What began 75 years ago with an engineer and a handful of colleagues working late nights in an old airplane hangar south of Buffalo has grown into a global motion-control company.
Moog, founded in Western New York in 1951, marked its 75th anniversary Thursday with the unveiling of a new $150 million Advanced Integrated Manufacturing facility at its headquarters in Elma.
While Moog now has facilities around the world, company leaders say Western New York remains the "heartbeat" to its operations.
“This is where the company was founded,” Moog CEO Pat Roche said. “There's a collection of talent here that is amazing for the organization. It helps fuel our growth around the world.”
Roche said the new facility is designed to increase production capacity through a more automated manufacturing process, while still maintaining its skilled workforce.
“This is an automated production flow, so it's much higher velocity for the product moving through our manufacturing environment,” he said. “So we have greater capacity by doing this.”
Moog's motion-control systems are used in a wide range of industries, including aerospace, medical technology, power generation and defense.
The company's technology has been used in space exploration since the Apollo era and continues to support NASA's Artemis missions.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said Moog has provided jobs for generations of Western New Yorkers while also supporting STEM education and workforce development programs.
"The largest private sector investment in American history is happening in our state, just a couple hours away,” Hochul said. “This is creating an ecosystem of accomplishment, success, advanced manufacturing, but also leading our state into the future, building on the legacy of this 75 years."
To mark 75 years, the family of late founder Bill Moog announced the launch of a new STEM-scholarship program for area youth. Monetary support is in $1,951 increments, harkening to the company's founding year.
More than 100 employees will work at the new facility, which was designed to allow for future expansion if supply chain demands increase.
