Industrial laser manufacturing firm the Hutchinson Group will invest £4.1 million (about $4.5 million) to add 80 workers at its Kilrea and Antrim production sites, as well as to purchase technology to expand its business in the automotive, aerospace and materials handling sectors. The expansion is supported in part by Invest Northern Ireland, the regional economic development authority, which contributed £500,000 in funding specifically to support the creation of new jobs. Those positions will include advanced manufacturing, business development, and sales and marketing roles. "Our objective is to double business revenue over the next three years," said Mark Hutchinson, managing director of Hutchinson Engineering. "We aim to achieve this by growing our customer base and differentiating ourselves in competitive global markets by providing value-added products and services. Investing in state-of-the-art technology, additional skilled staff and further expanding our manufacturing capabilities at Kilrea will help us to achieve this goal." Last June the company announced a capital investment of £3.2 million to build out a 60,000-square-foot manufacturing site in Kilrea with two new lasers. The Hutchinson Group comprises Hutchinson Engineering, a subcontract laser and metal fabrication firm in Kilrea; a sister specialist aerospace arm, AeroTech, in Antrim; and a design company, H360, colocated with Hutchinson Engineering. For more information, visit www.hutchinson-engineering.co.uk.