FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 22, 2006

Columbus, OH -- Governor Bob Taft today announced that the Ohio Tax Credit Authority has approved Job Creation Tax Credits for 12 companies involved in business location or expansion projects that, if located in Ohio, are expected to create 759 jobs and retain 615 positions.

Education Sales Management LLC (ESM), to be located in Lewis Center (Delaware County), has been awarded a 30 percent tax credit for a five-year term to establish a customer contact center. The value of the tax credit would be $347,501 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 10 years. ESM is a customer contact center that assists the education market, including K-12, higher education and corporate training markets. The company is headquartered in Highlands Ranch, Colorado and is considering sites in Colorado or the Lewis Center site to support the Midwest market. ESM has proposed to lease a 27,000 square-foot facility and will make a fixed-asset investment of at least $565,000, including: $450,000 for machinery and equipment; $75,000 for leasehold improvements; and $40,000 for on-site infrastructure. The project is expected to create 150 jobs within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

The James Group, Inc., located in Worthington (Franklin County), has been awarded a 30 percent tax credit for a five-year term to expand its software development operation. The value of the tax credit would be $61,791 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 10 years. Founded in 2004, the James Group is a privately held senior-level engineering company that develops a suite of data integration products and services and is currently a partner with major clients such as: Oracle Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, Sypherlink, Onbase, iSynergy and AnyDoc. The project includes leasing 4,200 square feet of office space that will be utilized primarily for corporate headquarters and software development, and an investment of $100,000 in computer equipment and office equipment. The company is also considering this expansion at its regional offices located in the cities of Morgantown, West Virginia and Indianapolis, Indiana. The project is expected to create 12 jobs and retain 14 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

LASTAR, Inc., located in Dayton (Montgomery County), has been awarded a 35 percent tax credit for seven-year term to consolidate their operations and expand their headquarters and distribution facility. The value of the tax credit would be $503,206 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site or in the city of Dayton for 14 years. Lastar offers standard and custom cables and has custom cable production and distribution facilities in the US and high volume manufacturing affiliate in China. In 2004, Lastar acquired Quiktron Inc., a leading producer and distributor of fiber optic cables sold across the US. The company is considering several options to meet the demand of its rapid growth, including the purchase of its currently leased facility for the expansion of warehouse and office space. The company is also considering moving to another location within the city of Dayton, or consolidating operations at Lastar's other locations in Iowa, Utah or North Carolina, and move to a decentralized facility configuration with regional sales, marketing and production facilities. Lastar will make a fixed-asset investment of at least $4.2 million, including approximately $1.8 million for the acquisition of the land and building, $2.083 million for new construction and $405,000 for renovations, subject to modifications upon the final selection of their facility in the city of Dayton. The project is expected to create 107 jobs and retain 125 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operations.

The Sharon Companies, Ltd., to be located in Akron (Summit County) has been awarded a 35 percent tax credit for a six-year term to consolidate operations and expand its headquarters and distribution facility. The value of the tax credit would be $292,697 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 12 years. Sharon Stairs and its divisions specialize in architectural metal products designed, engineered and manufactured for steel stair and rail systems. The company is currently engaged in determining the optimum location for a single, consolidated fabrication and office facility to meet the future needs of the company. The company proposes to make a fixed-asset investment of at least $1.07 million, including $75,000 for leasehold improvements and $1 million in machinery and equipment. The company would lease 172,000 square feet of the 900,000 square-foot Lockheed Martin facility located in Akron. The project is expected to create 87 jobs and retain 94 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operations.

Microteck Laboratories, Inc., to be located in Kettering (Montgomery County), has been awarded a 40 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to relocate and expand its headquarters and research & development facility. The company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 14 years. Microtek is a privately held company that focuses exclusively on providing custom microencapsulation services for industrial and military applications. The company caters to niche markets such as oil and gas production, graphic arts, agriculture, textiles, paints and coatings, sealants and adhesives, military and others. The proposed project includes the expansion of the company's research and development, as well as manufacturing and distribution facilities. Microtek will invest $420,000 for machinery and equipment, $270,000 for leasehold improvements and $720,000 for the building. The facility will be used primarily to perform research and development on and manufacturing of microencapsulation technologies and for headquarter offices. Ohio is in competition with North Carolina for this more than $1.4 million project, which, if located in Ohio is expected to create 25 jobs within three years of the project's initial operations.

MVD Communications LLC, in Cincinnati (Hamilton County), has been awarded a 40 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to relocate and expand its facility in the city of Blue Ash. The value of the tax credit would be $121,528 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 14 years. MVD provides converged voice and data network solutions for businesses of all sizes, including a wide range of equipment solutions, professional services, consulting, managed services, financial services and asset management solutions for its customers. MVD's services encompass everything from basic voice mail capability to the most intricate of call center applications. The company will make a fixed-asset investment of at least $250,000, which includes the lease of 99,299 square feet of space and building improvements, to increase its customer support and sales functions, as well as its information technology division. Ohio is in competition with Indiana, Florida and Nebraska for this project, which is expected to create 25 jobs and retain 49 positions within the first three years of operation.

AJM Packaging Corporation (AJM), located in Bellevue (Sandusky County), has been awarded a 40 percent tax credit for an eight-year term to relocate and expand its existing warehouse facility. The value of the tax credit would be $541,640 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 16 years. Originally constituted as a Detroit-based distributor of paper, plastic and related products, AJM is now one of the most innovative paper converters in the nation. The proposed project will add capacity to AJM's existing warehouse facility. AJM will make a fixed-asset investment of at least $3 million, including $1 million in building renovation, and $2 million in the purchase of new machinery and equipment. The company will own the 100,000 square-foot facility, which will be used to manufacture both private label and branded paper products, including paper plates, cups, bowls and bags. Ohio is in competition with Michigan and New Jersey for this project, which is expected to create 150 jobs within three years of the project's initial operations.

Champion Door Manufacturing Company, Inc., in Cincinnati (Hamilton County), has been awarded a 45 percent tax credit for a five-year term to relocate and expand its existing facility in the city of Sharonville. The value of the tax credit would be $38,755 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 10 years. Champion Door, a private company that is a subsidiary of Champion Window, is a manufacturer of custom doors for residential homes. The company will lease a total of 50,000 square feet to be used for manufacturing and offices and invest $180,000 in leasehold improvements and $415,000 in new machinery and equipment. The company is also considering its Colorado manufacturing facility and a larger operation in the western United States for this more than $400,000 project, which is expected to create 30 jobs and retain 33 positions within three years of the project's initial operations.

Danco Metal Products, to be located in Avon (Lorain County), has been awarded a 50 percent tax credit for an eight-year term to expand into a new facility in the city of Avon, The value of the tax credit would be $63,461 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 16 years. In 1941, Danco began fabricating portable x-ray equipment and now has excelled in the production of custom sheet metal fabrications as well as a variety of products from large construction equipment housings to parts for NASA's Apollo Space Program. The company plans to build a 60,000 square-foot facility that would be used to produce highly designed precision custom sheet metal fabrications. The project includes investments of $850,000 in land acquisition, $2 million in new building construction, and $1 million in machinery and equipment. The more than $4 million project is expected to create 25 jobs and retain 48 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

CK Technologies, LLC (CK), located in Montpeller (Williams County), has been awarded a 55 percent tax credit for a seven-year term to expand its existing facility in the Village of Montpeller. The value of the tax credit would be $114,496 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 14 years. CK was established in 2002 in conjunction with Cascade Engineering, which provides expertise and intelligent solutions for the automotive, solid waste and industrial markets. CK specializes in molding large parts such as bumper fascias and support structures, side fairing, grilles, rain trays, battery box covers, fender liners, splash shields, mud flaps and air deflectors. The project includes $750,000 for the construction of a new 60,000 square-foot building on 33 acres of land, $30,000 for renovation of an existing building and $4 million for the acquisition of new machinery and equipment. CK is also considering a site in Indiana for this project, which, if located in Ohio, is expected to create 36 jobs and retain 162 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operations.

Liquid Control Corporation, located in North Canton (Stark County), has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a 10-year term to expand its existing facility in Jackson Township. The value of the tax credit would be $548,706 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 20 years. Liquid Control has been a leading designer and manufacturer of highly engineered precision resin dispensing equipment solutions. Liquid Control is the knowledge leader in dispensing equipment. Liquid Control offers a complete line of single-component and plural-component equipment for processes that include electrical potting, encapsulation, resin transfer molding, structural bonding, sealing, doming, gasketing, shot dispensing and molding. These dispensing solutions are then provided for manual operations or teamed with the right level of automation for their customer's application. Liquid Control will make a fixed-asset investment of at least $5 million, including $4 million in new construction and $1 million in new machinery and equipment. The company plans to expand its existing 77,000 square-foot facility by 58,000 square feet to be used for manufacturing, distribution and research and development of precision dispensing equipment. Ohio is in competition with Minnesota for this project, which is expected to create 32 jobs and retain 83 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operation.

Exel, Inc., to be located in Groveport (Franklin County), has been awarded a 75 percent tax credit for a five-year term to establish a new distribution facility in the city of Groveport. The value of the tax credit would be $266,571 over the term, and the company would be required to maintain operations at the project site for 10 years. Exel is a global leader in supply chain management, providing customer focused solutions to a wide range of manufacturing and retail industries, including automotive, technology, chemical, consumer, healthcare and retail. Exel employs 25,000 in the United States and Canada and is part of the Deutsche Post World Net Group, a sister company of DHL. Exel plans to invest $6 million in warehouse equipment, $1 million in computer equipment and $80,000 in office equipment for a new facility to be used to provide a variety of dedicated logistic services for a confidential client. Ohio is in competition with Pennsylvania and Illinois for this more than $7 million project, which is expected to create 80 jobs and maintain 382 positions within the first three years of the project's initial operations.

The Job Creation Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit against the business corporate franchise or income tax. The credit equals a percentage of new state income tax withheld on new, full-time employees in Ohio.