Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. on Friday announced that Lew Cramer, a former director general of the U.S. & Foreign Commerce Service, agreed to accept the post as president and chief executive of the World Trade Center of Utah.

"We don't export as Republicans, Democrats or anything else, but as Americans," Cramer said after the governor's introduction. He added that the World Trade Center of Utah can help provide a catalyst for continued growth in the state.

Although the idea of forming a World Trade Center organization in Utah has been around for years, the current effort traces its beginnings back to the Global Engagement Opportunities Council that was organized in September 2004 by former Gov. Olene Walker.

At that time, council member Jack W. Sunderlage said establishing a World Trade Center in Utah would be the next big step for international business development in the state.

Sunderlage is the chairman of the World Trade Center of Utah, which was officially organized about a year ago.

"We're now well on our way to getting the World Trade Center launched," Sunderlage said.

He anticipates that the organization will begin operating out of temporary quarters, possibly at the offices of the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, by mid-September, which is when Cramer will join the organization full time as its chief executive.

The trade center is looking for a location to serve its long-term needs, Sunderlage said.

"Once a site is found, it will probably be 18 months or more before we can put up a permanent facility," Sunderlage said.

There are 282 World Trade Center association locations in 85 countries. Many of those centers, affiliates of the New York City-based World Trade Centers Association, offer trade-related support that includes education, language translation, and meeting and dining rooms for members and incoming delegations.

Huntsman said Cramer is very qualified to lead the new Utah organization.

He is an adviser to the head of the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris, chairman of the Global Affairs Council of the American Management Association and a member of the U.S. Department of State's International Communications and Information Policy Advisory Board.

He also served as assistant secretary of commerce for international trade and as a deputy assistant secretary of commerce for science and electronics.

He is a former board member of the U.S. Telecommunications Training Institute.

steve@sltrib.com