The Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority, which runs Huntsville International Airport and the Jetplex Industrial Park agreed to sell 10 acres to Futaba Corporation of America in the industrial park for a proposed expansion. (The Huntsville Times/File photo)
HUNTSVILLE- A company that makes lighted displays for car dashboards, home appliances and entertainment equipment will expand with an agreement approved Tuesday by the Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority to buy 10.4 acres in the Jetplex Industrial Park.
Futaba Corporation of America will buy the property for $573,650 to build a second building for its manufacturing operations, Brooks Kracke, director of the industrial park, said after the board meeting.
The company, located at 101 Electronics Boulevard, employs between 50 and 60 people. The expansion could double the number of employees, Kracke said.
Futaba hopes to be operating in the new building within a year.
Futaba makes lighted displays for such things as automobile dashboards, appliances such as microwaves and coffee makers, and entertainment equipment such as televisions and stereos.
In other business at the meeting, Executive Director Rick Tucker told the board that commercial air passenger traffic increased 3.1 percent in June compared to June 2010. Passenger traffic is up 5.5 percent for the year compared to the same period last year.
The news was mixed at the International Intermodal Center.
Rail cargo lifts at the center decreased 24.1 percent in June compared to the previous June and is down 15.7 percent for the year compared to last year. Mitch Bradley, the center's director, told the board that a factor in the rail cargo decrease was the slowdown of automobile production by Toyota after the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
Air cargo landing weights at the center increased 35.7 percent in May compared to May 2010. For the year, air cargo landing weight is up 35.8 percent compared to last year. Tucker attributed much of the air cargo increase to freight forwarder Panalpina adding service between Huntsville and Hong Kong and Brazil.