Based in Janesville, Wis., Prent designs and manufactures custom packaging for the medical, electronics and consumer industries.
On Thursday, the Borderplex Alliance announced that Prent plans to build a new $12.5 million facility in Santa Teresa, N.M.
If approved, the 62,500 square-foot plant will be the company's 11th, and create 85 new jobs. The Santa Teresa Industrial Park gives Prent the ability to double its footprint in five years.
The average wage for full-time employees is expected to be $26.14, part-timers will make $15.75.
Prent primarily produces sterile barrier packages for medical devices, so the facility will be ISO 13485 certified and have a Class 8 clean room.
The deal has been in the works for more than three years. Once approved, operations are expected to begin in Fall 2021.
New Mexico is providing $500,000 in economic assistance from the Local Economic Development Act fund, with additional local incentives under review.
In a statement, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham noted the states economic opportunities. “The growth potential here is limitless. These good-paying jobs are proof positive that New Mexico is known around the country as business-friendly and a great place to invest right now.”
Prent employs nearly 600 people. According to the company, it has opened five greenfield facilities in 10 years, and hasn’t laid off an employee in its 53-year history.
Prent was founded in 1967 by Jack and Carol Pregont in Janesville, WI.
The Borderplex Alliance promotes business in the tri-state, bi-national region that includes Las Cruces, New Mexico; El Paso, Texas; and Chihuahua, Mexico.
Mark Rothlisberger, Senior VP of Prent Manufacturing, said, “The Borderplex region makes perfect sense for Prent. It’s an area ripe for innovation and partnership.”