By Dave Ongie, Managing Editor
Just over a year after breaking ground on a production facility located in the Washington County Industrial Park, ebm-papst cut the ribbon opening its new 177,000-square-foot plant last week.
The facility will churn out electric motors and fans that will be used for ventilation, air conditioning and heating across a variety of industries and is expected to support up to 200 jobs. Klaus Geissdoerfer, global CEO of ebm-papst, was on hand for the ribbon cutting.
Geissdoerfer was joined by other leaders from the German company, including Mark Shiring, ebm-papst’s U.S. president, as well as representatives from the Northeast Tennessee Regional Economic Partnership, the Chamber of Commerce serving Johnson City, Jonesborough and Washington County, and Washington County Mayor Joe Grandy.
When the company broke ground on the facility, ebm-papst’s leaders stressed that the 177,000-square-foot facility should only be considered Phase 1 of the company’s footprint in the Washington County Industrial Park. “It’s only step one,” Shiring said at the time. “We have enough land here to keep our growth going.”
