JOB CREATION TAX CREDITS APPROVED FOR BUSINESS EXPANSION
Projects to create 1,280 jobs for Ohioans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 30, 2006

Columbus, OH -- Governor Bob Taft today announced that the Ohio Tax Credit Authority has approved Job Creation Tax Credits for 19 companies involved in business location or expansion projects that, if located in Ohio, are expected to create 1,280 jobs and retain 3,153 positions.

Nifco America Corp., located in Canal Winchester (Fairfield County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand its research and development capabilities. The value of the tax credit would be $75,686 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Nifco was founded in Japan in 1967 and was one of the first to introduce plastic as an alternative to metal for use as fasteners. Nifco fasteners have made a major contribution to the automobile and home electronic production processes. Ohio is in competition with Michigan and Japan for this more than $850,000 project, which is expected to retain 353 full-time jobs and create 15 new full-time jobs within the projects first three years. Other state assistance committed to this project is a $15,000 Ohio Investment in Training Program (OITP) grant.

Amkotron, located in West Chester Twp. (Butler County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand operations. The value of the tax credit will be $106,209 over the term and the company is required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Amkotron has become a leader in the repair and refurbishment of video displays, successfully building relationships with monitor manufacturers around the world. The company specializes in LCD module repair and provides warranty services to customers such as Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Phillips, and AOC. Ohio is in competition with California for this more than $4 million project, which is expected to retain 25 existing jobs and create 42 new jobs within the project’s first three years.

Ironhead Fabricating, Inc., located in Toledo (Lucas County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand operations. The value of the tax credit would be $122,786 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Ironhead is a diverse metal fabricator providing services for power generation, petroleum, engineering, air pollution control, industrial furnace, structural steel, and material handling equipment.. Ohio is in competition with Michigan for this $700,000 project, which is expected to create 50 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this program is a $10,000 OITP grant.

Owens Corning, located in Mt. Vernon (Knox County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a five-year term to reopen its Mt. Vernon manufacturing plant. The value of the tax credit would be $109,572 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Owens Corning is a world leader in building materials and composite systems, and is the market leader in the United States for fiberglass insulation. The $22,000,000 project is expected to create 30 jobs within the first three years of its initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this program is a $26,000 OITP grant.

AS Alliances Biofuels LLC (ASA), to be located in Bloomingburg (Fayette County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to construct its ethanol production facility. The value of the tax credit would be $361,216 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. ASA is an operating company that will be owned by AS Alliances Holdings, Cargill Incorporated, Fagen Inc., and United Bio Energy. The facility, at full production, will produce a total of 100 million gallon of ethanol per year and 300,000 tons of distillers grains to be sold to cattle and hog feed markets. The facility will be constructed adjacent to a Cargill-owned grain facility that will supply all the corn for the ethanol production process. If located in Ohio, this $142,851,668 million project is expected to create 58 new jobs within the first three years of the projects initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this program include OITP and roadwork development (629) grants.

Edge Seal Technologies, Inc. (EST), to be located in Northwood (Wood County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its manufacturing operation. The value of the tax credit would be $133,058 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 14 years. In less than twenty years, EST has grown from a start-up supplier for a single company to produce over three million insulated glass units for residential window and door manufacturers a year for companies across the Great Lakes region. Currently, EST operates out of three manufacturing plants in Northeast Ohio. Ohio is in competition with Indiana and Michigan for this $3 million project, which is expected to create 80 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this project is a $32,000 OITP grant.

Core Molding Technologies, Inc., located in Columbus (Franklin County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its manufacturing operation. The value of the tax credit would be $182,445 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. Core Molding is a compounder of sheet molding composite and molder of fiberglass reinforced plastics. The company produces high quality fiberglass reinforced molded products and sheet molding composite materials for varied markets, including medium and heavy-duty trucks, automobiles, personal watercraft, and other commercial products. Ohio is in competition with South Carolina and Canada for this more than $4.6 million project, which is expected to retain 380 jobs and create 52 new jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this project include a $30,000 OITP grant and a 166 direct loan for land acquisition and development.

Hobsons, Inc., located in Sharonville (Hamilton County), has been awarded a 55 percent tax credit for a six-year term to expand its manufacturing operation. The value of the tax credit would be $359,846 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 12 years. Hobsons specializes in recruitment solutions for colleges around the country. The company produces various types of marketing materials including websites, CDs, DVDs, and print products. All products are free to students and paid for by universities and colleges, and they currently work with over 1,000 colleges and universities throughout the United States. Ohio is in competition with Kentucky for this $370,000 project, which is expected to retain 89 positions and create 75 new jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

Technical Consumer Products, Inc., located in Aurora (Portage County), has been awarded a 55 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its operations. The value of the tax credit is expected to be $107,911 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. TCP is a wholesale distribution company that imports and distributes energy efficient lighting products throughout the country, with its core product being the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL). Additionally, TCP is gaining market share in the linear lamp industry by targeting flat roof buildings such as warehouses and gymnasiums with its innovative energy-efficient high bay fixtures. Ohio is in competition with California for the more than $11.5 million project, which is expected to retain 100 positions and create 26 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this project is a $16,900 OITP grant.

Tower Automotive Products Company, located in Bellevue (Sandusky County), has been awarded a 55 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its manufacturing operation. The value of the tax credit would be $327,515 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. Tower is a global designer and producer of vehicle structural components and assemblies used by every major automotive original equipment manufacturer, including BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Fiat, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundia/Kia, Nissan, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Volvo. Products include body structures and assemblies, lower vehicle frames and structures, chassis modules and systems, and suspensions. Ohio is in competition with Michigan and Minnesota for this more than $5.6 million project, which is expected to retain 136 positions and create 74 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this program is a $200,000 OITP grant.

Heartland Healthcare Services, located in Toledo (Lucas County) has been awarded a 55 percent tax credit for a 7-year term to expand its operations. The value of the tax credit will be more than $124,299 over the term, and the company is required to maintain operations at the project site for 14 years. HHS is an Ohio General Partnership, fifty percent owned by HCR Manor Care (HCR) of Toledo and fifty percent owned by Omnicare, Inc. (OCR) of Covington, Kentucky. HCR is one of the nation’s largest nursing home corporations, prominent in sub acute and transitional nursing care, and an industry leader in each market it serves. OCR is the nation’s leading institutional pharmacy provider, committed to providing quality pharmacy products and services. Ohio is in competition with Michigan, Florida and Kentucky for this $135,000 project, which is expected to retain 187 positions and create more than 75 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this project is an OITP grant.

Codino’s Limited, Inc., to be located in Versailles (Darke County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for an seven-year term to expand its operations. The value of the tax credit would be $50,000 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. Codino’s is a family-owned company founded to acquire the former Whiteford Foods pasta plant. Codino’s manufactures frozen pasta to retail chains and distributors throughout the Northeastern United States. Ohio is in competition with New York for this $700,000 project, which is expected to retain 41 positions and create 25 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

Mahika Packaging, Inc., to be located in Twinsburg (Summit County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand its operations. The value of the tax credit would be $144,173 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Mahika is a startup subsidiary of Empire Plastics Limited (Empire Plastics), a well-established polymer manufacturer from India. Privately owned Empire Plastics manufactures plastic injection molding, injection blow molding, tubes, and stretch blow molding. Ohio is in competition with New Jersey for this more than $7 million project, which is expected to create 45 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation. Other state assistance committed to this project includes a $21,150 OITP grant, and a $50,000 business development (412) grant.

Fleetwood Travel Trailers of Ohio, Inc., located in Edgerton (Williams County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand its manufacturing operation. The value of the tax credit would be $450,304 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 10 years. Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., is one of North America’s largest producers of recreational vehicles and manufactured homes. Ohio is in competition with Maryland, Georgia, Tennessee and Oregon for this $755,000 project, which is expected to retain 4 positions and create 200 new jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

IVS Hydro, Inc., located in the Village of South Point (Lawrence County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a 6-year term to expand its operations. The value of the tax credit would be $110,985 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 12 years. IVS Hydro is a national specialty service contractor. The company has divisions specializing in products including, industrial cleaning and waste removal, environmental services, hydro-demolition services, water blasting, spill response and remediation, chemical cleaning, etc. Ohio is in competition with Kentucky for this more than $4.7 million project, which is expected to retain 4 positions and create 30 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

Spartech Plastics, LLC, located in Greenville (Darke County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a 7-year term to expand operations. The value of the tax credit would be $312,261 over the term, and the company is required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. Spartech is the largest extruder of custom thermoplastic sheet and rollstock in the world with over 4,000 customers that create everything from signs to spas to automotive parts. Ohio is in competition with Indiana for this more than $8.3 million project, which is expected to retain 91 positions and create 90 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

AFG Industies, Inc., located in Bellefontaine (Logan County) has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its manufacturing operations. The value of the tax credit is expected to be $542,079 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 14 years. AFG Industries has been located in the City of Bellefontaine as an automotive glass manufacturer since 1986. The company currently offers the broadest product line in the automotive industry. Ohio is in competition with Kentucky for this more than $5.7 million project, which is expected to create 100 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation, while maintaining 467 existing jobs.

JLG Industries, located in Orrville (Wayne County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for an eight-year term to expand its manufacturing facility. The value of the tax credit would be $594,783 and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 16 years. JLG is the world’s leading producer of aerial access equipment and telescopic hydraulic excavators. Ohio is in competition with Maryland and Pennsylvania for this more than $8.7 million project, which is expected to retain 130 positions and create 150 new jobs within the first three years of the projects initial operation.

Copeland Corporation - Sidney, located in Sidney (Shelby County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for an eight-year term to expand its manufacturing facility. The value of the tax credit would be $523,577 and the company would be required to maintain operations at the site for 16 years. Copeland Corporation is a world leader in the production of compressors, condensing units, and electronics for the commercial refrigeration and residential and commercial air conditioning applications. Copeland employs more than 8,000 worldwide and is one of the largest businesses of the Emerson Electric Company, of which Copeland has been a subsidiary since 1986. Ohio is in competition with North Carolina for this more than $19 million project, which is expected to retain 1,613 positions and create 63 jobs within the first three years of the projects initial operation.

The Job Creation Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit against the business corporate franchise tax (CFT) (and eventually the commercial activity tax as it replaces the CFT), or income tax. The credit equals a percentage of new state income tax withheld on new, full-time employees in Ohio.