Researchers are expected to move into Dupont Pioneer’s new $1.8 million facility in Urbana within the next few days, bringing a handful of new jobs to the area.

Construction crews are putting the finishing touches on the 25,000-square-foot facility this week, said Terry Howell, who owns the property and whose construction company built the site. Dupont Pioneer will use the property to study how several varieties of corn seed react with soil in Ohio and in other states, said Joe Stull, senior research associate with the company.

The new facility will bring seven full-time jobs to the area, along with a part-time administrative assistant. Future expansions also are possible.

“We’re excited to move into the area,” Stull said.

The Urbana property is the company’s only permanent corn research facility in Ohio, Stull said, although Dupont Pioneer also operates a soybean research site in Napoleon, Ohio. Urbana was chosen in part because of its location and in part because of the variety of soil types in the county, said Jamie Butts, communications manager for the company.

The long-term goal is to help farmers increase productivity and meet an increasing need for grain and other agricultural products.

“These are products that are going to be grown in Ohio and we need to be able to see how it performs,” Butts said.

The Urbana facility will replace a temporary site in Plain City that was established in 2011. Company officials have said the previous site offered little room for potential growth.

While people might typically think of research occurring in a spotless laboratory, much of the real research here will take place in the fields, Stull said. The company will test corn seed in about 100 farm plots throughout the state, including about five in Champaign County.

Along with office space, the Urbana facility also includes storage space for farm equipment, as well as a cold storage space for seeds. While it is labeled as a research facility, it will operate more like a commercial farm, Stull said.