The Pelliconi Group, which makes bottle caps, crowns and closures for the bottling industry all over the world, will make caps at the Orlando facility for various Nestle Waters brands, including Zephyr Hills and Deer Park, says Robert Blackwell, principal with Orlando-based NAI Realvest, who represented Pelliconi in the deal.

Although Tim Perry, senior leasing and development representative for Duke Realty in Orlando, declined to say what rental rate Pelliconi is paying, he says that rents, in general, in the Orlando industrial market have dropped 25% to 30% since 2007.

In its new facility, Pelliconi, which is in the process of moving in, will hire 24 people. Because the company is a manufacturer, and manufacturing is considered a qualified targeted industry, it is eligible for government incentives, in this case from Orange County, say Irma Stenman, director for international business at the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission.

The company must also meet salary requirements to receive incentives, which means it must pay at least 115% of the average wage for Orange County, which in 2009, when Pelliconi applied for incentives, was $39,920, or at least $45,908, says Stenman. If it does this, the company will receive $3,000 per job or $72,000 for all 24 jobs after five years. The money comes from the state and Orange County governments, but 80% of it will come from the state, she says.

One of the selling points, besides the incentives, which helped convince Pelliconi to choose Orlando for its facility, says Blackwell, is that Orlando International Airport offers direct flights to London, from which passengers can then catch a flight to Bologna. Plus, he says, the company "realizes that it is actually more cost affective to manufacture bottle caps for the US in the US."

Pelliconi, in addition to its new North American facility, has plants in Bologna and Chieti, Italy, as well Cairo, Egypt.