VectorTex USA Plans $6M Elizabethtown Plant With 44 Jobs

VectorTex USA will invest more than $6 million to open a manufacturing facility in Elizabethtown and create 44 jobs. Gov. Josh Stein announced the expansion last Thursday.

The Australian company will run a 25,000-square-foot production and innovation hub in Bladen County. This marks the first North American location for the firm.

VectorTex USA is the U.S. subsidiary of Vector Technologies, an Australian contract manufacturer for the life sciences, aquaculture, automotive, and food and beverage sectors. The parent company makes medical device components and product technology for oyster farming.

"We're excited to establish our new manufacturing facility in Elizabethtown, North Carolina," said Callum de Vries, technical business development manager at the subsidiary, per a press release. "This investment strengthens our ability to serve customers across the United States, shortening supply chains and strengthening our global engineering, quality, and production capability."

Workers will make tubing for CPAP machines and an oyster float used in aquaculture, according to Bladen County Economic Development. Operations are set to begin in January, with production starting shortly after.

The new positions will pay an average annual salary of $48,136. That wage matches Bladen County's average of $46,867. The project could bring an annual payroll impact of more than $2 million for the region.

"These new jobs will help families thrive and strengthen our rural economy as we keep working to make North Carolina the best place to live, work, and do business," said Stein in a press release.

A performance-based grant of $120,000 from the One North Carolina Fund will help with the expansion. "This is the kind of investment rural North Carolina needs," said Sen. Brent Jackson. "VectorTex's decision to bring jobs to Elizabethtown will strengthen our local economy and provide meaningful opportunities for hardworking folks in Bladen County."