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ECONOMICS -
September 1999 Feature
by John GaverKentucky’s Top 10
Deals of 1998
Major projects reflect the Commonwealth’s diverse industrial base
Editor’s Note: These rankings were based on data
provided by the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development. Projects are ranked based on
the number of jobs that are anticipated to be created. Tricon Global Restaurants in
Louisville also will create 400 new jobs in Jefferson County with a $5 million investment
in a support center for their Louisville-based operations.
- United Parcel Service
Jobs created: 6,017
Company investment: $860,000,000
Project: "Hub 2000" automated sorting facility
Location: Louisville
United Parcel Service (UPS) announced last March that it
would spend $860 million on a project dubbed "Hub 2000" to be built at the
Louisville International Airport, the main U.S. air hub for UPS. "Hub 2000" is a
cutting-edge, automated sorting facility that will ensure the company’s position as a
leader in the package and document distribution field.
- Renaissance Bankcard
Jobs created: 1,000
Company investment: $5,000,000
Project: call center
Location: London
Financial concern Renaissance Bankcard has invested $5
million in a call center to be located in Laurel County. The project is expected to create
approximately 1,000 new jobs for this region of the Commonwealth.
- Comair, Inc.
Jobs created: 900
Company investment: $40,000,000
Project: maintenance, training and office facility
Location: Hebron
Comair has a fixed base of operations at the Greater
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, which serves as the hub for the
company’s regional air service. Comair has invested $40 million in a maintenance,
training and office facility at the airport, which is located in Hebron, Kentucky.
- DHL Airways, Inc.
Jobs created: 700
Company investment: $170,000,000
Project: hub components, sorting facility
Location: Hebron
DHL Worldwide Express is the world’s largest
international air express network, linking 80,000 destinations in more than 200 countries.
The company has a major hub at the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
Airport, where they have invested $170 million in hub components and a sorting facility.
- GE Capital Information
Technology Solutions
Jobs created: 500+
Company investment: $33,220,000
Project: configuration center
Location: Hebron
GE Capital Information Technology (IT) Solutions is one of
the world’s largest providers of PC-based products and services, a leading provider
of IT consulting services, and a distributor of advanced IT products. The company has
invested over $33 million in a configuration center that will be located in Northern
Kentucky.
Toyota Motor Sales
Jobs created: 500
Company investment: $90,000,000
Location: Boone County
Toyota’s corporate involvement in the Commonwealth has
been well documented. The company’s $4 billion investment in Kentucky represents
Toyota’s largest investment in any state in the country. Toyota Motor Manufacturing
Kentucky (TMMK) in Georgetown produces Camrys, Avalons and Siennas. TMMK produces more
than 400,000 vehicles and 400,000 engines. Additional facilities include Toyota Motor
Manufacturing in Erlanger -- the parent company for Toyota’s U.S. and Canadian
manufacturing plants -- and the Toyota Supplier Support Center, also in Erlanger.
- Carhartt, Inc.
Jobs created: 472
Company investment: $26,564,501
Project: manufacturing facility
Location: Hanson
Carhartt, Inc. employs over 2,500 people and manufactures a
full line of rugged clothing. Products include pants, shirts, jackets, overalls and vests
as well as a variety of accessory items such as caps, gloves and socks in addition to a
full line of denim products. The company has invested over $26 million in a manufacturing
facility in Hanson, located in Hopkins County.
- Packaging Unlimited
Jobs created: 450
Company investment: $18,000,000
Project: manufacturing facility
Location: Covington
Packaging Unlimited is a purveyor of corrugated containers.
The company has invested $18 million in a manufacturing facility in Covington, located in
Kenton County in Northern Kentucky.
- TeleQuest Teleservices
Jobs Created: 400
Company investment: $11,850,000
Project: call center
Location: Lexington
TeleQuest is a recognized leader in outsourced customer
management. TeleQuest’s goal is to create value for clients by providing inbound and
outbound teleservices at a cost below that of running such operations in-house.
TeleQuest’s call center in Lexington was originally completed in September of 1997,
though the company purchased the structure from United Airlines in May 1998 and equipment
was installed in August of last year. The company invested nearly $12 million in the
facility, which encompasses approximately 45,000 square feet and contains 400
workstations.
- Providian Financial Corp.
Jobs created: 400
Company Investment: $8,000,000
Project: credit card and operations center
Location: Louisville
Providian Financial Corp. is one of the 10 largest bankcard
providers in the nation, serving a broad, diversified market with loan products that
include credit cards, revolving lines of credit, home loans, secured credit cards and
value-added services. The company has $16 billion in assets under management and 10
million customers. Providian has invested $8 million in a credit card and operations
center in Louisville.
Kentucky’s New Industries
Announced/Reported-1998
| County |
City |
Company |
Empl. |
Investment |
Product |
| Adair |
Columbia |
Robeson’s |
6-20 |
not available |
repair industrial machinery |
| Boone |
Walton |
A-Carb, LLC |
61 |
$31,450,00 |
aircraft components |
| Boone |
Hebron |
Lemforder Steering Corp. |
76 |
$18,000,000 |
steering components |
| Boone |
Florence |
Lyons Magnus East |
20 |
$3,800,000 |
food products |
| Boone |
Hebron |
Pacific Coast Feather |
100 |
$3,500,000 |
feathers |
| Bourbon |
Paris |
American Commercial Windows |
300 |
$12,186,376 |
windows, doors |
| Bullitt |
Hillview |
Specialty Engraving Systems |
10-20 |
$750,000 |
rotogravure cylinders |
| Butler |
Morgantown |
Casco Products Corporation |
50-75 |
$3,000,000 |
cigarette lighters |
| Caldwell |
Princeton |
Fontaine Trailer Co. |
270 |
$11,800,000 |
steel flatbed trailers |
| Christian |
Hopkinsville |
Mountain Metals |
20 |
$532,000 |
steel roofing, siding |
| Clay |
Manchester |
Clay County Hardwoods |
75 |
$5,000,000 |
furniture parts |
| Daviess |
Owensboro |
Furnace Builders |
15 |
$100,000 |
furnaces |
| Edmonson |
Brownsville |
Sandwich USA |
25-80 |
$800,000 |
sandwich preparation |
| Fayette |
Lexington |
Toyo Seisakusho |
5-10 |
$2,000,000 |
tape for auto industry |
| Franklin |
Frankfort |
Edwards Equipment Sales |
20-25 |
$1,500,000 |
shopping carts |
| Grayson |
Leitchfield |
Styline Industries |
50 |
$4,000,000 |
dimension lumber |
| Green |
Greensburg |
Jackson Furniture of Danville |
51 |
$1,386,000 |
furniture |
| Hardin |
Elizabethtown |
AP Southridge |
15 |
$2,500,000 |
stainless heat treatment |
| Hardin |
Elizabethtown |
Copperweld Corp. |
40 |
$18,000,000 |
stainless steel tubing |
| Harlan |
Cumberland |
C.H. Millery Manufacturing Co. |
65-135 |
$1,050,000 |
T-shirts, caps, uniforms |
| Hart |
Munfordville |
Composit Concepts Intl. |
20-35 |
$1,149,000 |
composite burial vaults |
| Henderson |
Henderson |
Duquesne Energy, Inc. |
16 |
$4,500,000 |
E-fuel |
| Henderson |
Henderson |
Eastern Alloys Inc. |
25-45 |
$5,500,000 |
zinc alloy |
| Hopkins |
Hanson |
Carhartt Inc. |
472 |
$26,564,501 |
clothing |
| Jackson |
Tyner |
Flat Rock Furniture |
27 |
$1,500,000 |
furniture |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Anson Industries |
50 |
$2,045,000 |
fuel cells, snowplows for railroad locomotives |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Closets & More, Inc. |
3 |
$100,000 |
home organization systems |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Feather River Display |
20 |
$50,000 |
metal displays |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Formex LLC |
30 |
$750,000 |
plastics |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Infinity Window & Door |
4 |
$250,000 |
windows, doors |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Linak U.S. Inc. |
60-80 |
$5,751,850 |
electric actuator systems |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Owens Corning |
150 |
$3,000,000 |
insulation material |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Samson Homes Inc. |
35 |
$1,150,000 |
modular homes |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Spinnaker Industries |
15 |
$700,000 |
heating, cooling components |
| Jefferson |
Louisville |
Vico Products |
25 |
$3,400,000 |
steel fasteners for autos |
| Kenton |
Covington |
Barnett Industries (Indy Honeycomb) |
8-27 |
$258,000 |
metallic honeycomb |
| Kenton |
Hebron |
GE Capital Information Tech. Solutions |
275 |
$25,820,000 |
configuration center |
| Kenton |
Erlanger |
Romi Machine Tools Ltd. |
20 |
not available |
industrial lathes, machine tools, headquarters
op |
| Knox |
Corbin |
Datatrac Information Services/INS |
60-70 |
$4,000,000 |
tamper resistant ID cards |
| LaRue |
Hodgenville |
Metaltek Mfg. Inc. |
not available |
not available |
automotive precision machinery |
| Madison |
Berea |
Berea Industrial Resources |
4-11 |
not available |
overhead guards for forklifts |
| Madison |
Richmond |
Richmond Auto Parts Technology |
120 |
$46,000,000 |
transmission gears |
| Marion |
Lebanon |
Meaden Screw Products |
69 |
$7,933,800 |
screws |
| Marion |
Lebanon |
Montebello Packaging Inc. |
35-100 |
$6,700,000 |
collapsible aluminum tubes |
| Marion |
Lebanon |
TQ Systems Inc. |
16 |
$635,000 |
metal fabrication |
| Marshall |
Benton |
Fleetwood Homes |
90-250 |
$5,400,000 |
manufactured housing |
| Mason |
Maysville |
Ripley Corporation |
32 |
$350,000 |
industrial ovens and cylinders |
| McCracken |
Paducah |
JMS, Inc. |
25 |
$3,440,000 |
metal processing |
| McCreary |
Pine Knot |
Quality Wholesale Molding & Millwork |
17 |
not available |
poplar molding |
| Nelson |
Bardstown |
Shimoda America |
15-80 |
$540,000 |
wiring harnesses for wiper motors |
| Pike |
Pikeville |
Benson Manufacturing |
75 |
$3,000,100 |
aluminum truck bodies/trailers |
| Pike |
Pikeville |
L.J. Miller Co. |
70-150 |
$2,700,000 |
hardwood office furniture |
| Powell |
Clay City |
Minco Group |
60 |
$1,140,000 |
plastic molding |
| Pulaski |
Somerset |
Carstone Industries |
30 |
$1,000,000 |
metal fabrication |
| Rockcastle |
Brodhead |
E.S.T. Tool & Machine |
16 |
$600,000 |
dies, welded fabrication |
| Russell |
Russell Springs |
Diversified Acquisition Development Systems |
62 |
$3,000,000 |
houseboats |
| Todd |
Elkton |
Martin Manufacturing |
20 |
$1,000,000 |
farm implements |
| Union |
Uniontown |
MCN Investment Corp. (MCNIC) |
20-30 |
$10,000,000 |
synfuel |
| Warren |
Bowling Green |
Stupp Brothers Bridge & Iron Co. |
160 |
$40,000,000 |
steel girders for bridges |
| Washington |
Springfield |
Midwest Stamping |
100 |
$2,000,000 |
metal stamping |
| Washington |
Springfield |
Toyotomi America Corp. |
75 |
$34,480,000 |
automotive body panels |
| Wayne |
Monticello |
American Woodmark Corp. |
100 |
$6,400,000 |
wood processing |
| Wayne |
Monticello |
Lakewind Boats |
45 |
$606,250 |
boats |
| TOTALS |
|
63 (new entities) |
4,500 (new jobs) |
$384,767,877
(total investment) |
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