Yamaha’s U.S. Marine Business Unit today announced the grand opening of its Marine Innovation Center in Kennesaw, Ga.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, First Lady Marty Kemp and Mayor Derek Easterling of Kennesaw attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for the 75,280-square-foot facility, which houses the Yamaha Marine Connected Division as well as the company’s Marine Development, Yamaha Marine Product Management and Yamaha Marine Technical Marketing.

“We believe Georgia is an exceptional location for business growth and development. The Marine Innovation Center represents the fourth major Yamaha facility in the state, joining Yamaha’s Marine headquarters in Kennesaw, the Yamaha Motorsports and Intelligent Machinery Group headquarters in Marietta, and the Yamaha Motor Corporation manufacturing facility in Newnan,” said Ben Speciale, president Yamaha U.S. Marine Business Unit, in a statement. “Yamaha employs approximately 2,300 team members in Georgia. We plan to add more as we partner with local education institutions to hire engineers for our new facility in Kennesaw, where we’re developing exciting, innovative products that will deliver more exceptional experiences for Yamaha customers across the globe.”

Products currently under development within the center include DockPoint, the newest feature of Helm Master EX Full Maneuverability, which automatically docks a properly equipped boat, and Siren Marine products, which allow customers to monitor and control the functionality of their boats from mobile devices.

“I know this [Yamaha] Marine Innovation Center is another great win for our state, and this is an example of why I believe we continue to remain the number one state in the country for business, which we’ve done for nine years in a row now,” said Governor Kemp in the statement. “According to the Outdoor Industry Association, recreational businesses bring over $27 billion to Georgia’s economy every year and employ around 238,000 people, which is a lot. Certainly, Yamaha is a big part of that industry and we’re just so thankful that Yamaha continues to choose to build and grow as they’ve done over the past several decades.”