GOV. EASLEY ANNOUNCES 55 JOBS IN LENOIR COUNTY
One North Carolina Fund Grant Helps Create Premier Trailer Inc. in Kinston 

RALEIGH – Gov. Mike Easley today announced that horse trailer manufacturer Premier Trailer Inc. will invest $464,000 and create 55 jobs during the next three years in Lenoir County. The project was made possible in part by a $25,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.

“This decision is proof that we are making the right investments to help businesses grow in our state,” Easley said.  “We are committed to keeping North Carolina’s reputation as the best choice for manufacturing companies that are expanding or relocating.”

Premier Trailer is a new company being created by national horse trailer manufacturer Double D Distributors, which has been making horse trailers from galvanized steel in Lenoir County for about 10 years and currently employs 33 people at a facility in Pink Hill. Premier Trailer is being created to build an all aluminum product line. The new company will move into a now vacant facility in Kinston.

Individual wages for the 55 jobs at Premier Trailer will vary according to job title and responsibilities, but the overall average will be $28,290 a year not including benefits. The Lenoir County average is $27,040 per year without benefits.

Premier Trailer spokesman Jim Yeates said the company considered locations in South Carolina and Georgia before choosing Kinston as the best site for the new venture. “The abundance of manufacturing infrastructure available in eastern North Carolina is overwhelming,” Yeates said. “We have found the citizens, local and state agencies a pleasure to work with and we look forward to a long and prosperous future.”

The One North Carolina Fund assists the state in industry recruitment and expansion by providing financial assistance through local governments to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. One North Carolina Fund grants are contingent upon a local match. Through the use of this Fund, more than 28,000 jobs and $4 billion in investment have been created since 2001.

“This project provides a great example of why the Legislature has been so supportive of the One North Carolina Fund program,” said Sen. Charlie Albertson (D-Duplin, Lenoir and Sampson). “Through the great work of state and local officials, we were able to add 55 new jobs to the 33 that are already here.”

“It is rewarding to see that our work in the General Assembly to create a pro-business atmosphere in which smaller companies can grow and expand is paying off,” said Rep. Van Braxton (D- Greene, Lenoir and Wayne).

Other partners who helped make this announcement possible include the N.C. Department of Commerce, Lenoir County, City of Kinston, Lenoir Committee of 100 and Lenoir Community College.

For more information about employment opportunities with Premier Trailer, contact Nathan Bradley at (252) 568-4042 or write to Double D Trailers Inc., 601 N. Kinston Blvd., Pink Hill, N.C., 28572.     

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