Business-attraction group Team NEO said its efforts last year helped to lure 11 new businesses — expected to employ roughly 1,400 people.
Team NEO, a nonprofit economic development agency, released its list of “2011 wins” on Tuesday, also crediting efforts by state and local economic officials.
The list of new companies in an 18-county Northeast Ohio region includes Röchling Automotive USA, which opened a plant late last year in the Akron-Springfield Township joint economic development district.
The plant had a payroll of 30 employees by mid-January, when Röchling hosted a grand-opening celebration. Several dozen more workers are expected to be hired this year.
Röchling Automotive USA, headquartered in South Carolina, decided to build in this area in part because it wanted a facility close to auto manufacturing plants operated by customers Ford and General Motors.
Team NEO on Tuesday boasted that the expected employment figure of 1,430 and the anticipated annual payroll total — $52 million — are record-setting. Team NEO said the figures are the highest since it began its job-attraction efforts in 2007.
The company credited with creating the most jobs is VXI Global Solutions Inc., which opened a call center in Canton last year that is expected to create nearly 1,000 jobs in the next three years or so. Average pay is expected to be $10 to $12 an hour.
Among the 11 companies bringing jobs to the area is Washita Valley Enterprises Inc. of Oklahoma City, which has a new facility in Louisville in Stark County that will service the emerging industry focusing on extracting oil and gas from the Utica shale formation. Initial employment at this pipe delivery, inspection and inventory operation is expected to be about 20, according to Team NEO.
Röchling, the plastic auto parts maker, and some of the other companies received financial incentives to locate in Northeast Ohio.
Akron and state officials were eager to land a manufacturing plant at a time of high unemployment and offered Röchling tax and other incentives, including 12 acres of city-owned property in the industrial park and first right of refusal on another five-acre parcel for future expansion.
Team NEO, headquartered in Cleveland, was formed by various chambers of commerce in Northeast Ohio. This year, it took on the official role of serving as the regional arm of the state’s public-private JobsOhio economic initiative.
JobsOhio is Gov. John Kasich’s program that last year took over much of the job-creation and retention duties of the state’s Department of Development.
The change met with mixed reactions in some economic development circles as local officials formerly worked directly with the state.
Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.
