FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 31, 2023) – Today, Gov. Andy Beshear highlighted further economic growth in Western Kentucky as Allstate Tower Inc., an entity of the Pittsburg Tank & Tower Group (PTTG), announced plans to expand manufacturing capabilities at its headquarters in Henderson with an $850,000 investment creating 10 full-time Kentucky jobs.
“Kentucky’s manufacturing industry is stronger than ever, thanks to our world-class workforce and great companies investing in communities all across the state,” said Gov. Beshear. “Allstate Tower and Pittsburg Tank & Tower Group are an important part of the Henderson community, and I am excited to see them grow and find continued success here in the commonwealth.”
The expansion project will feature the installation of a CLOOS robotic welder, which is anticipated to run at approximately 55% of its capacity based on a single shift operation. This investment will allow the company to increase output and the sales team to pursue additional business opportunities. The machine will weld segments of both tank and tower components that are used in all three of PTTG’s business units. The CLOOS Robotic Welding system integrates new welding technology with turntable positioners and laser-sensing technology to produce fast, high-quality welds. The addition of the machine will create 10 full-time jobs, pushing the company’s full-time Kentucky employment to 119.
“Allstate Tower and Pittsburg Tank & Tower are excited to continue to invest in the Henderson community and our employee owners and know that this investment in new technology and equipment will help facilitate our continued growth,” said Ben Johnston, chairman and chief technical officer of PTTG. “We greatly appreciate the support from our local leaders as well as the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.”
PTTG is a 104-year-old family business based in Henderson since the early 1980s. The group consists of four companies that provide engineered products in the manufacturing and construction segments throughout the country’s infrastructure. Pittsburg Tank & Tower delivers fresh drinking water to communities and helps store products such as food, chemicals, gas and oil and fertilizer. The group’s maintenance company, Pittsburg Tank & Tower Maintenance Co., services all the above-mentioned products through annual inspections, recoating, repairing and modifying as well as decommissioning structures when they are no longer needed. Allstate Tower manufacturers and installs communications towers that provide paths for all forms of communication across the U.S. and abroad, including cell phone paths and point-to-point broadband data transfer for television. Allstate Tower also manufactures a complete line of products to support transfer and storage of grain, ranging from small farming operations to larger, industrial corporations.
Henderson Mayor Brad Staton looks forward to seeing the company expand and grow in the community and provide additional opportunities for the local workforce: “Our existing businesses mean so much to us. I love when we get a chance to support the continued growth and success of the companies that play such an important role in our community and local economy.”
Whitney Risley, director of existing industry and workforce development with Henderson Economic Development, is thrilled for the continued investment in Henderson by Allstate Tower and PTTG: “This implementation of new technology will allow PTTG to expand product opportunities and workforce skillsets. We are excited to see what new heights and additional opportunities this expansion will bring.”
Allstate Tower’s investment and planned job creation furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth.
Earlier this month, Gov. Beshear reported that General Fund receipts for July 2023 totaled $1.1 billion, marking the 11th straight month with revenues over $1 billion. The Governor also recently announced that his administration secured the largest General Fund budget surplus and Rainy Day Fund, as well as the most jobs filled in state history.
The General Fund budget surplus at the end of fiscal year 2023 was more than $1.55 billion. Nearly all of the $1.55 billion surplus will go into the commonwealth’s Rainy Day Fund, bringing the fund to a record balance of $3.7 billion – a 2,700% increase since Gov. Beshear took office in 2019.
Gov. Beshear also announced an increase of 6,400 jobs filled, bringing the commonwealth to 2,015,600 filled jobs in June. That is a record number of nearly 60,000 more jobs filled than before the pandemic.
This year, the Governor announced that Kentucky set the record for the longest period with the lowest unemployment rates in state history. On May 18, Gov. Beshear announced that Kentucky set a new historic low unemployment rate of 3.7%, which is the lowest rate ever recorded in the commonwealth.
Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced more than 880 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling approximately $27 billion in announced investments. This is the highest investment figure for any governor in state history.
The robust job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. The average incentivized hourly wage in 2022 was $26.78 before benefits, the second-highest mark since 2010 and an 11.5% increase over the previous year.
The Governor also secured the best two-year period in state history for economic growth and announced the two largest economic development projects in state history. In September 2021, Gov. Beshear and leaders from Ford Motor Co. and SK On celebrated a transformative $5.8 billion investment that will create 5,000 jobs in Hardin County. In April 2022, the Governor was joined by leadership at AESC to announce a $2 billion investment that will create 2,000 jobs in Warren County. These announcements solidify Kentucky as the EV battery production capital of the United States.
That position was strengthened even further in May 2023, when the Governor and leaders at Toyota announced a $591 million investment across multiple projects as the company’s largest manufacturing operation in Georgetown introduces its first battery electric vehicle. Growth within the EV sector continued into June as Gov. Beshear joined INFAC North America to break ground on the company’s $53 million investment to support EV-related production in Campbellsville.
Over a two-month period this year, Kentucky secured two credit rating increases from major agencies. On May 12, Gov. Beshear announced that his administration obtained the first state-level credit rating upgrade in 13 years and the first-ever upgrade from Fitch Ratings. On June 29, Gov. Beshear announced the commonwealth received its first-ever rating increase from S&P Global Ratings.
Site Selection magazine recently placed Kentucky first in the South Central region and top-5 nationally in its 2023 Prosperity Cup ranking, which recognizes state-level economic development agencies for their success in landing capital investment projects. The publication also placed Kentucky second nationwide and first in the South Central region for its annual Governor’s Cup ranking for 2022, which recognizes state-level economic success based on capital investments.
Gov. Beshear recently announced a new “Supply Kentucky” initiative with the goal of boosting job growth, reducing costs and providing more security in the supply chains of our Kentucky companies.
To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) on Thursday preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $150,000 in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $850,000 and annual targets of:
- Creation and maintenance of 10 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 10 years; and
- Paying an average hourly wage of $30 including benefits across those jobs.
By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.
In addition, Allstate Tower can receive resources from Kentucky’s workforce service providers. Those include no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job-training incentives.
For more information on Allstate Tower and PTTG, visit pttg.com.
A detailed community profile for Henderson County can be viewed here.
Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at CED.ky.gov. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion at facebook.com/CEDkygov, on Twitter @CEDkygov, Instagram @CEDkygov and LinkedIn.
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov and the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
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