ATHENS | Caterpillar to build plant, hire 1,400 people | Business

ATHENS, Ga. - Caterpillar, with 5 Plants and 3,00 employees already in Georgia, will now  build a major new assembly and manufacturing plant to build small excavators and bulldozers.

They will hire 1,400 employees starting in January as painters, fabricators and assembly technicians for the Plant, which will open in late 2013.

The new Caterpillar plant will be built on a 780 acre industrial site in Bogart, just outside Athens at the intersection of Highways 316 (University Parkway) and 78, boarding on Clarke and Oconee Counties. 

The new facility in Georgia will become Caterpillar's global source for small track-type bulldozers and mini hydraulic excavators. The Assembly facility is being relocated to Georgia from Japan.

In making the announcement, Governor Nathan Deal tolde 11Alive that tax incentives certainly played a role in Caterpillar picking Georgia over neighboring states that competing for the facility.

"There were some tax incentives and one of the things we are working on right now in the (Georgia) General Assembly is to have the ability to remove sales tax from energy use for manufacturing.  That is a very important ingredient for a company that is a manufacturer and that will use large amounts of energy," Deal said.

The plant is expected to generate more than  2,800 support and vendor jobs, with facilities being built on the same industrial site as the Caterpillar plant.

The development marks the latest manufacturing relocation or expansion project in a State that has seen jobs erode and unemployment crest.

Toyota is planning to build a 600,000 square foot automotive compressor parts factory in Pendergrass, bringing with it 320 new jobs.

Erdrich Umformtechnik plans to construct a $39 million metal stamping facility in Dublin, bringing 178 jobs.

Tenneco, an automotive supplier that manufactures emission and ride control products, recently expanded its production lines in Hart county to add 350 new employees.