Outdoor furniture manufacturer POLYWOOD and North Carolina’s economic development team recently received an award recognizing corporate expansion projects across the U.S. expected to have a profound positive effect in their local communities.
POLYWOOD, which makes furniture out of recycled plastics, received a 2019 Corporate Investment & Community Impact (CiCi) Award from Trade & Industry Development magazine, The award highlights the manufacturing and distribution center the company is establishing in Roxboro, North Carolina.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper welcomes POLYWOOD and its chief executive officer, Doug Rassi, to North Carolina.
POLYWOOD, headquartered in Syracuse, Indiana, is renovating an existing 450,000-square-foot building at 3300 Jim Thorpe Highway for its North Carolina facility. The company is investing $35.3 million and creating 384 new jobs in rural Person County over five years. Partners in recruiting the plant included the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, the state Department of Commerce and Person County Economic Development.
“We are excited about opening our new full-scale production campus in North Carolina,” POLYWOOD Chief Executive Officer Doug Rassi said when the project was announced last year. “The skilled manufacturing workforce, high level of information technology and growth potential in the state make it an excellent choice for our expansion.”
In issuing its annual CiCi awards, Trade & Industry Development, which covers site selection and facility planning, considered projects announced in 2018. The award honors 15 of the nation’s largest economic development projects in terms of capital investment and 15 expected to have a significant community impact, regardless of dollars invested. POLYWOOD won in the latter category.
Person County is welcoming a company creating hundreds of new jobs with average pay exceeding the county average. POLYWOOD is also a manufacturer dedicated to sustainable practices. The company’s Roxboro plant will include a full reclamation center for all types of recycled plastics, which will be processed and used in furniture manufactured on site, the company said. In addition, the plant plans to sell recycled plastics to other businesses.
“POLYWOOD’s presence in Roxboro will not only mean much-welcomed new jobs and investment in Person County, but will also create more recycling opportunities for our citizens and others in the region,” said Sherry Wilborn, Person County economic development director.
EDPNC Board Chairman Frank Emory said POLYWOOD’s investment attests to North Carolina’s strong appeal to innovative and growing businesses. “We have a manufacturing workforce rooted in our rural communities that can well support cutting-edge manufacturers,” Emory said.
For further coverage of the CiCI awards, visit Trade & Industry Development online.
Founded in 1990, POLYWOOD was inspired by the well-known Make America Beautiful Campaign to transform millions of recycled milk jugs into recycled “faux wood” lumber. With its first product, POLYWOOD initiated the revival of the iconic Adirondack chair.