Despite some of the highest unemployment numbers in more than twenty years, manufacturing jobs are still to be found in Central New York.

Empire State Container in Syracuse is one of a growing number of smaller businesses that have managed to survive the tough economic climate in Central New York by adapting to the times.Syd Tenenbaum and his partner founded the company back in 1979 with only five employees.  Today, the company employs more than 70 people and expects to hire more people next year.

To stay competitive Empire has invested more than a million dollars in new technology to help them expand their business and make it more efficient. The strategy appears to be paying off.  The company had more than 14 million dollars in sales last year and expects business to expand next year by 5 to ten percent.

Syd Tenenbaum says the company has changed the way they do business. " We run smaller orders, we work faster, we turn orders around in less than 24 hours. If you went back several years that would be unheard of but that is commonplace today. That is just the way we do business," he says.