Medtronic

Medtronic, based in Minneapolis, is a medical technologies company with 40,000 employees worldwide, more than 600 of whom are in Jacksonville at the surgical technologies division headquarters, called Medtronic Xomed Inc. The division is responsible for designing and manufacturing products for the diagnosis and treatment of ear, nose and throat diseases as well as cranial, spinal and neurological conditions.

Medtronic decided on Duval County to head start a $14.1 million expansion project in Southpoint that included a new 75,000-square-foot building for general office space, research and development, laboratory space and customer training labs. The expansion also expected to add 175 full-time jobs in Jacksonville by 2015 at an average of $80,000 per year.