Dive Brief:
- Carrier Global announced it will spend more than $600 million over the next three years on a new advanced manufacturing and engineering center in Fort Worth, Texas.
- The HVAC systems maker will support “record backlog levels driven by strong demand across data centers, healthcare, education, industrial markets and other key verticals,” the company said.
- The facility will be more than 1 million square feet and create 1,500 jobs, according to the news release. Forth Worth approved $10.9 million in tax abatement incentives for the project, a Carrier spokesperson said in an email.
Dive Insight:
Carrier has been taking steps to expand its U.S. manufacturing presence, including a $1 billion commitment announced last year. Those funds were slated for expanding existing facilities and building a new plant to support the production of components for heat pumps and battery assemblies.
The company is also bolstering the U.S. manufacturing workforce. Earlier this year, it announced a program to hire 1,000 U.S. service technicians and train more than 100,000 Carrier and Carrier partner HVAC technicians within five years.
Carrier’s latest project in Fort Worth expands its U.S. manufacturing capacity for advanced thermal management systems, including air- and water-cooled commercial chillers, according to the news release. The facility is scheduled to open next year.
“This investment reflects the strong demand we are securing for high-performance, energy-efficient solutions and underscores our confidence in the future of American manufacturing," Carrier Chairman and CEO David Gitlin said in a statement. "By expanding our U.S. manufacturing and engineering footprint, we are increasing capacity for critical technologies, strengthening supply chain resilience and creating high-quality jobs.”
A spokesperson from the Fort Worth communications department declined to answer questions about the facility or any incentives the state or city may have provided the company.
However, a Carrier spokesperson said in an email that the city approved $10.9 million in tax abatement incentives over seven years under the Texas Enterprise Zone Program, which is designed to encourage private investment and job creation in economically distressed areas of the state. Carrier’s incentives are tied to capital investment and hiring targets, the spokesperson said.
Carrier also chose Fort Worth “because of its highly skilled workforce, strong manufacturing base and strategic location that will support the facility's long-term growth and success,” the spokesperson added.
This will be the largest single facility investment Carrier has ever made, Brianna Brown, Fort Worth’s assistant economic development director, said at city council work session convened Aug. 25, before Carrier had made its final location selection.
Brown added that Carrier has “expressed a commitment” to trying to recruit local suppliers for the facility. “There’s potential for quite a bit of upside with this project,” she said.
According to Brown, Carrier’s commitments in order to receive incentives from the city include:
- A minimum capital investment of $433.8 million by Dec. 31, 2028, including $36 million in real property construction costs and $397.8 million in business personal property costs
- A minimum of 495 new full-time jobs by Dec. 31, 2029, with a minimum average salary of $75,000
- $261.7 million in estimated addition payroll over seven years
- A small business goal of 30% of real property improvements costs
Brown said Carrier is in a “target industry area” and thus the facility presents an opportunity to enhance Forth Worth’s manufacturing cluster and strength its energy and technology industries. Fort Worth competed with locations in three other states for the facility, she said.
Carrier’s total investment and jobs associated with the project are higher than the minimums outlined at the Aug. 25 work session, according to a company spokesperson.
In July, Carrier reported second-quarter net sales of $6.4 billion, up 4% year over year. Organic sales increased 3% over the same period last year, while operating profit of $825 million declined 9%. This was driven primarily by the Climate Solutions Americas and Climate Solutions Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa segments.
The company’s Q3 results are scheduled to be released Oct. 29, before the market opens.
