New England Snapshot: 53% Increase in New Plants Opening in 2007

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Reported by Annette Kreuger, for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas). The New England region is currently anticipating 34 new industrial plants to begin operations throughout 2007, according to a recent analysis of Industrial Info’s Industrial Project Database. This represents a gain of 53% over 2006, when 18 plants opened. The combined total investment value (TIV) of projects sourced from this year’s plants, both for original construction costs and planned future projects, is $616 million, which results in average site TIV of $18.1 million. The region, which includes the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont, could see the addition of 2,600 jobs once all of the plants are fully operational.

Massachusetts remains the regional leader in 2007 new plant openings, with 14 new plants, or 41% of the total. This is a 43% leap from 2006, when nine plants opened. The state has the possibility of gaining over 1,500 jobs from the new crop of sites. Connecticut is expecting eight plants to open before year’s end, giving the state 23 percent of the total. Vermont and Maine tied for third, with four new plants each. The remaining facilities are located within New Hampshire and Rhode Island, with each state adding two facilities.

The Industrial Manufacturing Industry is opening the most plants in New England this year, with 11 sites forecast to come online. Food and Beverage is a close second with 10 plants and Pharmaceutical-Biotech claims thirds with eight. The remaining facilities are sourced from Power (2), Oil & Gas Transmission (1), O&G Production (1) and Alternative Fuels (1).

The new plant activity will add to the region’s existing 1,600 operational plants as found in Industrial Info’s New England Online Plant Directory. The existing plants provide employment for 360,000 people in the region. With all of the major industrial groups represented in the region, the majority of existing operational plants are claimed by the Industrial Manufacturing sector, which employs 214,000 in 583 plants. A distant second place falls to the Food and Beverage industry, with an existing 207 facilities employing nearly 34,000. The rest of the operational sites are distributed among other groups, including the Pharmaceutical – Biotech Industry (Pharmaceutical Tracker - Online Database) with 146 sites employing over 50,000 people and the Pulp and Paper industry is on board with 184 facilities and 27,000 jobs.

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