On the heels of announcing that it plans to move 60 jobs to Southern Pines, Ingersoll Rand is poised to make a bigger investment in the town.

The Southern Pines Town Council on Tuesday night unanimously approved a $28,000 economic ncentive to entice the company to add a total of 98 jobs (including the previously announced 60), build a 30,000-square-foot addition to its current plant and invest $2.7 million of taxable capital into the business.

The money would be payable to the company once all the jobs are in place for a year and the capital investment has been made.

"Probably the most exciting thing to me about this is their competition is not Virginia or Georgia, it's China," said Ray Ogden, executive director of Moore County Partners in Progress. "We could be looking at, right here in Southern Pines, truly a watershed moment in U.S. manufacturing, where a U.S. plant can keep business that otherwise would go to China, and it can be done right here in Southern Pines."

Ogden and Brian Lugenbeel, manager of the local Ingersoll Rand plant, appeared before the council Tuesday evening to make the request.

On Tuesday, Ingersoll Rand announced plans to close its plant in Athens, Pa., consolidate operations and move 60 jobs to Southern Pines.

The company currently has 118 employees working at its 110,000-square-foot building on U.S. 1.

"The opportunity we have is to grow a world-class, globally competitive business," Lugenbeel told the council. "What we are asking for here today is that you help us do everything we can to be in the optimal position to have this business come here."

Lugenbeel said 90 percent of the jobs created would be hourly wage. The remainder will be professional jobs.

"There are not many companies that can say they can be globally competitive right here in Southern Pines," Lugenbeel said. "With the leadership team we have put in place, with the employees e have ... we have the opportunity to do something very special."

Ogden agreed, saying, "We can make a statement to the world that we can do it here, and I think it is worth our while and our money."

Other governmental agencies will be asked to contribute funds to facilitate the project.

"We haven't asked the town to go it alone," Ogden said. "We have approached the county to help with this. In addition, we have asked the state to match whatever funds we can raise."

Ingersoll Rand bought the plant on U.S. 1 in 1990 when the company acquired ARO Corp.

At that time, 180 employees were on the payroll. In 2008, the Employment Security Commis-sion reported that the plant ranked 24th among the top 25 employers in Moore County.

In 2009, Ingersoll Rand eliminated 54 jobs at its Southern Pines facility, citing a slumping economy.

Ingersoll Rand is a global diversified industrial company.

The Southern Pines plant produces varied products, primarily on the tool side of the company's industrial operations. Ingersoll Rand, which owns plants across the country and overseas, was established in 1871.

Contact Tom Embrey at (910) 693-2484 or by e-mail at tembrey@thepilot.com.