Since the Great Recession, a chorus of county business and government leaders has been repeating one refrain: We need to diversify our economy.
Some of those leaders say a project announced earlier this month signals a shift toward more high-tech, high-paying jobs in Elkhart County.
The Elkhart County Council on July 11 gave preliminary approval for a 10-year tax abatement for Furrion LLC, a Hong Kong-based electronics company planning to build a new facility in the Elkhart East Corporate Park. A final vote on the abatement is scheduled for the council’s Aug. 8 meeting.
Earlier that week, Furrion and Lippert Components announced a deal allowing Lippert to distribute Furrion’s full product line. Expanding in Elkhart County allows Furrion, which started making electronics for the marine industry and expanded to the RV market in 2009, to be closer to the industry it serves, said Amy Vicsik, the company’s marketing director.
According to the tax phase-in application Furrion filed with Elkhart County, the new building will employ 40 people: five managers, 20 “professional/technical” employees, 10 salespeople and five office/administrative support employees.
What have really been grabbing people’s attention are those 20 positions in the professional/technical category. They will be filled by engineers, technicians and designers developing products for the company.