Construction projects put momentum on display at Quonset

Today there are more than 175 companies, and over 9,500 individuals working at Quonset Business Park. These companies recognize Quonset as a smart place to grow a successful business, and they are helping to create more jobs for Rhode Island. Our tenants value our world class infrastructure, newly adopted lease incentives, and the consistent and predictable environment we offer. For several companies here, there are plans for growth, which is reflected in the number of cranes and construction equipment now strewn about the Park hard at work on various projects. Here's the latest: Electric Boat: Electric Boat recently broke ground on a new 111,000 s/f building as they begin their 42 acre expansion project at Quonset. The expansion, made possible by the signing of a new 25 year lease at the end of 2013, could mean the addition of up to 3,000 more jobs over the next ten years for the construction of Ohio class replacement submarines. The new building will be used for the construction of Ohio submarine hull cylinders and is set for completion in 2016. Quonset Gateway Offices: This Spring the QDC broke ground on its second small business incubator office building, as part of its Gateway Offices initiative. The first 14,300 s/f building was opened in September 2013 and was fully leased within six weeks. The newest small business incubator space is slated to open later this year. Supfina Machine Co., Inc.: One of the leading machine-tool manufacturers in Rhode Island, Supfina recently completed a 21,000 s/f expansion to its factory on Circuit Drive. It will give the company the potential to grow to $25 million in annual revenue and potentially boost its workforce from approximately 45 to 70 individuals over the next few years. Supfina also has plans to expand their office space on their premises by an additional 2,500 s/f in the near future. Toray Plastics America: One of Quonset's oldest tenants, Toray is nearing completion of an ambitious $20 million co-generation project which will help create 7.5 MW of new natural gas fired power generation for onsite consumption. As part of the effort, the specially designed overweight components were off-loaded at the Port of Davisville after arriving from Japan and transported by rail to Toray's location within the Park. Greencore USA: In March we announced a 50-year lease with Greencore USA to become a new tenant at Quonset Business Park. As part of the agreement, the convenience food manufacturer will build a 107,000 s/f facility onsite, bringing close to 400 new employees to the Business Park. Within 90 days of signing their lease, Greencore broke ground on the site and steel beams are already helping to frame the new facility. Mill Creek Marine: Serving boaters within Allen's Harbor for more than 30 years, Mill Creek Marine owns the first dry stack marina in Rhode Island. The full service boatyard and sales company recently completed a 1,600 s/f addition of office space and is preparing to add another 17,000 s/f of space to its dry stack marina. Once completed, the state-of-the-art marina will be able to hold more than 160 boats. Ocean State Job Lot: Over the past several months Ocean State Job Lot has completed site and utility work on 22 acres of land at its corporate headquarters, which also includes a 600,000 s/f distribution facility on Commerce Park Road. The project expands the loading and parking area to serve the many trucks coming and going from the distribution facility to Job Lot's more than 100 locations throughout New England and sets the stage for future expansion of their warehouse. The QDC is committed to helping businesses at Quonset succeed and creating the kind of environment that will bring jobs to Rhode Island. With the arrival of more businesses and many current tenants expanding we are making progress towards that goal and will continue to pursue it each day. Steven King, PE, is the managing director of the Quonset Development Corp., North Kingstown.