Ilana Kowarski

Florida Today

PALM BAY – In retrospect, I.O. Incorporated's plan to relocate to Palm Bay from North Carolina just over a year ago didn't come at the best time.

It was just a few months after the December 2012 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, where 20 children and six adult staff members were killed. While gun laws quickly became a focus after Sandy Hook, particular attention was placed on assault-style weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

Because I.O.'s top products were AR-15s and AK-47s, some were wary about publicly welcoming the gun designer and manufacturer to Palm Bay, regardless of the jobs it was bringing or the investment it was making in a 51,000-square-foot facility in south Brevard County. The idea of providing tax breaks to I.O., even though it met the necessary criteria, was turning into a controversy.

"As soon as I found out that it was an issue, I said, 'Why start fresh with a controversy?' so I said forget about it and moved on," Uli Wiegand, the company's president and chief executive officer said during a recent tour of the facility.

Moving on for I.O. meant abandoning the effort to get tax breaks, but still investing $2 million in a new facility in Palm Bay and overseeing a work force of 33, a number expected to grow as Wiegand expands marketing efforts for his line of products, which range from pistols to rifles.

It's quickly going about establishing itself as a quality gun manufacturer and designer, joining Titusville's Knight's Armament and Cocoa-based Kel-Tec with headquarters in Brevard. Its move to Palm Bay also comes as many gun manufacturers, mostly in the Northeast, are looking to move to other states that they see as more friendly to gun rights.

That wasn't necessarily why Wiegand, a native of Germany, decided to pick up stakes in Monroe, N.C., and move to Brevard. He said he focused on the Space Coast because it was rich with engineering talent and also because of available manufacturing space in Palm Bay. Then there was the fact, that Brevard also had a concentration of military personnel with weapons expertise.

"We had to find a whole new work force," Weigand said, noting all but five workers — which came here from North Carolina — have been local hires.

Palm Bay Mayor William Capote said he has been very pleased with Weigand's contributions to the city and Brevard's economy.

"I know he's looking for bigger and better things to bring to the community," Capote said. "He's a good asset to the community."

Valuable business

Greg Weiner, the senior director of business development at the Economic Development Commission, said that I.O. Incorporated is a responsible and valuable member of the Space Coast business community.

"I'm thrilled that I.O. chose to locate here, because one of the things we are trying to do is diversify the economy," Weiner said, adding that while it's important for Brevard to concentrate on the aerospace industry, efforts must be made to attract other industries.

"Not everybody is a rocket scientist, and we need to provide jobs for those who don't work in aerospace," he said.

The EDC predicts that once I.O. reaches full capacity, it will create more than 50 jobs and contribute $6.6 million annually to the local economy.

Guns and ammunition manufacturing in the United States is an approximately $11 billion industry. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms says over an eight-year-period, an average of 1.4 million rifles are made each year in the United States. Manufacturers produced an average of more than 1.2 million pistols in the same period.

The product line-up at I.O. includes the Sporter rifle series, the M214, the AR-15 and the CAR-15. It also makes .45-caliber pistol called "the Venom." The products range in price from $550 to $850, a price range which many say gives the company an edge over its competitors.

Top testimonals

Brent Shepherd, the manager of the gun range at the American Police Hall of Fame and Museum in Titusville, said I.O. is emerging as a significant player.

"I have not had first-hand experience with their guns, but I know they have a good line of products," he said. "They're distributed by some major gun distribution companies, including the Elleet Brothers, the RSR Group, and Sports South, and those companies don't usually handle junk."

Dan Beck of Muskego, Wisc., purchased a I.O. pistol from a Cabela's Sporting Goods store — and offered glowing praise about the company. He figured he got a good deal on the weapon because it was about two years old and had been in Cabela's inventory of weapons.

"It was similar to a Ruger and a little bit cheaper," Beck said. "After I bought, I found some problems so I shipped it back to the company. And I was just blown away with how they repaired the gun. They actually made it better than what it was."

The tan, 44-year-old Wiegand is gregarious and knowledgeable about not only his products but also weapons, and gun manufacturing. He said that he was proud of his work and his business, and that he wanted employees who were as passionate as he was.

"I don't want people here just working for a paycheck. I want them to be proud of what they're manufacturing," Weigand said.

Weigand hasn't been without legal problems. In 2006, he pled guilty to federal charges that he failed to maintain firearm transfer records for machine gun parts as required by federal law, and he was ordered to pay $1,125.

"Unfortunately, firearms for some people are controversial, but they're not controversial for me because of the Second Amendment," Weigand said.

On the other side of the gun issue, critics still maintain that while guns like those made by I.O. are legal, communities need to be careful about recruiting them.

Laura Cutilletta, the senior attorney for the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said that money and jobs should not be the only factors in political calculations about whether to encourage assault weapons manufacturing.

"We think assault weapons are inappropriate for civilians," Cutilletta said. "Their features are only appropriate for military conditions. These guns serve no sporting purpose, and they serve no self-defense purpose. "

Still safe?

Cutilletta said that politicians whose communities benefit financially from gun manufacturing should consider whether they are compromising the safety of their citizens.

"I would say that the economic benefit comes at a very high price," she said. "Risking your loved ones or family members being killed by one of these weapons seems like too high a price to me."

Capote disagreed, saying he doesn't know of any reports where I.O. guns were used in crimes. And he said that the company has allowed public officials to tour their facilities to make sure they are safe.

"The company is growing," Capote said, "and they're not hurting anybody."

FLORIDA TODAY reporter J.D. Gallop contributed to this report.

Contact Kowarski at 321-242-3640 or ikowarski@floridatoday.com. You can follow her on Twitter @IlanaKowarski