Grants boost expansions by two medical tech companies.

Byline: William Morris

Two medical technology companies are planning expansions that will bring hundreds of new jobs to the Twin Cities.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development announced five grants Wednesday totaling $1.7 million from the state's Job Creation Fund. The grants will support expansion projects totaling more than $140 million in private investment, and are expected to create nearly 550 new jobs.

The largest grant, for $675,000, will go to Cantel Medical Corp., a New Jersey-based provider of infection control and prevention products. Cantel bought a 159,000-square-foot office building at 9800 59th Ave. N in Plymouth in August, announcing at the time it would consolidate workers from four Twin Cities locations into the new building.

Now Cantel intends to invest more into the property, formerly the headquarters of Select Comfort Corp. DEED's grant will support a new 20,000-square-foot innovation and training center and a 7,500-square-foot research and development center at Cantel's Plymouth facility. The project will cost $4.5 million and is expected to create 101 jobs within three years, according to DEED's announcement.

The second-largest grant, for $450,000, also will benefit a medical technology company. Lens manufacturer Vision Ease, headquartered a 7000 Sunwood Drive NW in Ramsey, is planning a $23 million expansion that will "bring a large Rx manufacturing site into the existing Vision Ease facility," according to DEED's announcement. The project is expected to create 200 new jobs in three years.

Neither company responded to messages seeking comment.

A booming health care market has created an enormous demand for med-tech and medical manufacturing companies to fill, said Bob Kill, president and CEO of manufacturing consultancy Enterprise Minnesota.

"I would say that industry is very strong right now," Kill said in an interview. "It's an aging, health care-dependent society, and I don't know of one of our small, supply chain medical manufacturers that's not going full-bore right now."

Also receiving grants are QA1 Precision Products, NAPCO International and Up North Plastics Inc. QA1, an automobile parts...