Commissioner John Richardson discusses the economic impact of Global Contact Services' call center opening in Somerset County.

I'm proud of our workers in Pittsfield and all around the state. Our exemplary work ethic is one of the reasons companies like GCS choose Maine for their relocations and expansions. Our labor force and competitive business incentives combined with the team work between both public and private organizations attracted this well-respected business to Maine.

Global Contact Services (GCS) chose Pittsfield after a year-long site location process. Maine was in direct competition with Virginia and Ohio and through the efforts of all parties involved, GCS was able to confidently choose our state as the new location for their growing business which is bringing 200 new jobs to Somerset County.

The State's business incentives played a key role in GCS's decision process: GCS is now a certified Pine Tree Zone company and the Office of Community Development provided $15,000 of Community Development Block Grant capital to allow for retrofitting of the building to accommodate the requirements of GCS.

This call center opening was the fastest and smoothest in the company's history and the Pittsfield facility is one of 12 U.S. based centers calling for a particular insurance campaign and is already ranked 2nd best.