Gov. Bev Perdue today announced that Boral Composites Inc., a sister company to Boral Bricks in East Spencer, plans to open a plant to produce a new “green” product line for homebuilding. The company plans to create 25 jobs and invest $12.8 million. The project was made possible in part by a $50,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.
“This is a double win for North Carolina,” said Gov. Bev Perdue. “Our top business climate and skilled workforce continue to attract jobs and investments from international companies, and our focus on growing green companies is paying off.”
BCI is an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of Boral USA, which owns large building products manufacturers and construction materials suppliers. Boral USA has approximately 2,500 employees at 162 sites in North America, including two other North Carolina sites, in Charlotte and Lake Norman. Both BCI and Boral USA have their headquarters in Roswell, Ga.
Salaries will vary by job function, but the annual average wage for the new jobs will be $35,700 not including benefits. The Rowan County average annual wage is $35,048.
The new facility will be built to Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) standards, minimizing energy use and conserving other resources. The new building product, a synthetic composite, will contain over 75 percent recycled and rapidly-renewable materials and will be used for home exteriors.
“We are excited to build the first Boral Composites production facility in East Spencer,” said Brian Below, BCI’s general manager. “We selected this site over other potential locations in the Southeast because of the support from local, county and state government agencies, our long-standing ties to the community through our Boral Bricks business, the availability of a skilled and able workforce, and desirable geographic location to efficiently serve our customers.”
“Boral’s decision is terrific news during a tough economy,” said Rep. Lorene Coates, of Salisbury. “North Carolina has a winning formula for recruiting jobs: investing in education and training to build a top notch workforce and building the transportation and infrastructure systems to create a business-friendly climate.”
The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. These grants also require and are contingent on local matches.
North Carolina continues to have a top-ranked business climate. Through Gov. Perdue’s JobsNOW initiative, the state works aggressively to create jobs, train and retrain its workforce, and lay the foundation for a strong and sustainable economic future.
Through use of the One NC Fund, more than 40,000 jobs and $7 billion in investment have been created since 2001. Other partners that helped with this project include: the N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Community Colleges System, Rowan County, RowanWorks, the Town of East Spencer and Duke Energy.
For more information about Boral, including job opportunities with the company, go to www.boral.com.