Night Vision Manufacturer Named 2012 Armstrong County ‘Employer of the Year’

The Armstrong County Employer of the Year award for 2012 was given to FLIR Government Systems.

Headquartered in Pittsburgh, FLIR has facility across from the Northpointe business park, but aims to consolidate its two facilities and move its design and manufacturing facility into Northpointe later this year due to lack of space.

FLIR works with U.S. Government and foreign-friendly government leaders to produce night vision and thermal equipment.

FLIR Government Systems, Inc. was established in 2009 when FLIR Systems Inc., a developer of high-performance infrared imagining systems, acquired Optical Systems Technology Inc. and Keystone Applied Technologies Inc.

Business officials also work close with the nearby-Penn State University Electro-Optics Center.

FLIR is a supporter of the industry partnership program and the Armstrong County Manufacturing Consortium and has co-chaired the partnership for several years. In addition, FLIR is very active in workforce development by participating on the WIB Board, the Lenape Technical School Advisory Committee, the Armstrong Educational Trust Board, and the Armstrong County Economic Development Alliance.

FLIR is active in many youth pipeline development activities, such as participating in the Female Alliance for STEM Excellence and the Armstrong County Forum for Workforce Excellence. FLIR trains its incumbent workers to enhance their skills to remain competitive in the industry.

A registered user of the PA CareerLink, FLIR began with five employees and is up to 76, according to Human Resources Manager Vickie DeThomas.

It was their first such ‘Employer of the Year’ award and officials were very honored to receive it, according to DeThomas.

The Tri-County Workforce Investment Board, Inc. gave an Employer of the Year Award in each county in Armstrong, Butler, and Indiana Counties for employers who have significantly contributed to the workforce development system. This award highlights the collaboration of business and workforce investment in the three counties.

Butler County’s winner was Quality Life Services, a family owned company that owned and operated eight nursing homes and a pharmacy in Western Pennsylvania since 1973. Quality Life Services employs nearly 320 people in Butler County and over 730 people in the surrounding counties.

The Indiana County winner was The Communities at Indian Haven, a health care facility owned by the County of Indiana and managed by Affinity Health Services. The facility employs 122 staff and has a bed compliment of 108 within three distinct communities- Nostalgia Way (the memory impaired unit), Nautical Way (rehabilitation/acute care unit) and Neighbor Way (57 long term care beds).

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