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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Sustainable Building System’s To Invest $97 Million In North Haven, Connecticut Manufacturing Facility, Creating 408 Jobs

07/20/2012
Sustainable Building Systems, a $97 million joint venture between Australian-based Weeks Group and Arizona-based Diverse Services Group, will open its building panel manufacturing facility and headquarters in North Haven, Conn., with plans to employ more than 408 people within four years.

The new company will specialize in making sustainable building panels for homes, hotels, the military, and other applications. The new company will occupy nearly 400,000-square=feet of industrial space at 297 State Street, in North Haven, a city north of New Haven, according to Governor Dannel P. Malloy's Office

"Today's announcement is about jobs," said Governor Malloy. "There is a growing confidence in our state's economy because more people are looking for work. That influx in the workforce caused our unemployment rate to increase slightly last month, and it may well increase again. But let's be clear why this is happening. It's happening because more people are looking for work and we continue to battle national and international headwinds. With the investments we are making in growth industries, we are positioning our state for future success."

"Across the country, we are grappling with the fundamental question of how we can reinvent the American economy," the Governor said. "In the last century, the steel industry was the backbone of our nation, providing jobs and helping to build the middle class. Companies like Sustainable Building Systems represent the next evolution of that industry. By embracing 21st Century technology, what's old is becoming new again. Green products represent the future and I'm happy to welcome Sustainable Building Systems to American soil."

"Diverse Services Group has always been committed to increasing environmental responsibility and effective building processes, as well as having a positive direct and indirect economic impact," said Duane Armijo, DSG CEO and President of Sustainable Building Systems. "Combining our operational, administrative and manufacturing functions to create SBS allows us to meet the demand of our growing sustainable building industry, as well as provide more than 400 jobs to the local economy. We're very much looking forward to being an integral part of the community in North Haven."

"We are thrilled at the opportunity to expand in the United States and have the ability to share our innovative and customer focused organization that has provided quality products for over twenty years," said Peter Zitis, CEO of Steel Buildings Systems International, a subsidiary of the Weeks Group."Connecticut is strategically located to enhance the growth of SBS as we continue to expand our global operations."

State support for the $97 million project will be provided through Governor Malloy's First Five program, administered by Department of Economic and Community Development. The agency will provide a 10-year loan of $19.1 million at 2% interest to be disbursed in three installments, based on job creation. Funding will go toward the purchase of machinery and equipment, the Governor's Office said.

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