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Tempur-Pedic World Mattress Co. in 2007 completed its 800,000-square-foot plant, the largest mattress factory in the world, on Albuquerque’s West Side. In 2011, the company announced another expansion adding 100 new employees.
General Mills completed its $100 million, 176,000-square-foot plant expansion in 2010, which added two production lines and 60 more people. The company chose Albuquerque as the location of its first plant in the Southwest in 1990 and built its plant using $130 million in industrial revenue bonds.
In 2009 Schott Solar opened its $100 million, 200,000-square-foot solar technology plant and then opened a second production line and moved its North American headquarters to Albuquerque. The plant produces photovoltaic modules and receivers for Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants.
“New Mexico represents an ideal location for solar manufacturing thanks to the state’s skilled labor, advanced infrastructure, and commitment to solar energy,” said Gerald J. Fine, president and CEO of Schott North America.
Fidelity Investments Corp., one of the world’s largest providers of financial services, began operations in 2008 and the same year moved into a new 216,000-square-foot, human-resources operations center.
Molina Healthcare moved its information technology operation from its Long Beach, Calif., headquarters to a new $25 million, 25,000-square-foot data center in 2008. “What attracted us was the low-risk environment for our IT operations (freedom from natural disasters like earthquakes or hurricanes); affordable, quality housing for our employees; and the available labor pool,” said Ann O. Wehr, president of Molina Healthcare of New Mexico.
NanoPore began in 1993 with a new type of thermal insulation that’s many times more efficient than Styrofoam or fiberglass for maintaining temperatures. The company has since spun out five companies, built factories in Albuquerque and England, and operates around the clock.
“I found out just how good the work force is here. The national labs, Intel and the university all contribute to a strong work force in many areas, from assembly work to Ph.D. scientists. Plus, people tend to like living in Albuquerque. It is very easy to recruit employees to come here,” said President Doug Smith.
Vibrant Corp., spun out of another Albuquerque company in 2007, uses nondestructive technology to test aircraft and engine components. Founder Lem Hunter has been recognized repeatedly by trade journals and organizations for innovation.
Noribachi Group in 2010 launched a new company, Solar Distinction Inc., to build 25-megawatt solar panels at a new manufacturing plant.
“Shipping solar panels from Asia makes no more sense today than shipping oil from the Middle East when communities like Albuquerque have the engineering talent and manufacturing capacity to create photovoltaic technologies at a comparable quality and cost,” said Rhonda Dibachi.
Array Technologies, maker of solar-tracking systems, quadrupled its space to 49,097 square feet to produce tracking systems for utility-scale solar arrays.
In 2010 CleanSwitch, a startup that supplies solar thermal and photovoltaic products and installation services, opened its new headquarters in Albuquerque.
In 2009 Everything Channel opened its field sales and marketing services branch, which provides outsourced sales, marketing and analytical services for technology clients. The Massachusetts-based company studied locations for quality of life, cost and availability of a talented labor pool, and education standards.
"Albuquerque came out on top," said Carlos Blanco, managing director. Everything Channel is a sister company of PR Newswire, which consolidated several offices in Albuquerque two years earlier.