The owners of Great Lakes Forest Products, an Elkhart-based lumber manufacturing business, announced plans to establish a new sister company to produce laminated wood panels. The new company, Great Lakes Lamination, plans create up to 100 new jobs in Bristol over the next few years.
“We are thrilled to see businesses growing and launching new operations here in the most manufacturing-intensive state in the country,” said Elaine Bedel, president of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. “The establishment of Great Lakes Lamination sets the northern region of the state up for continued success for many years to come.”
Great Lakes Lamination will invest $7 million to establish operations in Bristol, purchasing and equipping a 115,000-square-foot facility at 1103 S. Maple St. The company, which plans to start new production this summer, will largely serve the RV industry, which is heavily concentrated in north central Indiana. The state produces approximately 80 percent of the world’s RVs, with industry shipments topping more than 483,000 models in 2018.
The company will be led by the leadership team of its sister company, Great Lakes Forest Products. In order to support its new and growing business, Great Lakes Lamination expects to hire between 50 and 100 new positions by the end of 2022. The company anticipates ramping up recruiting efforts in the second quarter of 2019 to hire new production positions.
“We are very excited to start Great Lakes Lamination and are thankful we have the support from the community,” said Mark Smith, co-owner of Great Lakes Forest Products. “We believe that Bristol is an ideal production and shipping location to service our current customers and expand into other markets. We are thankful for the opportunity the Bristol Town Council and state of Indiana have presented to us and look forward to growing together.”
“The town of Bristol is pleased to welcome Great Lakes Lamination into our community,” said Michael Mitchell, Bristol town manager. “As our new industrial neighbor, Great Lakes Lamination will be renovating an unused industrial building and providing jobs to the people of Bristol and Elkhart County. … By working with Great Lakes Lamination and the Elkhart County EDC to bring this new business to our community, Bristol continues to provide businesses across multiple sectors a culture and location for success.”
The IEDC offered Great Lakes Lamination up to $500,000 in conditional tax credits based on the company’s plans to create up to 100 new jobs by the end of 2022. These tax credits are performance-based, meaning until Hoosiers are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. The town of Bristol approved additional incentives based on the company’s plans to create up to 53 new jobs by 2021.
