“From our family to yours, welcome to Kyle.”
Those were the words of Kyle City Manager Scott Sellers last week at the groundbreaking for ENF Kyle Technology LLC on Kohler’s Crossing in the master planned Plum Creek community.
Sellers and other officials had only warm words for the new business despite a steady cold drizzle as attendees gathered under a large tent. Sellers explained that his family had always held Asian culture in high regard, in part because his father had worked in Hong Kong and made frequent trips to the region.
His understanding of how family-oriented Asian cultures are was cemented on his first trip to China over a year ago, he told those assembled.
“It’s a very family-oriented culture, and Kyle is a family-oriented city,” he said. “We really value family, and when we first heard about ENF, we felt that you were family. And those feelings of family survived all the way to this moment. Welcoming you to our city is truly like welcoming a brother or cousin or one of our own. We look forward to welcoming you to our family and want to be just as much of a family to you as you are to us.”
Mayor Travis Mitchell recalled that the one and only time the city council has given a standing ovation to a business wanting to relocate here was when the city was approached by ENF.
“The reason it was so emotional is because of the type of company that ENF is, it really embodies what the city of Kyle is pursuing – an atmosphere where residents can live, where they can find gainful employment, primary wage, and the many amenities the city of Kyle provides. With gainful employment comes the increase in the standard of living that we as a city are pursuing.”
ENF Kyle Technology is the region’s newest high-tech manufacturer and the groundbreaking was for a $45 million facility that will encompass 75,000 square feet on a 25-acre site (which also provides room for future expansion).
The company says it will be hiring 45 to 50 employees in the second half of this year, and that number will increase in the future. Commercial production is expected to start in the third quarter of 2021.
“We are honored to be a member of a business-friendly community that is on a phenomenal growth trajectory,” Lee Seungho, ENF executive vice president, said through an interpreter. “The city of Kyle and Hays County officials have warmly welcomed ENF Technology to the Texas Innovation Corridor – a location that provides the ideal site for use to serve our U.S. customers.”
Projects like ENF “don’t come from nowhere,” Mitchell said. “We are excited about the future of Kyle. Our city council is working nearly around the clock to put together great partnerships. It does take a team and this is team Kyle. It takes all of us working together to achieve the outcome we are so desperately pursuing. I believe we are on our way.”
Jason Giulietti, interim president of the Greater San Marcos Partnership, noted that the economic impact of the facility will extend beyond Kyle. “Jobs will potentially be secured by community members throughout the Greater San Marcos region in Hays and Caldwell counties.”
Established in 2000, ENF produces electronic materials and fine chemicals and says it has experienced remarkable sales growth with high-quality projects for electronic devices including semiconductors.
