LITTLE ROCK — Production of a new energy efficient motor for use in heating and air units will result in dozens of new jobs at a Searcy plant and may open the door for hundreds more, officials said Wednesday.
ElectroCraft expects to initially add 55 new jobs as it partners with developer SN Tech to begin production of the new "green" motor, which reportedly costs less to make and is more durable and efficient than motors on the market currently.
Company officials had previously said the new product line would add at least 30 jobs to the Benton Avenue plant, which now employs about 70 people.
Gov. Mike Beebe, who joined company officials for the announcement on the factory floor, said the new jobs show Arkansas can compete even as businesses in other states send positions overseas.
"Arkansas is open for business for manufacturing," he said. "We have not ceded that to the Southeast Pacific rim or to South America or to Central America or to Europe or to anywhere else.
"You want to make it, you come to Arkansas," he added, pointing his finger for emphasis. "... We will manufacture in America. If they're not going to do it in the other 49 states, we're going to do it in Arkansas, America."
ElectroCraft board chairman Logan Delany said the motors may be expanded into other industries, such as electric cars, and that hundreds more jobs could come to Searcy down the road.
"We expect this to be successful," he said. "The only question is how successful."
Initially, about 25 engineering jobs with salaries ranging from $40,000 to $75,000 a year and about 30 manufacturing or shipping jobs will be filled.
In addition to providing new jobs, the "green" motors will reduce electricity and oil usage as consumers buy new heating and air units containing them or have them installed in existing devices, said SN Tech CEO Shannon Bard. He called the technology the most efficient HVAC motors ever made in the U.S.
"These are not just any motors," Bard said, adding he believes they can halve consumers' electricity bills. "That's a big deal."
Beebe said the motors have real environmental and national security benefits, since they will save electricity and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
"As big as the jobs are, this is bigger than just the jobs," he said.