Governor Stein Announces 39 Jobs as Concrete Manufacturer Selects Randolph County for New Plant

Today, Governor Josh Stein announced that Gillespie Precast will establish a new manufacturing plant in Randolph County that will create 39 jobs. The company, a leading producer of custom precast concrete, will invest $10 million in Asheboro.

“North Carolina offers manufacturing companies like Gillespie Precast an outstanding place to do business,” said Governor Stein. “We’re the number one manufacturing state in the Southeast thanks to our skilled, well-trained workforce.”

Gillespie Precast is a fifth-generation family-owned company with headquarters in Chestertown, Maryland. It manufactures a wide range of concrete products used in different industrial applications, such as box culverts, utility vaults, and custom walls. Precast concrete is an engineered construction product produced by casting concrete in a reusable mold or "form" which is then cured in a controlled environment, transported to a construction site, and maneuvered into place. The company’s project in Randolph County will establish a manufacturing operation to produce precast concrete wet and dry utility vaults, manholes, catch basins, box culverts and other custom structures. The new facility will allow the company to better serve customers in northeast, mid-Atlantic, and southern markets in North America.

“The executive team targeted several sites both in Virginia and North Carolina for possible expansion,” said Frank Sisk, Director of Business Development for Gillespie Precast. “The search led us to Asheboro, and once we walked the property, we knew this was going to be the place we would establish our southern base of operations.”  

“The Gillespie family has been successful for over a century by providing quality products to the markets we serve,” Sisk continued. “But it has been the exceptional service we provide our contractor partners that sets us apart from the competition. We believe that North Carolina and Randolph County, in particular, share the same foundational principles of family, quality, and service to our communities as Gillespie Precast and we look forward to being a generational benefit to the state.”

“Manufacturers like Gillespie Precast create durable, family-sustaining jobs in communities large and small,” said North Carolina Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley. “With our infrastructure, workforce, and state and local partnerships, manufacturers can find the right place to invest and create jobs in North Carolina.”

Although wages will vary depending on the position, the average salary for the new jobs will be $64,154. The current average wage in Randolph County is $49,355.

A performance-based grant of $120,000 from the One North Carolina Fund to Gillespie Precast NC LLC will help facilitate the company’s project into Randolph County. The OneNC Fund provides financial assistance to local governments to help attract economic investment and to create jobs. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for payment. All OneNC grants require a matching grant from local governments and any award is contingent upon that condition being met.

"We enthusiastically welcome Gillespie Precast to Asheboro and Randolph County, we believe this company will experience remarkable success in our community," said N.C. Representative Neal Jackson. "These employment opportunities and private-sector investment will further invigorate our region's economy."

“Successful economic development projects take sustained and focused effort from a wide variety of state, regional, and local partners,” said N.C. Senator David Craven, Jr. “I appreciate the hard work from the great folks that helped us reach today’s great announcement from Gillespie Precast, and we will continue to support the company as they establish operations in Randolph County.”

Partnering with the North Carolina Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina on this project were the North Carolina General Assembly, the North Carolina Community College System, the Commerce Department’s Division of Workforce Solutions, Randolph County, and the Randolph County Economic Development Corporation.