Staff Report

A Wytheville manufacturing company has announced a $3 million expansion project that will add 22 new jobs.

Coperion Corporation, located on Stafford Umberger Drive in the Fairview Industrial Park, is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, and supplies businesses with plastics, chemicals, food and aluminum products.

According to David Manley, executive director of the Joint Industrial Authority of Wythe County, 90 percent of the new jobs will be local hires. He said details about applying for the new positions will be available soon.

He also noted the project will include construction of another building at the site.

“The quality of the Wythe County work force is one of the reasons we were successful in competing against New Jersey for the project,” Manley said.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Wythe County and Virginia’s aCorridor to help secure the project for Virginia. Gov. Terry McAuliffe approved a $75,000 grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund to assist Wythe County with the project.

Coperion Corporation is collaborating with local real estate developer WYCO LLC to invest in the expansion.

Coperion is a wholly owned subsidiary of Batesville, Indiana,-based Hillenbrand Inc.