Update: Interroll To Open Center in Paulding County

Interroll, a manufacturer based in Switzerland, will soon have a presence in Paulding County.

In a news release Friday, Interroll along with Paulding County Economic Development, Paulding Industrial Building Authority, Paulding Chamber of Commerce, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Georgia Department of Economic Development announced that the company would be constructing a 93,000-square-foot North American manufacturing and showroom facility at Paulding Commerce Park on Bill Carruth Parkway in Hiram.

Panattoni Development, which served as Paulding's development partner throughout the recruitment process, will construct the facility. With this, Interroll will increase its capacity for accommodating the production of pallet flow storage products. The $10 million operation will initially employ 70 associates.

"The rebound of Georgia's manufacturing community has played a significant role in the ongoing recovery of our state's economy,” Governor Nathan Deal said via the news release. “Our ability to land competitive projects like Interroll helps further position Georgia among the best places for business. This project is a significant win for Paulding County and Georgia."

The Interroll Group, a specialist within the field of internal logistics, has its products deployed at well-known global brands such as Amazon, Bosch, Coca-Cola, DHL, FedEx, USPS, Procter & Gamble, Red Bull, Siemens, Walmart and Yamaha (motorcycles), to name a few. The business focuses on airports, parcel and postal services, distribution centers and food processing facilities.

The company, founded in 1959, employs over 1,500 associates in 29 facilities around the globe and is based at Sant'Antonino, Switzerland.

The Paulding County facility will manufacture material handling products and pallet flow storage solutions for Interroll's North American customers and some select export markets. Interroll plans to break ground this month; officials expect the facility to be completed in 10 months.

Interroll CEO Paul Zumbuehl, who visited Paulding in April to meet with local and state economic development officials and tour the Paulding Commerce Park site, said it became immediately clear to him that Paulding would be a good location for the project.

"The Paulding facility will be one of the 11 premier Interroll facilities around the world and is a location we will be proud to show our customers. We are extremely pleased to have selected Paulding County and Georgia."

The Paulding facility will be the second Interroll Regional Center of Excellence in the USA and complement the product and service offering of the plant located in Wilmington, N.C. All of Interroll's Centers of Excellence focus on specific product groups and are organized as a global network with special hubs for North America and Asia. Similar to its Asian counterpart inaugurated in China in September last year, which focuses on the Asian Pacific markets, the Paulding technology center will concentrate on serving the North American markets. Since 2009, Interroll has maintained a strategic presence in Paulding having acquired BMW Metal Products—a 10-person metal fabrication operation and Interroll supplier.

David Austin, Paulding County Commission Chairman, said the Interroll project was exactly what he had hoped for when he made economic development a top priority four years ago. "Interroll's decision to build a showcase manufacturing facility of this caliber in Paulding speaks volumes as to how far our economic development efforts have come in such a short time and just how attractive Paulding is for business,” Paulding County Commission Chairman David Austin said in the release. “The facility, both in appearance and operations, will be like nothing ever constructed in Paulding. Paulding's economic development future is bright and Interroll is a testimonial to the fact that we are doing things right. I can't express how thrilled I am to have Interroll select Paulding for this historic project."

 Tim McGill, Interroll's president of North American Operations, said Paulding County's economic development team made a compelling case for locating the facility in the county.

"Paulding offered an excellent opportunity for Interroll. It provides easy access to the region's skilled workforce, nearby interstates and Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport,” McGill said in the release. “I was also impressed by the level of new investments being made around the park, such as the new WellStar Paulding Hospital and Atlanta Film Studios. There is a level of energy and excitement to the area that fits in well with Interroll's way of working. “Paulding economic development officials, Panattoni Development and Commission Chairman Austin won our confidence and trust early on and that made Interroll's decision an easy one."

Jamie Gilbert, PCED'S executive director, said Paulding got into Interroll's site search late but that the county was able make up a lot of ground by putting together an attractive proposal to facilitate the project.

"We offered Interroll a location in a county-owned business park that would be developed into a true manufacturing campus and was part of our new opportunity zone,” Gilbert said in the release. “Paulding showed Interroll how the utilization of local and state incentives could offset their construction costs making our location extremely competitive with many existing buildings and significantly cheaper than build-to-suit options in other locations. Also, we wanted Interroll to be actively involved in the design, planning and development of the Park. The company found that very appealing."

"By deciding to bring manufacturing into metro Atlanta, Interroll helps us demonstrate that our region is rich with logistics activities and production operations that drive market demand for handling equipment," Hans Gant, senior vice president of Economic Development for the Metro Atlanta Chamber, said in the release. "The new plant operations will enhance a key segment of metro Atlanta's supply chain for logistics products and services, while also adding to our large base of international companies. Global companies like Interroll often choose Atlanta because we are a low-cost center for manufacturing and a global supply chain hub."

"This company's selection of Georgia for one of its flagship North American manufacturing operations and centers of excellence represents Paulding County's emergence as a community that is increasingly top of mind for manufacturing locations," Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Chris Cummiskey said in the release. "Paulding County's aggressive approach to this project and others helps make Georgia a competitive place for business. I'm excited about Interroll's expanded presence in Georgia, and the opportunities to come."

Carolyn Wright, president of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce, said the Interroll project is a win for the county.

"It will generate 70 or more high paying manufacturing jobs in the county including 10 retained, signifies Paulding is an excellent location for leading international manufacturing firms, begins development at our new Class A Paulding Commerce Park and establishes Paulding as an economic development player in Metro Atlanta and Georgia. Paulding's economic development plan is coming together before our eyes."

Return to Dallas-Hiram Patch for further developments.

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