BROKEN BOW, NEB. (July 8, 2005)--Governor Dave Heineman awarded $255,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding to Custer County to help Becton, Dickinson & Co. (BD) in Broken Bow purchase new equipment. The project will create nine full-time positions.

"Our mission at the state level is to grow jobs one business at a time, and we will continue to be successful here in Custer County because of private partners like BD," Gov. Heineman said. "I am pleased that we are able to help a good corporate citizen grow the economy by expanding its operations in central Nebraska."

Custer County will lend the company $250,000 to design, purchase and install an automated assembly and packaging machine that will produce a new blood-collection device. BD will repay the loan to the county, which will use the funds for additional economic development projects. Custer County will have the flexibility to pay its administrative costs with the remaining $5,000.

BD is a medical technology company that serves health care institutions, life-science researchers, clinical laboratories, industry and the general public. BD manufactures and sells a broad range of medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment and diagnostic products. With offices in nearly 50 countries worldwide, BD has emerged as a global medical technology company with $4.9 billion in sales in fiscal year 2004.

The BD plant in Broken Bow manufactures several varieties of biological sample collection devices. The additional blood collection device will broaden the line of products already produced at the Broken Bow facility. BD, headquartered in Franklin Lakes, N.J., will invest $3.75 million, bringing the total project investment to more than $4 million.

Grant funding for this project is from a program administered by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development (DED) that assists with the development of businesses and communities. Federal funds are made available to Nebraska from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

CONTACT
Aaron Sanderford, Gov's Ofc., 402-471-1967
Linda Fettig, DED, 308-749-2291