WASHINGTON (February 3, 2011)—Congressman Chandler, USDA Rural Development State Director Tom Fern, Nicholasville Mayor Russ Meyer, and Judge-Executive Neal Cassity held a jobs event today in Jessamine County at McKechnie Vehicle Components in Nicholasville. McKechnie Vehicle Components, which received a guaranteed loan through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (commonly known as the stimulus package) last year, has been able to stabilize the organization, complete its turn around, position McKechnie for growth, and is even exporting products overseas.
“We need to rebuild our manufacturing base in this country,” Chandler said, “and companies like McKechnie are leading the way. If we want to get our economy moving again, instead of importing foreign goods and shipping our jobs to India and China, we need to save local jobs and export Kentucky’s products. That is exactly what McKechnie is now able to do through this guaranteed loan—save 300 jobs and grow enough to ship its products overseas. What an amazing success story.”
McKechnie is not only selling its products in Kentucky, but is now exporting them to Europe. According to Mike Torakis, CEO of McKechnie Vehicle Components, the company has also brought millions of small components for production that were previously imported from China, allowing these processes and products to be executed wholly in the U.S.
Mr. Torakis said: “We are proud of our employees and thankful for the heart and soul they have shown in making McKechnie a successful American turnaround story. This turnaround happened because of their support together with the USDA, Commonwealth of Kentucky and the City of Nicholasville.”
Last year, Chandler and USDA officials announced a Rural Development Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan for $5 million to aid McKechnie Vehicle Components, a leading manufacturer of products for the automotive industry. The loan was made possible by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act)—which Congressman Chandler supported—and the USDA. Citizens Commerce National Bank agreed to provide the loan. Jeff Ball, of Citizens Commerce was present at today’s event.
McKechnie is a leading manufacturer of products for the automotive industry. Their customers include Toyota, GM, Ford, VW, and Chrysler. A subsidiary of MVC Holdings and a 51% female-owned business, McKechnie has been designing, developing and manufacturing plastic and metal components for the automotive industry for over 60 years.
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