Tindall Corporation, headquartered in Spartanburg, South Carolina, held an official ribbon cutting and dedication ceremony today at its new state-of-the-art, precast, prestressed concrete facility north of Moss Point.
Haley Barbour, Mississippi governor, officially dedicated the new facility as he joined with company officials, local and state dignitaries, Jackson County Economic Development Foundation officials and community leaders in commemorating the occasion.
"We are pleased that a company of this caliber is expanding their operation within the state," Governor Barbour said in his opening remarks.
"I want people to understand that Tindall did not receive any money from the state of Mississippi. The company invested $26 million of their own money. We were able to help the company through the GO Zone legislation," he said.
The Gulf Opportunity Zone Act of 2005 was signed into law by President Bush on December 21, 2005. The GO Zone legislation offers significant economic incentives to rebuild the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina, as well as attract new investments to the affected areas.
Tindall's previous Mississippi Division plant was located in Biloxi, on Point Cadet. Hurricane Katrina did extensive damage, and while the battered plant was able to restart production in a few weeks, company officials decided to relocate and construct a more modern facility as soon as possible. This decision was precisely the kind of economic recovery the GO Zone Bonds were created to help accomplish.
"The relocation and construction of this new, state-of-the-art facility reiterates Tindall's commitment to its employees, customers and the Gulf Coast area, as well as our active participation in its rebuilding efforts," said William Lowndes, III, chairman and CEO of Tindall.
"The main reason that Tindall Corporation and Mr. Lowndes decided to remain in the state is because they have strong faith in the people of Mississippi," Governor Barbour stated. "They know the company will be successful on the Gulf Coast. It's obvious they appreciate the committed and skilled work force and believe in partnership in achieving the company's goals," he added.
"The Moss Point plant can be instrumental in assisting the Gulf Coast rebuilding efforts," said Greg Force, P.E., president and COO of Tindall. "Precast, prestressed construction offers distinct benefits to large-scale projects, particularly mixed-use, by delivering dynamic projects on time and on the money," he said.
"We are pleased that Tindall Corporation selected Jackson County as the site for its new manufacturing facility. We will continue to work closely with the company and commit economic development resources to support Tindall's long-term business strategy for the Gulf Coast region," said George Freeland Jr., executive director, Jackson County Economic Development Foundation. "We are fortunate to now include Tindall Corporation as a part of the fabric of our corporate community, and we intend to foster this partnership that has helped to produce this significant investment and over 125 new jobs."
Jeff Woodruff, P.E., vice president and general manager of the new Mississippi plant, hosted the official ceremony and tours of the facility.
"The Moss Point plant is a high-tech facility that is designed for high output and features a number of unique capabilities," said Woodruff.
The main production bay features an impressive precast concrete structure with a 110-foot clear span and 720 feet of length. A state-of-the-art batch plant delivers concrete into the production bay using an automated concrete delivery system.Based on European technology, this system transports, places, screens, and vibrates concrete using two shuttles, a two-stage gantry pouring machine and one operator. The plant has more than 600 tons of aggregate storage capacity and more than 480 tons of cement and fly-ash storage capacity. It is set up with one 4.5-cubic-yard mixer with all controls and is designed to accommodate a second mixer once production dictates.
New precast concrete structures on the site total 165,000 square feet under roof, and include the 85,000-square-foot main production bay; a 10,000-square-foot office building; a 5,000-square-foot maintenance shop; a 2,600-square-foot quality control/switcher/compressor building; a 35,000-square-foot support bay; and a 35,000-square-foot bay dedicated to future production expansion.
The Moss Point plant currently employs more than 125. At full operational capacity a work force of 300 is anticipated.
