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Gardner Denver Thomas chooses Monroe
 A jubilant Mayor Jamie Mayo proudly declared victory Monday in the hunt to convince Gardner Denver Thomas to consolidate its operations in Monroe.
"What a win, what a win," Mayo told dozens of Gardner Denver Thomas employees Monday afternoon at a news conference at the company's facilities on Central Avenue near Monroe Regional Airport. Gov. Bobby Jindal, area legislators and other local officials were on hand as well.
Monroe and state officials worked for weeks to entice Gardner Denver Thomas to move its Sheboygan, Wis., operations to its Monroe plant. Gardner Denver Thomas had considered closing its presence in Monroe and moving those operations to Wisconsin.
The decision to consolidate in Monroe will more than quadruple Gardner Denver's Monroe operations from roughly 70 jobs today to at least 301 by the end of 2011, including new jobs averaging $37,000 annually plus benefits, according to Jindal.
Mayo said his years as a high school quarterback and point guard for ULM helped him understand the importance of teamwork.
He said the team assembled to lead the effort in working with Gardner Denver Thomas was one of the best he has ever been on.
"What can you say?" Mayo said. "We are 'Monroe Proud.'"
"If it were not for these employees, along with Gov. Jindal, Secretary (Stephen) Moret, our legislators, the Monroe chamber, city council, community college, business community and everyone working together, this would not have happened," Mayo said. "I thank everyone for working together."
He commended the state for offering a sound incentives package to help convince Gardner Denver Thomas to make the move to Monroe.
"When I saw what they were offering … well, I cannot say here publicly what I said then, but I was very, very impressed," Mayo said.
As part of the incentives package to lure Gardner Denver Thomas here, the state committed a performance-based grant of up to $9 million for relocation expenses from the Rapid Response Fund.
The city of Monroe will provide for a 124,000-square-foot building expansion with a discounted lease rate.
Jindal personally met with Gardner Denver Thomas CEO Barry Pennypacker and other top Gardner Denver executives to make the case for Monroe.
He said the decision was not only a win for northeast Louisiana but a win for the entire state.
"We know our nation is facing some tough economic times, but Louisiana has continued to outperform the national economy," Jindal said. "This is an exciting announcement for Monroe and all of Louisiana."
He said many people were involved in convincing the company to choose Monroe. However, none were more important than the local workers.
"I want to thank the workers," Jindal said. "The reason we are here today is because of their productivity and hard work."
"I'll be honest; we started behind in this contest," Jindal continued. "We were the underdog … the larger operation was in Wisconsin and we were the smaller operation.
"I talked with the CEO personally several days ago when they made this decision. He said being on this floor, talking to these workers was a huge factor in their decision. This would not have happened without the productivity and the commitment of our workers. They proved they are second to none when given a chance to compete. Given a level playing field, we can beat anyone in the country and anyone in the world.
"The easiest and cheapest decision would have been to stay in Wisconsin, shut down the smaller facility and move it to the larger facility. But we challenged them to look at the facts, meet the workers and look at what the city of Monroe is willing to do for them."
Jindal hopes the relationship between Gardner Denver Thomas and Monroe will provide a means for future expansion by Gardner Denver throughout Louisiana.
Gardner Denver currently employs 366 people in Sheboygan, Wis., including roughly 280 in manufacturing operations and related support functions.
Monroe's operation employs 76 people. |
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