The Georgia Department of Economic Development today announced that Pratt & Whitney, a world leader in the design, manufacturing and servicing of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units, will invest $65 million to retrofit and equip their Columbus Engine Center to perform PurePower® Geared Turbofan™ (GTF) engine maintenance on-site.

“Pratt & Whitney’s choice to retrofit and equip  their existing facility speaks to the ability of Georgia’s internationally-renowned training program, Quick Start, to meet a company’s unique workforce needs,” said GDEcD Commissioner Chris Carr.  “We appreciate Pratt & Whitney’s continued investment in the state of Georgia, and we look forward to working with our economic development partners in Columbus to support the company in future growth.”

Pratt & Whitney’s current facility is located at 8801 Macon Road. The investment will support the current employment of administrative, technical, supervision and technical support, production and maintenance positions at this facility. Pratt & Whitney plans to invest capital for facilities construction and improvement, infrastructure and equipment.

Pratt & Whitney started operations in Columbus in 1995 with its forging operations. Today, the company’s operations in Columbus include Pratt & Whitney Columbus Engine Center, Columbus Forge and PCI.

“As the GTF engine continues to enter into service, it is critical that we have a strong maintenance, repair and overhaul network in place to support these engines,” said Joe Sylvestro, vice president, Aftermarket Operations, Pratt & Whitney. “The Columbus Engine Center draws on decades of high volume engine maintenance experience and is well-positioned to provide the highest quality service to our GTF engine customers.”

“Pratt & Whitney has been committed to Columbus, Georgia for the past 30 years, having provided thousands of jobs for our residents and tremendous corporate support to our community,” said Teresa Tomlinson, Mayor, City of Columbus. “We believe with today’s significant investment announcement that they will be providing more opportunities to our city and region for the next 30 years.”

“We here at the Chamber work very hard to understand the needs of our existing businesses, including what opportunities and challenges they face,” said Brian Anderson, President & CEO, Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce. “We knew this new engine could mean additional opportunities for the Columbus facility so we worked diligently to make sure we were a preferred location for the repair work we knew would be necessary as they rolled out the first of what will be thousands of Geared Turbofan engines.”

“We’ve been working with Pratt & Whitney for some time on this project and know how important it is to the long-term success of their operations here in Columbus,” said Russ Carreker, Chair, Development Authority of Columbus. “Our solid partnerships with the Georgia Department of Development, our Mayor and City Council, the Chamber, and our educational and training resources enable us to bring to bear the assets needed to win this project.”

Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) Regional Project Manager Candice Scott represented the Global Commerce division in partnership with the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, the City of Columbus, the Development Authority of Columbus and Quick Start.

Georgia’s internationally acclaimed workforce development program, Quick Start, will work with Pratt & Whitney to develop specialized training on new manufacturing and maintenance processes for employees.