The New Mexico Economic Development Department (EDD) announced that it approved $1.6 million in funds to assist nine companies in training up to 119 employees through the Job Training Incentive Program.
The Job Training Incentive Program (JTIP) board approves funds monthly in support of hiring, training, and upskilling New Mexico workers. Companies that applied in March are located in Albuquerque, Artesia, Moriarty, Roswell, and Santa Teresa. JTIP releases funds to the companies as cost reimbursement to cover a minimum of 50% of trainee wages for up to six months.
The nine companies included in this month's applications engage in advanced manufacturing, aerospace, and sustainable technology (including batteries, hydrogen, solar, and cybersecurity).
“We’re especially impressed, but not surprised, by the range of innovative companies looking to hire and expand throughout New Mexico,” EDD Cabinet Secretary Rob Black said. “Our state is fast becoming a hub for sustainable energy and advanced technology, which will propel economic growth and create high-paying jobs for years to come.”
The nine companies receiving JTIP awards in March are:
DesignStein LLC (Artesia) is a value-added manufacturing company that sources components and designs complete solutions. The company outsources tooling to produce injected molded components and manufactures safe heating devices and a variety of small consumer goods. Their target market is the aircraft industry, boat owners, and homeowners.
4 trainees; avg wage $24; award $59,810.
Franklin Mountain Packaging (Santa Teresa) designs boxes, containers, and custom packaging tailored to meet the specific needs of its clients. Offerings include corrugated boxes, packaging for fragile items, and more. The company is committed to ensuring that packaging solutions not only protect products but also align with customers' brand requirements and sustainability goals.
63 trainees; avg wage $20; award $701,117.
General Airframe Support Inc. (Roswell) provides maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for aircraft and aerospace components. The company specializes in supporting commercial and military aircraft with a range of services, including airframe maintenance, modifications, and inspections. General Airframe also offers parts manufacturing and refurbishing services to help extend the life and performance of aircraft.
32 trainees; avg wage $19; award $339,542.
GridFlow Inc. (Albuquerque) is building a tabletop demo battery for trade shows. The company’s flow-battery technology is safer and more cost-effective than other lithium-based products, giving it a competitive edge. This is GridFlow’s first JTIP award.
3 trainees; avg wage $24; 2 interns; intern avg wage $23; award $57,290.
Gridworks Inc. (Albuquerque) is a solar utility company focused on advancing clean energy infrastructure and grid modernization. It specializes in solutions to enhance energy systems' reliability, resilience, and sustainability.
2 current employees (Step Up Program); award $9,438.
Indica Labs Inc. (Albuquerque) provides solutions that streamline the image analysis workflow for digital pathology, including HALO and HALO AI for fast, quantitative evaluation of images and HALO Link for collaborative image and data management.
6 trainees; avg wage $46; award $152,632.
Pajarito Powder LLC (Albuquerque) develops and commercializes advanced electrocatalysts used in fuel cells and electrolyzers and essential for energy conversion technologies. The company is focused on improving catalyst materials, reducing costs, and scaling up production, particularly in fuel cell development and green hydrogen production.
1 trainee; avg wage $37; award $21,038.
Sceye Inc. (Moriarty) designs and deploys advanced, solar-powered stratospheric airships to provide innovative solutions in connectivity, earth observation, and environmental monitoring. Operating at altitudes of up to 65,000 feet, Sceye’s airships offer alternatives to traditional satellite systems, delivering broadband connectivity to underserved areas, capturing high-resolution data for applications like urban planning and disaster response, and monitoring environmental factors such as air quality and greenhouse gas emissions.
5 trainees; avg wage $68; award $248,656.
Securin Inc. (Albuquerque) provides customers with a comprehensive suite of security solutions such as ASM, VI, Vulnerability Management, and Penetration Testing. The company is built on the foundation of in-depth penetration testing and vulnerability research to help organizations continuously improve their security posture.
1 trainee; wage $60; award $34,377.