Two companies are launching growth projects in the Mobile area, bringing a combined $98 million in new capital investment and almost 240 jobs, according to the Mobile Chamber.
The companies are:
- Georgia-based Chart Industries plans to invest $73.7 million to open a second production site in Mobile County to increase manufacturing capacity of its cryogenic containers. The project will create 59 jobs.
- Superior Air Parts, which produces FAA-approved replacement parts for piston-engine aircraft, plans to invest $24.2 million to relocate its manufacturing operation and corporate headquarters from Texas to Creola in Mobile County. The project will create 180 jobs over five years.
Keith Chatten, CEO of Superior Air Parts, said the company considered many factors in its decision and found the Mobile area offered many advantages.
“The transportation system that is in place and expanding in the Mobile area is very impressive. The area has invested heavily in education including high school programs, technical schools with the recent addition of manufacturing programs at Bishop State and the extensive growth at the University of South Alabama,” Chatten said.
“All of that certainly helps us find the various skill sets needed, such as machinists, operators, test technicians, engineers, and various other professionals,” he added.
Superior Air’s Mobile County facility will host research and development, engineering, a test cell, machining and manufacturing. Its operation, including the corporate headquarters, will be located on Radcliff Road in Creola.
The company plans to break ground by the end of 2023. Operations for phase one are set to begin in 2024, according to the Mobile Chamber.
“As a leading manufacturer of FAA-approved aftermarket parts for piston-engine aircraft, Superior Air Parts will be a strong addition to the growing aviation cluster in the Mobile region,” said Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce.
“Superior’s decision to relocate its manufacturing operation and headquarters to Mobile County clearly reflects the company’s confidence in the area’s workforce.”
GROWTH PLANS
As part of its new project, Chart purchased the former Standard Concrete manufacturing facility, located along the Theodore Industrial Canal.
The cryogenic containers that will be manufactured at the new facility will be up to 30 feet in diameter, 100 too 200 feet long, and weigh close to 1 million pounds. This location will allow the company to directly load the containers, which are too heavy to transport on roadways, directly onto barges.
Chart’s expansion project builds on its Alabama presence, which began in 2020 when it acquired the cryogenic and hydrogen trailer business of Worthington Industries, which operated the Theodore site.
In March 2021, Chart announced a $2.5 million expansion project, which tripled its employee roster at the Mobile County facility. It currently employs 165 people at the existing facility
“We are thrilled to see Chart’s continued confidence in the Mobile area by expanding their operations in Theodore,” Mobile Chamber President & CEO Bradley Byrne said. “Expansions like this are made possible by support from Partners for Growth investors and Team Mobile.”
Chart is a publicly traded company based in Ball Ground, Georgia, just outside of Atlanta. It was named one of Fortune’s “100 Fastest Growing Companies” in 2020 and has customers on six continents.
“The expansion of Chart Industries is another reflection of the great workforce and thriving business environment that exists in the Mobile area,” said Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson.
“We are excited to be a partner in the future success of Chart Industries and are grateful for their continued investment in Mobile.”
Mobile County Commission President Connie Hudson echoed those comments.
“This substantial capital investment and the creation of these new jobs will greatly benefit and further diversify our local economy,” she added.
(Courtesy of Made in Alabama)
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