Tech park project started; New $4 million building for Fortitech seen as beginning of Schenectady County plan

GLENVILLE - Fortitech Inc. will spend $4 million on a new building along Route 50, the first step toward what county officials hope will be a new technology park adjacent to Schenectady County Airport.

The structure, at 40,000 square feet, will serve as a warehouse and distribution center for the Schenectady-based company, which manufactures nutrient products for the food, beverage and drug industries.

"We need a facility to house finished goods and ship them out," said Rich Schleif, Fortitech's director of marketing.

He said plans call for a separate phase of development - and a separate building - for a new research and development center for the company at the site.

The developments are apart from Fortitech's headquarters operation off Maxon Road in Riverside Technology Park, where it is building a 35,000-square-foot expansion.

Fortitech will purchase the 20 acres in Glenville for about $1 million from the Schenectady County Industrial Development Agency. The IDA will purchase the property at the same price from the county.

County officials hope the area will become what they're calling Airport Tech Park. On Thursday, they called Fortitech the anchor tenant that will spark further construction.

Gary Hughes, chairman of the County Legislature's Committee on Economic Development, said the county is taking "a little bit different approach" to developing the park than is typical for technology or industrial parks.

He said the county is trying to attract private companies to build out the park, rather than investing public money first and trying to attract companies later.

"This is using other people's money to develop an asset," Hughes said.

Fortitech employs about 180 people in Schenectady County and many more in a global network of manufacturing centers. Its custom nutrient premixes include vitamins, minerals, amino acids, nucleotides and nutraceu ticals that are added to infant formulas, cereals, sports drinks, nutrition bars and other products.

The company currently is moving its Fontana, Calif., operation to a larger manufacturing and lab facility about 14 miles away in Ontario, Calif., Schlief said, and is building a new building in Malaysia.

Fortitech also recently expanded its sales and distribution center in Mexico City.

County officials, in a written statement announcing both the Fortitech building and the tech park plans, noted a trend of communities building successful business parks near general aviation airports.

The 20 acres to be sold to Fortitech - with an option to buy additional land to accommodate future expansion - are no longer used for aviation purposes at the county-owned airport.

The airport, which encompasses nearly 700 acres, is home to the 109th Airlift Wing of the New York Air National Guard, and serves private and corporate aircraft.

Chris Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at [email protected]