Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced conveyor systems manufacturer Process Solutions and Services Inc., doing business as Rapid Industries, will expand its footprint in Jefferson County with a $6.8 million investment that will create 25 jobs for Kentucky residents.
“Rapid Industries has produced conveyor systems in Kentucky for decades, and under its current leadership since 2016, the company has continued its success and is poised for even more growth in the future,” Gov. Beshear said. “Congratulations to everyone at Rapid Industries. I look forward to seeing what’s next for this quality employer in Louisville.”
Leaders at Rapid Industries will construct a 50,000-square-foot manufacturing facility adjacent to its existing headquarters on Oaklawn Drive in Louisville, where the company currently employs more than 125 people full time. The investment also will accommodate the purchase of new equipment.
Rapid Industries was founded in 1967 under the name Rapid Installations with six employees and a 2,500-square-foot operation. The company has since grown into an international business, serving customers across the United States, as well as exporting Kentucky-made products throughout the world. The private, family-owned company provides conveyor systems to support a range of industries, including parcel, automotive and appliance companies.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said the company plays an important role within the region’s thriving logistics sector.
“Benefiting from our competitive cost of doing business and central location, the e-commerce and logistics sectors have grown into a more than $5 billion industry locally,” Mayor Fischer said. “Rapid Industries provides critical infrastructure that helps logistics companies move and sort packages accurately and efficiently. We are excited to see the continued growth of companies in Louisville within this critical industry and congratulate Rapid Industries on their expansion!”
Rapid Industries’ growth builds on Kentucky’s manufacturing prowess, which in 2021 saw companies announce 13,900 new jobs in the commonwealth behind $10.5 billion in new investments. Statewide, manufacturers operate nearly 5,000 facilities employing approximately 250,000 residents.
The company’s investment and planned job creation furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth, as the state builds back stronger from the effects of the pandemic.
In 2021, the commonwealth shattered every economic development record in the books. Private-sector new-location and expansion announcements included a record $11.2 billion in total planned investment and commitments to create a record 18,000-plus full-time jobs across the coming years. Kentucky’s average incentivized hourly wage for projects statewide in 2021 was $24 before benefits, a 9.4% increase over the previous year.
In recent months, the Beshear administration announced the two largest economic development projects in state history. In September, Gov. Beshear and leaders from Ford Motor Co. and SK Innovation celebrated a transformative $5.8 billion investment that will create 5,000 jobs in Hardin County. And in April, the Governor was joined by leadership at Envision 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.
The economic momentum has carried strongly into 2022, with both S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings upgrading Kentucky’s financial outlook to positive in recognition of the commonwealth’s surging economy.
For April 2022, the State Budget Director reported the highest-ever monthly General Fund receipts of $1.84 billion. That is up 34.9% over last April’s collections, bringing Kentucky’s year-to-date growth rate to 16.4%.
And Site Selection magazine recently placed Kentucky at 6th in its annual Prosperity Cup rankings for 2022, which recognizes state-level economic success based on capital investments.
To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) today preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $300,000 in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $6.8 million and annual targets of:
Creation and maintenance of 25 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 10 years; and
Paying an average hourly wage of $25 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, the company 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.
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