W Industries
is investing $36 million in Detroit to retrain its workforce and
expand its presence in the aerospace, energy and defense markets.
W
Industries is owned by Metal and Welding Industries, which is a metal
fabrication company that employs 356 people in Michigan. W Industries
was developed to focus on defense, aerospace and alternative energy.
To
accommodate the new industries, W Industries will renovate one of its
facilities in downtown Detroit and purchase a second facility by the
second quarter of 2009. W Industries has not announced the location of
its new facility. W Industries received a $9.7 million MEGA grant from
the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) for the project.
"Traditionally
we've been an auto company, but this MEGA grant will really allow us to
expand into aerospace, energy and other industry market sectors," says
F.L. Kimmel with W Industries.
The expansion will allow W
Industries to fulfill an existing military contract for military
material handling vehicles and add a gantry mill that will allow Metal
and Welding Industries to expand into aerospace and alternative energy.
The
expansion is expected to create at least 500 jobs over five years. A
major component of the expansion is a training program. Kimmel says W
Industries will retrain all of its current workers and new hires.
"The new jobs will cover a broad spectrum including skilled and unskilled workers that we will train," Kimmel says.
Source: Chelsea Niemiec, D+P Company
Writer: Ivy Hughes is the managing editor of Capital Gains and can be reached at [email protected].
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.