AptarGroup Inc., a dispenser manufacturing company based in Crystal Lake, Ill., announced it will invest $50 million in its Mukwonago manufacturing facility.
The company will use the funds, combined with $2.3 million in state tax credits it was made eligible for in July 2012, to invest in new manufacturing equipment and improve its research and development capabilities over the next three years.
According to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., AptarGroup has already invested $3 million of the funds in R&D and about $2 million “to upgrade its plant and capacity expansion opportunities.”
Mark Miller, vice president of tax at AptarGroup, said there are no plans to expand the plant’s footprint in Mukwonago, but there have been talks of adding a railroad spur.
The company expects to grow as a result of the investment, but Miller said there are no firm hiring numbers. AptarGroup has agreed to retain its 424 Mukwonago employees for the next five years in return for the tax credits.
“(We’re) adding presses to provide better customer service to our customers and just kind of the regular investment that you’d make to make efficiencies in a large plant like that,” Miller said.
The company recently restructured its business to include three market segments, two of which the Mukwonago plant focuses on – beauty and home and food and beverage, he said. It also named global R&D hubs, including its plant in Mukwonago.
“We’ve always been very happy with the work base in Mukwonago, and with this restructuring we’ve created what we call expert centers,” Miller said.
With the R&D investment, AptarGroup hopes to improve customers’ products and create new products out of Mukwonago.
“AptarGroup’s investment to support its facility in Mukwonago speaks to the commitment by the company to maintain its footprint in Wisconsin as part of its global presence,” said Reed Hall, secretary and chief executive officer of the WEDC.
WEDC said AptarGroup last year met the requirement tied to the tax credits that it retain its 424-employee workforce in Waukesha County.
“Our facility in Mukwonago has continually been an important location for our regional and global business, not only as a manufacturing plant, but also as a hub for our research and development activities,” said Steve Hagge, president and CEO of AptarGroup, in a statement. “Our continuous investment in this facility also recognizes the important contributions made by our employees in Mukwonago to our innovation, quality, and customer service.”
AptarGroup has a global presence and 19 locations worldwide where it manufactures and supplies dispensing systems for the beauty, personal care, home care, pharmaceutical, food and beverage industries.
