171 new jobs comings to Tazewell County

Governor's news release
Published: July 31, 2008

Read the news release below

Governor Timothy M. Kaine today announced that Metal Manufacturing and Processing (MMP), a division of Raleigh Mine & Industrial Supply Inc., will invest $3.2 million to open a processing facility for both metal fabrication and truck parts remanufacturing. The company will create 171 jobs in Tazewell County. Virginia successfully competed with Kentucky and West Virginia for the project.

“Metal Manufacturing and Processing is a mining equipment company that was created to meet the growing demand for mineral extraction,” Governor Kaine said. “MMP’s location in Tazewell County will be close to its customer base and will aid the mining industry in Southwest Virginia. I am confident the company will find a skilled workforce in the area to meet its needs.”

Metal Manufacturing and Processing is a start-up firm in Bluefield, Virginia, in Tazewell County. MMP will provide material processing operations for other Tazewell County companies.     

Founded in 1978, Raleigh Mine & Industrial Supply Inc. offers round-the-clock service. Its companies are strategically located, with offices within 100 miles of all major mine-producing companies in the eastern United States.  The inventory at Raleigh is designed to meet the needs of the coal producer and the industrial market. Its diversity ranges from water to tools to track switches. The company has disposable supplies that are integral parts of day-to-day mining operations and the ability to provide products from point of origin to final use. Raleigh also maintains an inventory of used conveyor belts, structure, and equipment to sell to customers at a price considerably less than the cost of new materials. 

“When Raleigh Mine & Industrial Supply realized that there was a real need to be able to supply manufactured parts to our customer base, we began to search the tri-state area for a community that would welcome and support this company,” said S. R. Smith, President/CEO of Raleigh Mine & Industrial Supply Inc. “The response from the state of Virginia was extremely positive and the state offered several incentives which would help with the initial start-up costs. Also, we found that the tax base in Virginia would allow the company to continue to grow and still maintain a larger profit margin than in the surrounding states. We felt that the area offered many benefits for workers that would allow us to easily recruit and keep a work force. The assistance we received from Virginia made it easy to make the choice to locate this facility in Virginia and we look forward to continuing to work with the state agencies to experience growth for our company and also for the state of Virginia. We applaud the state for their work in maintaining an atmosphere within their state that is conducive to business.” 

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Tazewell County, the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority and State Senator Phillip Puckett’s office to secure the project for Virginia. The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission approved $100,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds for the project. The company is eligible to receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program, administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will provide training assistance through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

“Tazewell County is pleased to welcome Metal Manufacturing and Processing to our business community,” said David Anderson, Eastern District, Tazewell County Board of Supervisors. “Their decision to invest in a new manufacturing facility in the Bluefield Industrial Park is a testament to the area’s workforce development and Virginia’s pro-business environment. We are excited about the creation of 171 skilled jobs within five years and look forward to a continued, long and successful partnership with Metal Manufacturing and Processing.”

“While we have been very successful over the past few years with the recruitment of high-tech, information-technology based jobs in our region, I have consistently stated that we must also continue to work hard to create and attract new jobs in the manufacturing areas,” said Senator Puckett, 38th District. “That is one reason I am excited about this metal manufacturing company because it offers new manufacturing based jobs and there is still a great demand in our region for these jobs. We must continue to focus on helping our existing industries and attracting new manufacturing jobs in our area, along with our strong efforts to diversify and attract high-tech, information-technology based jobs.”