Alpla Inc., an Austria-headquartered supplier of plastic packaging products, will invest $7.2 million to open a new manufacturing facility in Raeford, North Carolina, according to the North Carolina governor's office. The company plans to create 40 new jobs at an average annual wage of $32,450 over the next three years. The new facility will be on the campus of one of Alpla's major clients, Unilever Corporation, where Alpla will manufacture plastic bottles for personal care products. "The professionals from Hoke County and North Carolina have been exceptionally persuasive and friendly. They gave the most compelling case to locate our manufacturing facility in Raeford," says Michael Koenig, Alpla's director of finance. "We look forward to a long relationship with Raeford and the surrounding communities." The state will provide Alpla with a $120,000 grant, contingent on job creation, that will be matched by local governments.