Reflex & Allen Group, a manufacturer of pneumatic, electrical and fluid systems for truck and engine markets, will expand its production center in Indianapolis, Indiana, creating up to 97 new jobs by 2014.

The Italy-based company equipped its first U.S. facility at 2655 Fortune Circle West in Indianapolis. Its 22,500 square-foot facility became operational in March. The firm is currently on its second phase of investment plans, which includes adding an advanced tube extrusion line.

Reflex & Allen, which has more than 500 employees globally, has already hired finance, sales, quality, operations, engineering, warehousing and production associates and will continue to recruit extrusion and general operators as part of this expansion.

"When deciding where to locate a facility in the United States, a detailed analysis was conducted considering key points such as transport links, supply base, customer base, available skills, labor pools, right to work and cost of manufacture amongst many other smaller factors. When comparing individual states to determine the location of our first facility in the United States, it was very apparent, very early on that Indiana ticked all of the boxes as to our requirements," said David Blackburn, managing director and general manager of Reflex & Allen North America.

"Our growth is a culmination of the hard work of our team both locally and globally as well as the tremendous support we receive from our global customer base. This latest investment will benefit our customers, ourselves, our employees and the local economy and it demonstrates the long-term commitment that Reflex & Allen is making to Indiana. We are here to stay," he added.

"With a world of options available, global companies like Reflex & Allen continue to discover Indiana," said Gov. Mike Pence. "They have done their homework and learned that Indiana's taxes are lower and our policies promote business growth. They recognize that opportunities are plentiful in Indiana, a state that works for business."

As an incentive, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Reflex & Allen Group up to $500,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $28,000 in training grants based on the company's job creation plans. These tax credits are performance-based, meaning until Hoosiers are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. In addition, the city of Indianapolis approved additional tax abatement at the request of Develop Indy, a business unit of the Indy Chamber.

"Recent headlines showing Indiana as a top state for manufacturing shows confidence in our ability to provide highly-skilled workers in a business friendly environment," said Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. "Since opening its first North American facility in Indianapolis in 2012, Reflex & Allen's growth sends a strong signal to other companies in the industry that Indianapolis is the ideal place to establish operations."