Pittsburgh’s HarbisonWalker International announced it will invest $25 million to open a manufacturing, service and distribution hub for steel customers in the Southeast, bringing 50 new jobs to the Fairfield area of Birmingham.
The company proposes to convert a closed property it owns at 2595 Ensley-Pleasant Grove Road to produce world-class magnesia-carbon brick refractories specifically engineered to maximize efficiency and performance in critical steel making applications like steel ladles and low-emission electric arc furnaces (EAFs). Construction will begin during the first quarter of 2022 and the 200,000-square-foot facility is expected to open before the end of 2022.
See how refractories work. Source: HarbisonWalker International
“After considering several location options, we are pleased to become a part of the Fairfield - Birmingham business community in Jefferson County again and bring jobs to the region,” said Carol Jackson, Chairman and CEO of HarbisonWalker International. “The location is ideal for delivering quality refractory products and high-value services to our customers' growing steel operations in the southern U.S.”
HarbisonWalker’s return is a sign of Birmingham and Fairfield’s continued strength in the steel industry, said Ron Kitchens, CEO of the Birmingham Business Alliance, which worked with the company, the City of Fairfield and Jefferson County to attract the company to the area and negotiate abatements.
"The fundamentals for manufacturing and distribution success remain solid in the Fairfield area of Birmingham, and that's evident by HarbisonWalker International returning to build a southern hub for its refractory business," said Kitchens. "Our distribution network and workforce are strong and will support future opportunities for this global company to grow."
Employee recruitment and training will begin in early 2022. The company will seek local candidates through job fairs and other recruiting efforts, including working with Alabama Industrial Development Training (AIDT) to hire and train new employees.
"Fairfield is excited to welcome HarbisonWalker International to our city as a southern hub for its operations,” said Fairfield Mayor Eddie Penny. “We look forward to a continued relationship to help this global company grow.”
"We are excited to work with HarbisonWalker International to bring jobs to the Fairfield area of Jefferson County," said Jefferson County Commissioner Steve Ammons, who chairs the commission's Economic Development Committee. "Providing more and better opportunities for our citizens is our goal in working with companies and municipalities.”
Click here to learn more about the project and the company.