Stanley company to create 33 jobs with $2.1 million investment in Gaston County – Business North Carolina

A Stanley steel fabrication and machining provider will create 33 new jobs with a $2.1 million investment in its facility where it has operated for about 25 years.

J&L Machine and Fabrication has been at its current location on South Buckoak Street near downtown since at least the early 2000s. The family-owned company currently employs between 100 and 110 workers, says company engineer Michael Saleh. One of the company’s top customers is Portland, Oregon-based Daimler Trucks, which has a Freightliner truck manufacturing operation in nearby Mount Holly. J&L makes chassis components for Daimler Trucks, and also New Philadelphia, Ohio-based Battle Motors, Selah says. The Mount Holly Freightliner plant has at least 2,000 workers.

J&L Machine and Fabrication makes high-precision steel parts for heavy industrial equipment and machines. The company engineers and fabricates complex parts with a full range of services including cutting, forming, bending, welding, painting, and assembling processes. This expansion will increase production capacity to meet growing customer demand for the company.

“This expansion aligns with our strategy as a solutions center, allowing us to improve the service level to our global OEM customers with new added capabilities and capacity, and enabling us to create new jobs supporting the Stanley community and the state of North Carolina,” J&L’s COO Danny Tawil says in a statement released by the Department of Commerce.

While wages will vary by position, the average annual wage is estimated to be $50,808, exceeding the Gaston County average of $50,746. These new jobs could potentially create an annual payroll impact of more than $1.6 million for the region.

A performance-based grant of $70,000 from the One North Carolina Fund will help J&L expand its facility. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for payment. 

“J&L has been a great contributor to our local economy and an outstanding community partner,” sys N.C. Rep. John A. Torbett, who lives in Stanley. “We look forward to watching their trajectory skyrocket as they enter this next phase of growth.”

J&L currently operates out of an approximately 100,000-square-foot building on 3.9 acres of land, according to county records. The company sold the property to Charlotte-based Nuport Land for $2 million in 2019. A Gaston County town of about 4,000 residents, Stanley is located about 15 miles west of Charlotte.