BAE to Mark Opening of Fort Wayne Center
The company produces aircraft controls
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowOfficials will host a ribbon cutting Monday at the new $39 million BAE Systems facility in Fort Wayne. Crews broke ground on the aviation electronics manufacturing center last year, which is located near Fort Wayne International Airport.
The ceremony is slated to include BAE Systems PLC Chief Executive Officer Ian King, BAE Systems Inc. CEO Jerry DeMuro, BAE Electronic Systems President Tom Arseneault, Lieutenant Governor Sue Ellspermann and Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry.
Plans for the facility emerged late 2013 after multiple new reports suggested the company was considering leaving Allen County for another site, potentially in Ohio. The city launched what it called an "aggressive" effort to retain the defense industry manufacturer and its approximately 1,000 jobs.
The new building’s developer is Indianapolis-based Scannell Properties, which has also completed projects including a GE Aviation center in Alabama and a General Mills operation in Michigan.
The company has been located in a 1940s-era facility that was owned by General Electric. The project to build the more than 350,000 square-foot operation received tax incentives from the city and the county.
In May, the company was awarded a U.S. Department of Defense contract with an estimated value of $383 million. It is set to be complete in March 2020.