Officials with GE Aviation were again welcomed to the Tennessee Valley Thursday during a groundbreaking ceremony for the company’s future manufacturing facility.

The ceremony was not held at the future site of the company’s Limestone County plant, but instead at the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce. Temperatures in the mid-90s and a heat index of around 100 led to the move.

Those in attendance at Thursday’s groundbreaking included Gov. Robert Bentley, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Madison County Commission Chairman Dale Strong, Limestone County Commission Chairman Mark Yarbrough and commissioners Jason Black and Stanley Hill.

“One thing you’ll be impressed by … is once we get you here and you get started, we don’t change,” Yarbrough told GE officials at the ceremony. “You’re going to grow here and grow with us. … Welcome home to Limestone County.”

Yarbrough also noted how good Bentley and state economic development leaders had been to the Tennessee Valley in terms of helping land projects like GE Aviation. Bentley was not in attendance at a Huntsville/Madison County chamber event on Wednesday regarding the TVA megasite certification of the 1,252-acre Sewell tract in Huntsville-annexed Limestone County, but he mentioned it in his remarks.

“What an exciting time to be in Huntsville and to be in this part of the state,” Bentley said. “I come here very often because all of you do such a fantastic job … enticing industry to come to this area.”

Bentley added teamwork and workforce development remain two keys to continued success for the region.

“We’d like to say Alabama has the best ability to train workers than any state in the country, and we’re getting better every day,” he said. “I’m proud of what we do on a state level, but very proud of what’s being done at the local level.”

GE Aviation is no stranger to Alabama, however. In 2013, the company opened a manufacturing facility in Auburn. Battle said it was two years ago that he and a chamber member attended a seminar about doing business with GE.

“Little did I know that two years later we’d be partners with GE Aviation,” he said, adding the materials being manufactured by the company could have multiple uses, from unmanned aerial vehicles to space exploration.

Jon Lyford, Strategy & Advanced Technology Leader for GE Aviation said Thursday’s event represented the first day of the next phase of a journey for the company.

“A journey that will make Huntsville home to some of the most exciting technology that GE Aviation is developing and employing in a new generation of products,” he said.

The company plans to build two adjacent factories on Greenbrier Road, just south of Interstate 565 in Huntsville-annexed Limestone County. A third building will also be constructed for administrative purposes.

One plant will produce silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic fiber and represents the first such operation in the United States. The adjacent factory will use the SiC ceramic fiber to produce the unidirectional ceramic matrix composite, or CMC, tape necessary to fabricate CMC components.

Carbon fiber composite material is lighter and more durable and can help improve the efficiency and performance of aircraft engines. One carbon fiber is one-fifth the diameter of a strand of human hair.The CMC materials will enable aircraft engines to run faster and hotter, which improves fuel efficiency and environmental friendliness.

“It’s the start of a new era in jet engine technology,” said Sanjay Correa, vice president of GE Aviation. “The future is incredibly bright.”

— Details for this report provided by Michelle Williamson with the Limestone County Commission.