MERRILL, WI - Hurd Windows and Doors is following through with expansion plans at its Merrill, WI, window plant, adding 24 jobs and laying plans to hire 100 more by early next year.

Hurd. based ini Medford, OR, and its ownership HWD Acquisition Inc. purchased the more than 1-million-square-foot facility and its assets in December 2008 from Longroad Asset Management LLC. In making one of the largest investment of capital ever made in its history, Hurd promised to embark on a multi-phase, multi-million dollar investment and renovation project.

The recent hiring of 24 new employees to an area facing 10.1 percent unemployment, brings the plant up to 24 workers, according to the Wausau Daily Herald. Most of the new jobs are for machinists and assemblers, with hourly salaries paying between $9.50 and $12.50 an hour, the paper reported.

In a June 19, 2009 press release, Hurd said, "Specific plans for renovation include new state-of-the-art lines to support the manufacturing of Hurd's state-of-the art new H3 window, which seamlessly integrates extruded aluminum cladding, a vinyl base frame and a solid wood interior into a single window. Building upgrades, technology system advancements, and Lean manufacturing and logistic improvements including an initiative to narrow the distance between some of the company's production lines are also planned."