American Textile Chairman Emeritus Reid Ruttenberg cuts the ribbon at the grand opening of the Tifton, Georgia, manufacturing and distribution center.
American Textile Co., a supplier of mattress pads, pillows and other filled bedding, with headquarters in Duquesne, Pennsylvania, has doubled the size of its manufacturing and distribution center in Tifton, Georgia. The company held a grand opening Sept. 4 of the 418,000-square-foot facility, and hired 30 additional employees. It expects to add 100 more over the next three years.
Event attendees—who included elected officials, community leaders and business partners—praised American Textile for “bucking industry trends … with a strategy to manufacture and ship most items from four sites in the U.S., and for a focus on innovative sleep products, some of which were previously manufactured and shipped from Asia,” a news release said.
Lance Ruttenberg, American Textile president and chief executive officer, said, “American manufacturers have traditionally faced difficult decisions when balancing cost considerations with the desire to produce in America. Now, consumer demand for American-made products, coupled with rising freight costs and overseas wages, has made it financially viable for companies to expand in the United States. We’re thrilled to be a part of this resurgence of the textile industry in the Southeast and have found Tifton to be the perfect fit for us.”
In addition to the Tifton plant, the company has manufacturing at its headquarters and in Dallas and Salt Lake City. The Tifton site opened in 2011 and now employs 200.
The expansion comes two years ahead of schedule, the company said, due to the region’s well-trained workforce, dependable utilities and infrastructure, and state and local incentives.
