Commerce creating specialist post to assist rural Alabama on projects
The Alabama Department of Commerce is adding a rural development manager to work with rural communities and counties across the state to enhance their competitiveness in the economic development process and better prepare them for projects. Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce, said he hopes to have the newly created position filled…
Alabama makes strides in bringing high speed Internet to rural communities
Fiber infrastructure is a key tool in attracting new and expanding businesses across Alabama, and local providers are actively working to install innovative internet technologies, particularly in the state’s rural areas. In recent years, AT&T has invested nearly $1.2 billion in Alabama to enhance its wired and wireless networks, in both urban and rural areas.…
Knauf Insulation to expand Alabama plant, create 100 jobs
LANETT, Alabama – Knauf Insulation plans to double production at its Alabama plant, adding as many as 100 new workers in an expansion project that will make the Chambers County facility one of the nation’s largest insulation factories. Knauf Insulation Senior Vice President Jon Pereira said the company selected the Lanett plant for expansion over…
GD Copper project showcases Alabama economic development support system
PINE HILL, Alabama – A $100 million, ultra-modern manufacturing facility near this small Wilcox County town has begun turning out copper tubing for heating and cooling systems, appliances, refrigeration units and plumbing. The GD Copper USA plant also is responsible for a completely different kind of product – renewed optimism in one of Alabama’s most…
Alabama officials welcome Golden Dragon’s first U.S. factory
PINE HILL, Alabama – Top Alabama officials today welcomed leaders of Golden Dragon Precise Copper Tube Group at a ribbon cutting for the Chinese company’s first U.S. factory, a $100 million plant in Wilcox County that just started production but could soon be growing. At the grand opening ceremony for the factory, operated by subsidiary…
Knauf Insulation re-opens Alabama plant, citing relationships, support
LANETT, Alabama – At a ceremony today to mark the re-opening of Knauf Insulation’s mothballed Chambers County plant, CEO Mark Andrews said relationships played a major role in the company’s decision to restart operations in Alabama rather than seek a new location. “At every single stage of this, we really felt we were wanted in…
Macon County industrial sites position area for economic development
SHORTER, Alabama – Officials in Macon County believe their county is poised for growth thanks to its strategic location along Interstate 85 and a roster of industrial sites that have strong logistical advantages including rail access. In fact, Macon County last year became the first in Alabama to receive a CSX Select Site designation. CSX says…
Central location, workforce pave way for Cullman expansion projects
CULLMAN, Alabama – The way Garlan Gudger Jr. sees it, Cullman’s vitality and business-friendly atmosphere make the city an ideal spot to live and work. A string of business expansions and new economic development projects in the community serves to confirm his belief. “Cullman feels like a large town in a smaller town setting,” said…
Rural Alabama economic development gets new push with team approach
MONTGOMERY, Alabama – Job-creation efforts in rural Alabama are gaining momentum from an increased level of cooperation between economic developers at state and local levels and a regional approach that has helped sharpen strategic thinking and build alliances. Wayne Vardaman, executive director of the Selma & Dallas County Economic Development Authority, is directing a renewed…
Chambers County trades spindles for suppliers as Alabama auto industry rises
LANETT, Alabama – In East Alabama’s Chambers County, the textile industry facilities are all gone, many of the last survivors wiped away in one brutal year of rapid-fire plant closings. In their place have come a string of companies that use plastic injection molding machines to make automotive parts and firms that stamp out metal…
