Area Development
RAYTHEON ALREADY IS THE biggest employer in the Tucson region of Arizona, providing work for some 13,000 people. The company’s a major player in defense, with products including the Tomahawk cruise missile and other systems ranging from mis¬sile interceptors to laser weapons to hypersonic missiles. Earning it Shovel Awards Project of the Year status for 2019 were plans to expand in Tucson and add a thousand jobs to the pay¬roll, after opening six new buildings in Arizona the year before.

{{RELATEDLINKS}} The positive headlines continued fol¬lowing its expansion announcement. Raytheon Missile Systems landed a billion-dollar Pentagon deal in Decem¬ber for work on the Standard Mis¬sile-6 system at locations worldwide, including Tucson. And in the first quarter of 2020, it was announced that Tucson would be the headquar¬ters of a business unit combining the already Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems and the Massachusetts-based Raytheon Integrated Defense busi¬ness. The new unit is called Raytheon Missiles & Defense, and the consoli¬dation is a byproduct of the merger of parent Raytheon Co. and United Technologies Corp.

2020 Gold Shovel Awards: The Winning States

  • Texas (12+ Million Population)
  • Virginia (8 to 12 Million Population)
  • Tennessee (5 to 8 Million Population)
  • Utah (3 to 5 Million Population)
  • Mississippi (Under 3 Million Population)

2020 Silver Shovel Awards

12+ Million Population Category

  • Florida

8+ to 12 Million Population Category

  • Georgia
  • Michigan
  • North Carolina
  • Ohio

5+ to 8 Million Population Category

  • Arizona
  • Missouri

3+ to 5 Million Population Category

  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Oklahoma

Under 3 Million Population Category

  • Kansas
  • Nebraska
SlideshowTop 2019 Projects By State

2020 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards: Projects Of The Year (2019)

Project Location Jobs Investment
Raytheon Missile Systems Tucson, AZ 1,000 N/A*
Apple, Inc. Austin, TX 5,000 $1 billion
Qualtrics LLC Utah County, UT 2,245 $45 million
Amazon Arlington County, VA 25,000 $2.5 billion
*Confidential
Close

2020 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards: Top 2019 Projects By State

  • 2019 Top Projects: *Texas

    Population: 28.70 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Apple, Inc.** Austin N 5,000 $1 billion Tech Products
    2. JPMorgan Chase Bank Plano N 4,000 $106 million Financial Services
    3. Uber Technologies Dallas N 3,000 $75.1 million Software Development
    4. Indeed Austin E 3,000 $29.8 million Internet Technology
    5. Allstate Insurance Co. Irving E 1,300 $11 million Insurance
    6. Steel Dynamics Southwest, LLC Sinton N 592 $1.9 billion Steel
    7. Bayport Polymers LLC (Baystar) Pasadena N 25 $810 million Petrochemicals
    8. Google Midlothian N 40 $600 million Data Center
    9. Phillips 66 Sweeny E 10 $500 million Natural Gas
    10. AW Texas Cibolo N 900 $400 million Auto Parts Technology
    *Sponsor: Lubbock Economic Development Alliance
    **Project of the Year
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Florida

    Population: 21.48 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Tellus Broward County E 30 $109.3 million IT
    2. NBC Universal Orange County E 150 $348 million Corporate HQ
    3. UPS Jacksonville E 270 $76.7 million Distribution
    4. Minimise USA Hillsborough County N 115 $81.1 million Corporate HQ
    5. VTMAE** Pensacola E 1,325 $210.1 million Aviation/Aerospace
    6. Lockheed Martin Corp. Orlando E 1,314 $300 million Defense/Homeland Security
    7. Alta Resources Fort Myers E 577 $21.3 million Corporate HQ
    8. Kroger Lake County N 350 $83.1 million Logistics/Distribution
    9. Royal Caribbean Miami E 100 $300 million Corporate HQ
    10. Starwood Capital Group Holdings Miami E 293 $110 million Corporate HQ
    *Sponsor: Enterprise Florida, Inc.
    **Sponsors: FloridaWest EDA & Florida’s Great Northwest
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Virginia

    Population: 8.63 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Amazon** Arlington County N 25,000 $2.5 billion Headquarters
    2. Incentive Technology Group (ITG) Arlington County E 1,000 $5.1 million IT
    3. Volvo Trucks North America Pulaski County E 777 $400 million Heavy Trucks
    4. Morgan Olsen, LLC Pittsylvania County N 703 $57.8 million Walk-in Step Vans
    5. Wegmans Hanover County N 700 $206 million Distribution
    6. PPD, Inc. Henrico County E 200 $63.7 million Contract Research
    7. Merck & Co., Inc. Rockingham County E 152 $1 billion Bio pharmaceuticals
    8. PointOne. Developments Ltd Fauquier County N 72 $265 million Data Center
    9. Hershey Chocolate of Virginia, Inc. Augusta County E 65 $104.4 million Food Products
    10. WestRock Covington E N/A $248.4 million Corrugated Containers
    *Sponsor: Virginia Economic Development Partnership
    **Project of the Year
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Georgia

    Population: 10.62 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Amazon Stone Mountain N 1,000 $237.1 million Distribution
    2. Home Depot Cobb County E 919 $42 million Tech/Software Development
    3. Stitch Fix Lithia Springs N 981 $15.5 million Distribution
    4. Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. Palmetto N 575 $77.6 million Distribution
    5. Wayfair, Inc. Athens N 503 $7.7 million Call Center
    6. Invesco Atlanta E 500 $70 million Financial Services
    7. Guidoni McRae-Helena N 455 $96.6 million Quartz Mfg.
    8. Kroger/Ocado Forest Park N 410 $121 million Food Distribution
    9. Irving Consumer Products Macon E 159 $400 million Paper Products Mfg.
    10. Ball Corp. Rome E 187 $283.5 million Beverage Packaging
    *Sponsors: Georgia Department of Economic Development and Georgia Ports Authority
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Michigan

    Population: 9.99 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC Wayne County E 6,433 $4.4 billion Automotive
    2. Ford Motor Co. Wayne County E 3,000 $1.5 billion Automotive
    3. Ari-El Enterprises Oakland County N 2,183 $63 million Real Estate Brokerage
    4. Amazon Kent County N 1,000 $150 million Distribution
    5. KLA Corp. Washington County N 600 $217.8 million Electronic Equipment
    6. My Locker Wayne County E 452 $20.4 million Custom Apparel
    7. Webasto Roof Systems, Inc. Wayne County E 441 $47.9 million Automotive Parts
    8. Acrisure Kent County E 400 $33.2 million Financial Services
    9. Roskam Baking Co. Kent County E 238 $85.2 million Food Processing
    10. Shunli Steel Group Monroe County N 110 $119.3 million Steel Products
    *Sponsor: Michigan Economic Development Corporation
  • 2019 Top Projects: North Carolina

    Population: 10.38 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. Mecklenburg County N 1,612 $153.9 million IT
    2. Chewy.com Rowan County N 1,200 $55 million Distribution/Logistics
    3. Chime Solutions Mecklenburg County N 1,000 $7 million Business & Financial Services
    4. Microsoft Wake & Mecklenburg Cos N 930 $71.4 million IT
    5. Q2 Solutions Durham County N 749 $84 million Biotechnology
    6. Pendo.io, Inc. Wake County E 590 $34.6 million IT
    7. Bharat Forge Lee County N 460 $170.9 million Metal Forging
    8. Cree Inc. Durham County E 420 $500 million IT
    9. Merck & Co., Inc. Durham County E 391 $650 million Bio- pharmaceuticals
    10. Pfizer Lee County E 300 $500 million Pharmaceuticals
  • 2019 Top Projects: Ohio

    Population: 11.69 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. AMG Vanadium LLC Washington N 102 $200.7 million Energy/Chemicals
    2. Ensemble RCM, LLC Springdale E 1,600 $14.5 million Healthcare Corporate Offices
    3. Total Quality Logistics, LLC Union E 594 $13 million Logistics/Distribution
    4. Apex Power Group LLC Valley N 25 $1.6 billion Energy/Chemicals
    5. Fortress Transportation & Southeast Infrastructure Investors LLC Southeast Ohio N 30 $500 million Energy/Chemicals
    6. Great Lakes Cheese Co., Inc. Troy E 400 $183.2 million Food Sciences
    7. Carvana, LLC Heath N 400 $22.7 million e-Commerce/Distribution
    8. Walmart Associates, Inc. Groveport N 525 $14.7 million Logistics/Distribution
    9. North Star Bluescope Steel LLC York E 90 $459 million Steel
    10. Willams Lea Inc. Columbus N 500 $4 million Business Services
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Tennessee

    Population: 6.77 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Smile Direct Club, LLC Nashville E 2,010 $217 million Corporate Offices
    2. Volkswagen Group of Americas Chattanooga E 1,000 $800 million Automotive
    3. Fedex Logistics Memphis E 689 $494.1 million Logistics
    4. JNJ Express Memphis E 610 $83.6 million Corporate Offices
    5. Arrive Logistics Chattanooga E 500 $3.6 million Logistics
    6. Western Express, Inc. Nashville E 225 $88 million Freight Trucking
    7. Hyosung Heavy Industries Memphis E 410 $87 million Motors/Generators
    8. Mueller Water Products Kimball E 325 $41 million Industrial Valves
    9. Pilot.com, Inc. Nashville N 455 $6.3 million Computer Services
    10. STULZ Air Technology Systems, Inc. Dayton E 250 $2 million A/C/Heating, Industrial Refrigeration Eqpt.
    *Sponsor: Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development
  • 2019 Top Projects: **Arizona

    Population: 7.17 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Raytheon Missile Systems*** Tucson E 1,000 N/A* Aerospace & Defense
    2. Microsoft Goodyear & El Mirage N 110 N/A* IT
    3. Fox Corp. Tempe E N/A* $150 million IT
    4. Fairlife Goodyear N 186 $200 million Consumer Products
    5. Red Bull Glendale N 144 $149 million Consumer Products
    6. State Farm Tempe E 1,100 N/A Banking/Finance/Ins.
    7. Farmer’s Insurance Phoenix E 943 $32 million Banking/Finance/Ins.
    8. Shellpoint Mortgage Tempe E 1,350 $13.8 million Banking/Finance/Ins.
    9. USAA Phoenix N 1,000 $20 million Banking/Finance/Ins.
    10. Opendoor Labs Tempe E 804 $21.2 million IT
    *Confidential
    **Sponsor: Arizona Commerce Authority
    ***Project of the Year
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Missouri

    Population: 6.14 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Boeing St. Charles/St. Louis E 2,000 $70 million Aerospace
    2. USDA Kansas City N 525 N/A AgTech
    3. Bayer AG St. Louis E 500 $164 million AgTech
    4. Benson Hill Biosystems St. Louis E 300 $52 million AgTech
    5. Safety National Casualty Corp. Maryland Heights E 300 $32 million Financial Services
    6. 1st Phorm St. Louis E 250 $20 million Nutritional Products
    7. ChowNow Kansas City N 173 $2 million Financial Services
    8. Niagara Bottling Kansas City N 49 $68 million Bottled Water
    9. Medline Industries St. Peters N 150 $47.5 million Logistics/Distribution
    10. Waddell & Reed, Inc. Kansas City E 1,039 $89.8 million Financial/Professional Services
    *Sponsor: Missouri One Start
  • 2019 Top Projects: Utah

    Population: 3.21 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Qualtrics LLC* Utah County E 2,245 $45 million IT
    2. BlueVine Capital Inc. Salt Lake County N 1,449 $20 million Financial Services
    3. Brex, Inc. Salt Lake County N 1,000 $23.4 million Financial Services
    4. Weave Communications, Inc. Utah County E 997 $65 million IT
    5. Ancestry US Utah County E 506 $10.5 million IT
    6. Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. Utah County N 500 $286 million Food Mfg./Distribution
    7. Oatly Inc. Weber County N 50 $40 million Food Mfg./Distribution
    8. GE Healthcare Cache County E 68 $31 million Life Sciences
    9. Amazon Web Services Salt Lake County N 300 $25.4 million IT
    10. Quick Base Inc. Salt Lake County N 485 $713,500 IT
    *Project of the Year
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Kentucky

    Population: 4.47 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. UPS Worldport II Louisville E 1,000 $750 million Distribution/Logistics
    2. Ford Motor Co. LAP Louisville E 185 $550 million Automotive
    3. CMWA Paris E 145 $111.9 million Automotive
    4. Pinkerton Tobacco Co. LP Owensboro E 120 $100 million Tobacco
    5. Georgia Pacific Consumer Operations LLC Bowling Green E 50 $100 million Paper Products
    6. AppHarvest, Inc. Morehead N 285 $85 million Agritech
    7. Meggitt Aircraft Braking Systems Kentucky Danville E 83 $82.7 million Aerospace
    8. Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC Bowling Green E 94 $65.1 million Automotive
    9. Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Erlanger N 593 $34.1 million Air Transportation Services
    10. Lakeshore Learning Materials Midway E 100 $27.6 million Distribution/Logistics
    *Sponsor: Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Louisiana

    Population: 4.7 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. LHC Group Lafayette E 500 $45 million Healthcare HQ
    2. Medline Covington N 464 $53 million Distribution/Logistics
    3. South Louisiana Methanol St. James Parish N 75 $2.2 billion Chemical Processing
    4. Methanex Geismar E 62 $1.4 billion Chemical Processing
    5. SNF Plaquemine E 150 $375 million Polymers
    6. Shell Chemical Geismar E 23 $1.2 billion Chemical Processing
    7. Exxon Mobil Baton Rouge E 65 $469 million Chemical Processing
    8. Valero/Diamond Green Diesel Norco E 54 $1.5 billion Fuel Refining
    9. Bagwell Energy Delcambre E 240 $2.5 million Energy Services
    10. EY New Orleans E 200 $2 million HQ/Financial Services
    *Sponsor: Louisiana Economic Development
  • 2019 Top Projects: Oklahoma

    Population: 3.94 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Tinker Air Force Sustainment Center Oklahoma City E 1,300 $120.5 million Aerospace/Defense
    2. Enable Midstream Services LLC Oklahoma City E 75 $1 billion EnergyServices
    3. TTEC Digital Inc. Oklahoma City N 450 $2.5 million Information Services
    4. Google North America Pryor E 100 $600 million Data Center
    5. Kimberly-Clark Corp. Jenks E 65 $132.7 million Paper Mfg.
    6. Preferred Sands of Oklahoma LLC Oakwood N 150 $112 million Mining
    7. Tubacex Durant, LLC Durant N 126 $44 million Tubing Products
    8. Kimray Inc. Oklahoma City E 355 $77 million Control Equipment
    9. Milo’s Tea Company Inc. Tulsa N 150 $55.5 million Beverages
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Mississippi

    Population: 2.9 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. Entergy Nuclear Hinds & Clairborne Counties E 320 $127.1 million Energy
    2. Baxter International Bolivar County E 70 $72.7 million Medical Eqpt.
    3. Kohler Engines Forrest County E 250 $13.6 million Engines
    4. ESCO (The Weir Group) Newton County E 150 $50 million Mining Machinery/Eqpt.
    5. VT Halter Marine Jackson County E 900 $37.5 million Shipbuilding/Repair
    6. Relativity Space Hancock County E 190 $59 million Aerospace
    7. Correlle Brands Marshall County N/E 450 $30.1 million Plastics Mfg./Distribution
    8. Amazon Desoto County E 500 $100 million Distribution
    9. Medline Industries Desoto County N 450 $46 million Distribution
    10. Spectra Laboratories Desoto County N 300 $88 million Life Sciences
    *Sponsor: Mississippi Development Authority
  • 2019 Top Projects: *Kansas

    Population: 2.91 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. King of Freight Wichita E 1,060 $1.1 million Freight Brokerage
    2. SelectQuote Insurance Services Overland Park E 968 $10.1 million Insurance Brokerage
    3. 1 Vision Aviation, PLLC Salina N 900 $5.2 million Aerospace
    4. Faith Technologies Olathe E 780 $38.5 million Pre-fab Electrical Products
    5. A Place for Mom Overland N 622 $5 million Back Office Park Operations
    6. CarMaxAuto Superstores, Inc. Olathe N 315 $5 million Back Office Operations
    7. Resers Fine Foods Topeka E 301 $54 million Food Processing
    8. Walmart Topeka N 300 $235 million Logistics/Distribution
    9. Advisors Excel Holdings, LLC Topeka E 275 $14.4 million Insurance & Brokerage
    10. Empirical Foods, Inc. Garden City N 300 $252 million Food Processing
    *Sponsor: Kansas Department of Commerce
  • 2019 Top Projects: Nebraska

    Population: 1.92 million


    Company City N/E Job Creation Investment Industry
    1. LinkedIn Corp. Omaha E 540 $70 million IT
    2. Monolith Materials, Inc. Hallam N 100 $100 million Natural Gas Products
    3. The Scoular Co. Seward N 100 $51.2 million Pet Foods
    4. Merck Animal Health Lincoln E 50 $103 million Pharmaceuticals
    5. Great Plains Beef, LLC Lincoln E 40 $360 million Meat Processing
    6. Google Omaha N 30 $600 million Data Center
    7. Thunderhead Wind Energy, LLC Neligh N 15 $309.1 million Wind Energy
    8. Plum Creek Wind, LLC Wayne N 10 $209.1 million Wind Energy
    9. Kawaski Motors Mfg. Corp., USA Lincoln E 50 $12.6 milion Aerospace
    10. Avansya Blair E N/A $50 million Sweetners
  • 2020 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards: Projects Of The Year (2019)

    Project Location Jobs Investment
    Raytheon Missile Systems Tucson, AZ 1,000 N/A*
    Apple, Inc. Austin, TX 5,000 $1 billion
    Qualtrics LLC Utah County, UT 2,245 $45 million
    Amazon Arlington County, VA 25,000 $2.5 billion
    *Confidential