Foreign Trade Zones

What Foreign Trade Zones does

Foreign Trade Zone #176 (FTZ #176) is a federally authorized trade facilitation program administered by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority (GRAA), a government entity formed in 1946. Established in 1991 when the National FTZ Board approved GRAA's application to become a grantee under the Foreign Trade Zones Act of 1934, the program was reorganized under the Alternative Site Framework in 2007 to serve a defined 11-county service area across Northern Illinois (Winnebago, Stephenson, Boone, McHenry, Ogle, DeKalb, Kane, Lee, Bureau, LaSalle, and Putnam Counties). As of 2025, FTZ #176 has 11 activated operators comprising enterprise manufacturers and distributors, including Rivian, UniCarriers/Mitsubishi Logisnext, Cellusuede, PCI Pharma Services, Coilcraft, Medela, Bergstrom, Brake Parts, Staal & Plast, Chicago Importing Company, and Capitol Warehousing.

The program's core offering is the designation of facilities as FTZ sites or subzones, which are legally considered outside of U.S. Customs territory. This enables operators to defer, reduce, or eliminate import duties through mechanisms including duty deferral until goods leave the zone, inverted tariff benefits (paying the finished product duty rate versus component rate when lower), duty exemption on re-exports, weekly entry consolidation to reduce merchandise processing fees, and zone-to-zone transfer without triggering duties. Supporting products include an Excel-based FTZ Benefits Calculator for prospective operator scenario planning and a third-party logistics FTZ warehouse service offered through Capitol Warehousing in Belvidere, IL, which enables companies without their own activated facilities to access FTZ benefits.

FTZ #176 generates revenue through grantee fees imposed by GRAA, structured as one-time application fees ($2,000-$3,000 depending on company size), activation fees ($2,000-$3,000), production authorization fees ($2,000-$3,000 when applicable), and recurring annual operating fees scaled by employer count ranging from $5,000 (1-50 employees) to $25,000 (1,501+ employees). The program is promoted and administered under contract by Zethmayr LLC, with Carrie Zethmayr serving as FTZ Administrator. Over the 2020-2025 period, FTZ #176 operators collectively achieved a 15% increase in employment and a 25% increase in the total value of shipments.

Name

Foreign Trade Zones

Legal name

Greater Rockford Airport Authority (GRAA)

Website

https://ftzrockford.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Foreign Trade Zone #176 is a federally authorized trade program administered by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority that helps manufacturers and distributors across 11 Northern Illinois counties defer, reduce, or eliminate import duties through FTZ site and subzone designation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Foreign Trade Zone / Customs Trade Facilitation Services

akta.pro primary industry

Bonded Warehouses (Customs-Bonded Storage Facilities) (TLALAGAA)

Keywords

• Foreign trade zone
• Customs trade program
• Import duty deferral
• Tariff mitigation services
• International trade facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

Rockford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grantee Fees: FTZ #176 generates revenue through grantee fees imposed by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority. These include application fees, activation fees, production authorization fees, and annual operating fees based on employer count. No fees are imposed by U.S. Customs & Border Protection.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

FTZ #176 is a U.S. Foreign Trade Zone program administered by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority that designates company facilities as FTZ sites or subzones within an 11-county service area in Northern Illinois. Operators can defer, reduce, or eliminate import duties, benefit from inverted tariff rates, consolidate weekly entries, and transfer merchandise in bond to other FTZs. Supporting offerings include a 3PL FTZ warehouse option via Capitol Warehousing and an Excel-based FTZ Benefits Calculator for savings estimation.

Product overview

FTZ #176 is a single, unified foreign trade zone program administered by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority, serving 11 counties in Northern Illinois. The core offering is the FTZ #176 Program, which provides companies with FTZ site or subzone designation to defer, reduce, or eliminate import duties. Supporting this core program are the FTZ Benefits Calculator (an Excel-based estimation tool for potential savings) and the 3PL FTZ Warehouse service (a third-party logistics option via Capitol Warehousing for companies that prefer not to operate their own FTZ).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FTZ #176 Program (Foreign Trade Zone Site/Subzone Designation)
• FTZ Benefits Calculator

Quantifiable outcome

• Duty deferral reduces cash flow impact - can reduce inventory carrying costs by up to 20-25%
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Zethmayr LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 September 2018Zethmayr LLC is contracted by the Greater Rockford Airport Authority to administer and promote FTZ #176. The partnership was formalized in September 2018. Zethmayr is a location strategy firm that helps companies establish cost-optimized operations in the United States through site selection and incentive negotiation services. Carrie Zethmayr serves as FTZ Administrator, guiding companies through the activation process and providing ongoing program administration.
• Greater Rockford Airport Authority (GRAA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Greater Rockford Airport Authority is the grantee of FTZ #176, authorized by the U.S. Department of Commerce to allow companies to establish FTZs in its designated 11-county region. Formed in 1946, GRAA is one of the oldest airport authorities in the United States. The Authority oversees the Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD) and administers FTZ #176 under the Alternative Site Framework (ASF), allowing FTZ #176 to serve an 11-county service area in Northern Illinois since 2007.
• National Association of Foreign Trade Zones (NAFTZ)minorOthersFTZ #176 is a member of NAFTZ, a professional development organization offering continuing education opportunities for FTZ members. FTZ #176 regularly attends the fall conference and stays connected with other members to share best practices.
• Capitol WarehousingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCapitol Warehousing is a 3PL provider offering FTZ warehouse services at their Belvidere, IL facility (2091 Tripp Rd). As the first of its kind in the region to offer FTZ as a warehousing service, Capitol Warehousing enables companies of all sizes to access FTZ benefits without activating their own facilities. Services include FTZ import tariff deferral, warehousing, transloading, and fulfillment. Part of the Valley Express Family of Companies with facilities in Wisconsin and Illinois.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Site Selection Group: Corporate site selection and incentive negotiation consultancy comparable to Zethmayr LLC (FTZ #176's contracted administrator). Both firms help companies optimize U.S. operating locations using FTZ and other incentive programs, making Site Selection Group a functional peer in the consulting layer.
• National Association of Foreign Trade Zones (NAFTZ): Industry association that supports U.S. FTZ grantees and operators, of which FTZ #176 is a member. Thematically adjacent — both serve the same constituency of FTZ operators and grantees — and a relevant ecosystem partner.

Direct peers

• Foreign Trade Zone #22 (Chicago): Operated by the Illinois International Port District, FTZ #22 is the largest competing FTZ serving the broader Chicago/Northern Illinois region. Directly comparable in regulatory offering (customs-bonded storage, duty deferral) and partially overlapping service area, making it the principal alternative for manufacturers in the FTZ #176 territory.
• Foreign Trade Zone #271 (Moline): Quad Cities region FTZ administered by an airport authority, structurally similar to FTZ #176's GRAA-administered model. Comparable regulatory offering and similar mid-scale operator base make it a direct regional peer.
• Capitol Warehousing Corporation: 3PL operator offering FTZ warehousing at Belvidere, IL — also FTZ #176's distribution channel partner. Comparable in the FTZ service delivery layer and illustrates the 3PL-FTZ model that competes with traditional operator activation.
• Foreign Trade Zone #41 (Beloit): A nearby FTZ serving the Beloit, WI / Southern Wisconsin region with the same federal Foreign Trade Zone framework and grantee-administered operator model. Geographic adjacency creates cross-border competition for manufacturers in the FTZ #176 service area's northern counties.
• Foreign Trade Zone #114 (Peoria): Illinois-based FTZ administered by an EDC, offering the same grantee-driven duty deferral and inverted-tariff benefits as FTZ #176. Comparable in scale and operating model, and a viable alternative for central Illinois manufacturers.

Broad incumbents

• Port of Los Angeles FTZ #50: Largest U.S. FTZ by operator count and shipment volume, operated by a major port authority. Overlapping regulatory and trade-facilitation mandate but at a vastly larger scale and a coastal gateway, providing a useful benchmark for program economics.
• Port Houston FTZ #84: Large Gulf Coast FTZ operated by Port Houston. Same federal Foreign Trade Zone framework and similar grantee-operated model, but at materially greater scale — useful comparable for understanding what an optimized, high-traffic FTZ program can achieve.
• DHL Supply Chain: Global 3PL that operates FTZ-designated warehousing facilities across the U.S. Comparable in providing outsourced FTZ access to mid-market shippers — directly competitive with the Capitol Warehousing model that FTZ #176 has built.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Foreign Trade Zones