Korean logistics company LogisAll plans to open a facility in Macon County that will serve the bustling Interstate 85 automotive manufacturing corridor, creating between 40 and 60 jobs in the plant’s first year of operation.
LogisAll will initially invest $4 million in its new Alabama facility, which will receive, quality-test, inventory and distribute auto parts and components along the I-85 auto production corridor, anchored by the Hyundai and Kia assembly plants. At a ceremony this morning, LogisAll officials cut the ribbon on their new, 40,000-square-foot facility off Exit 22 in Shorter.
“Alabama has a positive business climate, a robust logistics network and a great workforce, which are important components to job creation,” Alabama Governor Robert Bentley said. “I honored to see LogisAll open this facility in Macon County and look forward to working with the company to ensure their operation is a success.”
LogisAll’s brand new facility was built by Auburn-based Bailey-Harris Construction Co. and marketed by the Macon County Economic Development Authority (MCEDA). Joe Turnham, the MCEDA’s director who worked on the project for six months, said LogisAll is a great fit for Shorter and Macon County.
“LogisAll took advantage of our central location in the automotive supply corridor and our state-of-the-art facility.” Turnham said. “Industry is now recognizing Macon County as a preferred place to do business and our local leadership has responded to this opportunity – we could not be more pleased with the results.”
FOCUS ON WORKFORCE
Macon County, located just minutes from the Hyundai assembly plant in Montgomery, has targeted auto industry jobs. Earlier this month, Trenholm State Community College announced that it had received a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission to train Macon County residents for jobs in the auto sector over the next two years. The grant and in-kind services total $2.1 million.
“Workforce development is central to our efforts in industrial recruitment; we want to be known as a place of excellence where companies know our citizens are ready for the jobs they bring,” Shorter Mayor Willie Mae Powell said.
LogisAll will hire truck drivers, warehouse operations specialists as well as inspectors and logistics personnel over the next six months to a year.
“We are seeing continued growth in the support system for Alabama’s automotive industry, which is fueling the creation of new jobs in places like Shorter,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “Macon County’s central location and its transportation assets make it ideal for a logistics company like LogisAll.”
By Jerry Underwood, Made In Alabama
