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This is a social media flyer from the inaugural sessions of Export NOW, sponsored by the SBDC International Trade Center at SIUE in the spring of 2021. This year’s program, which starts with the first of three virtual training sessions on Aug. 24, is designed to help southern Illinois businesses grow their sales through exporting.

This is a photo from Laurel Delaney’s presentation during the inaugural sessions of Export NOW, sponsored by the SBDC International Trade Center at SIUE in the spring of 2021. This year’s program, which starts with the first of three virtual training sessions on Aug. 24, is designed to help southern Illinois businesses grow their sales through exporting.

This is a photo from the inaugural sessions of Export NOW, sponsored by the SBDC International Trade Center at SIUE in the spring of 2021. This year’s program, which starts with the first of three virtual training sessions on Aug. 24, is designed to help southern Illinois businesses grow their sales through exporting.

This is a photo from the inaugural sessions of Export NOW, sponsored by the SBDC International Trade Center at SIUE in the spring of 2021. This year’s program, which starts with the first of three virtual training sessions on Aug. 24, is designed to help southern Illinois businesses grow their sales through exporting.

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is doing its part to help local businesses take advantage of the opportunities offered by international trade.

Tom Dustman, international sales director for Sunnen Products Company, is coordinating and facilitating the second annual Export NOW program that will begin in late August with the first of three virtual training sessions.

Export NOW, which had its inaugural sessions in the spring of 2021, is sponsored by the Illinois SBDC International Trade Center at SIUE. The program is designed to help southern Illinois businesses grow their sales through exporting.

Sunnen Products Company, located at 7910 Manchester Road in Maplewood, Missouri, is a 98-year-old family-owned machine tool manufacturer. Its focus is on bore finishing, commonly called honing, and international trade is a major part of its business.

"The manufacturing process of honing is a secondary operation, and there has to be a work piece that has a hole in it," Dustman said. "When there is a requirement for ultra-high precision, honing is utilized.

"We like to say we perfect the hole. We make that hole very round and very straight and we impart a surface texture that allows lubrication to be attached to the walls of the hole."

Dustman is among the many international trade experts featured at Export NOW, which is a three-day series of workshops.

"We take a strategic look at the world," Dustman said. "We work with companies to create an export business plan for international trade. The plan is created with the assistance of people like me who have experience and knowledge on the topic."

The first session, on Wednesday, Aug. 24, is "International Outlook."

"For Session 1, I have recruited speakers from my network around the United States, plus a gentleman from the (United Kingdom)," Dustman said. "We’ll talk about how to select the country where you want to export. It’s not always something like choosing Canada because it’s close and because they speak English.

"There may be other countries where the opportunities are much greater, but you need to have language skills or knowledge about business activities and customs. You also need to decide if you’re going to sell direct, work through a distributor or find other means through a third party to represent your company."

Session 2, on Wednesday, Sept. 7, is "Export and Import 101," while the third and final session, on Wednesday, Sept. 21, is "Planning for Success."

"In each of those sessions, we’ll talk about exporting and importing, including the do’s and don’ts and the things you need to plan for," Dustman said. "In the last session, we will review the business plan for each of the invited companies."

Each session, which is virtual training via Zoom, runs from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., with a break from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Export NOW series is being offered at no cost to five Illinois small businesses, with the $900 per company scholarship being fully covered by CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act funding.

As of Wednesday, spots were still available for two companies.

"This isn’t something hypothetical – it will help you create a marketing strategy," Dustman said, "We have presenters from the Small Business Administration and the U.S. Commercial Service as well as people who will talk about digital payment methods that exist now as opposed to more traditional methods like a letter of credit.

"We have people who can help you create a website in another country so you can market your product or your service appropriately. Our mentors are all practitioners, like myself, who deal with exports every day."

Sunnen Products Company, meanwhile, provides an example of how a company can thrive and grow thanks to international trade.

Dustman noted that Sunnen, which employs about 500 people, has a global reach with 14 international subsidiaries, soon to be 15. It also has a sales network of about 35 independent distributors around the world.

"The normal question is, what kinds of parts are honed, and examples include internal combustion chainsaw engines, string trimmer engines and leaf blower engines," Dustman said. "They are all honed to very accurate dimensions to ensure that there is the power necessary to function, but also to minimize the pollution from exhaust.

"If you have an internal combustion engine in your car, all of the engine cylinder bores are honed so that the engine runs efficiently and provides all of the horsepower that is needed. Hydraulic cylinders on excavators and dump trucks are all products that are honed. The landing gear on aircraft are honed, such as the flight control valves, so that when the pilot flips the switch, the gears will always work."

Another example of honing is a diesel fuel injector.

"All of those fuel injectors are honed on Sunnen honing equipment and we sell that equipment to companies such as Caterpillar and Cummins," Dustman said. "Those injectors are typically honed to a bore straightness tolerance of about one micron, which is 1/175th of a human hair."

Dustman added that Sunnen has been exporting for about 85 years, with 45% of its annual revenue coming from international sales.

"It’s a privilege for me to be responsible for all of the sales activity outside of the United States," Dustman said. "I’m knowledgeable about normal business activities related to exporting, such as how you are going to get paid, in U.S. dollars or local currency, and how you’re going to be ensured to get paid rather than sending your goods to some foreign country and hoping you get paid.

"Different countries have different standards for safety, and we have to know about those as well. U.S. compliance with export law is another area of regulation and it’s something you need to be constantly aware of. International trade documentation is also important, and you need to have total accuracy."

The sheer scope of international trade opportunities provides another reason for local companies to export their products and services.

"The United States represents only 5% of the world’s economy and the other 95% rests outside the United States," Dustman said. "There is a lot of activity out there that people can take advantage of if they want to export."

To apply and pre-register for Export NOW, send an email to international-trade-center@siue.edu with your company name, Illinois address, number of employees, website, and contact information for the representative of your company who would commit to attending all three sessions. Once the SBDC International Trade Center receives your email, it will be in touch to discuss eligibility, in order to be admitted as a participant in the program. 

"The obvious benefit for companies in southern Illinois is to provide economic benefits for the future, including jobs for people," Dustman said. "When you look at a company like Sunnen with 500 employees and nearly half of our sales are international, if we just depended on the U.S. market, we would be half the size.

"There are good opportunities outside the United States because many countries prefer to buy from American companies. They know about the reliability of American companies, and they know that they can trust American suppliers and that the goods will arrive on time and that they will work. They feel there is no risk working with a U.S. company."

Scott Marion is a feature reporter for the Intelligencer. A longtime sportswriter, he has worked for the Intelligencer since December 2013. He is a graduate of Brentwood High School and the University of Missouri School of Journalism.