Hickory Springs names Eric Geiger director of foam R&D

Mattress and furniture industry supplier Hickory Springs Mfg. Co. in Hickory, N.C., has named Eric Geiger corporate director of foam research and development-organic growth.

Geiger joins the flexible polyurethane foam research and development team at Hickory Springs’s foam plant in Conover, N.C. His responsibilities include the growth of new foam products and new process development.

Geiger has more than 21 years of experience in polyurethane foam. He spent the past three years as global R&D manager for fire retardant producer Albemarle Corp. Previously, he was director of R&D for Urethane Soy Systems and spent 10 years in research with Stepan Co., which specializes in polyester polyols. He started his career with Dow Chemical, where he worked on flexible molded foam technology.

“Hickory Springs has a long history as a pioneer in the development of new types of polyurethane foam,” said Bobby Bush, Hickory Springs senior vice president of foam and environmental technology. “We look forward to seeing how Eric and his 21 years of R&D experience will help lead Hickory Springs’ foam division into a new era of innovation and diversification.”