Ronkonkoma company relocates to Delaware

A Ronkonkoma company that makes machines for testing products has relocated to Delaware, officials there have announced.

Testing Machines Inc. has relocated to New Castle, and so have 17 of its employees, the Delaware Economic Development Office announced Tuesday and the company president confirmed Wednesday.

Of the remaining nine employees, six retired and three decided not to relocate, said John Sullivan. He said employees received six weeks' severance, and those who relocated received $5,000 for moving expenses.

Sullivan, whose company opened in Delaware on June 15, said Long Island had lost its appeal as a place to conduct business.

"Long Island is one of the highest cost-of-living places in the country," he said. "The taxes are out of control. The traffic is out of control . . . and quite honestly New York is not a pro-business state."

Delaware helped entice Testing Machines with a $500,000 state loan for working capital and the purchase of machinery and equipment; $100,000 of that will convert to a grant if the company maintains at least 50 full-time jobs for three years.

"When we heard that TMI was open to leaving their facilities in another state, we jumped at the chance to welcome them to Delaware," said Gov. Jack Markell. "These are high-wage jobs creating high-tech products that get exported across the world."

The company invested $300,000 to build a 20,000-square-foot facility with solar panels and geothermal heating and cooling that will help cut its energy consumption by 80 percent, the state development office said.