Governor Sonny Perdue, Columbus Mayor Jim Wetherington,
Chamber of Commerce, and Cessna officials loft a shovel of
dirt at Wednesday's groundbreaking ceremony. (Dave Bender)
Wichita, Kan.,-based aircraft maker Cessna plant to build a $24 million plant in Columbus.
The plant expects to employ 150 workers, and joins two other existing Cessna facilities located at a nearby industrial park that employ 600 workers, according to company officials.
The new site is on a 40-acre tract of land at the Muscogee Technology Park, which the city acquired in a land swap with Ft. Benning, immediately to the south. The company says it needs the new facility meet the increasing demand for their business jets.
The plant will make rudders, flaps, ailerons and other mechanical parts for business jets, a company official told GPB News.
Governor Sonny Perdue touted the company role in the state at a groundbreaking ceremony:
"Cessna has already proved to be a great corporate citizen here and a serious marketplace competitor, and we're proud that you've committed to expanding the part of your workforce and the part of your business here and securing your position once again in our Georgia family."Many of the employees will be graduates of a special, state-funded Cessna training program at Columbus Technical College.
The $11 million, 100,000-square-foot facility is expected to be completed by August 2008, according to company officials.
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