2 global manufacturers say they’re bringing hundreds of full-time jobs to NC county

Two global manufacturers this week separately announced they expect to bring nearly 500 full-time jobs to Iredell County.

Doosan Bobcat North America, which makes construction equipment used in the landscaping industry, will invest $70 million and add 250 full-time jobs at its Statesville plant over five years, company officials said Monday.

On Tuesday, Gov. Roy Cooper announced that Charlotte-based window and door maker Jeld-Wen will add about 235 jobs with its $7.9 million investment in a new production plant in Statesville for its VPI Quality Windows brand.

Jeld-Wen has made custom windows and doors for commercial and multifamily housing developers for at least 25 years, according to Cooper’s office. The company employs nearly 500 workers at its Charlotte headquarters and in Wilkes County, officials said.

The expansion will enable the company to “significantly grow” its business, Jeld-Wen North America president Daniel Castillo said in a statement. The exact location of the new Jeld-Wen site wasn’t immediately available on Tuesday.

New Jen-Weld jobs will include management, operations support and production staff, with an average overall annual salary of $51,648, Cooper’s office said. That exceeds Iredell County’s overall average annual salary of $51,136, according to the governor’s office.

A state job development investment grant approved on Tuesday by the N.C. Economic Investment Committee would potentially reimburse the company up to about $2.2 million over 12 years, the governor’s office said.

Over 12 years, the project would grow the state’s economy by more than $492 million, according to the governor’s office.

Doosan Bobcat expansion

Doosan Bobcat North America officials said their investment over five years will double the size of their Statesville manufacturing plant to a million square feet. That will make their Glenway Drive location at interstates 40 and 77 the company’s largest manufacturing site worldwide, officials said.

Jobs will include production, engineering, supply chain, logistics, warehousing and operations positions, company spokeswoman Adrienne Olson told the Observer.

“The average annual wages of these positions range from $36,000 to $65,000, with an overall average annual wage of $40,000,” she said.

The government economic incentives for the expansion weren’t immediately available Tuesday.

The 500,000-square-foot expansion will help the company meet rising demand, including for its portable power equipment and growing line of grounds maintenance and landscaping industry products, officials said.

The company bought 68 acres beside its 92-acre campus for the expansion, officials said. The expansion will add 500,000 square feet for manufacturing and 80,000 square feet of warehouse and distribution space, company officials said.

Construction is set to begin in July and finish by May 2022, according to the North Dakota-based company.

“This level of investment demonstrates our commitment to North Carolina, which has been an important manufacturing location for us since 2008,” Doosan Bobcat North America president Mike Ballweber said in a statement.

In January, the company completed an $11 million upgrade to its Statesville plant.

“We are thrilled that Doosan Bobcat is once again choosing to expand its operations in Statesville,” Mayor Costi Kutteh said in the statement. “For more than a decade, Doosan Portable Power has been a part of our business community and partner with the city of Statesville, and this investment strengthens and builds upon their commitment to Statesville.”

The plant currently employs about 400 full-time workers. The expansion will add 42 jobs the first two years and up to 250 new jobs in five years, according to the company.

Doosan Bobcat employs about 4,500 workers at 13 sites in seven states, including engineering, research and development centers in North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Arizona, and a training center in Colorado, according to the company. The company also has manufacturing plants in North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.