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The Henry County Development Authority, together with the Georgia Department of Economic Development, helped bring Inline Plastics Corp. to Henry County, and with it, up to 120 jobs. The Connecticut-based company celebrated the grand opening of its McDonough plant on Tuesday.
The company manufactures clear plastic containers commonly used by supermarkets to package baked goods, deli items, fresh cut produce and other items under the SureLock® and Safe-T-Fresh® brands. Their 158,000 square foot facility in McDonough incorporates both manufacturing and warehouse capabilities. It currently employees 92 people, with an expected 120 jobs at full employment.
“We ended up in Henry County because we have developed a strong base of clients in the southeast. We needed to be in the market to cut out freight costs from shipping from the northeast,” explained Tom Orkisz, President of Inline Plastics Corp. “After doing a lot of research, looking at building sites, and learning about economic incentives and so on…McDonough really won out.”
While the logistics advantages of locating in Henry County near I-75 were certainly a major draw – the company can now ship to one of its biggest clients in one day – one of the reasons Inline Plastics Corp. selected Georgia over some other states, and ultimately Henry County, was the availability of a Regional Economic Business Assistance Grant (REBA) through the Department of Community Affairs.
“With this project, the Georgia Quick Start Program, which is customized training for the Inline employees, was a big incentive for the company,” explained Bob White, Executive Director of the Henry County Development Authority. “But in terms of incentives that made us more competitive with the other states they were looking at, the Georgia Department of Economic Development recommended a REBA grant. We actually wrote the grant application, and $100,000 was awarded to the project by the Georgia Department of Economic Development.”
The funds were used to purchase a large piece of equipment that is critical to the McDonough plant operations. According to Andrew Neumann, Senior Project Manager for the Georgia Department of Economic Development, the REBA grant is just one of the ways the Department assists in courting business and industry to the State. “We help them from start to location. Basically, we’re matchmakers. We set companies up on blind dates with communities. Hopefully, there’s a match there. We will help them with anything from legal to dealing with taxes and the Department of Labor.”
In appreciation of the service the Henry County Fire Department provides, Inline Plastics Corp. presented the agency with a $500 check. The Fire Department plans to use the funds to purchase equipment.
Inline Plastics Corp. is headquartered in Shelton, Connecticut, with additional plants in Milford, Connecticut and Salt Lake City, Utah. The 42 year-old company invested $4 million in the facility, and is still working to bring the plant up to target production. It currently ships several truckloads of finished goods daily out of this facility, serving customers in 22 states. For more information about the company, please visit www.inlineplastics.com. For more information about how the Henry County Development Authority is working to attract industry to the community, please visit www.hcda.org.
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