The grant will go towards installing a new Plasma Cutter with a fully integrated material handling system at the site.

Chernco Engineering Managing Director, Mark Rankin, said the new system would improve plant OH&S and increase the plant’s production.

“Production capacity will go from 200 tonnes a month to 600 tonnes a month, which means that work will be able to go out into the businesses we serve and continue to help the economy grow,” he said.

“By supporting our business, they are actually supporting a whole raft of businesses and that is what really is wonderful about it.

“Manufacturing in regional communities is a lifeblood and I know Cowra in particular has a lot of people relying on manufacturing.

“It’s great to see the government is partnering with businesses such as mine to allow us to move forward and continue to be well versed at what we do,” he said.

Deputy Premier, John Barilaro, who made the announcement alongside Member for Cootamundra, Katrina Hodgkinson, said the system, designed locally, was one of the great innovations being seen in regional NSW.

“The investment we’ve seen here is about protecting this business not just for today but for the future,” he said.

“Often people talk about the end of manufacturing in this nation, but Chernco is an example of a transforming engineering sector, a sector where we will see advanced manufacturing not only from a domestic perspective but a global perspective.

“Over the last two years we’ve seen about 180,000 jobs created in NSW, 40 per cent of those jobs are in regional NSW, because people like Mark at Chernco Engineering are investing in their business,” he said.

Ms Hodgkinson said she was pleased the Murray Darling Basin Regional Economic Diversification Program could support the project.

“This is a fantastic investment from the Nationals maximising local competitive advantages, in a company that has thrived in the past decade,” she said.

“It is a fantastic day, not only for Chernco, but for the wider community”.