A tech startup specializing in coatings for masks and filters that help trap viruses like COVID-19 is setting up shop in Sahuarita’s tech park.
Steel Jupiter, which was founded last year in the Philadelphia area, said it has leased a 13,000-square-foot facility at the Sahuarita Advanced Manufacturing, Engineering and Technology facility (SAMTEC) for manufacturing, research and development.
The facility is expected to be operational by the end of 2022, initially creating 15 jobs, according to the company and the Arizona Commerce Authority.
Carlos Tellez, chairman and president of Steel Jupiter, said the company’s coatings can significantly improve the effectiveness of HVAC filters and masks in filtering viruses from the air.
Tellez said the company settled on the SAMTEC location on South La Cañada Drive after evaluating other locations.
“We are thrilled to call Sahuarita our home base for our continued growth and innovation long into the future,” Tellez said in announcing the move.
The company cited the science and engineering resources at the University of Arizona, which it said is uniquely qualified to conduct independent testing of Steel Jupiter’s product as a result of its virus-testing capabilities.
Steel Jupiter will for now keep its executive office outside of Philadelphia in Radnor, Pennsylvania, where it now has four employees, and the SAMTEC facility will be staffed mostly with local hires, Chief Operating Officer Michael Weinberg said.
Steel Jupiter’s new facility is expected to have an economic impact of $27 million over the next five years, said Joe Snell, president and CEO of the local economic-development group Sun Corridor Inc.
Steel Jupiter is the second tech company to land at SAMTEC this year.
PowerPhotonic, a maker of optics for advanced lasers and optical systems based in Scotland, announced in March it had selected Sahuarita’s SAMTEC for its new U.S. headquarters and manufacturing facility.
