MARCH 2004
SOUTH CENTRAL STATES REGIONAL REVIEW
Suppliers Follow Industry
To South Central States
To South Central States
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anufacturers like to have their suppliers close at hand whenever possible. Two new projects in Louisiana and Texas from the same plastics company – and automotive projects throughout the region – are among the latest examples of this clustering.
Plastipak Packaging, a Plymouth, Mich.-based manufacturer of plastic containers for consumer products, is nearing completion of a US$45-million, 500,000-sq.-ft. (46,450-sq.-m.) facility in Pineville, La., to serve the newly expanded Procter & Gamble Fabric & Home Care Division. Plastipak will supply plastic bottles for P&G's new liquid detergent capacity in Pineville and will employ 100.
"Basically, it was a natural fit," says Plastipak spokesman Frank Zolenski. "We're one of their main suppliers and we have a long-time relationship. [P&G] came to us with a proposal and we thought it was a good move."
Zolenski says that Plastipak's Pineville plant initially will be dedicated to P&G, but may eventually serve other customers. Plastipak has heretofore supplied P&G from its Lima, Ohio, facility.
In Garland, Texas, a northern Dallas suburb, Plastipak is nearing completion of a $35-million, 300,000-sq.-ft. (27,870-sq.-m.) enlargement of a plant it built in 1996 to serve Kraft Foods, which operates a 670,000-sq.-ft. (62,243-sq.-m.) barbecue sauce and salad dressing factory next door.
The expansion will provide capacity to supply a new PepsiCo contract for Gatorade bottles. The expanded facility, with 60 more employees, will serve customers in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Both facilities will employ Plastipak's high-output blow-molding production systems.
Recent reports indicate the economies of both Louisiana and Texas are on the upswing. The Louisiana Economic Outlook, published by Louisiana State University, predicts the state will pick up more than 41,000 jobs this year. The Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas says capital spending and jobs will increase in 2004.
Plastipak Packaging, a Plymouth, Mich.-based manufacturer of plastic containers for consumer products, is nearing completion of a US$45-million, 500,000-sq.-ft. (46,450-sq.-m.) facility in Pineville, La., to serve the newly expanded Procter & Gamble Fabric & Home Care Division. Plastipak will supply plastic bottles for P&G's new liquid detergent capacity in Pineville and will employ 100.
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"Basically, it was a natural fit," says Plastipak spokesman Frank Zolenski. "We're one of their main suppliers and we have a long-time relationship. [P&G] came to us with a proposal and we thought it was a good move."
Zolenski says that Plastipak's Pineville plant initially will be dedicated to P&G, but may eventually serve other customers. Plastipak has heretofore supplied P&G from its Lima, Ohio, facility.
In Garland, Texas, a northern Dallas suburb, Plastipak is nearing completion of a $35-million, 300,000-sq.-ft. (27,870-sq.-m.) enlargement of a plant it built in 1996 to serve Kraft Foods, which operates a 670,000-sq.-ft. (62,243-sq.-m.) barbecue sauce and salad dressing factory next door.
The expansion will provide capacity to supply a new PepsiCo contract for Gatorade bottles. The expanded facility, with 60 more employees, will serve customers in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Both facilities will employ Plastipak's high-output blow-molding production systems.
Recent reports indicate the economies of both Louisiana and Texas are on the upswing. The Louisiana Economic Outlook, published by Louisiana State University, predicts the state will pick up more than 41,000 jobs this year. The Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas says capital spending and jobs will increase in 2004.