force Base: 4,410
State of Wyoming: 3,840
Campbell County
School District: 2,646
Federal government: 1,747
Natrona County School
District No. 1: 1,427
Laramie County School
District No. 1: 1,999
Albany County Schools: 896
Uinta County School District: 885
Sweetwater Co. School No. 1: 720
Nongovernment
Rio Tinto Energy America: 1,795
Powder River Coal Co.: 1,459
Thunder Basin Coal Co.: 1,100
Cheyenne Regional
Medical Center: 1,324
Wyoming Medical Center: 946
FMC Wyoming Corp.: 844
Campbell County
Memorial Hospital: 850
Halliburton: 755
Lowe’s Cos. Distribution: 705
Sierra Trading Post: 691
economic profile
Business snapshot
With its absence of personal and corporate income taxes, low energy costs,
low operating costs and educated workforce, Wyoming offers significant
advantages for business investment and expansion. Easy commutes,
open spaces, spectacular natural resources, low crime rates and a
technologically advanced infrastructure give Wyoming a superior quality
of life. Wyoming offers many incentives for businesses, including excellent
taxes and resources for small businesses and entrepreneurs.
Union Pacific Railroad: 686 Per Capita
Walmart Distribution: 680 Personal Income
National Outdoor
Leadership School: 650 2000: $18,742
2005: $21,122
TIC The Industrial Co.: 600
2009: $48,178
Key Energy: 620
General Chemical: 531 Transportation
Sugarland Enterprises: 480
Highways
Ivinson Memorial Three interstate highways cross
Hospital: 473 the state: I-25, I-80 and I-90,
West Park Hospital: 450 and there are five major
interstate junctions
Major Industry Airports
Sectors (2009) www.wyomingairports.org
Wyoming has 36 public airports,
Mining: 33% including 10 commercial service
airports, all of which connect to
Government: 13% Denver International Airport and/
Real Estate and or Salt Lake International Airport.
Rental and Leasing: 8% Casper provides daily flights to
Minneapolis. In addition, Casper
Transportation and Warehousing
offers a Foreign Trade Zone at
(Excluding Postal Service): 5%
the Natrona County International
Construction: 5% Airport.
All Other: 35%
Rail
Two Class I rail carriers:
Labor Force Burlington Northern Santa Fe
www.bnsf.com
Civilian labor force: 292,606
Union Pacific
Average annual pay: $41,487
www.up.com
Median Household Sources:
Income (2008) www.wyomingbusiness.org
www.bea.gov
census.gov
$54,735 www.wyoming.gov
www.whywyoming.org/
What’s Online 
For more in-depth demographic, statistical and community information
on Wyoming, go to imageswyoming.com and click on Economic Profile.
i m a g e sw y o m i n g . co m 47
 Through the Lens

Get the Story Behind the Photo

Now that you’ve experienced Wyoming through our photos, see it through the eyes of our
photographers. Visit imageswyoming.com to view our exclusive photographers’ blog documenting
what all went in to capturing those perfect moments.

From Our Photo

Blog: Wyoming
Dinosaurs thundered across the
open space of Wyoming tens of millions
of years before human beings. They’re
long gone now, but you can see five life-
size replicas of these hulking creatures,
including this cast of a Tyrannosaurus
Rex, at the WWCC Natural History
Museum at Western Wyoming
Community College in Rock Springs.

Posted by Staff Photographer

More Online 
See more favorite photos and read
the stories behind the shots at
imageswyoming.com.

Motocross racers Flaming Gorge National

practice in Sweetwater Recreation Area

48 wyoming
 Ad Index
C2 Casper Area 1 Rocky Mountain Power
Economic Development
Alliance Inc.
C4 University of Wyoming

46 Central Wyoming College

12 Washakie
Development Association
4 Cheyenne Leads

24 Wyoming Business Council

2 Cheyenne
Regional Airport
32 Wyoming Department
of Workforce Services
C3 Great Lakes Airlines

6 Wyoming
12 Laramie Regional Airport Mining Association