Molder takes production from China to U.S.
By Rhoda Miel
PLASTICS NEWS
GREENVILLE, MICH. (October 14, 2009) -- Two injection molders plan to add more than 100 jobs in Greenville, including a company bringing business to the United States from China.
Zero1 LLC of Ada, Mich., has been involved with designing and backing office chairs made in China, but now plans to launch production in Greenville, sharing space at a plant owned by Clarion
Technologies Inc.
Clarion, meanwhile, expects to add 43 jobs of its own, in addition to the 90 at Zero1, thanks to additional business, said George Bosianic, Greenville city manager.
The Greenville City Council voted Oct. 6 to approve 12-year tax abatements worth 50 percent of the two companies’ local tax bills. The move still requires state approval.
Clarion, based in nearby Grand Rapids, Mich., had estimated annual sales of about $75 million in 2008, down from more than $110 million in 2000, and closed three plants during recent years, but it
retained production in Michigan, South Carolina and Mexico. The tax incentives from the local government helped to convince the company to add business in Greenville, Bosianic said.