WARREN Council to look at tax breaks for two

Both 75 percent abatements are for 10 years.
WARREN -- City council is expected to consider tax abatement requests from two companies that are battling foreign competition.
Ten-year, 75 percent tax abatements for the Charles Manufacturing Co., Sferra Avenue, and Perfection Plastics Inc., Paige Avenue are on council agenda's for Wednesday night.
Both abatements also must be approved by Trumbull County commissioners.
According to its application, Charles Manufacturing, a fabricator of light gauge metal parts for industrial, commercial and consumer equipment markets, plans to construct an addition and buy equipment.
The project would start in December and be completed about a year later and would involve hiring five more full-time employees over three years.
The company employs 11 full-time and two part-time workers.
The total estimate for construction, equipment and inventory is more than $1 million.
Company statement
"Metal fabrication has been hard hit by steel tariffs and competition from Mexico and other offshore countries like China," company officials wrote in their application.
"Our customers are demanding price reductions, faster turnaround and outstanding quality as a means to stay competitive in this global market."
The company hopes that by investing in advanced technology that will cut production time up to a half and expanding fabricating capabilities it can prevent further job loss by offsetting higher raw material costs and foreign manufacturing losses.
Perfection Plastics, doing business as Champion Injection Molding, employs 38 full-time and seven temporary workers.
The company wants to buy equipment to increase production capacity to attract business from out of state, add railway siding to improve shipments, and replace a section of the roof. The project investment is about $545,000.
The project would begin this month and is expected to be completed in May.
Plans to add jobs
The plastics manufacturer expects to hire five more full-time employees over two years.
The industry is suffering from global manufacturing that's shifting overseas, company officials say in their application.
"To attract and retain business, we need to invest in larger equipment to produce parts that cannot be transported from overseas," the company said. "This equipment and facility improvements cannot be afforded internally, and therefore local tax and finance assistance is needed."