HM Gem Engines representative Dean Taylor (left) with Manufacturing and Export Minister Andre Haermeyer and Narre Warren North MP Luke Donnellan (right) inspect HM Gem Engines’ plant after Mr Haermeyer announced $240,000 for the company to expand.
By Shaun Inguanzo
AN engine rebuilding company this week received $240,000 to increase its floor space and staff numbers in a bid to help it expand to the Middle Eastern market.
HM Gem Engines in Dandenong South, which in December received a Prime Minister’s Employer of the Year Award for its 27 years of employing people with disabilities, will use this week’s State Government funds to expand its plant and employ up to 90 new people.
Manufacturing and Export Minister Andre Haermeyer announced the massive injection of funds on Tuesday as part of a visit to Dandenong, where he hosted a business round table to hear issues and concerns from local businesses.
The $240,000 was sourced from the Business Assistance Program, and Mr Haermeyer said 50 new jobs were expected to be created almost immediately at HM Gem Engines with 40 more to come over the next four years.
“The grant will also enable the company to capitalise on its strong performance in the domestic market and explore its export potential, with the focus on opportunities in the Middle East,” Mr Haermeyer said.
Established in 1969 in Doncaster as a small family business, HM Gem Engines now employs 376 people around Australia with the majority based in Victoria.
The company remanufactures engines and cylinder heads for automotive and heavy plant machinery, and also produces engine components.
Mr Haermeyer said the funding boost signalled the Government’s confidence in the manufacturing industry, despite concerns this was dwindling across the nation.
“Its future is looking positive with Victorian companies devising innovative and sophisticated solutions to global manufacturing issues,” he said.
