Garmin opens research and development facility in Tulsa
BY ROBERT EVATT World Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
7/25/12 at 6:20 PM
Garmin, a worldwide maker of a variety of GPS-enabled devices for cars, boats, airplanes and portable consumer use, has opened up a research and development facility in Tulsa.
The new office, located in an existing building at 4500 S. Garnett Road, is already operational and will eventually employ 15 people, said Ted Gartner, director of corporate communications for the Olathe, Kansas-based company.
Gartner said Garmin operates over a dozen small R&D facilities across the country, ranging in size from 10 to 300 people, in order to better find skilled workers.
“It’s important to expand our ability to attract engineers where they’re already located,” he said.
Mike Neal, president and CEO of the Tulsa Metro Chamber, praised the company’s decision.
“Northeast Oklahoma continues to attract industry-leading firms across many sectors, and we are thrilled that Garmin has chosen the Tulsa region as a location for its growing operations,” he said. “We look forward to continued growth and success from this tremendous company.”
The Tulsa facility will focus on developing software and hardware for marine products, Gartman said. Garmin sells a wide variety of devices for boats, including “chartplotter” navigation devices, radios, cameras and fish finders.
“We’ve been heavily involved in that industry since our beginning in 1989,” he said.
Gartner said he expects the Tulsa location to be fully operational by the end of the summer.
Garmin is currently advertising online for three jobs, including two senior design engineers and a senior engineering technician. Salary ranges for those jobs were not listed.
