More Projects for
the Volunteer State

Outside the biomedical industry, more projects are coming to Tennessee locations.
        Britain's Flight Refueling Countermeasures (FRC) is bringing 200 new jobs to West Tennessee. FRC will manufacture flares and other pyrotechnic devices for the U.S. Dept. of Defense at the Milan Army Ammunition Plant (Milan AAP), just outside Milan. Established in 1941, the Milan AAP spans 22,536 acres (90,144 hectares). FRC will pay a lease rate ranging between $700,000 and $1 million a year in occupying an as-yet undisclosed amount of space. The arsenal, some 100 miles (160 kilometers) northeast of Memphis, has a total of 1,461 individual buildings on its grounds.
        Brunswick Boat Group decided to relocate its corporate base from Lake Forest, Ill., to Knoxville. Approximately 75 executives and will make the move by the end of the year, and 25 new employees will be hired. About 1,500 employees already work in plants and offices in Knoxville and Vonore, Tenn. Brunswick's Sea Ray Boats subsidiary already is headquartered in Knoxville.
        "The mission of Brunswick Boat Group is to be the best global relocation boat business in the world," says Dustan McCoy, president of the company. "Bringing the senior executive management of BBG together in one location is key to achieving the group's goals."
        The Knoxville location has two main advantages, says McCoy. "Through our Sea Ray division, we already have a strong presence in the area, having had operations here for nearly 25 years. Much of the infrastructure for BBG is already located in Knoxville, including our information technology, finance and legal functions. As a result, locating in Knoxville will result in minimum disruption to our ongoing activities." Proximity to manufacturing plants and Knoxville's quality of life also factored into the decision, notes McCoy.

The former Huntco Steel facility in Chattanooga's Centre South Riverport Industrial Park is the new home of a manufacturing facility purchased by South Bend, Ind.-based Lock Joint Tube. The operation, under the name LJT Chattanooga LLC, will produce steel tubing for use in a variety of industries.

        Lock Joint Tube (LJT) of South Bend, Ind., has purchased the former Huntco Steel facility in Hamilton County's Centre South Riverport Industrial Park, in Chattanooga. The $4.9 million purchase includes 11.3 acres (4.5 hectares) and a 112,500-sq.-ft. (10,450-sq.-m.) production facility. LJT plans to invest $5 million initially on tube-producing equipment with additional investments of $2 million to $3 million annually in coming years.
        "Chattanooga is an ideal place for LJT's expansion into the southeast United States," says Mike Lanciotti, LJT's president. "It is strategically located at the right distance from our South Bend and Temple, Texas, plants." Lanciotti also cites the city's river and rail access and proximity to automotive suppliers as factors in the location selction.
        Deere & Co. will occupy an indoor/outdoor distribution facility currently under construction in Jefferson City. The project includes a 500,000-sq.-ft. (46,450-sq.-m.) indoor storage and distribution structure and an outdoor storage area of the same size. "This distribution facility will provide an economic boost to our county by adding new tax base of some $15 million, creating jobs and diversifying our local economy without significantly increasing demands for county services," says Gary Holiway, Jefferson County Executive.