By Rachel Nix, Building Kentucky
Kentucky continues to attract major manufacturers to the Commonwealth.
The state’s manufacturing sector is growing including recent announcements from T. Marzetti Co. in Horse Cave, Wieland North America Inc. in Louisville, and Material Handling Systems Inc. (MHS) in Bowling Green. These new facilities will create hundreds of well-paying jobs for Kentuckians.
All three companies were assisted in their investments and job growth by the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA).
T. Marzetti Co. Grows In Hart County
A major food manufacturing operation in Horse Cave is about to get even bigger. The T. Marzetti Company’s largest-ever investment, totaling up to $113 million, is expected to create from 140 to 220 full-time jobs across 10 years paying an average hourly wage of $25.72 including benefits.
The company is moving ahead with a larger than previously announced expansion with a 184,500-square-foot manufacturing space. The facility includes new equipment, eight new processing kitchens and several packaging lines to manufacture Marzetti’s salad dressings, sauces and other foods for retail and foodservice markets.
Work on the project has begun and is expected to be completed by July 2022.
Wieland North America’s New Louisville HQ
Global manufacturer Wieland North America has set it sights on Louisville for its new North American headquarters. The producer of copper and copper alloy products plans to invest $8.8 million in the HQ and bring 75 quality careers across 10 years to the facility paying an average hourly wage of $93 including variable compensation and benefits.
Wieland joins 78 German-owned facilities currently operating in Kentucky.
The new headquarters near I-71 and I-265 on Olympia Park Plaza includes nearly 30,000-square-feet of space for operations and personnel including leadership, financial, legal, human resources, sales and marketing and supply chain teams.
The Wieland headquarters is expected to open by the end March 2021.
Materials Handling Systems Builds In Bowling Green
Mt. Washington, Kentucky-based manufacturer Material Handling Systems (MHS) is planning a new facility in Bowling Green. The manufacturer of conveyor and automated sortation equipment plans to invest $7.6 million and create 200 full-time jobs across 10 years with an average hourly wage of $22.50 including benefits.
MHS will lease a 181,000-square-foot facility in Kentucky Transpark. Significant growth of major logistics providers in Kentucky including UPS and FedEx led to an increased demand for extendable conveyor machines and other logistics products.
