A Canadian company that produces new electricity distribution technology is taking over a former engine factory in Murray with plans to create 150 full-time jobs.
Hollobus Technologiesa subsidiary of British Columbia Superior Three Systems, will invest $ 2.25 million in the takeover of the former Briggs & Straton engine factory to create power distribution components for various industrial projects. The company plans to locate its headquarters, its production operation and its research and development facility at a factory in western Kentucky. Briggs and Stratton site closed in 2020 affecting about 600 full-time jobs and leaving an empty facility that has existed since the 1980s.
Speaking at the former Briggs & Stratton factory on Wednesday, Kentucky Governor Andy Besher said jobs created by the new operation could help other nearby communities in western Kentucky recover from the December tornado outbreak.
“These jobs mean a lot, but also the fact that it means a lot here - to breathe new life into this facility and show everyone in this area of the country that there is a great, bright future,” Besir said. “There is a reason to renew, to stay. There are good jobs. ”
According to Bashir’s office, Hollobus Technologies can receive up to $ 1.2 million in tax breaks as long as it meets the goal of creating 150 full-time jobs for Kentucky people over the next ten years and paying an average hourly wage of $ 22 including benefits. The statement also said Superior Tray Systems provided power distribution connectors for many projects including high-rise buildings in New York, a water treatment plant in Boston, offshore oil rigs in Texas and more.
Murray Mayor Bob Rogers said that the agreement for Hollobus Technologies to move into the factory in the course of 2019, after the announcement of Briggs & Stratton that the factory would be closed.
Michaela Adams, global business development manager for Hollobus Technologies, said their electricity distribution technology uses pipes instead of “point A to point B” power transmission wires that could be used for a wide range of industrial projects, including nuclear. energy, universities, skyscrapers and more.
Liam Niemeier
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VKMS News
She said the former Briggs & Stratton building, the availability of skilled labor and the friendly atmosphere of the community are the reasons why the company chose Murray to locate.
Hollobus Technologies president Martin Cox said the company plans to hire a fully local workforce in the operation, including recruitment from Murray State University.
“We hope to put Murray on the map as the birthplace of the industry’s leading disruptor,” Cox said. “What we’re doing here is different from anyone else in the world.”
Cox said that some of the products that the company will produce have not been designed yet and that they will be designed with the help of local talents. Adams, business development manager, said that the designs of their technology are still “in their infancy” and that there is information about ownership. But she said the company was “here to stay”.
Zachary Szeszol, 26, from Murray, worked at the former Briggs & Stratton factory for five years. He said that the new company that is coming is “bitter-sweet” because he made many good friends and memories in the former factory.
“It’s great to see this plant and Murray growing,” Shesol said. “It was bitterly sweet today because I shivered when I saw this emptiness.”