SCHOTT Pharma USA, Inc., a global specialty glass and material technology company, will invest $371 million for a new facility in Wilson, North Carolina, to manufacture tubing, pre-finish products, and ceramics for its home tech and pharma business units. The project will create 401 jobs in Wilson County.
SCHOTT Pharma is a subsidiary of SCHOTT Group, an international technology company with over 140 years of experience in specialty glass, glass-ceramics and high-tech materials. The company’s products are used in home appliances, pharmaceuticals, electronics, optics, life sciences, automotive and aviation. SCHOTT has been on the forefront of science and innovation, providing glass for the European Southern Observatory’s Extremely Large Telescope, the National Ignition Facility’s nuclear fusion laser system and Quotient’s transfusion diagnostic tools. The company also has a commitment to sustainability, with the goal of becoming the world’s first specialty glass manufacturer to reach climate neutrality by 2023. SCHOTT Group is headquartered in Mainz, Germany, and employs more than 17,000 people in over 30 countries around the globe.
“Our existing network of German companies, workforce development and apprenticeship programs and many German communities across the state are what attracts a steady flow of German interest in North Carolina,” said Christopher Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. “We are proud that North Carolina can provide the resources companies like SCHOTT need, fortifying our already strong economic ties with Germany.”
Over the past 10 years, 109 new projects and expansions from German companies have been announced in North Carolina, creating more than 7,000 new jobs, and generating over $2 billion in capital investment. More than 43,000 North Carolinians work for over 400 German companies in the state, such as Siemens Energy, GlaxoSmith Kline, Ziehl-Abegg and Schunk, with more than 280 companies being manufacturers and wholesale suppliers. Forty-five German companies have established their US headquarters in the state. Siemens Energy recently announced an expansion in North Carolina, investing $149.8 million to establish the company’s first manufacturing site in the United States to build Large Power Transformers (LPTs), a critical component of the nation’s power grid, adding 559 new jobs in Mecklenburg County.
The EDPNC partnered with the North Carolina Department of Commerce on this project, offering support during company’s decision-making process.
Although wages will vary depending on the position, the average salary for SCHOTT’s new positions will be $57,868 which is more than Wilson County’s average wage of $52,619.
The Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina would like to recognize the North Carolina Department of Commerce as well as other key partners involved in this project, including the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Community College System, Commerce’s Division of Workforce Solutions, Wilson County, the City of Wilson and the Wilson Economic Development Council.