Sensors Technology Systems at a glance
• Sensors Technology Systems Inc. makes night-vision goggles and other electro-optical products for Special Operations forces, defense forces and law enforcement.
• The company expects to have 120 jobs at its Miami Twp. location at 3475 Newmark Drive by 2019.
• The new employees will create $4,275,000 in new annual payroll.
A manufacturer of night-vision goggles and military-grade optical systems is consolidating Beavercreek and California operations into a single Miami Twp. location, intending to grow to 120 employees, the company said Monday.
Sensor Technology Systems Inc., a newly purchased subsidiary of Steiner, chose Ohio over California, Maryland and Vermont for its new location on Newmark Drive near LexisNexis.
The company will consolidate its location at 2794 Indian Ripple Road in Beavercreek with an office in California that employs 65.
Steiner — which is owned by Beretta — acquired STS at the end of 2015.
Alan Page, general manager of both STS and Steiner eOptics (the STS mother company), said there is a “stark amount of synergies” between the two companies.
The plan represents a total $2.5 million investment, Page said.
Steiner makes laser-aiming devices and flashlights, primarily for the military. In Beavercreek, STS makes night-vision goggles and optical beacons to prevent friendly fire mishaps, as well as electrical optical systems for combat at night, serving the same customers domestically and around the world, Page said.
The technology and engineering for both companies is very similar, he said.
RELATED >> Defense manufacturer to move to Miami Twp., adding 120 jobs
“Instead of having two smaller companies, there are just a lot of synergies in putting those two companies together,” he said.
Today, there are about 25 people in the Beavercreek facility, which is hiring. Page said the site just won a large contract for an international customer.
There will be some “overlap” between the Ohio and California jobs, Page said. But he added: “It’s easy to see that by the end of the year, we’ll have about 80 people” in Miami Twp.
The work will be technical assembly operations, in a clean-room environment with a lot of soldering, he said.
To back the move, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority Monday approved a 1.387 percent, 7-year tax credit to STS/Steiner for the creation of $4,275,000 in new annual payroll.
As part of the tax credit agreement, the authority requires the company to maintain operations at the project location for at least 10 years.
“Steiner’s new location draws on many of our region’s strengths: our proximity to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, a workforce that intuitively understands military and its contractors, easy access to consumers, and an affordable cost-of-living,” said Jeff Hoagland, president and chief executive of the Dayton Development Coalition. “The investment by STS demonstrates that our region offers a competitive advantage, and we know STS will have a bright future here.”
The company’s investment will go toward renovating an existing building, and new machinery and equipment, the state said.
Oberer Cos. owns the 50,000-square-foot 3475 Newmark Drive facility and will begin renovations soon.
State and county governments expect the updated STS facility to house 120 employees by the end of 2019.
“STS is the latest example of how we collaborate to create and retain jobs in the Dayton Region,” Montgomery County Commission President Judy Dodge said in a county announcement. “We worked closely with our partners at Miami Twp. and the Dayton Development Coalition to put forward a competitive proposal for STS and we are thrilled they selected Montgomery County for their facility.”
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