Calhoun, Ga.-based Mohawk Industries Inc.'s Summerville, Ga., facility expansion recently was honored with a "Deal of the Year" award in the category for communities with a population under 50,000. Presented by the Georgia Economic Developers Association (GEDA), the award recognizes Mohawk's expansion project for its broad partnerships, job creation and sustainable manufacturing. Georgia Governor Nathan Deal presented the award at a ceremony held at the Macon Marriott City Center in Macon, Ga.
Mohawk's Summerville plant recycles plastic bottles and containers into polyester fiber for carpet end-uses. Through the expansion, the company will improve efficiencies and retool the manufacturing processes to make a soft polyester fiber for its Soft Appeal? products. Mohawk reports the softer polyester fiber exhibits greater stain resistance and improved durability over previous fibers, and the company is seeing increased growth for the product.
Mohawk credited numerous people and organizations for their contributions to the project, including: State Senator Jeff Mullis; Chattooga County Sole Commissioner Jason Winters; the Chattooga County Development Authority; Chris Cummiskey, Carl Campbell and the team at the Georgia Department of Economic Development; David Tidmore and the Chattooga County Chamber of Commerce team; Summerville Mayor Harry Harvey; Summerville City Manager Russell Thompson; and a number of Mohawk employees.
"The success of this project reflects the quality of the individuals, teams and organizations involved in bringing it to fruition," said Mark Dye, vice president of recycling, Mohawk. "Their contributions have helped to make the Summerville facility expansion worthy of this recognition.
"The Summerville expansion is a win for our company, of course, but it's also a win for our community thanks to the creation of 500 good new jobs," added Dye. "It's a win for our customers and consumers because of the exciting new products we'll be able to create, and it's a win for the environment because this entire expansion is a continuation of our commitment to sustainable manufacturing."
