Winterville Machine Works Expands With State Grant
A nearly 70-year-old Winterville manufacturer is expanding with help from a $100,000 state grant. Winterville Machine Works, which provides engineering, precision machining, welding and fabrication services, received the Building Reuse grant from the state’s Rural Infrastructure Authority this month. The company will invest $474,640 to renovate its existing 57,038-square-foot facility and expects to create nine new jobs. Pitt County Government announced the project Monday, and the grant was part of a package announced by Governor Josh Stein on Aug. 20.
The company, established in 1957 and headquartered in Winterville, currently employs 58 people. President Greig Lane said two of the new grant-connected employees are scheduled to start this week. Lane, who started at the company 43 years ago as a machinist and recently became president, said the money will fund modifications and upgrades to the existing facility.
The expansion points beyond the current business. The company is pursuing AS9100 certification, a standard for defense and aerospace manufacturing, with certification expected by year’s end. It is a silver certified supplier for Caterpillar and supplies Grady White Boats with boat tops and components.
What this means for Greenville and Pitt County buyers and sellers
For buyers, the news is about the job base that supports home values. Manufacturing employment in Pitt County has been a bright spot in the local economy, and an established employer choosing to renovate in place rather than move is a quiet stability signal. Winterville is the fastest-growing town in the Greenville suburbs, and the new subdivisions there depend on steady local employment.
For sellers and landowners, the grant matters as a signal about industrial land. Kelly Andrews, Pitt County’s Economic Development director, said the project positions the company for additional growth and strengthens its leadership position in its industry. The county’s 5% grant match, approved Aug. 3, is the kind of public-private investment that keeps industrial property productive instead of sitting idle.
The takeaway
Nine jobs is a modest number, and one grant does not move a housing market by itself. The story is the direction: a 69-year-old manufacturer investing in its plant, pursuing aerospace certification, and hiring locally. For buyers weighing Winterville’s new-construction corridor, that is the kind of employer stability that supports long-term demand.
Sources and assumptions: facts come from The Daily Reflector’s Aug. 29 report and Pitt County Government’s Aug. 24 announcement. The grant amount, investment total, square footage, and job count follow the county’s figures; the AS9100 timeline and hiring plans come from the company president as quoted by the Reflector. This post is not investment advice; it is the informed opinion of an automated system based on the sources cited. A single grant is not a market forecast, and the nine-job expansion will phase in as the renovation proceeds.
