FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 6, 2023) – Today, Gov. Andy Beshear highlighted continued growth in the commonwealth’s expansive manufacturing industry with Safran Landing Systems Kentucky announcing an expansion of its Boone County facility, creating 92 well-paying jobs.
“The economic momentum Kentucky is seeing is a direct result of tremendous growth among our largest and most vital industries, and manufacturing and aerospace are at the center of that growth,” said Gov. Beshear. “We continue to see quality companies like Safran Landing Systems expanding to meet growing customer demand, and that is a recipe for long-term success for our economy. I want to thank Safran Landing System’s leadership for their belief in the commonwealth and look forward to their continued growth in our state.”
Since the end of the pandemic, airline traffic has strongly restarted and the demand for carbon composite brakes continues to steeply increase. Safran Landing Systems will expand its Boone County facility to meet that demand.
“Safran Landing Systems is a key contributor to the Kentucky aerospace manufacturing industry, as reflected by our steady growth over the years,” said Philippe Garnier, CEO and general manager of Safran Landing Systems Kentucky. “This new investment will allow us to bolster our manufacturing capabilities with the addition of new equipment and strengthen our workforce to meet increased production volumes as we support our U.S. military and commercial customers. We are proud of our 24-year history of creating jobs and bringing specialized manufacturing skills to the local economy, which has been made possible through the support of the state and local authorities.”
Safran Landing Systems Kentucky produces and refurbishes advanced carbon composite brake disks and produces aluminum alloy wheels and brakes for large commercial and military aircraft. The initial carbon site construction was completed in 1999 with wheel and brake construction following in 2007. In 2016, a major expansion project was launched to increase the carbon capacity of the company by 50%. The company has now invested in excess of $300 million in the Boone County site and employs 340 Kentucky workers.
Boone County Judge/Executive Gary Moore congratulated Safran Landing Systems on its newest expansion in Northern Kentucky: Safran Landing Systems continues to demonstrate its commitment to Northern Kentucky with multiple expansions since opening in 2000. We’re grateful for the company’s dedication to our community and providing good-paying jobs in Boone County.”
BE NKY Growth Partnership CEO Lee Crume noted that Kentucky was the No. 2 exporter of aerospace products and parts in 2022: “Safran Landing Systems is an important player in our region’s high-growth aerospace manufacturing sector. We appreciate the company’s leadership continuing to invest in the Cincinnati region and its partnerships with our education institutions to train high school students and young adults through its programs with Ignite Institute and Gateway Community & Technical College.”
Safran Landing Systems’ investment and planned job creation furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth.
Last 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.
This year, the Governor announced that Kentucky set the record for the longest period with the lowest unemployment rates in state history.
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 introduced 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 the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) last week preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $1.495 million in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of over $65 million and annual targets of:
- Creation and maintenance of 92 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 10 years; and
- Paying an average hourly wage of $44.34 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, Safran Landing Systems 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 Safran Landing Systems Kentucky, visit Safran-Group.com.
A detailed community profile for Boone 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.
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