BUSINESS & INDUSTRY

The Food Lion Distribution Center, now part of ADUSA Distribution LLC, opened on Commerce Avenue in the 1990s.

Say the word Grove in Greencastle and most people automatically think of the massive Manitowoc Crane Group manufacturing facility on Route 16 in Shady Grove.

Grove Manufacturing was founded by local residents John L. Grove, Dwight Grove and Wayne Nicarry in 1947 to produce farm wagons, with the first crane manufactured for their own use. Today, the name is known around the world and Manitowoc is one of Franklin County’s largest private employers with a work force around 1,400. JLG, another company founded by John L. Grove and equally well-known for its lift equipment, and Jerr-Dan, maker of towing and vehicle recovery products, both have locations in Antrim Township and part of Oshkosh Corp.

Those are the big names, but the Franklin County Area Development Corp.’s annual Industrial Directory lists more than 20 manufacturing and industrial operations in the Greencastle area, ranging from just a handful to hundreds of employees. The list is diverse and includes everything from machine shops and concrete and stone products to commercial printing and engine repair.

Corelle Brands along U.S. 11 came to Greencastle-Antrim in 1960 under the name Corning Glass and the Food Lion Distribution Center located on Commerce Avenue in the 1990s and is now part of ADUSA Distribution LLC. Together, they employee nearly 1,000 people and were at the forefront of the warehousing, transportation and logistics facility boom that is occurring today. The area around Interstate 81’s Exit 3 has exploded with development in recent years, thanks to a location that opens it up to all the major markets along the East Coast.

“For development potential, there’s not a better place on Interstate 81 in Pennsylvania than Exit 3,” according to L. Michael Ross, president of FCADC.

Recent projects have included Armada, Eldorado Stone, Staples, A. Duie Pyle, Gate 7 and NorthPoint. To the north along U.S. 11, the former Eldorado Stone building is the newly renovated home of APX Enclosures.

FCADC’s mission is countywide economic development “to create an atmosphere that nourishes planned growth and family sustainable employment opportunities.”

Its core strategies are the retention and expansion of existing businesses; selective attraction of new businesses to diversify the local economy; and the start-up of new businesses. g

U.S. Rep. John Joyce talked with APX Enclosures President Andy Papoutsis during a visit to the Antrim Township facility.