Bourbon Takes 1st Step in Tax Abatement Process for Shells Inc., $5.8 Million Personal Property Investment

Wednesday, March 6, 2024 at 9:09 AM

Members of the Bourbon Town Council heard Greg Hildebrand, Interim Director of the Marshall County Economic Development Corporation ask for consideration of a Tax Abatement for Shells Incorporation. They are a leading producer of outsourced cores for the foundry industry. They offer a full range of core-making services including cold box and shell cores.

Hildebrand told the council Shells is in the process of installing a 3-D printer to print sand cores. Shells is a 50-year-old company that produces cores for molds and their customers are asking for a quicker turn-around and some more advanced molds that this 3-D printing process will allow them to do.

This is a $5.8 million dollar capital investment in personal property for Shells. Hildebrand said they currently have 81 employees, and this new equipment will add 9 additional employees. These are high-paying jobs. Currently, their pay scale is $25 an hour and these new positions will pay about $30 an hour.

Bourbon Town Council President Ward Byers said he recently met with the management and toured the plant. He said the 3-D core printing is very impressive and will allow Shells to get into foundry markets they have never been able to get into before. He said, “It’s really neat to think that technology is going to be right here in Bourbon, and they have plans to expand as things go forward with more 3-D printers.”

Hildebrand said, “It’s manufacturing 4.0. Its advanced manufacturing and these are the types of jobs we look forward to incentivizing and bringing into the area.”

Councilman Terry Clemens commented that Shells will be utilizing a building that has been setting vacant on the property for some time and has been kind of an eye-sore.

Hildebrand said the Tax Abatement process is a two-step process. Tuesday night the Town Council passed a resolution determining the area to be located in an Economic Revitalization Area. During the next town council meeting a public hearing will be conducted before the council approves a confirmatory resolution approving the tax abatement for Shells Inc. at 502 East Old Lincoln Highway.

Tuesday evening the Bourbon Town Council unanimously approved a resolution declaring the property to be an economic revitalization area.