MDI seeks partners to fill unused space at Hibbing plant

MDI’s Hibbing plant has about 12 workers making totes and other packaging materials inside a 36,000-square-foot building built for much bigger ambitions. Now, leaders at Minnesota Diversified Industries are looking for partners to help keep that space from sitting idle and to make the site do more for Hibbing than simply hold a small manufacturing crew.

The facility opened in March 2018 near the Range Regional Airport, replacing a 100-year-old former Greyhound bus terminal. It was designed to improve working conditions, add room for growth and create more jobs in the community. MDI broke ground on the project in June 2017, describing it as part of a broader northern Minnesota expansion that was projected at more than $5 million for the Hibbing plant and about $9 million overall.

Public and private backing helped make the project possible. The Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board approved a $1 million forgivable loan and a $350,000 infrastructure grant, while St. Louis County donated $53,000 for infrastructure. Other supporters included the Blandin Foundation, Cleveland Cliffs and FabCon.

MDI president and CEO Eric Black has said the organization wants future growth in Hibbing to match local talent and inclusion goals, not just fill square footage. That matters in a city where the plant’s footprint is large, the workforce is small and the building was meant to anchor more employment. The company has said it historically produced millions of plastic totes and trays and has been diversifying beyond its long-running postal-service-related business.

The organization’s broader mission also shapes what kinds of partners could fit. MDI says it has more than 60 years of history and that about half of its workforce is made up of people with disabilities. It has also expanded Unified Work, a job-training and workforce-development program launched in 2017. Since 2023, MDI says, Unified Work has had 640 participants, with more than 95% reporting positive effects such as greater self-confidence and a greater likelihood of applying for jobs.

That makes the Hibbing plant more than a manufacturing site. It could become space for another employer, a training partner or a workforce program that brings more people into the labor market and more daytime activity to the area near the airport. Leaving the building underused would mean a modern public-private investment sits partially empty while Hibbing still needs jobs, skills training and a stronger economic pull beyond the plant doors.