Paradigm Parachute & Defense, a disabled-veteran-owned business, was founded in 2019 and manufactures military-style parachute systems and associated defense products for global commercial, government, humanitarian, and space exploration customers. After five years, Paradigm has grown from eight employees in a 20,000-square-foot building to 150 employees. The company recently moved to a new 70,000-square-foot climate-controlled manufacturing facility to accommodate this growth. Learn more.
American Magic has secured a lease agreement with the City of Pensacola to establish a high-performance sailing center at the Port of Pensacola. This cutting-edge 63,000 sq. ft. facility will serve as its headquarters for designing, building, hosting regattas, and developing the current and next generation of America’s Cup, Olympic, and International sailors. Read more.
LIFT, a Michigan-based advanced materials manufacturing innovation institute, will establish its latest technology accelerator and talent development showcase facility at Pensacola State College (PSC). Learn more.
Cheney Brothers Inc., a Florida-based food manufacturing and distribution company, will grow its operations in the new Milton Interchange Park in Santa Rosa County. The company plans to construct a 350,000-square-foot manufacturing/distribution center, with a capital investment of at least $75 million. The facility will add 400 new, direct high-wage jobs to the area. Read more.
The US subsidiary of Canada-based provider of aviation maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, Premier Aviation, will invest $32.5 million in a new facility at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP) in Bay County. This decision is expected to create 250 high-paying jobs within the next four years. Read more.
Central Moloney, Inc., (“CMI”) headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, announced the selection of Okaloosa County, Florida for a new, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that will specialize in producing pad-mounted electrical transformers. Read more.
The anticipated $2.5 million project involves a 20,000 SF expansion to the company’s existing facility, at the Fort Walton Beach Commerce & Technology Park. Learn more.
The company is adding approximately 30 staff members and increasing its facility to 65,000 sq. ft. G.S Gelato’s facility expansion will increase production of gelato, sorbetto and non-dairy frozen desserts for foodservice & private label retail. Read more.
FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance has announced today Algaplast Corp. is establishing its first U.S. based-operations in Century, Florida. Learn more.
The expansion of IHMC's campus will add a four-story, 44,000-square-foot facility that will allow the research institute to expand its efforts into human health and performance, along with the research into artificial intelligence and robotics. Read more.
Buffalo Rock is expected to bring 350 to 400 new jobs to the area and make a capital investment of $35 million. The company will service Northwest Florida and surrounding states at its new facility. Learn more.
Paradigm Parachute & Defense, a disabled-veteran-owned small business, is expanding their manufacturing operations in Escambia County. Read more.
The company's expansion project will create 55 new jobs to perform aviation maintenance. Read more.
Mocama Marine LLC plans to establish a boat-manufacturing operation in two existing buildings at the old Bay County Industrial Park. Read more.
Monolithic Building Systems’ will create more than 50 new jobs and will invest an estimated $15 million into the Florida panhandle. Read more.
Santa Rosa County is welcoming Amazon to the Santa Rosa Industrial Park. Read more.
Pegasus Laboratories is expected to create 63 new laboratory and life-science manufacturing jobs over the next five years. Read more.
Hershey's Ice Cream, a Pennsylvania-based ice cream brand, will be expanding its distribution facility in Santa Rosa County. The company has plans to develop a distribution facility on eight acres in the Northwest Florida Industrial Park at Interstate 10. Read more.
American Metal Bearing Company, now a California-based defense contractor, will move its headquarters to Freeport. Read more.
Central Moloney Incorporated will be establishing a manufacturing operation in Bay County, Florida. Read more.
Probes Unlimited, Inc. (PUI), a manufacturer of OEM Sensing Devices, will be locating in Holmes County, Fla. PUI, a Pennsylvania-based company designs and manufactures highly accurate, custom temperature OEM sensing devices for industries such as commercial food service equipment, pellet technology, BBQ equipment, scientific instrumentation, aerospace instrumentation, factory automation, and green technologies. Read more.
Cowan Systems, LLC, a 96-year-old transportation company specializing in dedicated truckload, intermodal, warehousing, brokerage and driver staffing, has selected to locate a new terminal in Marianna, FL. This facility will create up to 100 truck driving positions and multiple office roles in Jackson County. Cowan System's expansion into the Southeast allows them to better serve its customers in Florida, Alabama and Georgia.
Amazon, the global e-commerce giant, is slated to establish a new, last-mile delivery site in Marianna to provide fast and efficient delivery for customers in North Florida and the surrounding area.
American Elite Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) has chosen to open its new manufacturing facility in Fort Walton Beach. The company will be leasing a 14,000 sq. ft. facility in the Fort Walton Beach Commerce & Technology Park.
American Elite PPE will employ 50 individuals to produce melt blown polypropylene medical grade face masks and gowns. These PPE products will be used to adequality supply America's Healthcare System, which has not received enough PPE from overseas manufacturers.
Read More.
Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. is developing a Marine Technical Center in Panama City. This facility will be built on a beautiful 20-acre waterfront property in Panama City. The Suzuki Marine Technical Center, will be used to help develop, test and refine Suzuki outboard products, according to Max Yamamoto, President of Suzuki Motor of America, Inc.
Panama City offered Suzuki a unique opportunity for conducting research on boat and motor capabilities. The facility has access to a protected harbor, a launch ramp, and a large basin area for running and testing boats and motors. Suzuki will initially create five jobs and will continue to increase employment in the lcoal area for years to come. Read More.
Leonardo, through AgustaWestland Philadelphia Corp., will be creating nearly 50 new jobs in Northwest Florida. The organization will construct a 100,000 sq. ft. facility at the Whiting Aviation Park in Milton, FL, which was made possible through a $8.5 Million infrastructure award from Triumph Gulf Coast.
This facility will be a comprehensive support center for the Navy’s new TH-119 IFR training helicopters. They will service the final fleet of 130 aircraft and continue the mission of training all helicopter pilots for the US Navy, USMC & USCG in Santa Rosa County. Learn More.
Clark and Son Inc., a leading distribution company for custom kitchen cabinets, will be locating their distribution and final assembly headquarters operation in Panama City, Florida. Clark and Son completed a search throughout the United States for this new facility. Through this partnership with Wood Genix, a world leader in cabinet manufacturing, Clark and Son will import its products from Mexico through Port Panama City and distribute nationwide through their logistics center in Panama City. It is estimated that the inbound container traffic from Mexico to Port Panama City could increase by 20%. Due to this increase in container traffic, the economic impact to Bay County will be significant due to the multiplier effect from maritime related jobs. Full article.
RaceChip, the market leader for electronic high performance automobile chip tuning, has selected Fort Walton Beach for the company’s new US headquarters. The Fort Walton Beach facility, to be located at 50 Hill Ave in the Fort Walton Beach Commerce & Technology Park, replaces the company’s previous US headquarters in Orange County, California.
Dynamic Software Solutions (DS2), located in Niceville, Fla., and prime contractor partner, Tapestry Solutions, Inc., a Boeing company, were awarded a Weapon Planning Software (WPS) contract by the Air Force Materiel Command, Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Armament Directorate - Eglin Air Force Base.
The 10-year WPS program supports Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS) requirements related to precision-guided munitions planning for numerous aircraft and weapons platforms. The contract has a total ceiling value of $259 million.
DS2 is currently located in Merchants Walk at Bluewater Bay. DS2 and Tapestry will be expanding its operations for this contract from the company’s newest location just outside of Eglin Air Force Base, located at 310 Government Ave. The newly refurbished facility offers proximity to Eglin Air Force Base and includes 5,000 square feet for office and development labs. Full article.
Skyborne Technology is already expanding in Northwest Florida. The company is adding to its presence in Gulf County, FL, by purchasing the Costin Airport in Port St. Joe, FL. This facility will be used to test Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs), and to develop high school and college students into future UAS pilots. Full Article
Skyborne Technology is locating in Wewahitchka, Gulf County, FL. The company is anticipating creating 100 high tech aerospace jobs to the region. Skyborne designs and develops manned and unmanned next generation aviation systems. The company will develop aviation products for target markets such as Agriculture Assessment, Communications, Education, Defense, Border Security, Health, Natural Disasters, Policing and Traffic Control. Full article.
ANNOUNCEMENT: MAG Aerospace, headquartered in Fairfax, VA, opens a 25,000 SF Technology Integration and Support Center in the Fort Walton Beach Commerce & Technology Park in Northwest Florida. The company will focus on the integration of Air Force Special Operations, Special Warfare systems and employ 50+ technology engineers. It will be the first technology facility that will house both military and private sector engineers with a single integrator. Full article.
Beast Code is expanding in Fort Walton Beach, Okaloosa County, creating over 40 high tech jobs in Northwest Florida. The company provides operational training, modeling and simulation and data mining services, primarily for the military. Beast Code’s expansion will include an acquisition of new equipment, developing a quality assurance area, and building collaborative work spaces. Full article.
Catalyst Fabric Solutions located a new manufacturing facility in Marianna, Jackson County, FL. The company is expected to create over 100 new jobs in Northwest Florida. Catalysts is a leading fabric finisher in the United States. The company will offer an array of custom printed fabrics, such as aroma and scent, cooling, and repellant finishes. Full article.
Revint Solutions is locating their financial services business unit to Lynn Haven, Bay County, FL. Lynn Haven will become their regional headquarters, and the new service center will create 150 new jobs in the area. Revint Solutions is an industry leader in collections and consulting services with over 1,600 healthcare organization clients in the U.S. Revint has recovered over $475 Million of underpaid or unidentified revenue for their clients annually. Full article.
Aerospace manufacturer Advanced Composites & Metalforming Technologies (ACMT), recently opened a new facility in Lynn Haven, FL. ACMT purchased a 159,000 sq. Ft. building in the City of Lynn Haven’s Industrial Park, and made a capital investment of $20 million in the community. The new facility will employ 105 workers in advanced manufacturing, and will pay employees an average annual salary of over $43,000 dollars. ACMT is a supplier for the precision component manufacturing, repair, overhaul and modification industry. Read More.
FedEx Ground is developing a new distribution facility in Walton County, FL, at the Mosey Head Industrial Park. The new FedEx distribution facility will be a 213,000 sq. Ft. building on 25 acres. FedEx will employ nearly 300 employees at the new facility, and make a capital investment of $11 million in the community. Read More.
French-based Butterfly Training will open its U.S. headquarters in Panama City at Gulf Coast State College. The company offers numerous e-learning and cloud-based training courses, focused on airport security, safety and dangerous goods, airlines, and aviation manufacturing companies. Full Article.
OMNICOMMANDER, located in Miramar Beach, Walton County, is a technology company specializing in Credit Union Website Design, Social Media Marketing and branding solutions. The company currently employs more than 20 Floridians and will create 30 new high wage jobs. Full Article.
ST Engineering opened its new maintenance, repair and overhaul hangar located at the Pensacola International Airport. The hangar is large enough to accommodate two Boeing 777s, four Boeing 757s or six aircraft in Airbus' A320 range. The $46 million-dollar project was made possible through a combination of funds from the state, county, city and the company. It will employ 400 professionals. Full Article.
Foreign-owned automotive supplier, Air Temp de Mexico, locates US HQ in Panama City. Proximity to 12 automotive OEMs in the Southeast like Volkswagen and Nissan, and Port Panama City, are reasons for their expansion to Northwest Florida. The company will create 50 new jobs in phase one and make a capital investment of $6 million. Full article.
Allegiant Air establishes a new aircraft base at Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport. The company will create 65 new jobs and invest more than $49 million. Allegiant plans to begin hiring pilots, flight attendants, maintenance technicians and ground personnel to support operations. Positions are expected to offer average salaries more than double the area's average wage. Full article.
The U.S. Air Force selects Tyndall Air Force Base for the MQ-9 Reaper wing, the most advanced unmanned aerial vehicle in the world. The program will bring 1,600 jobs and $250 million in new construction at the base. Tyndall AFB was selected because there are fewer aircraft competing for air space, nearby training ranges, great weather and lower up-front costs. Full article.
Home-grown Eastern Shipbuilding, an innovator in marine construction and repair, lands $10.5 billion contract to build two dozen new U.S. Coast Guard cutters. Because of the contract, Eastern Shipbuilding will create 2,000 new jobs in Panama City. At a cost of around $484 million per ship, it’s the largest contract the Coast Guard has ever awarded in its 226-year history. Additionally, it just broke ground on an outfitting and repair facility in Port St. Joe, Gulf County to work on Staten Island Ferries and more. Full article.
Navy Federal, the largest credit union in the world, is expected to have a $1 billion capital investment in Pensacola, a $425 million payroll and 10,000 employees working on the local campus. The company has continued to grow and expand in Pensacola since 2003 and is on target to hire 10,000 employees. Full article.
Fabbro Marine, a local manufacturer of Cape Horn offshore boats, is the first to expand on Gulf Power’s Florida First Sites, the first regional site certification program to develop project-ready industrial sites. The company is located at the Santa Rosa Industrial Park East in Milton, Fl. The company currently employs 30 people with wages 115% of the local area and will create 10 new jobs and invest $4 million.
Florida’s Great Northwest is here to enhance Northwest Florida’s competitive position through industry diversification and quality job growth. Whether you’re a company executive, site selector, or Northwest Floridian, contact us to learn how we can work together.
