Jersey Export

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At a time when many companies are fleeing or bypassing high-cost Los Angeles, plastic pipe maker JM Eagle is bringing its headquarters to Los Angeles.

And, while layoffs abound, with 25,000 manufacturing jobs lost in the state just this year, JM Eagle is hiring.

Chief Executive Walter Wang, 43, spearheaded the effort to move JM Eagle from Livingston, N.J., to a building the company bought for $70 million on Century Boulevard near Los Angeles International Airport this fall.

JM Eagle produces 2.2 billion pounds of plastic pipe each year at 23 factories across the United States, including 10 in the West and five in California.

Why make the move? Though the cost of living is higher, Wang thinks Los Angeles is a better fit for his headquarters because of its highly skilled workforce.

“Los Angeles has some of the best talent in the world in all industries, so we wanted to tap into that,” Wang said.

The company has already hired 89 people locally and is looking for an additional 66 in sales, marketing, engineering, and information technology. The new staff workers will join 43 who came from New Jersey.

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