1 year after massive SPS Technologies fire, Montco commissioners applaud its return

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The Montgomery County Board of Commissioners is welcoming the rebuild of SPS Technologies a year after a huge fire reduced the facility in Abington to ash and rubble.

“All three of us just met with the SPS leadership — Dan Gear, the general manager, and Dave Dugan, the government relations head — and it’s great news that we are going to see the factory come back,” Commissioner Neil Makhija said at Thursday night’s meeting.

The century-old aerospace fastener facility went up in flames in February 2025, prompting a massive response from 68 fire companies.

The inferno burned for days before crews finally put out the embers. Commissioners Jamila Winder and Tom DiBello thanked first responders for their action in taming the blaze.

“No lives lost, no injuries and that just goes to show the professionalism and how fortunate we are with all our first responders, all our fire departments, and our neighboring counties that they just came together and worked as one huge united team,” DiBello said.

SPS laid off about 250 employees in the fire’s aftermath. In September 2025, the company laid out plans to construct a new two-story, 350,000-square-foot facility. Residents, in large part, have yearned for the return of a key local jobs hub.

“It’s going to be a state-of-the-art facility and while there were 500 jobs — this is going to be 250 jobs due to automation,” Makhija said.

The return of SPS also comes as Johnson & Johnson announced plans Wednesday to build a new $1 billion cell therapy plant in Lower Gwynedd Township. Gov. Josh Shapiro said that the state made a strong push to bring the site to Pennsylvania.

“It’s pretty amazing to think that the medicine of the future will be developed right here in Montgomery County,” Winder said. “It’s a reflection of the strength of our community. Some of the most innovative companies in the world have been choosing Montgomery County.”