EFI Connection Secures Manufacturing Loan Crucial to Erie Development
The Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority (ECGRA) and the Erie County Redevlopment Authority (ECRDA) today highlighted an Erie manufacturing success during a press conference and facility walkthrough at EFI Connection, a locally rooted manufacturer headquartered in downtown Erie.
This event marked ECGRA's first-ever investment in ECRDA, a milestone that underscores a growing commitment to collaboration and a shared focus on strengthening Erie's Main Streets through targeted economic development, particularly in manufacturing, a sector central to Erie's identity and long-term prosperity.
"Erie's economic story has changed," said ECGRA Executive Director Perry Wood. "What was once defined by decline is now driven by momentum, collaboration, and opportunity. This investment reflects how our organizations are aligning priorities and working together to support businesses that are building things right here in Erie County."
EFI Connection, founded in 2003, serves automotive enthusiasts nationwide with engine wire harness assemblies and OEM replacement connectors. Over the past two decades, the company has steadily expanded its capabilities and product offerings while remaining deeply rooted in Erie. Today, EFI Connection employs more than a dozen skilled workers in good-paying, family-sustaining manufacturing jobs.
Through a $95,000 Main Street Impact Fund loan administered by ECRDA and supported by ECGRA, EFI Connection is investing in a new wire processing system that will increase efficiency, scale production, and position the company for continued growth. The investment will allow additional products to be manufactured locally while supporting job creation in downtown Erie.
"Supporting manufacturers like EFI Connection is essential to Erie's continued resurgence," Wood said. "Their success strengthens working families, stabilizes Main Streets, and drives sustainable economic growth."
"This support allows us to modernize our operations and continue growing in downtown Erie," said Mike Noonan, CEO of EFI Connection. "The new equipment will help us work more efficiently, expand our product line, and create additional jobs - all while keeping our manufacturing local. This is the type of investment Erie needs to continue growing."
While ECGRA and ECRDA invest at multiple levels across the community, the Main Street Impact Fund is a focused economic engine designed to accelerate business growth. Through this initiative, ECRDA redevelops blighted and underused properties, connects businesses to capital, structures public-private partnerships, and identifies strategic investments that create tangible opportunities for local companies.
Through the Main Street Impact Fund alone, ECRDA has deployed more than $37 million in loans, supported over 150 businesses, and originated 63 microloans since 2020, with 37 percent of those loans supporting BIPOC-owned businesses. Overall, ECRDA has awarded more than $88.5 million in loans to local businesses and has directly helped retain more than 4,000 jobs across Erie County.
"This investment shows what's possible when we align resources around local businesses that are committed to Erie," said Tina Mengine, President & CEO of the Erie County Redevelopment Authority. EFI Connection is exactly the kind of Main Street manufacturer this fund was designed to support - a growing, locally rooted company creating good jobs and producing high-quality products right here in Erie."
ECGRA plays a critical role in driving growth across Erie County, with investments that support municipalities, neighborhoods, education, small business, youth, and quality of place. Since its inception in 2008, ECGRA has invested more than $88 million throughout the county, supporting enterprises ranging from neighborhood storefronts to advanced manufacturers that create jobs at scale.
EI Connection joins other local manufacturers suppported through similar investments, including Corry Laser Technologies, Erie Carbonics, LLC, and Flagship Equipment Company, Inc. Together, these companies represent the kind of modern, locally rooted manufacturing that is helping rebuild Erie's economy from the ground up.
"Manufacturing remains a shared priority for our organizations," Wood said. "When we invest in Erie's manufacturers, we invest in people, places, and long-term opportunity."
