A Brighton-based company that’s involved in packaging and other systems for the food and beverage industry is expanding locally and adding jobs.
JCS Controls has announced that it will expand its facilities at Metro Park in Brighton, adding about 34 jobs, and it is also establishing a research and development operation with its subsidiary, UltraPhil, in the Sibley Building in downtown Rochester.
JCS President Greg Frechette said the R&D facility will help companies test their packaging and other products.
“It’s a place where they can come and do a product trial on what would be a commercially viable system and leave with products that they can actually do testing with,” Frechette said, “so they can do their trials on bench tops, and things like that, but they can’t leave with a product in a bottle that’s going to be like what is going to be on the shelf for the consumer.“
Frechette said the new facility in the Sibley Building will help companies test packaging such as products used for shelf-stable beverages.
“It’s kind of a trend the market’s heading to,” he said. “There’s a lot of cost savings for them to be able to do an aseptic package. For one, just being able to ship without a refrigerated supply chain; a lot of different reasons people are heading this way but in a global market, aseptic and shelf stable is a direction that people are definitely (heading in).”
New York’s Empire State Development agency is providing up to $400,000 in tax credits for the expansion of JCS in Brighton and the state is also providing a grant of up to $600,000 for the downtown facility at the Sibley Building.
The total project cost for the Brighton project is estimated at $2.7 million. Monroe County and Greater Rochester Enterprise are also assisting with the expansion.
This story includes reporting by WXXI's Brian Sharp.
