Representatives of Embraer SA have taken part in the ground-breaking ceremony for a new assembly plant in Melbourne, Florida, for the Brazilian manufacturer’s Legacy 500 and Legacy 450 mid-size executive jets.

The 236,000 q ft assembly plant complements the company’s existing 212,000 sq ft facility at Melbourne International Airport. The new facility
— scheduled to begin operations by 2016 — will house an assembly hangar, a paint facility, a completion centre, a flight preparation facility and a delivery centre. The company will create 600 jobs at the site over a four-year period.

Embraer Executive Jets CEO Marco Tulio Pellegrini said: “Surpassing all original expectations during certification tests, the Legacy 500 and Legacy 450 represent a new ‘game-changing’ generation of business aircraft. With this ‘state of the art’ facility at the heart of an important aeronautical centre in the region, we are very confident in the future of these programmes.”

Lynda Weatherman, CEO of the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast, said: “Today takes us full circle back to 2008, when ground was broken on Embraer’s first facility in Florida. In six short years, the company has developed a ‘footprint’ in our community that has significantly strengthened our standing as an aviation hub.”