Made in Alabama: Small Business

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Alabama officials welcome Golden Dragon’s first U.S. factory

rural development

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.

Written by Jerry Underwood

Brown-Forman Stevenson mill project finds ‘natural fit’ in Northeast Alabama

rural development

STEVENSON, Alabama – Almost two years ago, Brown-Forman Cooperage, a subsidiary of the company that makes Jack Daniel whiskey, opened a mill in Stevenson to produce oak staves for the whiskey barrels that help give the liquor its distinctive taste. Since that time, Bob...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Knauf Insulation re-opens Alabama plant, citing relationships, support

rural development

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...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Macon County industrial sites position area for economic development

rural 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...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Central location, workforce pave way for Cullman expansion projects

rural development

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...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Rural Alabama economic development gets new push with team approach

rural development

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...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Chambers County trades spindles for suppliers as Alabama auto industry rises

rural development

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...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Auto supplier HTNA adds new Alabama production facility, 100 jobs

rural development

JASPER, Alabama – HTNA, a tier-one auto supplier that manufactures carpet and interior trim components for Honda, Toyota and other automakers, plans to hire 100 workers after constructing a new Alabama production facility. The company said its new, state-of-the-art plant is located in the...

Written by Jerry Underwood

Flight plan: Small Alabama city eyes future as aviation hub

rural development

ANDALUSIA, Alabama – About 125 miles from Mobile, where Airbus will build its first U.S. final assembly line, is a small Covington County city of 9,000 people that plans to transform its textile-based economy into an aviation hub. Andalusia Mayor Earl Johnson joins other...

Written by Jerry Underwood

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