Business
Surgical Robot Maker to Become City’s Biggest Employer with $540M Campus Expansion
A top manufacturer of surgical robots is planning a $540 million expansion of its local campus into a national hub that will make it the largest employer in the city by far and one of the biggest in Gwinnett.
Intuitive Surgical’s expansion on its Data Drive campus aims to bring 1,200 net new jobs at an average wage of around $130,000 a year. State and local governments are helping with an estimated total of roughly $67.8 million in grants, tax breaks, fee waivers and other assistance.
The multibillion-dollar California company’s local growth is good news, according to local officials and a surgeon who uses its robots.
“We are thrilled that Intuitive recognized the benefits of being located in Peachtree Corners, and we are grateful to have their growing campus in our city,” said Mayor Mike Mason in an August press release announcing the deal. “Peachtree Corners is a major regional technology hub with great homes, great schools and great community amenities, so we are confident that Intuitive will be very pleased with their decision to expand their presence here.”
Dr. Manu Sancheti, the Chief of Thoracic Surgery at Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Sandy Springs, uses Intuitive’s robots daily. He trains other surgeons in the robotic techniques at the Peachtree Corners campus, and his kids attend Wesleyan School nearby.
“I think it’s going to be a really good opportunity for the community,” Sancheti said in a recent interview. “I think it’s going to be a really exciting place for robotic surgical education.”
“We were thrilled to learn Intuitive has chosen to expand their presence in Gwinnett County,” Governor Brian Kemp said in the press release. “With our advanced medical environment, dynamic workforce, pro-business policies and thriving economy, Intuitive made the right decision in choosing Georgia.”
Set to become a top local employer
The Peach State continues to attract world-renowned companies like Intuitive, and this huge investment coming to the new Peachtree Corners campus will benefit hundreds of hard-working Georgians across metro Atlanta.
The company’s massive boost in local presence from nearly 200 jobs to 1,200-plus is expected to happen sometime between 2024 and 2031, according to press statements and state documents. That would take it to the top of local employer lists. According to the City, the biggest private employer in town today is CarMax with 600 workers, followed by Soliant, which last year announced 598 jobs in a headquarters move.
Based on data on the website of the economic development agency Partnership Gwinnett, Intuitive would become the county’s sixth-largest employer overall and fourth largest in the private sector. Today’s top public employer is Gwinnett County Public Schools at 23,300 and the biggest private employer is Northside Hospital at 4,650.
Founded in 1995, Intuitive is now headquartered in Sunnyvale in California’s Silicon Valley. The company is a pioneer of robotic surgery with its Da Vinci line of spider-like, multi-armed robots. It also recently introduced the Ion, another robotic device to explore and biopsy the lungs.
Robotic surgery offers superior healthcare
Sancheti, who is also Emory Healthcare’s Head of Robotic Thoracic Surgery, uses both types of robots. He says the highly dexterous arms hold a camera, a light and various surgical devices like scalpels and staplers, which he remotely manipulates inside the patient’s body while viewing an enlarged 3D version on a screen, much like playing a very serious video game.
The big advantage of the robots, Sancheti says, are much smaller incisions, since only small robot arms rather than human hands enter the body. “It allows me to do the surgery almost as if my hands were within that body cavity without making a big incision,” he said.
Robotic surgery on the heart or lungs is done through incisions around 8 to 12 millimeters long — less than a half-inch. Compare that with 8- to 12-inch cuts for traditional surgery, which often also requires spreading or breaking some ribs. The robotic version, Sancheti says, means much less pain, faster recovery and less use of potentially addictive narcotic painkillers.
Those advantages have made for a booming business that put Intuitive into an expansion mode. The company is planning a similar campus expansion at its headquarters, which began moving through Sunnyvale’s local approval processes at the same time Peachtree Corner’s deal was announced. Jennifer Garnett, a spokesperson for the City of Sunnyvale, said the company’s growth is welcome there, too.
“Since their start here in 2002, Intuitive Surgical has grown to become Sunnyvale’s seventh-largest employer and is among our 25 largest sales tax producers,” she said. “Their long-standing support of the Sunnyvale community through their employees’ volunteerism and the Intuitive Foundation has been equally important. For example, the foundation donated $200,000 in 2020 to the City’s nearly $3 million Sunnyvale Cares program to support nonprofits and small businesses during the height of the pandemic.”
Peachtree Corners nurtures company growth
According to a company spokesperson, Intuitive came to Peachtree Corners in 2013 with 15 employees and has grown to nearly 200 workers. The local campus “serves as our primary training site for surgeons and care teams, and the area’s amenities, quality of life and universities provide us access to a strong and diverse talent pool,” the company said in a written statement.
The current local headquarters is 5655 Spalding Drive, at the intersection with Data Drive. But Intuitive owns six buildings on roughly 39 acres of land along Data Drive between Spalding and Triangle Parkway, with a lake in the middle. That’s the expansion area.
“The expansion provides office workspace, training for our clients and our internal staff, engineering supporting manufacturing, manufacturing space and all of the campus amenities found at a major Intuitive hub, like Sunnyvale,” the company’s statement said. “The initial Phase 2 expansion will provide approximately 700,000 gross square feet of facilities. The ultimate campus build-out will likely be much larger, but is still in planning.”
The company had no illustrations of the campus concepts to offer, but gave a brief description: “The campus will be a series of interconnected buildings, gardens, terraces, a lake and wooded, natural spaces, like those seen on many academic and corporate campuses. The design will promote a healthy lifestyle with broad accessibility for all staff and guests.”
The exact timing remains to be seen. The announcement in August spoke of completion in 2024, while the formal incentives deal in state documents estimated completion by Dec. 31, 2026, and gives the company seven years starting in June 2024 to fulfill the jobs promise. Under the terms of the deal, the company must maintain 183 existing, full-time jobs and maintain operations on the campus for at least 10 years.
In exchange, Intuitive is being offered “cost savings and cost avoidances” estimated by the Georgia Department of Economic Development to be worth $67,745,530. The company could get a little more if it exceeds the promises and less or nothing if it doesn’t.
Among the assistance is a $2 million state Regional Economic Business Assistance grant to offset costs of property, machinery and equipment; $29.781 million in jobs tax credits; and a $12 million property tax abatement. The City agreed to waive a total of $3.11 million in regulatory, occupational and stormwater fees, while the county will pay $30,000 to install a pedestrian beacon crossing. The deal even includes the government footing a $2,500 bill for a press release and ribbon cutting.
The strategic acquisition strengthens TransPak’s Southeast presence and expands their capabilities in custom packaging for military, aerospace and high-value equipment.
TransPak, a global leader in logistics, packaging and crating services, recently announced the acquisition of Reid Packaging, a long-standing provider of custom packaging solutions based in Peachtree Corners. Both family-owned and operated companies share a deep-rooted commitment to quality craftsmanship, reliability and customer service, making the acquisition a natural fit.
Reid Packaging, founded in 1982, has distinguished itself as the go-to customer industrial packager in the metro Atlanta region, providing corrugated, foam and custom-engineered crating solutions, particularly in the military and aerospace industries.
Under the ownership of Ward Phillips since 2008, the company has grown to become one of the largest packaging facilities in the region, with a 60,000-square-foot site.
The acquisition will allow TransPak to expand its local manufacturing capabilities in the Southeast, while leveraging Reid Packaging’s expertise in specialized and heavy-duty custom crates.
Strategic Atlanta location and enhanced capabilities
The acquisition is part of TransPak’s strategic expansion into the Atlanta market, a critical logistics hub for both the renewable energy and semiconductor industries.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Reid Packaging into the TransPak family,” said Tomas Molet, executive vice president of East and Midwest Operations, TransPak. “With Reid Packaging’s prime location in Peachtree Corners, we are now able to serve customers throughout the Southeast, including direct routes to the Carolinas and beyond. This acquisition strengthens our ability to meet the needs of existing clients, especially those in the semiconductor and renewable energy sectors.”
In addition to the strategic location, the acquisition brings new manufacturing capabilities to TransPak’s East Coast operations. Reid Packaging’s facility is now the largest of TransPak’s locations in the region. Its offerings include enhanced services, such as heavy-duty and triple-wall corrugated packaging, which will enable TransPak to meet the growing demand for custom-designed packaging solutions for fragile, high-value equipment.
Commitment to employees and leadership appointments
A key focus of the acquisition was ensuring a smooth transition for Reid Packaging’s employees.
“We made a commitment to Ward Phillips to take care of the staff, and we’ve delivered on that promise,” said Molet. “All employees were retained, and we’ve introduced benefits they previously didn’t have as part of our commitment to making this a positive transition for everyone involved.”
Amanda Gautney, a longtime member of TransPak’s leadership team, has been appointed as the operations manager for the Peachtree Corners facility. “I’m excited to work with the team at Reid and continue the legacy of this respected company,” said Gautney.
Looking forward in Atlanta
TransPak plans to continue operating under the Reid Packaging name for the immediate future. However, the facility will gradually transition to full integration under the TransPak brand, reflecting the shared values and commitment to quality of both companies.
About TransPak
Headquartered in Silicon Valley, TransPak has been providing innovative and cost-effective design, crating, packaging and global logistics for over 70 years.
As a customer-focused, women- and family-owned company, TransPak combines the agility of a small business with the reliability of a global powerhouse. TransPak lives by the slogan, “We make it happen,” ensuring that high-value, fragile, and oversized goods reach their destinations safely and efficiently.
For more information about TransPak, visit transpak.com.
Leroy Hite, founder of Cutting Edge Firewood, was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award from Berry College in August
Berry College recently awarded its annual Distinguished Alumni Award for Entrepreneurial Spirit to Leroy Hite, founder of Cutting Edge Firewood (and Berry College graduate, class of 2008). The annual award recognizes and honors alumni who have demonstrated a range of positive entrepreneurial skills — including a commitment to turning a dream into a reality, the vision to create an enterprise, the courage to assume risks and the ability to make changes and take advantage of new opportunities.
“This award holds a special place in my heart, maybe more than any other I’ve ever received,” said Hite. “Being recognized by my alma mater is incredibly meaningful to me.
My entrepreneurial journey began at Berry College. It’s where that initial spark was ignited, and honestly, I’m not sure I’d be where I am today without it. Berry nurtured my curiosity, drive and resilience — the key ingredients to entrepreneurship.”
Innovative entrepreneurship
Berry College professor and leader of the school’s Entrepreneurship Program, Dr. Paula Englis, said that Hite took every class she offered. And when those ran out, he did directed studies with her.
“He always knew he wanted to run his own business, and the growth and success of his firewood enterprise has been a wonder to watch,” she said.
Hite was nominated by Berry alumni Alison Ritter, class of 1994. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp also supported Hite’s nomination.
“As a small business owner myself, I have strong appreciation for and recognize the perseverance it takes to build a business from the ground up,” said Kemp. “Leroy’s innovative approach to the firewood industry, focusing on product quality and customer service, mirrors the entrepreneurial spirit that has long driven Georgia’s economic success.”
The company
When Hite founded Cutting Edge Firewood in 2013, he created the world’s first luxury firewood and cooking wood company. He reinvented everything about the firewood industry, from how firewood is dried and stored to how it’s packaged, shipped and delivered. When the company began, it was just Leroy with a one truck and a trailer. Now Cutting Edge Firewood employs 40, stocks enough inventory to fill its 40,000-square-foot Peachtree Corners warehouse and ships wood to all 50 states.
The wide variety of wood from Cutting Edge undergoes a special drying process to ensure that it’s free from unwanted pests, mold or fungus and provides an unmatched clean and bright burn with pleasant aroma. Their focus on process and the use of hardwoods such as oak, hickory, cherry, apple, pecan and maple ensures their customers receive the highest quality firewood, cooking wood and pizza wood possible.
For more information about Cutting Edge Firewood, visit cuttingedgefirewood.com.
To learn more about the Entrepreneurship Program at Berry College, visit berry.edu/academics/majors/entrepreneurship.
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