The Pillsbury plant in Midland was once known for its fluffy, rich biscuits, but now an armoured car manufacturer has rolled out the dough to transform the facility.
Midland's mayor officially welcomed Streit Manufacturing to town on Thursday after its recent purchase of the former Pillsbury plant.
“It is a tremendous statement of good faith and the future of this area given to us by an international manufacturer,” says Mayor Gord McKay.
Streit, which already has a plant in Innisfil, builds armoured cars for government agencies around the world. They also offer armour luxury SUV's.
The company plans to invest about $3 million retrofitting the building.
“With everything getting so crowded and busy closer to Toronto, we were looking for an area that we can expand and grow to our market demands,” says Florin Fleseriu, director of Streit Manufacturing Canada.
The company currently produces more than 500 vehicles per month globally. It’s estimated the Midland plant will produce 40 to 50 vehicles per month.
It will likely create 75 to 120 new jobs in the area.
A handful of people have been hired on already, some machinery has been moved in. There are also plans to build a ballistic glass business within this facility.
“Its Canadian operation, they said, we want our future to be here in north Simcoe and it’s a profoundly important statement,” McKay says.
Contractors are already at work getting the facility operational. The company hopes to get some production started here in about six weeks.
With a report from CTV Barrie's Roger Klein.
