Crown Equipment Corporation, one of the world’s largest material handling companies, will expand its operations in Greencastle, IN, adding a second facility and creating up to 100 new jobs by 2021. The Ohio-based company will lease and equip a facility located across the street from its current manufacturing plant. The new facility is scheduled to begin operations later this year, expanding the company’s total footprint in Putnam County and providing additional manufacturing resources to support the company’s global growth.
“We’re pleased to announce Crown Equipment’s continued investment in the manufacturing base already established in the Greencastle area,” said Randy Niekamp, vice president of human resources for Crown Equipment. “The dedication and productivity of the local workforce is key to helping expand our production capacity and continue to fuel our global growth.”
In 2011, Crown Equipment announced plans to add 143 new jobs at its existing Greencastle plant and to open a new facility in New Castle, where it planned to create an additional 150 new full-time jobs. The company exceeded both hiring goals, and now employs more than 850 full-time employees at its two Indiana facilities and 14,000 employees worldwide.
“We greatly appreciate Crown’s investment in our community and the additional employment opportunities,” said Greencastle Mayor Bill Dory. “Over their 20-plus year history in Greencastle, the company has been very supportive of community growth and educational opportunities. The products produced in Greencastle by local residents support Crown’s global operations and strengthen Greencastle’s connections to the global economy.
Crown Equipment designs, manufactures and distributes material handling equipment globally. The company produces a wide variety of electric and internal combustion forklifts and automation and fleet management technologies, which are sold and supported by a network of more than 500 retail locations in 80 countries. Crown designs and manufactures up to 85 percent of its forklift components, including key parts like motors, drive units and electronic modules. With the addition of the second Greencastle facility, the company now operates 19 manufacturing facilities in 11 global locations.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) offered Crown Equipment Company up to $650,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $150,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. These incentives are performance based, so until employees are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. The city of Greencastle, at the request of the Greencastle/Putnam County Development Center, will consider the company’s request for local property tax abatement/phase-in this evening.
“With the nation’s highest concentration of manufacturing jobs, Indiana has the workforce and business climate that companies like Crown Equipment need to be successful,” said Governor Eric J. Holcomb. “Likewise, our state benefits when businesses locate and grow here. They become important regional economic engines that are tightly woven into the fabric of our Hoosier communities.”
Manufacturers like Crown Equipment employ one in every five Indiana workers at about 8,500 manufacturing facilities across the state.
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