Bringing balance to the local economy

On June 9, ground was broken at Innovation Park for a building that will house Morgan Advanced Materials’ new Carbon Science Center of Excellence. The COE will be the U.K.-based company’s first in North America.

The project is Penn State University’s first global partnership under Invent Penn State. It is also an example of the university and community working collectively and collaboratively to strengthen the local economy. At the time of the project announcement last July, Morgan officials said support from the university, the state and the CBICC, on behalf of its Centre County Economic Development Partnership stakeholders, was vital in making the center a reality.

Morgan’s investment here will result in between 20 and 25 full-time, wide-ranging and high-quality research jobs. It will also pay off in the way of homes purchased and intellectual property developed, not to mention the potential for future investment in Centre County. In fact, the company is already in dialogue with other companies to join them in the 27,500-square-foot building.

Proactive work to grow and bring balance to the local economy — through recruitment, taking care of our own or entrepreneurial support — is paying off. The dedication to partnership in the local community is critical to these efforts moving forward. To that end, the CBICC thanks Centre County, State College Borough, College Township, Ferguson Township, Patton Township, Spring Township, Half Moon Township and Bellefonte borough for their commitment to this project and economic development efforts that ultimately benefit the entire county.

This story was originally published June 15, 2017 at 10:22 PM with the headline "Bringing balance to the local economy."