Aerospace Manufacturer Announces New Plant in West Jefferson, N.C.
Date Posted: 10/27/2005
WEST JEFFERSON, N.C.—Governor Mike Easley today announced that Smiths Aerospace will expand operations to West Jefferson, where the company will create more than 300 new manufacturing jobs.
Smiths, a UK-based global provider of innovative solutions to builders and operators of military and civil aircraft and engines, currently operates a major facility in Asheville. The company considered expanding operations into several other states before choosing to expand operations in western North Carolina. Smiths will acquire the former Oldham Saw Company facility, which AdvantageWest highlighted during a global site consultant tour in May of this year. In September, AdvantageWest hosted metal finishers from across the country to focus on western North Carolina’s strong business climate.
Dale Carroll, President & CEO of AdvantageWest—the Western North Carolina Regional Economic Development Commission—said that the announcement represents a major step in the right direction for the region’s economy, and noted that the organization will continue to partner with state and local efforts to create jobs. “I want to thank Bill Payne of the western Regional Office of the N.C. Department of Commerce and Dr. Pat Mitchell, local economic developer for Ashe County, for their tireless efforts on this project. Everyone’s commitment to this project will pay great dividends to the people of Ashe County,” he said.
AdvantageWest provided a $12,000 matching grant to Ashe County to help pay for “soft costs” directly related to bringing closure to the recruiting negotiations. AdvantageWest has awarded more than $5 million in matching grants to help fund jobs creation projects in western North Carolina, and actively markets the region to businesses seeking to relocate or expand.
The County of Ashe, Town of West Jefferson and Ashe County Job Development Corporation assembled an approximately $1 million recruitment package for this project. A North Carolina Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG), valued up to $2.4 million, assuming that the company meets guidelines stipulated in the JDIG agreement, and tax credits of up to $3.5 million available through the W.S. Lee Act, paired with customized training from the state’s Community College System helped round out the incentive package that enabled Smiths Aerospace to ultimately choose the West Jefferson facility for its precision metalworking needs.
On the heels of an announced 200 manufacturing jobs in Spruce Pine, N.C., Carroll noted that manufacturers continue to look to western North Carolina for great facilities and a skilled, motivated workforce. “We will continue to aggressively market communities such as West Jefferson and Spruce Pine to companies seeking to relocate or expand, and I believe we’ll continue to see new manufacturing jobs as a result of it,” Carroll said.
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"As a life-long resident of western North Carolina I can’t imagine a more beautiful or diverse place to live and work."
D. Samuel Neill
Attorney-At-Law & AdvantageWest Board Member
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