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Woodward Expanding Its Rockford Area Base

Governor Pat Quinn was on hand for a major jobs announcement in northern Illinois Thursday morning.  Woodward Incorporated says it will build a second campus in Loves Park. The aerospace manufacturer's local expansion will result in more than 600 new jobs over the next five years. 

Governor Quinn says the company's growth will mean more economic activity far outside the doors of its facilities:

"200-million dollars more investing right here in Illinois, in the Rockford-area, in manufacturing" Quinn said during Thursday's announcement.

As part of the project, the state is providing a variety of tax incentives, including up to $45-milllion in corporate income tax credits.

Production at the new facility will involve a new aircraft turbine product line.  he company says it hopes to break ground by this fall.  Woodward currently employs about 15-hundred people in Loves Park and Rockton. 

Woodward started as Woodward Governor in Rockford in 1870. Woodward makes and services a variety of energy control and optimization systems for companies such as Caterpillar and Boeing. In Loves Park, its products are primarily for airplanes.