POST FALLS - Just as Ground Force Worldwide CEO Ron Nilson is getting his new 65,000-square-foot manufacturing facility up and running, he has plans to add another 40,000-square-foot factory and a 8,200-square-foot corporate office here.

"I'm going to hire between 100 and 125 new employees as well," he said, adding most of those jobs will be in the manufacturing sector, but also engineering and administration.

And he isn't wasting any time, Nilson has already snapped up Transtector's former Human Resource Director Colleen McGruder-Krajack, and the Coeur d'Alene Mining Company's Accounting Service Manager Julie Garrett as his new Chief Financial Officer. He hired Eric Keck, the former city administrator of Post Falls, last year as his chief operating officer.

Within two years, Nilson projects his workforce in Post Falls will top 400 people. Ground Force Worldwide primarily manufactures heavy equipment for the mining industry.

For several years the company targeted open-pit mining companies, and manufactured specialized equipment for that industry sector. Last year the company expanded its product line to include underground mining equipment.

That move prompted the need to build the 65,000-square-foot Underground Force facility at 6001 E. Seltice Way. That facility opened late last year. The new facilities he is planning will be located on either side of the Underground Force building, Nilson said.

The new expansion, he explained, is needed to meet an order of "specialized equipment bodies." Nilson said he cannot disclose any details of that order right now, but said the order will expand his open-pit mining line.

Nilson said his company has grown to the point where the corporate office is necessary, as well. He had his administrative staff scattered in offices throughout the company, which can make it difficult to do business at times.

The new corporate office will be located on an adjacent lot east of the new Underground Force building. He said Architects West is just completing designs for the new building.

"We hope to break ground on that one before June," Nilson said, adding the other factory will be located just west of Underground Force. "But that one might take a little more time."

The Post Falls Highway District owns that property to store its equipment, but Nilson said the district is willing to sell it if Ground Force can pay to relocate its equipment yard.

"We are out there talking with the Idaho Transportation Department to see if we can find something suitable for them," Nilson said.

He said that location is necessary to take advantage of the new $400,000 state-of-the-art painting system he built into the Underground Force factory. Before he built that system Ground Force production was limited to painting one truck a day, and now he can paint up to six trucks in the same eight-hour time frame.

"Painting was a production pinch point for us," he said. "Now that we solved that, we don't want to have to duplicate that for the new facility."

He said the new factory will be situated in a way to efficiently take advantage of that equipment.

Once the land transfer is complete, Nilson said the city will annex the property and bring in the utilities. Then, Nilson said construction can begin on that project.

The Post Falls City Council has scheduled a public hearing on the annexation of 1.85 acres where the corporate headquarters will be located on April 16 at 6 p.m. in city council chambers at Post Falls City Hall.