ST. MARY PARISH — Saronic’s $300 million expansion in Franklin is setting the stage for a major wave of high-tech hiring across St. Mary Parish, and local leaders say the impact will be felt well beyond the company’s shipyard. The autonomous-vessel manufacturer is preparing to bring more than 1,000 skilled jobs to the region, a shift city officials believe will reshape the area’s workforce. “From an economic standpoint it’s going to definitely change the lives of many residents in this area, not only Franklin but all of St. Mary Parish,” Mayor Eugene Foulcard said.
South Louisiana Community College (Solacc) is playing a central role in preparing residents for those positions. The college operates a campus in Franklin just minutes from the expansion site, offering industrial electronics and marine programs aligned with the needs of a modern vessel-technology facility. Anne Falgout, director of strategic communications for Solacc, said the partnership between the college’s curriculum and Saronic’s hiring goals is already clear. “Not only is this company growing and expanding in our region but also dedicated to bringing over a thousand highly skilled Jobs to that area in industries and professions that we actually train for,” she said.
Students are already gaining hands-on experience with systems similar to the equipment used in autonomous marine technology. “We have students this week that are programming and testing their autonomous vehicles,” Falgout said. She added that the college emphasizes real-world readiness. “Electronic testing equipment is here because it runs the gambit of what students might be working on in the real world.”
Local leaders say the growth at Saronic will give Solacc students a direct route into new careers as the project scales. “Thry will have a direct pipeline of students that will finish up those curriculums and get thor certifications and basically walk into a job,” Mayor Foulcard said. Falgout added that the college’s footprint puts students exactly where opportunities are emerging. “We also have an industrial electronics program in the marine industry which is actually available at the Franklin and Morgan City campuses right where this growth is happening,” she said.
Officials say the $300 million investment marks the beginning of a new era of advanced workforce development in St. Mary Parish, with training, hiring and technology growth happening side by side as the expansion moves forward.
