HAMILTON, Ohio - Darana Hybrid Inc. is relocating its headquarters from Memphis, Tennessee to Hamilton, where it plans to invest $46 million in an office, warehouse and job-training facility for electricians, millwrights, riggers and supervisors.
“We’d really like to revive the skilled trades,” said Brenda Dane, Darana’s vice president of strategic development. “The state of Ohio is really the hub for a lot of businesses related to the trades.”
The Native American-owned company builds and installs conveyors and distribution systems for food, beverage and retail customers. It aims to create 200 new jobs within 18 months at a new location in the Hamilton Enterprise Park. It’s negotiating with the city and private developers about specific plans for the 60,000-square-foot facility.
The Ohio Tax Credit Authority authorized an eight-year tax credit worth an estimated $1.25 million to encourage the investment. Dane said the company may seek a reduced price on land and additional incentives from the city of Hamilton.
Dane said the company hopes to break ground on its new home this year and establish a training center at the site within three years. It’s now operating out of Hamilton’s city building and plans a March 6 boot camp search for its first 20 local employees. Those interested can contact Darana’s sister company, AMPS Staffing, at 513-785-7530.
"Greater Cincinnati continues to be a hub for industrial contracting, manufacturing and logistics companies," said Kimm Coyner, a Vice President for REDI Cincinnati, the region’s lead economic development agency. "We've been making and shipping things in this region since the 1800s, and we continue to support these industries today."
Darana Hybrid is one of four companies approved for tax credits in Columbus Monday.
An e-commerce retailer, Hayneedle Inc. will receive a six-year tax credit worth up to $369,000 for an expansion in Monroe that would create 104 new jobs.
The parent company for the pool supplier, Watson’s, was approved for a seven-year tax credit worth $200,000 for an Evendale expansion that would create 57 new jobs.
TV One Broadcasting Sales Corporation is promising 34 new jobs in exchange for a six-year tax credit worth up to $80,000.
