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200 jobs on the way

Sypris expands Morganton plant with incentives from county, city

By Sharon McBrayer | The News Herald

Published: December 4, 2008

Morganton - Sypris Technologies announced on Thursday that it is expanding its business.
The company plans to create 200 additional jobs and invest a little more than $25 million in equipment over the next five years. The company makes components for light and heavy truck axles. The company currently has about 218 employees.
Morganton City Council and the Burke County Board of Commissioners approved performance-based incentives during a public hearing on the expansion on Thursday afternoon.
The incentives Morganton and the county offered to Sypris is 70 percent of taxes paid on the increased tax base — $25.4 million — for a period of five years.
The North Carolina Department of Commerce also is offering a Job Development Investment Grant to Sypris.
According to information from the department of commerce, "each year in which the company meets the required performance targets, the state will provide a grant equal to 65 percent of the state personal income withholding taxes derived from the creation of new jobs." If Sypris creates the jobs plans and sustains them for 10 years, the agreement could yield as much as $2 million in maximum benefits for the company.
"This is a pivotal period for all companies in the automotive industry," said Sypris Technologies President Sergio de Carvalho in a release. "Consolidating certain areas of our operations under one roof in Morganton will improve our competitiveness and the Morganton facility will become a major hub for our North American operations."
Wayne Harris, director of Burke Partnership for Economic Development, said getting the company expansion in Burke County was very competitive.
The company decided to close its facility in Canton, Ohio and consolidate its production in Morganton, said Mike Shows, general plant manager at the Morganton facility. He said the Morganton location has consistently been a strategic hub for the company's North American operations. Shows said the incentives that Morganton and Burke County offered were better than other areas the company considered.
Shows said part of the job creation will include rehiring laid off Sypris workers. The Morganton office of the Employment Security Commission will handle the hiring, Shows said.
The average wage of the new jobs will be $33,000, Shows said.
In light of the country's current economic decline, the expansion is good news for the area, said city and county leaders.
"What a great day today is," said Ruth Ann Suttle, commissioner chairwoman. She waited for weeks for the day the announcement could be made, Suttle said. Getting the company to expand in Morganton was due to an effort between the county, city, BPED, the state and Western Piedmont Community College. The college will train new workers for the jobs, said Rich DeAugustinis, chairman of BPED.
Morganton Mayor Mel Cohen said on Thursday, "During this holiday season this is an extremely shinny star for our county.
"We're very appreciative of Sypris management in choosing Morganton for this expansion."