Building (it) Together offers child care resource directory for workers

Building (it) Together, an initiative aimed at aligning education, economic development and workforce development to increase job growth in the Birmingham seven-county region, is offering a new resource for job seekers in Blount, Chilton, Jefferson, Shelby, St. Clair and Walker counties.

Building (it) Together – a regional initiative coordinated by Central Six AlabamaWorks! and the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) – will provide access to local child care resources for job seekers in those six counties to remove barriers for workers looking to return to their jobs or start new jobs with local employers.

Click here to learn more.

Acclinate relocates headquarters to Birmingham, citing region’s emphasis on health care, IT industries

Acclinate’s Tiffany Whitlow and Del Smith

Digital health company Acclinate announced it has relocated its corporate headquarters from Huntsville to Birmingham, citing Birmingham’s focus on health care, technology and the success of minority-owned businesses.

Acclinate is a new tenant of The Denham Building, where it occupies 3,000 square feet. The company launched earlier this year at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology in Huntsville and plans to maintain an office there, but its primary operations will be based in Birmingham.

“As we enter the next stage of growth for our company, it is very important we evaluate our long-term future, in terms of location and operations,” said co-founder Del Smith. “It is very clear Birmingham is focused on health care and technology and seeing successful minority-based businesses start here and grow strongly, which made us want to establish a significant footprint in Birmingham.”

Acclinate seeks to diversify genomic research and clinical trials and works to help biopharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations and academic medical centers increase representation and diversity within these trials. Through Acclinate’s trusted #NOWINCLUDED platform, the company integrates culture and technology to educate and engage minority communities to make more informed decisions about their health, genomic research and clinical trial participation. The company currently employs four full-time and is looking to grow that number in the coming months.

“We are uniquely positioned to help connect Birmingham’s robust healthcare community to the majority minority community that already exists within the city,” said co-founder Tiffany Whitlow. “I am hopeful that Acclinate will have a positive impact on the lives of individuals in Birmingham and build a significant and sustainable network here. To us, it’s all about people.”

After receiving support from the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA), BioAlabama, Birmingham Bound, Bronze Valley and others, Acclinate chose Birmingham as the location for its headquarters because of the presence of the University of Alabama at

Birmingham (UAB) and the region’s focus on growth in both the health care and information technology sectors.

“The Acclinate team has been well received by the Birmingham community,” said the BBA’s Vice President of Business Development Victor Brown. “From the City of Birmingham to local investors, there is tremendous appetite for the company and the services it offers. The BBA will continue to work with Acclinate and provide the company with our community’s valuable resources to ensure its growth and success.”

In Birmingham, Acclinate will find a community ready to support its work, said Britney Summerville, founder of Birmingham Bound and vice president of community engagement at Shipt.

“We're thrilled Del and Tiffany chose Birmingham!” Summerville said. “Acclinate is rapidly growing and the Birmingham business community is poised to help them accelerate that growth.”

Learn more about Acclinate’s #NOWINCLUDED platform here.

Birmingham startup granted patent approval, seed funding

Birmingham’s APEX Pro, a motorsports tech startup, announced the patent for its “Performance Coaching Apparatus” was approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, three years after its filing in 2017.

The apparatus describes how measurements are gathered, filtered, computed and displayed to a driver while on a racetrack, the company said.

Additionally, APEX Pro – based out of Birmingham’s DEFT Venture Studio and focused on helping drivers improve their performance through technology – said it gained seed round funding from an out-of-state angel investor, enabling the company to continue gaining market share and develop new technology.

“Having this patent granted is a huge step for our team,” said APEX Pro cofounder Andrew Rains. “Our team had a vision for the real-time display and executed that vision. This patent speaks to Dr. Austin Gurley’s foresight and innovative mind. The APEX Pro Team is proud to have our technology protected.”

APEX Pro’s success is representative of the strong entrepreneurial community that exists in Birmingham, said Jon Nugent, vice president of innovation and technology at the Birmingham Business Alliance.

“It is exciting to have a company like APEX Pro here in Birmingham,” Nugent said. “The issuance of this patent, coupled with the company’s recent funding event, are significant events for our local entrepreneurial ecosystem. APEX has created superior product solutions that continue to be recognized in the market, and the engineers and designers involved are examples of the world-class professionals here in our community.”

Learn more about APEX Pro here.

Birmingham company’s app tracks academic progress for students

In Alabama, the ratio of high school guidance counselors to students is a disturbing one to 491.

And, said Birmingham entrepreneur Duwan Walker, these counselors are spending so much time making sure the nearly 500 students on their caseload are on track to graduate that their primary function – providing guidance, counseling and emotional support to students – is pushed to the background and no longer able to be the priority.

So Walker created a first-of-its-kind software program, Hi-Ed, to tackle this problem. Hi-Ed uses technology to apply high school students’ transcripts to Alabama graduation requirements, showing students what classes are needed to earn their high school diploma and be admitted into the state’s two- and four-year colleges and universities.

This gives students power over their academic progression and connects the dots between educational institutions across the state at every level, said Walker.

“This is a virtual tool to assist counselors so that they can get back to what they’re really supposed to do – meeting the emotional needs and welfare of our students,” he said.

Walker, a former defensive coordinator under University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) football coach Bill Clark, made sure the app included athletic requirements for NCAA eligibility, streamlining another process so counselors can focus on the emotional well-being of students. The app also includes money management tools for students, teaching them how to budget and learn financial literacy skills.

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) has worked with Hi-Ed on its growth for over a year, said the BBA’s Vice President of Innovation and Technology Jon Nugent.

“Hi-Ed represents the best kind of entrepreneurship in Birmingham,” Nugent said. “The company is dedicated to improving student outcomes across the board and helping those most in need. We are very happy that this dynamic company decided to locate here in Birmingham.”

Hi-Ed – which stands for “Hyper-Individualized Educational Design” and is located in incubator Innovation Depot – was founded in 2017 and currently employs eight people. The technology is currently in 24 K-12 schools across Alabama and growing, and the company will soon launch a pilot program in two-year colleges. Eventually, Walker wants to expand the reach of the app to four-year colleges and universities, with the hope of transitioning these students from higher education into the workforce.

“As much as we are doing virtually, we now need a virtual tool in place for guidance management,” Walker said. “Counselors wear so many hats in a run of a day, this tool will help them counsel students virtually and traditionally. We also want to help parents understand they now have a tool that builds transparency from school to home. Parents can help track [students’ progress] and know exactly where students are.”

LaunchED seeks to keep hometown talent in Birmingham through high-quality internships, professional development

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) and the Birmingham Education Foundation have partnered to create “LaunchED,” a pilot program for talent retention that seeks to expose students to internship and job opportunities that exist in Birmingham and prepare them with life readiness tools needed for success.

LaunchED kicked off in November and is looking for employers to give Birmingham City Schools alumni internships in summer 2021 and help hone their professional development skills, with the hope of keeping their talents in the Birmingham region for years to come.

Click here to learn more.

Health innovation startup ResBiotech spins out of UAB

Lal

A University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) faculty member has founded a company to tackle the pervasive problems faced with respiratory diseases.

ResBiotech, a cardio-respiratory health innovation platform company, was recently launched by Dr. Charitharth Vivek Lal to target respiratory diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, asthma and others. Affecting more than 20 million people in the United States alone, respiratory diseases represent a $50 billion market and show no signs of decreasing.

ResBiotech, which was launched with UAB’s Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and is working with the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) and other partners to seek investors, will revolutionize the future of patient care and strengthen Birmingham’s health care and entrepreneurial ecosystems, said Jon Nugent, vice president of innovation and technology for the BBA.

“Birmingham is the right place to launch this type of company because of the continual health care innovation that is one of our region’s trademarks,” said Nugent, who has worked with Dr. Lal for over a year. “There is continued and widespread interest in state-of-the-art health care innovation. Dr. Lal’s vision, coupled with support from UAB and local stakeholders, could prove to be pathbreaking for Birmingham and Alabama as a whole.”

Using medical technologies to solve major health challenges, its first product, ResBiotic – currently in preclinical development – will serve as a wellness supplement for respiratory illnesses in people of all ages.

“The company will be focused on the invention, creation and monetization of proprietary medical technologies that solve major health challenges,” Lal said.

Dr. Sanjay Singh, a local entrepreneur, former UAB faculty and a member of the BBA’s Executive Committee, will serve as the strategic business adviser for ResBiotech. In addition, a Scientific Advisory Board will be created for the company.

“ResBiotech will be an innovation, investment and commercialization vehicle, with access to world-class researchers and facilities locally,” said Singh. “I foresee ResBiotech positioned to become a national leader in the cardio-respiratory innovation industry, one that could revolutionize patient care in the future.”

Dr. Kathy Nugent, executive director of the Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at UAB, emphasized Birmingham’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and Dr. Lal’s board service to Urgent Care for Children, another Birmingham startup that is quickly growing.

“It’s exciting to see research born in the university spin out and grow in Birmingham, as our ecosystem is poised for cultivating innovative concepts,” said Nugent.  

Click here to learn more.

UAB offers onsite COVID testing for local businesses as holiday shopping approaches

Credit: Quez Shipman Photography

The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is offering businesses in Jefferson County a safe and easy way to test their employees for COVID-19.

Through its Live HealthSmart Alabama program, UAB offers two onsite testing options to employees of interested businesses or groups of businesses in close proximity – onsite walk-up testing and onsite drive-through testing.

As COVID cases continue to rise and peak holiday shopping season approaches, regular testing will be essential to keeping employees and customers safe and healthy while reducing the spread of COVID, said Dr. Mona Fouad, director of the UAB Minority Health & Health Disparities Research Center, which is coordinating the testing.

Credit: Quez Shipman Photography

“Accurate and easily accessible testing should be on the minds of many business owners this holiday season,” said Fouad. “Knowing how and when to provide testing for employees and then being able to assure customers that employees are COVID-free should give business owners and shoppers some peace of mind.”

Fouad said the two types of testing sites are ideally located near clusters of businesses, such as retail and shopping centers. Here is what businesses and business districts will need to do to accommodate the testing sites:

Onsite, Drive-Through Testing

• Ample size parking lot (60 to 80 yards) that does not impede traffic flow or interfere with business operations. Lots that are clear of staff or visitor cars are preferred.

• Restroom access for Live HealthSmart Alabama staff.

• If testing is required for more than two days, storage for supplies is preferred. However, if it is not feasible, Live HealthSmart Alabama can coordinate loading and unloading.

• If testing occurs at 8 a.m. or any time before normal business operations, a designated contact will be required to let staff in the building for restroom and/or storage access.

• Wi-fi capabilities.

• Minimum enrollment of 100 people.

Onsite, Walk-up Testing (Inside or Outside)

• Wi-fi capability.

• Handicapped accessibility.

• Restroom access for Live HealthSmart Alabama staff.

• Electrical outlets for surface pros, iPads and cell phones.

• Adequate space for parking to offload, load and for the staff.

• If testing is required for more than two days, storage for supplies is preferred. If not feasible, Live HealthSmart Alabama can coordinate loading and unloading.

• Large room to test and register (usually gym or recreation room).

• Six tables and 16 chairs.

• If testing occurs at 8 a.m. or any time before normal business operations, a designated contact will be required to let staff in the building for restroom and/or storage access.

• Minimum enrollment of 100 people.

More information, frequently asked questions and registration can be found at the Live HealthSmart Alabama website.

Local startup partners with Brasfield & Gorrie to save lives

Last year, entrepreneur Oscar Garcia created an app called Need2Say with the intention of providing foreign health professionals and international students tools to improve their English communication skills.

But after seeing data that indicates Hispanic construction workers have the highest fatality rates of any group in the country, Garcia pivoted earlier this year, compelled to help these workers learn English not just to communicate, but to stay safe from harm.

Garcia

The company has launched its minimum viable product (MVP) and over the summer began working with Birmingham-based construction giant Brasfield & Gorrie, increasing the app’s functionality by identifying features that would be essential for jobsite use.

“A significant number of construction workers’ first language is not English, and that can make it more difficult to learn standard safety procedures,” Garcia said. “For this reason, the mission of the Need2Say app is to provide construction workers with second language skills, OSHA [Occupational Safety and Health Administration] awareness training, American culture and tools for tracking progress.”

For Brasfield & Gorrie, the partnership made sense, said Russ Gibbs, director of VDC, innovation and operational technology at the company, because of its emphasis on safety and its people. The app aligns directly with Brasfield & Gorrie’s core values.

“Anytime we can make our people better, more productive and safer, that is a goal,” he said. “If we can help solve a monumental problem like this, it’s important to us to give it all we’ve got.”

Garcia’s desire to make an impact in this space was contagious, Gibbs said.

“Oscar is addressing an area our industry needs to improve on,” he said. “His passion resonates in such a way that we want to support him.”

Garcia, who is a native Spanish speaker from Mexico, said the partnership with Brasfield & Gorrie was a godsend and that he appreciated the company’s mentorship and insight.

“Companies like Brasfield & Gorrie are a great example of what entrepreneurs need in Birmingham,” he said. “The construction industry drives the U.S. economy and has millions of jobs. We both want these workers to go home safely at the end of the day. That’s our goal.”

Garcia said he hopes accidents on jobsites never happens again in the Birmingham community – or anywhere.

“Our goal is to become the app that Hispanic construction workers know that they can rely on to increase their productivity, knowledge and safety on their specific project site,” Garcia said. “We are dedicated to this mission and dedicated to building a content library that will facilitate this positive change.”

Lowe’s to build facility in Bessemer, adding 150 jobs

Lowe’s Home Improvement announced this week plans to construct a 1.2 million-square-foot facility in Bessemer, adding 150 jobs and investing over $61 million.

The facility will be located next to Carvana on Morgan Road on 98 acres of property currently owned by U.S. Steel. Lowe’s will contract with developer Clayco to construct and lease back the facility, which will house bulk items for distribution like refrigerators and water heaters and will provide stock space for 112 stores throughout the Southeastern region.

“We are extremely excited that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has decided to increase its footprint in the Southeastern United States by locating here in Bessemer,” said Bessemer Mayor Kenneth Gulley. “This is the latest in our efforts to position Bessemer as an economic powerhouse for manufacturing and industrial development in this county, state and region.”

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) worked on the project that brought Lowe’s to Bessemer.

“This project shows resiliency in our local economy in that something this large has landed at a very critical time for both jobs and capital investment across the nation,” said Brian Jennings, vice president of economic development at the BBA. “This project provides access to jobs for the residents of Bessemer and may help backfill some displaced jobs as a result of COVID-19. It is a testament to the pro-business environment in Bessemer and the transportation structure within the Birmingham region.”

The bulk distribution facility will allow Lowe’s to provide quicker deliveries to customers across Alabama and the Southeast and will allow for next-day deliveries for a larger range of products housed within the facility.

“This project promotes Bessemer to a national audience as a place where e-commerce and distribution and logistics companies can thrive,” said Jeff Traywick, vice president of economic development at the BBA. “Lowe’s is a great corporate partner and joins a stellar roster of other distributors on the Lakeshore corridor like Amazon, Carvana, Dollar General and FedEx.”

Shipments from the facility are expected to begin by fall 2021. 

Amazon to add two delivery stations in Birmingham region

Amazon Logistics announced it will open two new Birmingham delivery stations, including a 112,000-square-foot delivery station in Bessemer, adding 80 full-time jobs and representing a capital investment of approximately $25 million. The Bessemer delivery station will also offer a number of part-time positions and around 200 contract drivers and is expected to open in 2021.

The stations will power Amazon’s last-mile delivery capabilities to speed up deliveries for customers in the Birmingham metro area, the company said. The Bessemer facility will be located at John Hawkins Parkway and Lakeshore Parkway.

“We are excited to continue to invest in the state of Alabama with two new delivery stations that will provide efficient delivery for customers and create hundreds of job opportunities,” said Amazon’s Owen Torres. “These delivery stations represent Amazon’s unwavering commitment to safety, technological innovations and skilled teams who are obsessed with delivering for our customers.”

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) has worked with Amazon since 2018, when it announced it would bring a fulfillment center to the Birmingham region.

“The Birmingham Business Alliance has enjoyed our relationship with Amazon since it first looked to our region as a location for its now operational, best-in-class fulfillment center,” said Jeff Traywick, vice president of economic development at the BBA. “We are happy to see Amazon’s continued growth with these delivery stations and the quality job opportunities that come with it. The local team, including U.S. Steel, Jefferson County, the Cities of Bessemer and Birmingham and our utility partners, have all worked hard to ensure the same high level of local support that they have become known for amongst our new and expanding industries.”

Amazon’s presence in the Birmingham region continues to have a positive ripple effect on not just Bessemer but all of Jefferson County, said Jefferson County Commissioner Steve Ammons.

“A few years ago, Jefferson County intentionally recruited Amazon with the ‘Bring A to B’ initiative,” he said. “Since then, Amazon has announced multiple centers and thousands of jobs. We are thankful for Amazon’s continued partnership and positive impact on Jefferson County.”

Companies like Amazon are choosing Birmingham because of its geographic proximity and connectedness to the entire Southeastern region, said Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin.

“Amazon’s announcement signals the resilience of our economy and the emergence of Birmingham as a logistics hub in the Southeast,” he said. “It goes directly to our priority of job creation. It also provides a great opportunity to redevelop this strategic district of our city.”

Earlier this year, an Amazon fulfillment center opened in Bessemer and has proven successful, said Bessemer Mayor Kenneth Gulley.

“I am extremely excited with the relationship the City of Bessemer has established with Amazon,” he said. “The fulfillment center which opened earlier this year has been a tremendous success and has given opportunity to many of our residents as well as others throughout Jefferson County and the surrounding communities. I have no doubt this Amazon delivery station will continue to build on Amazon’s success here in Bessemer and continue to create even more job opportunities for our residents. I am so proud of all the successful economic growth in our city. This is indicative of what can truly be realized when all of us – city, county and state – come together for the good of all.”

And the company’s continued presence in the region signals it sees locating in the Birmingham region as a smart move.

“With a large-scale fulfillment center already operating in Jefferson County, Amazon's decision to open delivery centers in Bessemer and Birmingham shows that the internet retail giant sees Central Alabama as a prime location to energize its growth," said Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce Greg Canfield.

For more information about how to apply for jobs at the forthcoming delivery stations, click here.

Auto supplier Mobis expanding into Birmingham region, creating 120 jobs and investing $15.8M

Auto supplier Mobis US Alabama LLC, a subsidiary of Seoul, South Korea’s Hyundai Mobis, will open a new facility at the Jefferson County Metropolitan Industrial Park in McCalla, adding 120 jobs within three years of the project’s completion and $15.8 million in capital investment as part of the project. This will be the company’s second location in Alabama. Its existing facility in Montgomery County supplies Hyundai’s plant in Montgomery and Kia’s plant in West Point, Ga.

“Mobis is excited about opening its second facility in Alabama, this time utilizing the great workforce in the Jefferson County area,” said James Jeon, Program Manager for Mobis US Alabama. “We are thankful for the tremendous support we have received from the Jefferson County Commission, the City of Birmingham and the Birmingham Business Alliance, and we look forward to being a part of this dynamic community.”

The Jefferson County Metropolitan Industrial Park – often referred to as JeffMet McCalla – is currently home to 13 companies, seven domestic and six international. Mobis will join Publix and Home Depot at the park, as well as fellow auto suppliers like Gestamp and Yanfeng. The park has been an economic driver in Jefferson County since it opened in 2000.

“Jefferson County is proud to be the home of another reputable automotive supplier and, specifically, to see that home be in our JeffMet McCalla Industrial Park alongside others in the automotive industry,” said Jefferson County Commissioner Steve Ammons. “Mobis’ creation of these 120 jobs continues to prove that Jefferson County is a key player in Alabama’s automotive industry.”

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) has worked with Mobis on this project since 2018, bringing the idea for the new facility to the company and working with Mobis on incentives to support it.

Brian Jennings, vice president of economic development at the BBA, said this project further represents the Birmingham region’s increasingly strong presence in the automotive industry.

“To land this partnership with Mobis is a tremendous win for Jefferson County at a critical time for jobs and investment,” Jennings said. “This project, when operational, will provide impacts beyond those in jobs and investment and put our region closer to building a cluster of next-generation automobile technologies and manufacturers.”

Click here to learn more.

Economic confidence rising for Birmingham-Hoover business leaders

Birmingham business executives report feeling more optimism moving into the fourth quarter of 2020, compared to a summer that saw its lowest drop in eight years, likely due to COVID-19.

Business confidence in the Birmingham-Hoover metro has rebounded to a moderately confident 55.3, rising 10.6 points above the region’s third quarter data and putting the metro on par with statewide confidence, which is at 55.2.

The Birmingham-Hoover business leaders polled in the most recent Alabama Business Confidence Index (ABCI) survey said they are most confident in industry sales (56.9), but the least confident in industry profits (50.6).

According to the ABCI report for this quarter, business confidence across the metro is returning to levels seen in so called “normal” times, where business executives forecast growth with moderate to high confidence.

Click here to read the full report.

Birmingham’s health care prowess positions local companies in the industry for growth nationally

Urgent Care for Children is a Birmingham-based health care company that is expanding outside of Alabama.

The recent expansion of two Birmingham-based urgent care clinics signals that the Birmingham region, long known as an epicenter for health care, continues to be a launchpad for growing health care companies.

MainStreet Family Care, founded in 2015, will expand its operations into three locations in Georgia over the coming months, and Urgent Care for Children, founded in 2017, will open two Tennessee locations this fall.

These represent the first out-of-state expansions for both companies, with both citing the increasing need for a bridge between patients’ primary care physicians and the emergency room as the reason behind their success.

“We realized there was a need for after hours and weekend care to support primary care pediatricians,” said Bannon Thorpe, CEO of Urgent Care for Children. “It’s better to have us around where you can go to a walk-in urgent care location and see a pediatric specialist rather than have to go to the general emergency room with a little child.”

Urgent care clinics are growing in popularity both across the country and in Birmingham, said Jon Nugent, vice president of innovation and technology at the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA), and Birmingham is producing companies to help meet that need.

“Urgent care facilities are incredibly valuable to the continuum of care, creating a bridge between primary care providers and the emergency room,” Nugent said. “Birmingham is fortunate to be the home to several of the leading urgent care providers in the country, dedicated to convenience and quality of care. In the current environment, many analysts expect urgent care to continue to grow, expanding into more communities for at least the next several years.”

Three years into operations, by the end of 2020 Urgent Care for Children will have nine locations – seven across Alabama, including three in the Birmingham metro, and one in Collierville, Tennessee, just outside of Memphis, and one in Chattanooga.

The company, which employs 75, said the Tennessee expansion was the first of many out-of-state announcements planned for across the Southeast.

Within the coming months, MainStreet Family Care – which primarily serves rural areas – will open three locations in Georgia, first in Bainbridge and then in Cairo and Fitzgerald. Additionally, the pediatric arm of the company, KidsStreet Urgent Care, will open its third location in Alabama in November, expanding to Montgomery.

The company, which employs 200, said the next phase of its growth was made possible by its new equity partner Trinity Hunt Partners, a firm that aligned with MainStreet to provide significant investment to fuel its aggressively-planned growth over the coming years.

MainStreet, which spun out of Innovation Depot, credits local Birmingham investors and the Alabama Futures Fund for the capital to support its plans to build about 15 clinics per year for the next three to four years, including plans to move into the Florida and South Carolina markets soon, said CEO Sam Eskildsen. By the end of March 2021, MainStreet will have either built or be in the process of building a total of 22 clinics, he said.

Thorpe said, though his company is expanding out-of-state, Birmingham will continue to serve as a solid backbone for his business.

“Birmingham is just such a good market right now for startups and new businesses,” he said. “People want to come here, and it’s just such a ripe location right now for growing business. There is so much potential for growth here.”

Birmingham is home to 75 health care companies, and the industry directly employs more than 59,000 in the region. The industry funneled $4.7 billion into Birmingham in 2019.

And both MainStreet and Urgent Care for Children represent Birmingham’s commitment to and prowess in the health care sector, said Emily Jerkins, director of research at the BBA.  

“The growth of these two urgent care startups headquartered in Birmingham add to the region’s growing health care services industry, which is anchored by companies like Encompass Health, American Family Care and UAB,” Jerkins said. “As evidenced by these two expansions, the Birmingham region has the quality and depth of talent and funding needed to support the growth of health care service companies.”

Interested in expanding your business in the Birmingham region? Connect with our team of economic developers today to get started.

Motion Industries announces $11.2M expansion as it consolidates two facilities into one, adding 15 jobs

Motion Industries, Inc., a leading global distributor of maintenance, repair and operation replacement parts and a premier provider of industrial technology solutions, announced plans to consolidate two of its facilities – a fluid-power shop and a hose-and-rubber shop – into a new, state-of-the-art 104,000-square-foot facility in Irondale, Ala. The project will create 15 new jobs, retain 13 jobs and represents a capital investment of $11.2 million.

The new facility in Irondale will combine two existing facilities in Irondale and Birmingham, thereby streamlining operations and increasing efficiency, productivity and sales. Motion Industries’ main engineering department, which currently works out of the corporate campus in Irondale, will move to the new facility as well.

The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) worked with the company on the expansion. Click here to read more.