Manufacturing Gets Head of Steam in Tech Valley
Published Nov 05, 2008
Manufacturing is in high gear in Tech Valley. Across the region, established companies are making major investments, drawing on the available skilled workforce, quality higher education programs and support of state and local governments to grow their businesses.
Silicon products producer Momentive Performance Materials – formerly GE Advanced Materials – plans to invest $150 million over five years in a 124,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art technology center and global headquarters in Rensselaer County.
The state has committed up to $95 million in tax credits and exemptions over nine years for the project. The company will relocate its headquarters from Wilton, Conn. to Tech Valley and create 250 jobs. Its silicone manufacturing plant in Waterford employs 1,000.
Iconic baby food manufacturer Hero/Beech-Nut is relocating its St. Louis headquarters and a new infant food manufacturing facility to Montgomery County. The project represents a $124 million investment in Tech Valley and will create up to 135 new jobs. The company, which already employs 350 in Tech Valley, has a more than 100-year history in the region.
“We have access to a highly skilled and trained workforce, which is a great asset to our corporate focus on innovation,” says Edouard Feller, vice president of development for Hero/Beech-Nut. “Our new location provides us with excellent transportation logistics as well as access to fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers.”
General Electric is opening a new wind turbine service center in Schenectady that will create 150 jobs, building a $135 million digital X-ray manufacturing plant in Rensselaer County and investing $32 million and adding 500 positions for its renewable energy initiatives and traditional power-generation projects at its Power Systems division in Schenectady.
A $6 million expansion at sheet metal producer Dyanabil in Greene County will create 120 jobs, bringing total employment to 300.
In Ilion in Herkimer County, Remington Arms is spending more than $10 million to renovate its firearms plant and custom shop. Remington, which has a nearly 200-year history in the region, employs 800 workers in Ilion. The renovation will create 100 jobs when it is finished around the end of 2008, says Joe Gross, vice president of firearms manufacturing for Remington Arms.
In Plattsburgh, Volvo subsidiary Nova Bus has broken ground on $25 million operation that will create 165 jobs initially. Proximity to Montreal, where the company is headquartered, was one of the main factors in the company’s decision, along with a ready-to-build site and economic subsidies from the Empire State Development Corp.
“The region is very well organized to help new businesses to set themselves up,” says Francis St-Cyr, Nova Bus chief project manager. “It was very surprising to see all of these organizations at all of these different levels working together to pull in these manufacturing jobs.”
The facility is slated to begin production in March 2009.
The Nova Bus project will help to diversify Plattsburgh’s transportation sector, adding bus manufacturing to facilities that build transit trains and aerospace components in the area, says Sue Matton, vice president for economic development at the Plattsburgh North Country Chamber of Commerce.
“The plant will build on the already significant presence of Quebec- and internationally based companies involved in transportation manufacturing in the region,” she says.
More Insight
New York offers a variety of incentives to companies for expansion or relocation. Among them:
Investment tax credit: Businesses that create new jobs and make new investments in production property and equipment may qualify for tax credits of up to 10 percent of their eligible investment.
R&D tax credit: Investments in R&D facilities are eligible for a 9 percent corporate tax credit. Additional credits are available to encourage creation and expansion of emerging-tech businesses.
Sales-tax exemptions: For purchases of production machinery and equipment, R&D property, and fuels/utilities used in manufacturing and R&D.
Economic Development Zone/Empire Zone Tax Credits: The state has designated 72 zones as Economic Development Zones/Empire Zones that offer benefits including discounts on electricity, enhanced tax credits for investment and job creation, and additional sales and property tax exemptions.
For more information on New York State’s tax credits, exemptions and abatements, go to www.empire.state.ny.us
Story by Michaela Jackson
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