Aristocrat Gaming has unveiled a new, 265,000 square-foot manufacturing facility in Henderson.
Sydney, Australia-based Aristocrat, a game designer and manufacturer with a North American headquarters in Summerlin, hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Henderson outpost with local city and business leaders.
“They’ve just been great partners to us,” Deanne McKissick, chief supply chain officer at Aristocrat, told Vegas Inc. “We’re happy to be a part of that community and that family and continue to grow our business, not only in the Las Vegas Valley — and, obviously, the Strip and Las Vegas proper — but also in the Henderson area as well.”
The company’s previous Las Vegas manufacturing facility was around 110,000 square feet, McKissick said. The size of the new one allows for growth from eight production lines to a full dozen.
The facility is in West Henderson near the Henderson Executive Airport, which McKissick called “a great part of town,” close to amenities like restaurants and coffee shops for the convenience of employees.
“We’re happy to be in that area,” she said. “It’s growing. Obviously, the Raiders are there — Levi’s, Amazon. So, there’s a lot of similar-type work near us. There’s growth and there’s energy, and we’re excited to be a part of it.”
The ribbon-cutting ceremony August 22 was the culmination of years of planning and anticipation for moving to the new site, McKissick said, while also setting up the company’s “factory of the future,” and growth for years to come.
The Henderson Chamber of Commerce’s economic arm has advocated for 10-plus years on behalf of bringing this type of business — manufacturing and distribution — to West Henderson, said Scott Muelrath, president and CEO of the organization. He pointed to the area’s proximity to Interstate 15 as just one example of its convenience.
“With Aristocrat coming in, in that project, it just was very much in alignment with our vision for West Henderson as an economic engine,” he said. “And Aristocrat brings more than just distribution. I mean, they’re assembling these slot machines out there. So, it’s a great new use for this region of the valley.”
The positions at the facility are technical and in a high wage sector, which he expects to result in a positive economic ripple effect in the area, Muelrath said.
And Aristocrat’s not done yet. The manufacturer intends to build a second facility, this one around 130,000 square feet, on the same site, McKissick said. It’s slated to open sometime in mid-2025.
There are a little over 200 employees based at the campus, she said, with more to come once the expansion is complete.
She’s happy the facility is finally open, and Aristocrat can begin scaling its business, and growing in efficiency, innovation and technology, McKissick said.
“We’re excited for what this means for the industry, for the Las Vegas Valley — for Henderson … what it means for our customers,” she emphasized. “We’ll continue to focus on providing a high speed of execution and a high-quality product to our customers, and we’re happy for what this means to our employees, and the future and growth for them in their careers in gaming.”
This story originally appeared in Las Vegas Weekly.