Polaris broke ground Friday in Roseau on a $22 million, 28,000-square-foot robotic liquid paint factory to serve its existing manufacturing facility in the northern Minnesota city where the outdoor vehicle company was founded.
"Roseau is the hometown of Polaris and we are thrilled to be expanding our Roseau facility again," said Steve Menneto, president of Polaris' off-road business, in an e-mail.
Although the company headquarters is now in the Twin Cities suburb of Medina, the company has had its main manufacturing facility in Roseau since it opened in 1954. Since 1963, the company has expanded facilities there more than 35 times.
"Adding 28,000 square feet and a new liquid paint system will increase our painting capacity and capabilities, as well as improve energy, water and waste efficiencies at the facility," Menneto said.
Menneto was joined at the groundbreaking by other Polaris executives as well as U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith and state Rep. John Burkel.
Polaris now operates in 800,000 square feet of space in Roseau and employs 1,400 workers who build snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles.
The new paint facility is likely to open in 2024. Not only should the factory increase painting capabilities, but the move also will improve energy, water and waste use, the company said.
The company is actively recruiting for 100 open positions in Roseau.
Robert Mack, Polaris' chief financial officer, said during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call in January that the 2022 capital spending budget would be $350 million. One-third of that money, he said, would be used for capacity improvement projects at its 20 manufacturing plants across the world.
