Governor Phil Bryant, local officials and officials from American Railcar Industries announced the company is expanding its presence in southwest Mississippi by locating a railcar maintenance facility in Brookhaven, Miss., in Lincoln County. The company has had operations in Bude, Miss., since 1974.
The new Brookhaven facility, which will complement the activities of the Bude location, represents a company investment of $7 million and will create 30 new jobs.
The Brookhaven facility will provide light maintenance activities, cleaning and simple repair for up to 100 railcars at a time and is designed to provide ‘quick turn’ light repair capabilities geared toward expediting railcars back into service. Activities at the Bude facility include wreck repair, wheel and axle repair, cleaning, interior lining and painting, and it has the capacity to house 250 railcars at a time. The Bude facility currently employs approximately 100 workers.
“American Railcar Industries has been a fixture in the southwest Mississippi business community for nearly four decades, and the company’s expansion into Brookhaven is great news for the region,” Governor Bryant said. “I appreciate the company for its investment in our state and for creating new jobs for the residents of southwest Mississippi.”
“ARI’s ability to provide both expedited repairs at Brookhaven and full service maintenance at Bude will position us to broaden our overall customer base and better serve traffic on the CNRR’s Chicago to New Orleans mainline,” said John C. Ward, ARI director of business development. “ARI has operated in Bude for almost 40 years, and we are proud of our long-term success there and attribute that success to the outstanding employees that have been a part of our operation over the years. The work ethic of the good people in southwest Mississippi is second to none, and we look forward to a long-term relationship here in Brookhaven, as well.”
“We thank the Governor’s office, the Mississippi Development Authority, the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors, the mayor and Board of Aldermen of Brookhaven, the Brookhaven-Lincoln County Chamber of Commerce and the Lincoln County Industrial Development Authority for their assistance in bringing ARI to Brookhaven,” said Ward.
The Mississippi Development Authority (MDA) provided assistance to help construct a city-owned rail spur into the facility and assistance to the company to help construct its new Brookhaven facility. The City of Brookhaven and Lincoln County also provided assistance for the project.
“We are honored to assist American Railcar Industries with its expansion into Brookhaven, and I thank our local partners who worked to make this project possible,” said MDA Executive Director Brent Christensen. “We wish American Railcar Industries many more years of success in southwest Mississippi.”
Based in St. Charles, Mo., ARI was formed in 1994 when the railcar component manufacturing and railcar maintenance assets were acquired from its predecessor company, American Car and Foundry Company. Today, ARI is a fully-integrated supplier to the North American freight car market. ARI designs and manufactures new railcars and railcar parts, operates a network of railcar repair centers and provides fleet management and engineering services to shippers, equipment leasing companies and railroads. For more information, please visit www.americanrailcar.com.
About Mississippi Development Authority
Mississippi Development Authority is the State of Mississippi’s lead economic and community development agency. Nearly 300 employees are engaged in providing services to businesses, communities and workers in the state. While the agency is best known for its efforts to recruit new businesses to Mississippi, the Authority provides services to promote tourism, help communities improve their quality of place, help existing employers identify and meet opportunities and challenges and help workers improve their skills – all with the goal of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of Mississippians. For more information, visit MDA’s website at www.mississippi.org.
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