FALLS CITY, Neb. — After a wait of nearly 10 years, a small town’s industrial speculation finally paid off.

Vantec Inc. announced Thursday that it will operate a factory in the long-empty Falls City Speculative Building in the town’s industrial park. The facility will make plastic injection molded components that can be used in products such as washers and dryers, vacuums, or even small engines.

A crowd of more than 100 people, including Falls City-native Gov. Dave Heineman, attended the announcement ceremony.

Community leaders saw the need for the “spec building” 10 years ago and construction on the 40,000 square foot steel shell was completed in 2000. A new road was built to the facility last year. The only thing missing was a company to use the space.

Then Vantec stepped forward.

“You have a vision for the future of Falls City, and that is important to us,” Vantec president Willie Van Wyhe said. “We want to be a part of that future.”

The factory will create 20 to 25 jobs and will operate 24 hours per day, five days a week, when it opens sometime around Dec. 1, Mr. Van Wyhe said. The company plans to expand in the future, which would push 24-hour production to seven days per week.

A group called Falls City Economic Development and Growth Enterprise Inc. — or EDGE — led efforts to bring a company to the empty building. EDGE vice president Steve Kottich and other members of the group spent months convincing Vantec that Falls City provided the best site for a new factory.

“They’re polite people and always say yes to what we asked, so we just bugged the heck out of them until they decided to come down here,” Mr. Kottich joked.

Mr. Heineman said that Falls City and other small towns in Nebraska make the state an “island of prosperity” in a time when other states struggle to avoid an economic recession.

“Think of what 25 jobs can do in a community like Falls City, then think of what would have to be done to have the same impact in a city like Omaha or Lincoln,” Mr. Heineman said.

Mayor Rodney Vandeberg said the past month had provided more good news for the town than he could believe.

“When we broke ground on our new $22 million hospital a few weeks ago, I said it was my best day as mayor. Now I get to have another one,” Mr. Vandeberg said.

Mr. Van Wyhe said Falls City’s proximity to one of Vantec’s biggest customers — the Kawasaki plant in Maryville, Mo. — was another factor in the decision. Vantec was founded in Webster City, Iowa, in 1983. The Falls City plant is the company’s first expansion outside Webster City in its 25-year history.

Clinton Thomas can be reached at

clintonthomas@npgco.com.