If you think MRI tests are expensive, try buying a magnetic resonance imaging machine. Some health care providers invest millions in technology to help diagnose patients.FORT WAYNE – Whitley County has started the new year beaming over a nearly $13 million investment – along with up to 106 new jobs.
Impact CNC plans to begin accepting applications early next week in what its president calls a promising economic environment.
“From everything I’m hearing and from everybody I’m talking to … we’re in a recovery,” said Jerry Busche, whose business will manufacture parts mostly for the automotive, construction and agriculture industries. “I really believe that now is the time to invest in America.”
That includes Whitley County. Two years ago, Busche spent $3.8 million and began leasing a 30,000-square-foot facility to start PDQ Workholding, a manufacturer of hydraulic fixtures. The company, at 1100 S. Williams Drive in Union Township and just outside of Columbia City, employs about 30.
Busche will dust off a 30,000-square-foot building also in Whitley County, but this time the entrepreneur is buying. Impact CNC will be located at 1380 S. Williams Drive. The business is expected to be operational in March, Busche said.
Busche said businesses are on the rebound, “which is one of the reasons” he has confidence in the new venture.
The company is seeking CNC – computer numerical control – operators, forklift drivers, maintenance workers and other employees for related positions. The wage range is $12 to $18 an hour.
Applicants can visit www.impactcnc.net next week to apply, but hiring will continue over the next two years.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. offered Impact CNC up to $550,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $80,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. To receive the incentives, Impact CNC has to make good on its hiring plans.
The company also will receive local tax abatements on property and equipment over a 10-year span that will save the business $150,000, Busche said.
Government officials say the incentives are worth it.
“Indiana’s manufacturing sector is continuing to see healthy growth and Impact CNC’s announcement only reinforces that,” Gov. Mitch Daniels said in a statement Wednesday. “We’ve been able to create an environment that promotes sustainable business practices through our low-tax policies and nationally ranked business climate.”
Whitley County Economic Development Corp. President Alan Tio said Busche’s investment represents a vote of confidence in the area.
“The most exciting part of the project is the fact that he has chosen to invest here twice in two years,” Tio said. “We certainly support him 100 percent and want to help with any future opportunities he may have.”
Such sentiment encourages Busche, an Albion native and former principal with Busche Enterprise Inc.
“Whitley County is just a great community,” he said. “They were very proactive in (attracting) us.”
