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Ground broken on Zotefoams’ $22 million expansion in Walton; 25 new jobs expected


State, local and company officials broke ground on Zotefoams Inc.’s expansion in Walton today.

Zotefoams, manufacturer of cross-linked block foams, is expected to invest nearly $22 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the company’s North American headquarters and create 25 new, local jobs.

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Zotefoams is a subsidiary of United Kingdom-based Zotefoams plc. For more than 30 years, Zotefoams plc. imported its finished products to North America. In the late 1990s, the company opened Zotefoams Inc. in Walton. Zotefoams began to import partially processed raw materials from the U.K. and perform the final manufacturing in Northern Kentucky.

This new investment will allow the Walton facility to become a full-process site. The move, which includes adding 53,000 square feet to Zotefoams existing facility on Precision Drive, is expected to help the company be more competitive in the U.S., better serve its existing customer base and significantly increase its global capacity.

“Northern Kentucky Tri-ED and the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development helped tip the decision for our global capacity investment towards Walton versus the alternatives explored,” said Dan B. Catalano, president of North America, Zotefoams Inc. “The cohesive, concerted effort and genuine interest in us and our business, coupled with the support and incentives, sent a powerful message to our board of directors of Zotefoams plc.”

Zotefoams’ cross-linked block foams are used in a wide range of markets, including sports and leisure, packaging, transport, health care, toys, building, marine and the military. Through a unique production process, the company produces foams that have controlled properties and are of a strength, consistency, quality and purity superior to foams produced by other methods.

The company first announced the expansion last fall, several months after Gov. Steve Beshear met with company officials during the Kentucky Export Initiative Trade Mission to the U.K.

“Zotefoams’ expansion in Northern Kentucky signifies that our region has a strong workforce and is an ideal location for international companies to do business,” said Rep. Sal Santoro, of Florence. “I thank Zotefoams’ leadership for being a part of our community and for investing in Walton.”

“Northern Kentucky Tri-ED and the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development helped tip the decision for our global capacity investment towards Walton versus the alternatives explored.” — Dan B. Catalano, president of North America, Zotefoams Inc.

“We’re thrilled that Zotefoams is expanding its facility and adding jobs in Walton,” said Northern Kentucky Tri-ED Chairman and Kenton County Judge-Executive Kris Knochelmann. “This project helps demonstrate the effectiveness of NKY Boost, Tri-ED’s business retention and expansion program, and our efforts to facilitate the success of our existing industries in northern Kentucky.”

To encourage the investment and job growth in northern Kentucky, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $600,000 through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.

KEDFA also approved the company for tax benefits up to $100,000 through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act, which allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development and electronic processing equipment.

For more information on Zotefoams, click here.

From Office of the Governor


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