TrueCore, a Nucor (NYSE: NUE) company, announced plans to establish operations in northeast Indiana, constructing a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in DeKalb County and creating up to 75 new, high-wage jobs by the end of 2023.
“With the state's business-friendly environment, skilled workforce and strong manufacturing sector, Indiana offers companies like TrueCore the ideal location to grow its operations,” said Indiana Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger. “We’re excited to welcome TrueCore to the Hoosier state as it establishes its first Midwest operation, increasing its manufacturing footprint and creating quality career opportunities in northeast Indiana.”
The South Carolina-based company, which manufactures insulated metal panels, will invest more than $28.5 million to construct and equip a 175,000-square-foot plant at 305 Industrial Parkway in Waterloo. The new facility will house two continuous production lines each at more than 700 lineal feet, with the first line producing foamed-in-place urethane wall, ceiling and roof panels, and the second producing mineral wool panels that carry one, two and three hourly fire ratings. TrueCore broke ground on the building in April and expects the building to be complete by December 2020 with production at full capacity by May 2021.
“We have been really impressed by the town of Waterloo, the state of Indiana as well as contractor partners like Felderman Design-Build who have all enabled us to fast track the development of our second facility," said Dean Soll, co-founder of TrueCore. “We look forward to growing our team and our business here in Indiana."
Formed in 2018, TrueCore produces insulated metal panels that are utilized as exterior walls, interior partitions and ceilings in the cold storage, food processing and general industrial construction markets. With thicknesses ranging from two to eight inches, and widths up to 44 inches, the company’s panels and facilities are designed to deliver consistent quality as well as reduced lead times. In 2019, a month after launching operations, TrueCore was acquired by Nucor Corporation, which has six operating facilities in Indiana, adding to the company’s North American portfolio of steel and steel product manufacturing companies.
“Waterloo Town Council granted TrueCore a tax abatement on real estate investments of $15.5 million and personal property investments of $12.9 million over a ten-year period," said Waterloo Town Manager Pam Howard. "We extend a huge welcome to TrueCore, and we are excited that they will be joining the Nucor campus bringing high quality panels and good paying jobs for many years to come in northeast Indiana.”
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) offered TrueCore up to $1 million in conditional tax credits and up to $85,000 in conditional training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. The IEDC also offered up to $165,000 in conditional tax credits from the Hoosier Business Investment (HBI) tax credit program based on the company’s planned capital investment in Indiana. These tax credits are performance-based, meaning the company is eligible to claim incentives once Hoosiers are hired. The town of Waterloo approved additional incentives at the request of the DeKalb County Economic Development Partnership.