AUBURN, Ind.—Continental A.G. will invest about $4 million to transform an Auburn facility with a rubber industry history into a research, development and technology hub for its ContiTech Vibration Control business.
The $4 million investment will not only upgrade the facility, it will bring more than 45 new jobs to northeastern Indiana, according a joint news release issued by Continental and the Indiana Economic Development Corp. It also will allow ContiTech to consolidate its vibration control technical center operations, currently in Michigan and Canada.
By 2024, the Indiana facility should be fully operational.
To assist Continental with the investment, IEDC offered up to $650,000 in conditional tax credits, based on the auto supplier's plans to create jobs in the Hoosier State. The city of Auburn approved additional incentives at the request of the DeKalb County Economic Development Partnership, the news release said.
Continental took ownership of the 100,000-sq.-ft. facility in Auburn—which in 1896 served as the operations of Auburn Rubber Corp.—from Cooper Standard Automotive Inc. last year, as part of the $265.5 million acquisition of Cooper Standard's anti-vibration systems business.
"We are excited and grateful about this opportunity to grow in the region," Scott Bykowski, head of research and development for vibration control technology and noise insulation for Continental North America, said in a statement. "Thank you to the Continental management team as well as state and local governments in Indiana for their strong partnership and support throughout this process."