W Industries is investing $36 million in Detroit to retrain its work force 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 Ivy.hughes@gmail.com.
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