City welcomes new industry

City and county leaders came together June 25 to welcome a new industry to Enterprise that will bring 30 new jobs into the community.

Advanced Carrier Products, a supplier of core metal inserts for the global weather seal industry, is moving next door to HS Automotive Alabama at the Yancey Parker Industrial Park.

"This is a great day for our city," said Enterprise Mayor Kenneth Boswell. "Advanced Carrier Products is a great fit for our community ... As a mayor, one of the most gratifying things that we do is being a to create a job, an opportunity for an individual to be able to make a living for his or her family."

Boswell said the new industry brings that opportunity to the table with 30 jobs and the hope of continued growth within the company.

"I've been calling on HSAA since they were an idea," said ACP North America Chief Executive Officer Mark Tober. "This is not only creating a job for someone in this city or this county, but you're creating a job for someone in this country, because currently our product is made in Korea and shipped over here to be used by HSAA. The quality of it isn't very good on a global scale and that's where we come into play because our technology can't be beat."

Tober said after about 10 years of coming down to Enterprise and seeing the product produced at HSAA, the company wanted to push them in the direction of viewing them as a local supplier.

"I think within six months of this plant opening, they will realize that what was thought of as a good idea is really going to be an excellent idea because we've done this with two other large customers in North America," Tober said. "Once you're entrenched next door to a customer, it's like you're married and it's really a dynamic relationship that can do nothing but good things for your community."

The company is relocating its North American headquarters from Atlanta to Enterprise to work side-by-side with the city's auto parts manufacturer to provide single track, double track, staggered and flex designs to manufacturers in 11 states, including HSAA.

"When you open up your car door there is a rubber seal that keeps out noise, water and dust. In that seal is a reinforced piece of metal and it's made in a continuous form. That's what our company does," Tober said. "So in every single car and truck on the roads, our product is on there. We're probably on 85 percent of the platforms in North America and we're probably in about 70 percent of the platforms worldwide."

ACP has production facilities around the world, including Germany, France, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, China and Russia, and exports its products to more than 40 countries.

The company, which will be the first Tier 2 supplier to locate in Enterprise, is currently renovating an existing facility in the industrial park on the corner of Highway 167 and Salem Road.

When looking to locate in Enterprise, Tober requested a piece of property as close to HSAA as possible.

A piece of land across the street was owned by the county but the county came to the table quickly and was more than willing to partner with the city, Boswell said.

In March of this year, the Coffee County Commission approved the transfer of 3.05 acres of land to incorporate into the Yancey Parker Industrial Park in support of the project.

"Collaboration between the city and county officials is essential for economic development, and it's evident those relationships exist in Coffee County," said WEDC Executive Director Jonathan Tullos.

Tullos said having a growing Tier 1 supplier such as HSAA in the community brings the benefit of drawing in other industry in the supply chain.

"ACP's decision to come to Enterprise is a real testament to what Alabama can do in the auto manufacturing world, and it is a real testament to the work ethic here in the Wiregrass," Tullos said. 'We are confident that ACP will be able to draw-quality employees from the local area to fill the 30 well-paying jobs.

"We look forward to helping both ACP and HSAA continue to grow and we happily anticipate that this momentous move by ACP and the expansion of HSAA are great examples of what the future holds for us."

Tober said he anticipates work to begin as soon as possible, but after some renovations to the existing building, the company plans to host a ribbon-cutting ceremony in August.

Hiring has already begun. Jobs are expected to start off at about $15 an hour.

Tober said they've gone through the state that put the company in contact with a local organization that assists with employment, as well as personal recommendations and have filled key positions, but are still hiring operators.

"Once we have those in place that will probably round out our phase one of hiring and once we hit our initial volume targets, we'll be hiring once again," he said.

ACP is part of the German-based HUHOCO Group, which serves a variety of economic sectors from medicine and veterinary technology to engineering and electronics.