Intimidator, Inc. of Batesville, Arkansas celebrated the completion of its new manufacturing facility at 1525 White Drive today with a ribbon cutting and open house. Special guests for the event were Mike Preston, Director of Arkansas Economic Development Commission, and Arkansas Governor, Asa Hutchinson who addressed the crowd of distinguished guests. Attendees of the event came from across the country, including Michigan, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Texas, and others. The celebration included The Pledge of Allegiance and The National Anthem, led by and sung by Country music star, Neal McCoy. Tours of the facility were given and catered catfish lunch was served. It is estimated that over 1,100 guests were in attendance.
Intimidator Ribbon Cutting and Open House 2019
The facility is a 204,000-square foot, block building with an open design, separated into three sections that house the Receiving, Assembly and Shipping functions. It is located on 15 acres of the 40-acre Intimidator Campus, which is a part of the Northeast Industrial District. The project was completed quickly. Governor Hutchinson shared his excitement as he spoke on job creation thanks to the extent of the project. He noted that contractors from across the state provided the materials and services that brought the dream of the building to life. Construction was completed by 22 subcontracting companies, over half were local, and the rest from within a 100-mile radius of the facility – except for the steel fabrication, which was in Buffalo, MO. Intimidator employees contributed over 30,000 hours to the project, including construction tasks and support functions.
Owner Robert Foster stated, “It was a boyhood dream to someday build a large, attractive, efficient, manufacturing building.” This project was the fulfillment of that dream. Roger Wright, COO, stated, “This building positions this 5 ½-year-old company to grow into an economic force for good in this community, the state, and the world.”
The formal groundbreaking for the building was held on May 30, 2018. The Receiving Warehouse began operation on December 1, 2018, and the first Spartan mower was produced on January 7, 2019. The building is now fully operational. As tours were guided through the plant, they were able to see state-of-the-art technologies and processes that have been put in place to increase efficiency and productivity. A notable stop on the tour was their “studio” which houses a floor-to-ceiling, solid, white background that will be used as a backdrop in chroma key photography, which is a process that replaces a solid-colored background from behind the subject of a photo (or video) with a new background. Questions about the project should be directed to Janelle Shell, Marketing Manager, Intimidator.
