LANSING – State Representative Terry Brown (D-Pigeon) today announced that a state transportation grant will improve trucking access to the state-of-the-art Thumb Tool & Engineering plant in Bad Axe, which is undergoing a $1.6 million expansion that will create at least 10 new jobs.
"Widening the access road ensures that Thumb Tool & Engineering, an important employer in our community, can truck in parts and machinery efficiently as well as ship out their products on time," Brown said. "This expansion is exactly the kind of economic development we need in the Thumb."
Gemini Group-Thumb Tool & Engineering is a world-class designer and producer of a wide-range of tooling for aluminum extruders. Some of its dies are used to manufacture aluminum window and door frames. It is currently expanding to install a heat-treating operation, a project that involves $1.6 million in private investment.
The state Department of Transportation will provide a grant of $8,200, and the city of Bad Axe will provide a $2,050 matching grant. The money will be used to widen the intersection of Liberty Street and Skinner Road, which trucks use to get to and from Thumb Tool & Engineering's loading docks.
Currently, trucks are going off the road because the turning radius at the intersection is too tight. This can cause delays for trucks dropping off machinery and parts at the plant and also threaten the on-time delivery of the company's products to its wide variety of customers. Widening the road will solve these problems.
"The growth of world-class companies like Thumb Tool & Engineering shows that our workers are second to none, and I want to make sure we keep these kinds of jobs right here for our own residents," Brown said. "I am working hard to create more good-paying jobs for our workers and improve our economy so that we can move the Thumb forward. Each new job and each new dollar of private investment is a step in the right direction."