Sportech Inc. will invest $6.5 million in an expansion of its manufacturing facilities in Elk River, Minnesota. The company will increase it's workforce by 43 associates.

The company, which makes windshields, body panels and screen print parts for motorcycles, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, and other recreational and utility vehicles, plans to build a 105,000-square-foot production facility, with room to expand.

According to state economic development officials, the company is recognized as a leading supplier of thermoformed plastic products to the power sports industry, with customers including Polaris, Honda and John Deere. Thermoforming is a plastic manufacturing process that converts a sheet of plastic into a highly detailed finished product, with less tooling investment than other plastic molding processes.

As an incentive, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development approved Sportech for $175,000 from the Job Creation Fund, pending the company meeting hiring and investment commitments.

“Sportech is an industry leader with a well-deserved reputation for innovative design and engineering practices,” said DEED Commissioner Katie Clark Sieben. “We thank them for investing in the community of Elk River and for creating new jobs in manufacturing.”