Tool company’s $12 million expansion to create 77 jobs in New Haven

By Kevin Leininger | News-Sentinel

Good economic news just keeps on coming for New Haven in the form of a $12 million, 77-job expansion by Continental Diamond Tool Corp.

According to an application for tax incentives to be considered next week by New Haven City Council, the maker of cutting and grinding products will build and equip a new 112,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at 10801 Rose Ave. The company's current facility, the application states, needs repair and "is roughly 25 years old . . . (we will) lease it to another manufacturer to whom the building is suitable (and) we will be building a new, state-of-the-art facility on the property, allowing us to keep up our strong growth rate as well as continue to grow our employment base in Allen County."

Founded in 1973, the company currently has about 70 employees. The expansion would create about 55 manufacturing jobs with average salaries of $40,000; eight sales jobs paying about $56,000; five management jobs paying $100,000 and nine clerical positions paying $31,000 for a total additional payroll of about $3.5 million. The project includes $6 million in real estate improvements, $5.25 million in manufacturing equipment, $400,000 in research and development equipment and $100,000 in information technology equipment.

Construction could start this month, with completion by the end of the year. If approved, the abatement would  save the company $366,153 in equipment taxes and $865,000 in real estate taxes over 10 years.

The project is just the latest good financial news for Allen County's second-largest city. Last month Lippert Components sought tax incentives for its proposed $19 million, 140-job expansion on Ryan Road, and just this week Sauder Manufacturing Co. announced it will relocate operations to New Haven in the form of a $3 million,165,000-square-foot-facility at 10801 Rose Ave. expected to create up to 60 new jobs.