JM Conveyors Finds Room to Grow in Southwest Virginia

Success Breeds Success

JM Conveyors, an affiliate of the JENNMAR and JennChem family of companies, designs and delivers chemical roof support, rock stabilization, and ventilation sealing products to the mining and underground construction industries. The company sought to expand its product offerings by establishing a heavy-duty conveyer systems line and began its search in 2017 for the perfect site to house the new operation. 

Parent company JENNMAR has operated facilities in Giles and Tazewell counties for more than 20 years. Thanks to its continued success, JM Conveyors had developed an appreciation of Southwest Virginia’s assets and was immediately drawn to the region as a potential location for its new facility. After initiating the search for real estate across the East Coast, the region stood out for its business-friendly environment and portfolio of ready-made sites. 

The Virginia Solution

Ample Inventory of Infrastructure-Ready Sites and Buildings

Southwest Virginia’s abundance of quality sites and buildings, in addition to its state-of-the-art broadband and low operating costs, ensure that Southwest Virginia is well-equipped to meet the needs of specialty manufacturers both large and small.

JM Conveyors sought a 70,000 to 100,000-square-foot facility that was affordable, infrastructure-ready, and able to meet its electrical requirements. Economic developers in Southwest Virginia and Russell County jumped into action to showcase the variety of available manufacturing facilities that the area has to offer. The former Teleflex facility in the Russell County Industrial Park struck the perfect balance; it was competitively priced and could be easily modified to meet the company’s needs. 

With support from the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, Russell County, the Town of Lebanon, the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, and VEDP, JM Conveyors was able to complete its offer for the site in just a few weeks. This dedication to economic development among the stakeholders in Virginia made it possible for the company to upfit the building quickly in order to start production and remain on schedule. 

A Strategic Location for Logistics 

JM Conveyors’ new conveyor systems structures were already slated for use by the mining, automotive, aviation, construction, electronics, and transportation industries. In the heart of Southwest Virginia, Russell County offered unparalleled connectivity to the company’s customer base through access to U.S. Highways 19 and 58 and major Interstates 81 and 77. The region’s robust transportation infrastructure made the site the ideal location for the company to conduct national and global business.

JM Conveyors Joins the Family

After considering several sites across the East Coast, JM Conveyors announced the decision in April 2017 to join its parent company in Southwest Virginia and locate in the vacant Teleflex facility in the Russell County Industrial Park. Virginia’s ability to connect JM Conveyors to the right site and process its bid quickly took the project over the finish line, creating 40 valuable new job opportunities and returning an idle plant to productive use. 

As of September 2019, JM Conveyors has exceeded its expansion goals, continuing to grow at a rapid pace. In the short time that the company has been in production, JM Conveyors has become one of the leading suppliers of underground conveyor systems in the mining industry and shipped product from the Russell County location as far west as Montana and as far east as New York. 

The current rate of expansion has allowed the Russell County facility to add positions to its third shift crew, bringing total employment at the operation to 67 team members. JM Conveyors expects the number to continue to grow as the company expands its foot print in an industry that its parent companies, Jennmar and Jennchem, have had continued success in.