Long Island manufacturer wants tax breaks for $3.5M factory upgrade
Daniel Lax, CEO of Autronic Plastics Inc., wants to boost production at his company's Central Islip facility. Credit: Barry Sloan
A plastics manufacturer is seeking a decade of tax breaks from Suffolk County to support $3.5 million in improvements to its Central Islip factory — and the company would expand out of state if the aid isn't approved, executives said.
Autronic Plastics Inc. needs to purchase new machinery, construct a special room for producing medical syringe protectors and make modifications to handle more shipments at its plant, warehouse and office on Motor Parkway.
The improvements to the 100,290-square-foot building are needed to fill contracts for air panels in warehouses and gutter guards to keep out leaves, said Danny Lax, the company's CEO and majority owner.
“These contracts collectively represent a growth opportunity for us, and we’d like to expand here, but we need the IDA’s help,” he said in an interview after last month’s meeting of the county's Industrial Development Agency.
Autronic has requested 10 years of property tax savings and a sales-tax exemption of up to $20,125 on the purchase of equipment and construction materials, according to its application for IDA assistance.
In return, the company would add 11 people to its current workforce of 117 over the next two years. The new jobs would pay between $44,000 and $49,800 per year, on average, the application states.
Without the tax breaks, Lax said, the 72-year-old company would open a factory in Texas or Tennessee to be closer to customers and where taxes and employee wages are lower. He said the Central Islip factory would remain but not be expanded.
“We’re a third-generation family-owned business,” he told Newsday. “We grew up here. We would love to expand here, to stay here.”
The IDA board couldn’t act on Autronic’s request because there wasn’t a quorum at the Feb. 27 meeting. The request is on the agenda for the March 20 meeting, said Kelly Murphy, the agency’s CEO and executive director.
She also said she is recommending the board approve the company’s request because Autronic has surpassed the 95 jobs that it promised to create in return for IDA tax breaks awarded in 2013. Those previous incentives led the company to close operations in New Cassel and North Carolina and move to Central Islip.
Autronic saved $1.3 million in taxes between 2013 and 2023, according to state records.
The company also receives low-cost electricity from the state Power Authority and was awarded up to $1.8 million in tax credits from Empire State Development, the state’s primary business-aid agency, for the earlier expansion.
Autronic is probably best known for lighting used in subway stations and tunnels, but its components are also found in medical devices, communications equipment and renewable energy projects.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the company made protective face shields for doctors and nurses after an employee received a request for help from a neighbor treating patients at Stony Brook University Hospital. The conversation led to the design and production of millions of face shields, Newsday has reported.
The IDA's Murphy said last month, “We want to support [Autronic’s] continued success and their employees, some of whom have been with the company for 60 years.”
A plastics manufacturer is seeking a decade of tax breaks from Suffolk County to support $3.5 million in improvements to its Central Islip factory — and the company would expand out of state if the aid isn't approved, executives said.
Autronic Plastics Inc. needs to purchase new machinery, construct a special room for producing medical syringe protectors and make modifications to handle more shipments at its plant, warehouse and office on Motor Parkway.
The improvements to the 100,290-square-foot building are needed to fill contracts for air panels in warehouses and gutter guards to keep out leaves, said Danny Lax, the company's CEO and majority owner.
“These contracts collectively represent a growth opportunity for us, and we’d like to expand here, but we need the IDA’s help,” he said in an interview after last month’s meeting of the county's Industrial Development Agency.
Autronic has requested 10 years of property tax savings and a sales-tax exemption of up to $20,125 on the purchase of equipment and construction materials, according to its application for IDA assistance.
In return, the company would add 11 people to its current workforce of 117 over the next two years. The new jobs would pay between $44,000 and $49,800 per year, on average, the application states.
Without the tax breaks, Lax said, the 72-year-old company would open a factory in Texas or Tennessee to be closer to customers and where taxes and employee wages are lower. He said the Central Islip factory would remain but not be expanded.
“We’re a third-generation family-owned business,” he told Newsday. “We grew up here. We would love to expand here, to stay here.”
The IDA board couldn’t act on Autronic’s request because there wasn’t a quorum at the Feb. 27 meeting. The request is on the agenda for the March 20 meeting, said Kelly Murphy, the agency’s CEO and executive director.
She also said she is recommending the board approve the company’s request because Autronic has surpassed the 95 jobs that it promised to create in return for IDA tax breaks awarded in 2013. Those previous incentives led the company to close operations in New Cassel and North Carolina and move to Central Islip.
Autronic saved $1.3 million in taxes between 2013 and 2023, according to state records.
The company also receives low-cost electricity from the state Power Authority and was awarded up to $1.8 million in tax credits from Empire State Development, the state’s primary business-aid agency, for the earlier expansion.
Autronic is probably best known for lighting used in subway stations and tunnels, but its components are also found in medical devices, communications equipment and renewable energy projects.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the company made protective face shields for doctors and nurses after an employee received a request for help from a neighbor treating patients at Stony Brook University Hospital. The conversation led to the design and production of millions of face shields, Newsday has reported.
The IDA's Murphy said last month, “We want to support [Autronic’s] continued success and their employees, some of whom have been with the company for 60 years.”
James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.
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