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Wins/Losses
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It’s good news for local and state officials in New London CT! Electric Boats, a subsidiary of General Dynamics Corporation, will purchase the former Pfizer Corporation World Research Headquarters to house its growing engineering and research operations in New London. The firm will invest $99 million in the complex and create 700 new engineering positions; it already employs 2,300 engineers and 8,000 total employees in Connecticut. As Electric Boat President John P. Casey explained, “The timing of Pfizer leaving was very fortuitous for us. It worked out sort of perfectly from our perspective.” The state is providing a $15 million grant over three years to facilitate the expansion. The company is also eligible for a five–year, 80% tax abatement on real and personal property taxes as well as a 25% corporate tax credit for 10 years. After opening the $300 million multi–building complex in 2001, Pfizer decided in 2009 to consolidate its research operations in Groton CT; the consolidation will be completed in 2011, just in time for Electric Boats’ expansion.
Pfizer is keeping its research center open in Richmond VA, thanks to assistance by local and state government. The R&D center employs 300 people involved in product development for such well–known brands as ChapStick, Preparation H and Centrum. The incentives will be based on job creation and capital investment and could include enterprise zone designation and related tax credits. Pfizer inherited the R&D center in 2009 when it acquired Wyeth, a New Jersey–based pharmaceutical company. “The facility is state of the art with capable people, many of whom came from local universities. When you look at the track record of products that have come out of this site, the incentive for us was to stay, but we needed a way to make it less of a cost burden to stay, which is where the city and state came forward admirably,” commented Mark Gelbert, a senior vice president for Pfizer’s consumer health–care business. A German solar panel company will establish its North American headquarters and manufacturing operations in Dublin GA. MAGE Solar will invest $30 million in the facility where it will employ up to 350 people within five years. The complex will also include a solar education facility. The company was drawn to Dublin by its location which is midway between Atlanta and the port in Savannah GA. The state of Georgia is providing up to $7 million in state and local tax credits and workforce assistance. Chalk up a huge win for the tech sector in Austin TX. Samsung Electronics Company will invest $3.6 billion to expand its semiconductor plant in Austin and create 500 new jobs. The facility is the firm’s only chip manufacturing plant outside South Korea and already employs 1,000. The new jobs will increase the company’s Austin payroll by 50%. The latest investment surpasses the $3.5 billion that Samsung originally spent in 2007 to build the semiconductor plant. The company will also establish a 50–person research center in Austin. “It is hard to describe how big this is. This continues to solidify Samsung’s footprint in Austin” said Dave Porter, senior vice president at the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. The project will also create 3,000 much–needed construction jobs. Local and state incentives were not available. June was a good month for new projects in the state of Indiana. The biggest took place in Kokomo where Chrysler Group LLC, now owned by Fiat SpA in Turin, Italy, will invest $300 million in two transmission factories, preserving at least 1,200 existing jobs. The state’s logistics cluster is getting bigger with news that Johnson & Johnson will invest $82 million in a 1.1 million square foot distribution center in Hendricks County that will feature 32’ high ceilings and 100 loading docks. The firm is receiving local and state incentives. The new project will add 465 jobs to the state’s logistics workforce which already totals 250,000 jobs. The state’s employment rate in logistics is 60% higher than the national average. In Indianapolis, AIT Laboratories, a fast growing biotech firm, is investing $74 million in a new headquarters where it will increase its 475–person workforce by 160. The firm is being offered up to $1.8 million in tax credits. Also in Indianapolis, Arcadia HealthCare will more than double its current 500–person workforce when it adds 930 jobs through 2013 at its headquarters there. The new positions will pay approximately $70,000 per year. The pharmacy firm is receiving $13.5 million in performance–based tax credits from the state. A German firm is making its London ON facility its mainstay manufacturing plant in North America with a recent $20 million expansion. Brose Automotive has transformed the facility into its advanced manufacturing center where it is making millions of gearboxes used by several major auto manufacturers to move car seats forward and back. In the past year, the firm’s employment jumped from 400 workers to 550; in addition to generating a substantial payroll, the firm annually purchases $2.5 million in components from local suppliers. Unisys Corporation will establish a technology center in downtown St. Louis MO, creating 300 new jobs. The facility will become a center of excellence for the firm’s Federal Systems which supports its government clients. The positions will pay an average salary of $60,000 per year. The company is receiving up to $4.5 million in Missouri Quality Jobs tax credits, $900,000 in New Jobs Training funds and $212,500 in recruitment assistance. A Norwegian manufacturer of air condition equipment for the recreational vehicles and boats is moving its headquarters to Louisville KY. Dometic Group will create 100 new jobs at an average annual salary of $60,000. The firm evaluated other locations for its $4.1 million headquarters relocation, including Nashville TN and Charlotte NC. Louisville offered, among other advantages, proximity to the global air hub operated by United Parcel Services (UPS) at Louisville International Airport. It will receive as much as $3 million in state and local incentives. The firm is currently headquartered in Elkhart IN, the center of the RV industry, where the firm recently expanded its production facility, creating 280 new jobs. The financial sector in Charlotte NC continues to bounce back from the recession. Citco Fund Services, a global financial services company, is establishing a facility in downtown Charlotte where it will employ over 250 people earning $78,000 per year. Citco officials had originally considered sites in Montreal QC as well as Syracuse and Rochester NY. The firm will invest $3 million in the new office; the state will provide up to $4 million in incentives if the firm meets certain benchmarks. After experiencing significant job losses during the recent recession, Charlotte’s financial sector is growing again with a series of positive announcements in the past 24 months, including expansions by GMAC Financial Services, the Neighborhood Assistance Program of America and Zenta. A division of GE Aircraft is adding 200 jobs at its Middle River Aircraft Systems facility in Baltimore County MD. With the latest expansion, the massive 1.7 million square foot facility will employ 1,000 people who make brake systems for jet engines. General Electric Corporation purchased the plant from Lockheed Martin in 1997 and has invested $200 million over the past five years. 250 new jobs are coming to Shelby NC, thanks to an expansion by Clearwater Paper Company. Based in Spokane WA, the firm makes a variety of paper products. The new jobs will pay almost $38,000 per year which is higher than Cleveland County’s average wage of $31,200. The state is providing an incentive package worth $3.5 million if the firm meets certain benchmarks. Clearwater Paper also considered sites in Macon GA, Chester SC and Chattanooga TN. |
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Source: “EB buys Pfizer’s NL complex” by Jennifer Grogan. The New London CT Day. June 22, 2010. “Governor Rell: Electric Boat Expanding, Converting Ex–Pfizer Campus into R&D Center.” Press release from the office of Connecticut Governor M. Jodie Rell. June 23, 2010. “Incentives help keep Pfizer center in Richmond” by John Reid Blackwell. The Richmond VA Times–Dispatch. June 30, 2010. “Georgia’s alternative energy industry grows by two” by Dan Chapman. The Atlanta GA Journal–Constituion. Monday, May 17, 2010. “Samsung plans $3.6 billion Austin plant upgrade, 500 new jobs” by Kirk Ladendorf. The Austin TX American–Statesman. June 9, 2010. “Chrysler spends $300 million to build new transmissions” by K.O. Jackson. The Kokomo IN Tribune. June 9, 2010. “Chrysler’s $300M is shot in arm for Kokomo” by Ted Evanoff, Mary J. Cristobal and Richard Gootee. The Indianapolis Star. June 10, 2010. “J&J will add 465 jobs with warehouse site” by Bruce C. Smith. The Indianapolis Star. June 3, 2010. “Indiana business AIT plans new HQ, will hire 160” by Tom Spalding. The Indianapolis Star. June 17, 2010. “Arcadia says Indiana a great ‘building block’ as it adds 930 jobs” by Tom Spalding. The Indianapolis Star. May 20, 2010. “London plant expanding” by Norman De Bono. The London ON Free Press. June 28, 2010. “Unisys to hire 300 for new downtown IT center” by Tim Bryant. The St. Louis MO Post–Dispatch. June 24, 2010. “Dometic to move Americas HQ to Louisville from Elkhart, Indiana” by Jere Downs. The Louisville KY Courier–Journal. June 21, 2010. “Dometic HQ moves south to Louisville” by Marilyn Odendahl. The Elkhart IN Truth. June 22, 2010. “Citco to create 258 Charlotte jobs” by Rick Rothacker. The Charlotte NC Observer. June 4, 2010. “Airplane parts maker in Baltimore County to hire 200” by Andrea K. Walker. The Baltimore MD Sun. June 7, 2010. “Tissue maker to add 250 jobs in Shelby” by David Bracken. The Raleigh Durham News & Observer. June 10, 2010. |