Karel Znamenacek, Crete executive vice president, called the site in Roane County west of Knoxville 'the perfect location for us -- next to Interstates 40 and 75, where a lot of our trucks operate.'
The 16-county Innovation Valley has received high marks for its logistics capabilities. The nearby University of Tennessee-Knoxville campus is home to a nationally recognized logistics and supply chain curriculum.
Znamenacek said the new site will include a maintenance operation, office and numerous amenities for drivers.
'There'll be an eight-bay drive through maintenance facility for servicing trucks and trailers. The office staff will work with drivers and recruit new employees. And there'll be numerous services for truckers, including a lounge, lunch room and even a bunk room.'
Leslie Henderson, president and CEO of the Roane Alliance, called Crete a 'national company with a reputation for being a good corporate citizen.'
Crete has 5,700 trucks and 13,000 trailers nationwide and is a 'truck load carrier.'
'That means we don't offload,' Znamenacek said. 'Our business is picking up product at a customer and delivering a full load to the destination.'
He estimated that an average of 75 trucks a day will use the Roane County facility.
The Roane County Commission approved rezoning the land from commercial to industrial, which was necessary since Crete's new facility will include refueling. The 26-acre site next to the Roane Regional Business and Technology Park was sold in a private land deal that took place without any publicly-funded incentive package. Tax collections from Crete are expected to add some $42,000 per year to Roane County's tax rolls.
