Plastics plant is up and running
Tax incentives, proximity to major markets and business-friendly state and local officials were big factors in Washington Penn Plastics’ decision to invest more than $50 million in its Walker County plastics plant.
Originally envisioned as having about 100,000 square feet under roof, before construction was anywhere near complete those figures were nearly trebled and Audia opened with roughly 298,000 square feet of enclosed space.
“We built a facility that allows for expansion of the business and its workforce,” said Michael Sutfin, vice president of manufacturing.
Having a new and modern plant is a plus, but people, not plastics, have been key to the local plant’s success and draw the greatest praise from the plant officials.
“We worked hard to recruit good people,” Michael Sutfin said before showing off the gleaming shipping, receiving and production lines of Audia’s recently opened facility.
Sutfin said the number of willing and qualified workers is a testament to the area’s community colleges, technical training in local schools and the Georgia Work Ready program.
The privately held company declines making public how many its employs, but hiring is expected to steadily increase as the plant transitions from maiden voyage to full-blown, round-the-clock production mode.
Both Sutfin and plant manager Mike Pattison noted that those hired at the plant, located north of LaFayette on U.S. Highway 27, not only are highly skilled and have a strong work ethic, they show a high degree of engagement.
“This is a solid workforce,” Sutfin said.
In addition to employees who see themselves as partners, not just laborers, Audia’s opening has provided a homecoming for some.
“About 75 percent of our hires had previous experience at Blue Bird,” Pattison said.
Heavy rains slowed construction, but production finally began in March.
More than manpower
Having such a willing workforce is a boon for business, but not the only benefit to a Walker County location.
Logistics of having direct rail and highway access, of Georgia Power providing abundant electricity at competitive prices and the proximity to Interstates 75 and 24 — coupled with tax incentives — have helped the plant’s bottom line.
But again, it is the people that drive the business. Company officials agreed that while infrastructure is important, staffing is critical.
Creating a “team concept” has involved sending groups of newly hired workers to Kentucky as well as working with Georgia Northwest Technical College to develop training programs.
Audia employees are not the only ones to benefit from plant that operates 24/7.
“We’ve tried to work with local companies and businesses as much as possible,” Sutfin said.
Vendors can include vending machines, cleaning services, contractors and suppliers of such items as pallets. All in all, between 80-100 area businesses provide products and services to the LaFayette plant.
“Our plant has a broad footprint,” Sutfin said regarding its reliance on local support services.
The parent company, Washington Penn Plastic, has grown from three facilities and corporate offices in western Pennsylvania, expanding first to Frankfort, Ky., then to Mexico, next to Europe and most recently to northwest Georgia.
Growing demands for the company’s products has driven expansion, and all facilities have been positioned to bring them closer to the markets they serve. That philosophy has resulted in steady, sustainable growth.
While it makes no finished products, Audia puts the finishing touches on the raw material
“We’re just into compounding plastics,” Sutfin said. “We make basic plastics better.”
Audia’s role is in the middle of the manufacturing supply chain. Other companies transform raw material into plastic, usually in the form of pellets that are then shipped to LaFayette by truck or rail.
Audia specializes in enhancing the raw plastic’s usefulness — and value — by improving consistency and depth of color, strength, elasticity and moldability for a wide range of plastic products.
Though the transformation may be magical, it is chemistry, not magic, that Audia applies to material that arrives by rail or road at the local plant.
“We start with plastic pellets, we end with plastic pellets,” plant manager Mike Pattison said.
Plastics, plastics everywhere
What can be made of glass, metal or wood can be made of plastic, often with lighter weight, longer life and lower cost.
Inside the typical dish or clothes washer is a plastic tub. Refrigerators usually have a molded plastic interior, trim and shelving. Plastics can be found in every room.
Without the moldability of plastics, automobile exteriors would look different as the cost of hydro-formed or stamped metal would result in higher prices. And, except for the ultra luxury models, what appears to be wood or leather often is a synthetic — a plastic — copy.
But plastics are not just for trim. Open the hood of a modern vehicle and discover a world where molded plastic air intake and control valves, fans, radiators and fuse boxes are plastic.
Audia’s production lines also supply ingredients used in the furniture, flooring, and recreational equipment. Need plastic plates? You can use Audia. Need a non-fading cowling for a lawn mower? You can use Audia. Want a sprinkler system that can withstand freezethaw cycles in winter and oven-like temperatures of summer? You want Audia.
And to make all this possible, the county invested heavily — more than $5 million — to prepare and bring utilities to the site.
In February 2015, Larry Brooks, head of the Walker County Development Authority, noted that Audia and the local short-haul railroad, a division of Genesee & Wyoming, will use as many as 500 rail cars at a time at the site. That is in addition to as many as 60-70 semi-trucks that could visit the plant when it is working to maximum capacity, he said.
The county’s investment of $1 million secured a matching amount from the state, meaning that even during a winter of constructionrains a “lead line” and railroad spurs were installed.
“The state would have never come to the table unless the county made the initial investment to entice Audia to the site,” Brooks said. “It was the commissioner’s vision that brought both Audia and the state to this site in Northwest Georgia.
The LaFayette plant will support Audia Plastic’s three subsidiaries — Washington Penn Plastic Co. Inc., Uniform Color Co., and Southern Polymer Inc. — in their continued efforts to remain a worldwide leader in thermoplastics — something its officials say is more than products, it is people.
“Though private, we don’t want to be a faceless company,” Sutfin said. “Our people are what differentiate us.”
About Audia International Inc.
Audia International is a privately held company focused on plastic compounding, color solutions, and distribution, with a 60-year history of customer-focused growth through its subsidiaries: Uniform Color Co., Washington Penn Plastic Co. Inc., and Southern Polymer Inc. The Audia International companies currently have 10 manufacturing locations and more than 1,000 employees in North America and Europe and are doing business in more than 50 countries, across broad market platforms including automotive, appliance, construction, packaging and consumer.