ERLANGER, Ky. (Sept. 24, 2015) – A company celebrated its expansion in northern Kentucky with a ribbon-cutting today and has already begun hiring new employees.
Governor Steve Beshear joined Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) officials to announce the opening of an information technology and support center in Erlanger.
With the new facility now open, ADM, a global food-processing and commodities-trading company, will create 200 high-paying jobs with its investment of more than $8.3 million in the project.
"ADM's decision to expand operations in Kentucky and add 200 jobs speaks volumes about the opportunities our Commonwealth offers," said Gov. Beshear. "Since January 2014, the food and beverage industry in northern Kentucky announced 46 new or expanding projects and $423 million invested. With the industry adding 3,100 new jobs over that time, it's great to welcome ADM as a contributor to that growth."
The facility, located on the campus of ADM WILD Flavors at 1260 Pacific Ave., will help the company run its global operations more efficiently. Also, the center will support the drafting and implementation of the company's new enterprise resource planning system, 1ADM.
Hiring for the new center is already underway, with a goal of 200 new information technology professionals added throughout the next three to four years. Positions include analysts, application architects, project managers, developers, coders and administration staff. An open house will be held on Thursday, Oct. 22, for IT professionals and anyone else interested in learning about the company and the new facility. More information about the event, and the positions ADM is looking to fill, is available at www.adm.com/erlangerITjobs.
"As our company continues to grow, our global IT capabilities and infrastructure have to expand at the same time to support that growth," said ADM CEO Juan Luciano. "This new technology center enables us to attract new IT talent to our organization as we expand our company and our technical capabilities. Co-locating the facility on the WILD campus in Erlanger gives us access to a strong local talent pool of IT professionals in northern Kentucky and the entire Greater Cincinnati area, and we look forward to growing our presence here in Erlanger."
ADM, one of the world's largest agricultural processors and food ingredient providers, employs more than 33,000 people and serves customers in more than 140 countries. In Kentucky, ADM employs nearly 500 people among its WILD operations, five grain elevators and a feed business. The company's global assets include more than 460 crop procurement locations, 300 ingredient manufacturing facilities, 40 innovation centers and a crop transportation network.
"We are proud to welcome the new ADM IT Center to Erlanger," said Sen. Chris McDaniel, of Taylor Mill. "This new investment of more than $8 million and the estimated 200 jobs provided is wonderful news for our community. We are appreciative to ADM and encouraged to see further economic growth in northern Kentucky."
"Kentucky has a long history as a leader in agriculture and is making concerted efforts to become a global leader in feeding the world and grow our ag economy," said Rep. Adam Koenig, of Erlanger. "That's why today's news that ADM will expand the WILD operations to include support for its own world agricultural efforts is another step toward helping the Commonwealth's farmers compete both nationally and internationally."
"WILD Flavors has been an excellent community partner to the City of Erlanger," said Erlanger Mayor Tyson Hermes. "We look forward to building a strong relationship with ADM and thank them for investing and bringing new jobs to our community."
"The new ADM information technology and support center is a terrific addition to northern Kentucky's thriving high-tech sector," said Boone County Judge-Executive Gary Moore, chair of Northern Kentucky Tri-ED. "The College of Informatics at Northern Kentucky University is preparing a highly technical workforce that the new ADM IT center can leverage – helping us retain our homegrown talent with high-paying jobs in northern Kentucky."
To encourage the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $5 million through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.
Additionally, ADM was preliminarily approved by KEDFA for $200,000 in tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act (KEIA). KEIA allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development and electronic processing equipment.
ADM can also receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network. Through the Kentucky Skills Network, companies are eligible to receive no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job training incentives. Last year, the Kentucky Skills Network trained more than 84,000 employees from more than 4,100 Kentucky companies.
For more information on ADM, visit www.ADM.com.
A detailed community profile for northern Kentucky can be viewed here.
For more information about Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, visit www.NorthernKentuckyusa.com. Northern Kentucky Tri-ED can also be followed through social media channels via Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.