update: government & industry

UPDATETHE DAILY HOME, Talladega and St. Clair counties, Ala., Sunday, February 13, 2011

Government & Industry

2A — THE DAILY HOME, Talladega and St. Clair counties, Ala., Sunday, February 13, 2011 Government & Industry

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Despite tight budgets, citiescontinueto progress

Brian Schoenhals/The Daily Home

Thanks to a streetscape grant for downtown, Lincoln has updated its sidewalks, lighting, curbs and gutters and paving.

By CHRISNORWOODHome staff writer

The year 2010 was another tough one eco-nomically, but thanks to bond issues and grants from outside agencies, municipalities in Talladega County continued to progress in spite of tight budgets.

SylacaugaIn Sylacauga, Mayor

Sam Wright said, “Our biggest accomplishment was holding what we had and watching what we were spending. We’re finishing up our stimulus project with the sidewalks and we’re doing some work at the airport. We acquired the Avondale property, and we’re looking at ways to make that useful. And IPO Shingle Company announced that they will be breaking ground on a plant in Sylacauga. That’ll mean 74 or 75 good paying jobs, and they’ve already let $70 million contracts with local companies to clear the land and move some dirt. There are all the normal tax abatements, but those contractors and those employees are going to eat here, buy gas here and buy other things here, too.”

The continued success of Sylacauga’s Marble Fest was another accomplish-ment, Wright said, adding that he had high hopes for the 2011 event.

“We’re trying to catch up in publicizing that we have the whitest marble in the world,” he said. “It’s in veterans cemeteries all over the country. We need to educate architects and oth-ers that we’ve got some of the best dimensional stone for carving that there is. We’re planning on having 25 to 30 sculptors here from April 6 to 16 show-ing what they can do with what we’ve got. We’re try-ing to do it a little differ-ently every year, but we

don’t have any really radi-cal changes for this year. The proposed agenda is up on the library’s Web site.”

Sylacauga is also con-tinuing to work on market-ing property on U.S. 280 (“but that’s slow going,” Wright said) and working with the school system on a building program. City officials are also eagerly awaiting the results of the 2010 census.

“Mainly I’m grateful that people have continued to trade here and help the economy. It takes coopera-tion. Also, we really dodged a bullet with the winter storms. There wasn’t much cleanup at all.”

TalladegaFor Talladega City

Manager Brian Muenger, the issue of a $10 mil-lion water bond “is prob-ably the biggest in recent memory. It will allow us to fix a lot of water and sewer infrastructure problems, and bring us in to compliance with the (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) and (Alabama Department of Environmental Management) orders. And I believe this year’s pav-ing project is also unprec-edented. That’s $2 million to fix streets, rail crossings and bridges. Most years, paving is $200,000 to $400,000, so this is allow-ing us to multiple years’ work in one large swoop. And we’ve exceeded the deadlines on the brown-field assessment program also. We’ve got more pri-vate owners on board than expected, and they’re already starting to get Phase 2 results from the (city-owned) Wehadkee property. Altogether, we’ve got six Phase 1 assessments complete and three Phase 2s. We’ve got more prop-erty owners interested than we will be able to do right now. That interest speaks volumes. More people are looking to remove poten-tial impediments to devel-

Bob Crisp/The Daily Home

Talladega City Manager Brian Muenger said he believes this year’s pav-ing project is unprecedented.


Sylacauga Mayor Sam Wright said he is ‘grateful people have contin-ued to trade here and help the economy.’


Childersburg got funding for a downtown revitalization and $259,000 to replace traffic lights downtown, according to City Clerk Sandra Donahoo.

opers.”The city of Talladega is

also taking on a major cap-ital improvement program this year. “By completely redesigning the Veterans Park project, scaling it back and doing it in-house (while still addressing the safety issues), we were able to replace some police vehi-cles, fix the tennis courts at Jemison Park, renovate the Kenwin Building (which has already attracted a ten-ant), renovate the pavilions at several parks, and make lots of other quality of life improvements that I think will please people.”

ChildersburgIn Childersburg, the

industrial park was the past year’s big story, according to Mayor B.J. Meeks. Work has started on the access road, thanks to a $700,000 grant. “We’ve got bids out on the road, and we’ve got an island for signage. We’ve got 117 acres of timber that’s already been cut for the road. We’re working with the Talladega County (Economic Development Authority) and Alabama Power on a final plan for the design and revitaliza-tion.”

According to City Clerk Sandra Donahoo, Childersburg also got funding for a down-town revitalization from the state Department of Transportation and $259,000 to replace traffic lights downtown.

Meeks also said the city is working with Alabama Power and ACE in Montgomery to become an Alabama Community of Excellence.

“We completed the first two stages last year, and should be in the final phase next week. Howard Smith is the coordinator, and he’s done a great job keeping the committees together and running smoothly.”

LincolnIn Lincoln, Mayor

Lew Watson pointed to the city’s recent comple-tion of a Community Development Block Grant

to revamp the water, sewer and roads in the Greentown Section, around Ragland and Greer streets. A sepa-rate streetscape grant for downtown, which includes sidewalks, lighting, curb and gutter and paving, also began. A sewer expan-sion on Colvin Road and a sidewalk project on Lock 4 Road are also accomplish-ments for the past year.

“We have fully imple-mented an imaging system for city records,” Watson said. “Instead of filling up rows of file cabinets, invoices and other docu-ments that come in are scanned and then shred-

ded. At some point, this will be made available to the public online, but we’re not there yet. We’ve also expanded several pro-grams at the Recreation Department.”

Oak GroveOak Grove Mayor

Charles Merkel said the First Annual Heritage Homecoming was the town’s biggest event of last year, and the second edi-tion promises to be even bigger.

“It will be May 2 through May 14. Through

See Cities, Page 3A

THE DAILY HOME, Talladega and St. Clair counties, Ala., Sunday, February 13, 2011 — 3Agovernment & industry

the Small Town-Home Town program, with the Alabama Department of Tourism, we’ll be putting up a historical marker for the Hodges Meteorite, and we’ll also be coordinating with the state Council on the Arts with local music and artists. The actual meteorite, which landed in 1956, will be coming back from Tuscaloosa. In the week prior, area schools will be taking field trips to come see it.”

The event will feature not only local musicians but will also include tradi-tional Hispanic and Native American performers. “And there will be more arts and crafts, too,” he said.

The Oak Grove Community Garden also got off to a strong start last year, providing 4,000 people with 1,100 tons of food. “We’re hoping next year will be even better,” Merkel said. “It rained too much in 2010, and we got started late.”

He said Oak Grove has also made progress with its security and volunteer fire protection. “We made prog-ress on the fire department. We had some challenges, but we’ve got a new chief now and things are looking good, in a great direction. I should also mention now that our two security calls are now being dispatched through Talladega County’s Central Dispatch System. I want to mention that as a reminder to our citizens that we’ve got our eyes on people coming to Oak Grove intending to break the law.”

MunfordSecurity was also a top

priority for the town of Munford, which hired a police chief in the past year.

“Jeff Rutledge is on board and in the process of organizing the depart-ment,” Mayor Lynn Swinford said. “We’ve had the vehicle, donated by Ranborne, for a while now, and he’s looking for grants to help buy equipment and maybe hire a deputy.”

Munford also complet-ed a walking track last year, opened the old Munford High School Gym as a community center and increased and improved the library’s holdings, Swinford said.

Contact Chris Norwood at [email protected].

CitiesFrom Page 2A

Pell CityseesstrongretailgrowthBy ELSIE HODNETTHome staff writer

Retail growth is hold-ing strong in Pell City as work is under way for the new upscale Publix Super Market.

The new Publix is in the 13-acre South Park Shopping Center. The 45,600 square foot store is at the back of the develop-


Work is under way for a new upscale Publix Super Market in the South Park Shopping Center on U.S. 231.


Continued improvements are planned for Riverside Landing, including boardwalks and aesthetic improvements to the building and surrounding land areas.

ment, between U.S. 231 and Hardwick Road, with the front of the store fac-ing U.S. 231.

South Park Shopping

Center will have an addi-tional 24,000 square feet of shop space, plus three out-parcels that front U.S. 231.

A new Bojangles’ Famous Chicken N’ Biscuits restaurant will open a store in one of the retail out-parcels.

Construction of a mod-ern Jack’s restaurant has also begun, about two miles north of the South Park Shopping Center.

By ELSIE HODNETTHome staff writer

The town of Riverside continues working to improve Riverside Landing, a public park with waterfront access.

The town purchased

the old D & S Marina, located on Depot Street across from town hall, and immediately began repairs.

The dilapidated piers were removed and a new pier was built. The new

pier opened for use in May and features 768 square feet, including a 20-by-8-foot archway connecting the floating pier to the boardwalk and stairs lead-ing from the flood plain elevation to the 8-by-8-foot boardwalk.

The town applied for and is waiting to receive a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission permit to build the boardwalks and floating piers at Riverside Landing. The town then plans additional aesthetic improvements to the build-

ing at Riverside Landing and the surrounding land areas.

Those improvements include putting all the utilities underground, paving the parking lots and improving lighting at Riverside Landing.

Town continues to work on Riverside Landing

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4A — THE DAILY HOME, Talladega and St. Clair counties, Ala., Sunday, February 13, 2011 government & industry

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By LAURANATION-ATCHISONHome Lifestyles editor

Unemployment rates in Talladega and St. Clair counties have not recov-ered from their peaks in 2009, but figures are on the rebound.

The rate hit a high of 13.2 percent in Talladega County in 2009 and in St. Clair County, the rate rose to 10 percent in the same year, according to figures released each November by the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations.

Nationally, the unem-ployment rate peaked at 10.1 percent in October 2009, according to figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In November 2009, the national rate dropped a little, to 9.9 percent.

Compare those figures to levels of 3.3 percent in St. Clair County in 2000 and 4.6 percent for Talladega County in 2000 and the changes are obvious.

For the first time since the increases that began in both counties in 2001, the figures for unemployment are lowering.

As of November 2010, St. Clair County’s unem-ployment rate was 8.8 per-cent, down by 1.5 percent from 2009, and Talladega’s rate was 10.8 percent, down by 2.4 percent.

Things appear to be improving for both areas.

The national rate of unemployment for 2010 was 9.8 percent for 2010

Rates rose again in 2002 in both counties. In St. Clair, the rate reached 4.6 percent and in Talladega County, 6.7 percent.

The trend continued in 2003, with Talladega County’s rate at 7.0 and St. Clair’s at 4.7 percent.

2005 brought a return to a more normal rate, with St. Clair at 3.4 percent and Talladega County at 4.1 percent.

But by 2008, Talladega County’s rate had risen to 8.6 percent, doubling the rate three years earlier, and in St. Clair, the rate rose to 4.6, not nearly the same increase as in Talladega County.

Fast forward to 2009, and both counties saw seri-ous increases in unemploy-ment rates, St. Clair hit 10 percent and Talladega County, 13.2 percent.

Calvin Miller, executive director for the Talladega County Economic Development Authority since 1990, identifies two things that have contributed to the county’s rebound.

“First, the 1990 legisla-tive delegation took control of a financial debt situa-tion the county was in and passed an unpopular rural sales tax to pay off the county’s debts,” he said, “Talladega County now has conservative leadership and a county administrator who manages its operations.”

The second influence on the well-being of the county was the general replacement of the declin-ing textile industry by the automotive industry, he said.

When Honda Motors announced it would build


Calvin Miller has been executive director for the Talladega County Economic Development Authority since 1990. He notes a drop in the county’s unemployment rate of more than 2 percent in 2010.

Laura Nation-Atchison/The Daily Home

Don Smith is executive director of the St. Clair County Economic Development Council, which has been successful in getting a hospital, junior college and veterans home to locate on city-owned property.

Jobless rates rebounding in Talladega, St. Clairan assembly plant in Lincoln and Teksid Aluminum Components announced it would build a foundry for engine blocks and heads in Talladega County near Sylacauga, this was out-standing, Miler said.

“Over the next five years, Talladega County had the largest per capita income increase of any county in Alabama, a total of 33.7 percent,” Miller said.

Honda’s presence spawned automotive sup-pliers such as MagnaTech, Fleetwood Metal, Precision Strip, Pittsburgh Glass Works, New South Express, Nippon Oil, RPR Packaging, Automotive Containment and Consulting and Gulf Shores Assembly to locate in Talladega County, Miller said.

That meant even more jobs and, in turn, a lower unemployment rate.

Other existing business-es gained ground as well because of the automotive industry, he said.

Don Smith, execu-tive director of the St. Clair County Economic Development Council, points to the addition of the automotive industry as well to helping St. Clair County rebound over the past year.

“I would say everything began changing when the state of Alabama decided to actively replace our declin-ing textile manufacturing base with an automo-tive manufacturing base,” Smith said.

“When Mercedes locat-ed its plant in Alabama, it shifted the perception of manufacturing in Alabama in the state and changed the United States’ automo-tive manufacturing sector forever,” he said.

“Now, with names added such as Honda, Hyuandi, Kia, Toyota and Volkswagen in or near Alabama, we are in the center of the new automotive manufacturing universe,” Smith said.

This puts St. Clair County in a “very exciting time,” he said.

In addition to reap-ing benefits from Honda Manufacturing of Alabama, St. Clair County has land-ed other big projects that enhance the area for further development and for offer-ing more jobs.

Jefferson State Community College estab-lished a campus in Pell City three years ago on property donated by the EDC, and on adjacent property, a new hospital, St. Vincent’s/St. Clair is under construc-tion.

Also, on the same par-cel of property, a state-of-the-art Veterans Home is planned.

Smith sees lots of oppor-tunities for both workers and the public in these developments.

“I believe this develop-ment will exceed $100 mil-lion in new investment and employ over 600 people by 2014,” he said.

Already, Smith said the Economic Development Council is working with another company that he believes will complement the three other operations.

“These are all good pay-ing jobs in the educational or medical fields,” he said.

“Our largest private sec-tor employers are in the health care and manufac-turing sector,” Smith said. “The Village at Cooks Springs and St. Vincent’s St. Clair both employ over 220 health care related employees each. We also have three manufacturers, Vulcan Industries, Energy Absorption Systems and WKW North America, which employ over 200 each. These are all good paying jobs and wonderful employers.”

But 2009 and 2010 were extremely difficult years on almost every sector, Smith said.

“Unlike other previous recessions, there were no other sectors nationally to help push the economy along,” he said. “Luckily, St. Clair County had a well diversified manufacturing and employment base. Our construction based indus-tries are taking the longest to recover but are faring much better compared to the national average.”

The annual unemploy-ment rate in Talladega County for 2010 will be in the 12.4 percent range, Miller predicts.

“The rate is coming down because the automo-tive industry sales and man-ufacturing have increased,” he said.

But small businesses have not yet hired back

workers because of uncer-tainty of the overall eco-nomic comeback and what the federal government will require of them (health care), Miller said.

“Activity has picked up in 2010 as compared to the two previous years,” Miller said. “We are seeing more companies that are automotive related, includ-ing Kia and Hyundai sup-pliers, and companies that use calcium carbonate as a raw material. The quar-ries located in southern Talladega County process marble into calcium car-bonate that is used as a filler in plastics paints, shingles and other products.”

The biggest cost of the material can be transporta-tion if the material has to be shipped for long dis-tances, he said.

“Users of calcium car-

bonate would benefit from a Talladega County loca-tion,” Miller said, identify-ing another possible area for development in the county.

On Feb. 1, IKO Shingles plans to hold its official groundbreaking ceremony in Sylacauga, Miller said. IKO is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, and will invest $63 million and employ 75 people in the manufacturing of roofing shingles. (Calcium carbon-ate is one of its ingredi-ents.)

Smith said there are new areas for St. Clair County to tap into as well.

“I believe we will con-tinue to see new invest-ment from the automotive sector, but we hope to get new investment from the aerospace and biotech sec-tor,” he said. “I believe this

is a natural next step with our exceptional county air-port and our close proxim-ity to UAB.”

Both offices network with numerous companies and agencies to accomplish the goal of landing more jobs for their areas.

“There are agencies, utilities, and railroads that are working to bring businesses to Alabama and increase their rev-enues,” Miller said. “The Alabama Development Office and the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama cover all of Alabama with their efforts but they own no sites. One of our tasks is to help local governments in their efforts to provide prepared sites and buildings to help them in their projects that create jobs in Alabama.”


Counties continue services, begin projectsBy MATT QUILLENHome staff writer

County commissioners in Talladega and St. Clair counties have worked to continue services and begin new projects through the ongoing recession.

St. Clair County is rep-resented by Jeff Brown, District 1; Ken Crowe, District 2; Paul Manning, District 3; Jimmy Roberts, District 4; and Chairman Stan Batemon.

Batemon said while economic struggles had been the major issue from week-to-week, he felt the commission had “been blessed” when compared to other counties.

“Our sales tax budget was down slightly but very little,” he said. “Our ad valorem was about the same. Our overall revenues

were only down slightly, so we are very fortunate ours did not take a dip like so many others did.”

Batemon pointed out some positive things on the immediate horizon. Among them are the con-tinued construction of St. Vincent’s St. Clair Hospital and the Department of Veterans Affairs home.

Also, renovation work continues on the County Courthouse in Ashville.

“Another one was to make sure the Coosa Valley Water project con-tinued,” Batemon said. “It is a freshwater drinking water plant on the Coosa River St. Clair County is involved in. We are mak-ing sure that project is under way and going as planned, and it has been.”

“We actually had sev-eral large projects at the

same time.”Batemon said he and

the commission looks for-ward to the completion of many of the projects in 2011.

“Beyond that, we hope to continue to have a plan to keep us in good finan-cial shape despite the bad economic times,” he said.

Talladega County is represented by Jackie Swinford, District 1; John Luker, District 2; Kelvin R. Cunningham, District 3; Jimmy C. Roberson, District 4; and John F. Carter, District 5.

Administrator Wayne Hall said in an e-mail that despite general fund rev-enue decreasing 8 percent from 2009 to 2010, the county has not curtailed any services or reduced its workforce.

A Metro Jail project

began in December and is scheduled to be com-pleted near the end of the year. Funding for the proj-ect was supplemented by an allocation of Recovery Zone Bonds granted to the county under the federal stimulus program.

Roberson said as much as 45 percent of the fund-ing will come from the stimulus. This will allow the commission to com-plete the much-needed project without diverting money from the general fund needed for other ser-vices.

Roberson said the cur-rent county jail, which houses inmates from all municipalities as well, has dealt with overcrowding issues. The new jail will help alleviate the problem.

“Our judicial system within our courts has

been a tremendous asset in controlling inmate popu-lation,” Roberson said. “Without their help, we would really be in trouble. Basically, we have out-grown the current facil-ity, and we feel like this will help with the concerns not only of the inmate population, but the safety of our community in the surrounding area. But my number one issue was the dangerous situation we put our correctional offi-cers in.”

A number of rural water projects are also under way in different parts of the county. Roberson and Hall credited area state legisla-tors for their part in pro-curing funds through the state’s 2 percent rural tax fund.

Roberson said in his dis-trict alone more than 500

households could receive a clean drinking water supply and fire hydrants through different phases of the project.

Hall said as the year progresses they will contin-ue to closely monitor rev-enue, spending and work hard to stay within bud-gets. Roberson said they are committed to operat-ing within their revenues, regardless of the sluggish economy.

“There are so many cit-ies and counties and state governments that are not doing it,” he said. “They are borrowing money or laying off people. But we are going to run day-to-day operations with what-ever we have.”

Contact Matt Quillen at [email protected].

By CHRISNORWOODHome staff writer

Although for most of 2010, the housing market remained soft locally and nationally, and unemploy-ment remained stubborn most of the year, there was a bright spot in Talladega.

Fallowing a job fair last fall, MasterBrand Cabinets added 80 new jobs and tripled its capacity for the last quarter of the past year.

“These were not just entry level positions. We were expanding the plant’s capacity, so it’s a broad spectrum of positions. It’s not just handlers, but machine operators, saw

operators and other skilled positions, mostly on the second shift,” said Robert Jacobs, MasterBrand executive vice president of Human Resources at the company’s corporate offices in Jasper, Ind.,

A total of about 80 posi-tions were added between October and December, he said.

Although daily pro-ductivity varies, before the expansion the Talladega plant turned out about a thousand cabinets per day. After the expansion, it was 3,000, he said.

Total employment figures also vary, but Jacobs said at the end of December the Talladega plant employed 202 peo-

ple.“Talladega is a distrib-

uted assembly plant, which means the components are made by outside ven-dors and assembled here. We have four of those plants, and we expanded the capacity at all four of them. We were able to win some business away from some of our competitors.”

They were able to do this through “operational efficiencies,” Jacobs said. “We work hard to train all our employees in reliable service, especially home center service. It’s a four point policy: we deliver complete, we deliver on time, and we deliver a fashionable product at an affordable price.”


MasterBrand Cabinets in Talladega added 80 new jobs and tripled its capacity for the last quarter of the past year.

MasterBrand a brightspot in Talladega in 2010

The expansions last year do not include any new product lines, but are increased production of existing lines.

“We increased the num-ber of jobs and we increased our capital investment, but there was no increase in

floor space or anything like that,” Jacobs said.

While he said he could not disclose the amount of the capital investment, he said the increased pro-duction and staffing had required the purchase of new equipment.

He said that before the expansion, MasterBrand in Talladega had not been fully utilizing the second shift.

Contact David Atchison at [email protected].


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STEVEHURSTState Representative

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Since incorporating 8 years ago, Munford has been a town on the move. Leadership at Town Hall has dedicated itself to providing the very best services to its residents. Building a municipality from the ground up is not an easy task, but in Munford, it is be-ing done and done right. Munford is growing toward the future with many projects since incorporating like:

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Alabama companyis known nationwideBy ELSIE HODNETTHome staff writer

An Alabama company has made a name for itself nationwide through its quality architectural met-alwork.

“We do metal restora-tion and metal fabrication work for many munici-palities, museums and other clients,” said John Allen, president of Allen Architectural Metals.

Allen created the com-pany in 1995 after work-ing for a firm with similar capabilities.

Allen Architectural Metals offers a wide vari-ety of services, including custom castings, historical replications and restora-tion, fabrication, installa-tion, laser cutting for cus-tom design, ornamental iron and much more.

“We do iron work with a focus on cast metals,” Allen said.

He said although most of the company’s work is in New York, Chicago and Washington D.C., he chose to locate in Talladega because it is geographically centrally located to local foundries. The company works for local clients on a limited basis, typically shorter projects.

“There are a lot of found-ries around here we use — Birmingham, Montgomery and Talladega,” he said. “And we have mostly Alabama employees.”

Allen said the company has probably completed 1,000 projects of varying sizes.

“We are currently work-ing on a project restoring the front of a building in New York,” he said.

Allen said the SoHo dis-trict of New York has more than 200 historic buildings with cast iron fronts.

“We are working on a five-story building at 361 Broadway,” he said. “Part of the building is a seminary, and part of it is retail space. We took 3,000 parts off the building and brought them to Alabama, where we will either remake, repair or restore all 3,000 parts and put them back on the building.”

Allen said the project is in the home stretch.

“We have been working about 18 months, and it will take about two years to complete,” he said. “This is the second largest project of this type we’ve had. The largest project was a ferry terminal project in New York.”

Allen said the ferry ter-minal project took three years to complete.

The company also per-forms ornamental work with structural compo-nents.

“We were certified to work on bridges in New York City,” he said. “We worked on five of them. It was ornamental work with structural integrity, and the

work was attached to the main structure itself.”

Allen said the company has worked on a lot of state capitols.

“We have worked on the U.S. Capitol, and are working on the New York State Capitol now,” he said. “We just finished the Colorado State Capitol and worked on the West Virginia State Capitol, too. We have also worked on a lot of museums in New York City, and city hall in New York City.

In addition to work-ing with cast iron, Allen Architectural works with cast aluminum and cast bronze.

“We just finished a Mormon temple in Laie, Hawaii, in cast bronze,” he said.

The company has received several awards for its restoration work.

“We are a member of the National Ornamental & Miscellaneous Metals Association and have won Top Job awards,” he said.

It received Earnest Wiemann Top Job Awards for Restoration work on the Manhattan Bridge in New York, for work on the Colorado State Capitol, for unusual ornamental fabrication work on City Hall Park in New York and several other awards.

“We don’t talk about them much, but we are real proud of our awards,” Allen said.

Allen Architectural Metals performs restoration and metal fabrication work with a variety of metals. Pictured is the Mormon temple bronze bap-tismal font, furnished and installed.

2010 prosperous yearfor Ford Meter Box

David Atchison/The Daily Home

Zachary Gentile Jr. is senior vice president and general manager for Ford Meter Box in Pell City. He stands in front of a new piece of equip-ment that helps the company produce products quicker and cheaper than other competitors.

By DAVID ATCHISONHome staff writer

The company is glob-al, but strives to make the community and the people who work there better.

At Ford Meter Box in Pell City, one hears words like teamwork, pride, com-mitment and community.

Company officials say the positive attitude com-pany employees share has made Ford Meter Box a suc-cess as it continues to grow.

“It’s a company that people come and stay,” said Zachary Gentile Jr., senior vice president and general manager for Ford Meter Box. “I think we genuinely love working together.”

Jim Ford, human resource manager for Ford Meter Box, said most of the production supervisors have worked at the Pell City company for more than 22 years.

“Most people grow with the company and are pro-moted internally,” Ford said.

And it takes a special person to work for the manufacturing company that produces a wide range of products for the water industry.

“We hire for attitude and train for skill,” Ford said. “We look for folks who can get along with other folks and work as a team.”

Gentile said every pro-duction supervisor who was there when he arrived in 1994 still works with the company.

And whatever Ford Meter Box is doing, it’s working. The company saw a prosperous 2010 and is looking forward to 2011.

“We had a solid year,” Gentile said. “We’re blessed.”

He said when the econ-omy bottomed out nobody was laid off at the Pell City plant.

Ford said that would not have happened if the employees hadn’t pulled together as a team and made sacrifices that were best for all.

“We’re now in the best possible position when there is a turnaround,” he said.

And that appears to be coming sooner rather than later.

“During the last quarter of 2010 and the first quar-ter of 2011, Ford Meter Box is bringing seven new prod-ucts to market, all designed

for Ford Meter Box engi-neers,” Gentile said. “These new products haven’t even hit the market yet. That’s why we’re so excited about 2011.”

Ford Meter Box makes products such as restraints, couplings, clamps, tap-ping sleeves, saddles and specialty fabricated items for water line repairs. Its products are distributed to contractors and municipal-ities through a worldwide network of distributors.

Gentile said Ford Meter Box ships its products to more than 40 countries across the globe, and cus-tomer service plays a key role in the company’s suc-cess.

“It’s all about customer service, and we’re all about taking care of our custom-ers,” he said.

The company employs about 118 workers who have seen many expansions in recent years.

Gentile said most of their workers are from the Ragland, Pell City and Talladega areas.

“We love to grow folks within the plant,” Ford said.

Gentile and Ford point to one employee who attended college while working for the company. The company paid for the employee’s col-lege courses. It took the employee nine years, but he now has a mechanical engineering degree.

“If they (employees) have a dream or vision, Ford Meter Box will help make that dream happen,” Gentile said.

Gentile and Ford said by helping employees fulfill their dreams, Ford Meter

Box makes better employ-ees and the community as a whole benefits.

Although Ford Meter Box is a big manufacturing company, it never forgets the community it serves.

The walls in the front entrance to the company have reminders of how Ford Meter Box helps and plays an important role in the Pell City community.

The company has sup-ported five $10,000 Pell City School Foundation Chairs throughout the years. The company has also supported the St. Clair County School System, and because of its commitment to the community has been named the Greater Pell City Chamber of Commerce Industry of the Year twice, once in 1997 and the other in 2002.

More recently, Ford Meter Box has made $90 donations to the church-es where its employees attend.

In the manufacturing business, Gentile said they are starting to see a trend.

“Work that went over-seas is coming back,” Gentile said.

He said Ford Meter Box has solicited help from a local foundry to meet demands for its products.

Gentile said the compa-ny continues to grow and expand. When he arrived in 1993, the facility had 80,000 square feet of space. Today, there is 325,000 square feet, and the compa-ny is in the process of more capital improvements.

“We’re preparing for the future,” Gentile said.


THE FORD METER BOX COMPANY, INC.Pell City, Alabama

Manufacturering productsfor the distribution of water worldwide.

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR ASSOCIATES FOR A REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT

FIVE YEARS WORKEDWITHOUT A LOSS TIME ACCIDENT!

CHILDERSBURG....Building For Future onStrong Foundation...

Childersburg, Talladega County’s newest gateway to growth, is a city meeting needs with a strong plan for the future.

The city’s massive, new Childersburg Industrial Park with 2,000-plus acres available, is attracting business guranteed to build a better economy for the city and its citizens.

Its Chamber of Commerce is a leader in promoting business and a strong citizen base.

The Butler-Harris-Rainwater Museum stands as a shining ex-ample of a community working together to offer more to its citizens.

Its great public schools and community college continue to grow and provide the highest quality of education to the com-munity.

Childersburg is growing a better future by building on its strong history of working together for the common good of-fering amenities to enhance the quality of life through church, civic and recreational facilities.

For more information regarding The City of ChildersburgContact:

Mayor B.J. MeeksCouncil Members: Jimmy Payne - Mayor Pro Tempore

Bonnie W. CarterBilly Lester

Michele N. MizzellCharles Reynolds

[email protected] 244032

Honda to celebrate 10 years in LincolnBy WILL HEATHHome staff writer

Associates at Honda Manufacturing of Alabama in Lincoln sometimes find it amazing they have now been in operation nearly 10 years.

They are equally sur-prised when they meet people who don’t know their Alabama location.

“As much as we have been embraced by the (Lincoln) community and the state, it’s still surpris-ing to meet people who are surprised that Honda has been in Alabama for 10 years,” said Ted Pratt, a spokesman for HMA. “We are the sole produc-tion source for Honda’s three most popular prod-ucts (the Odyssey, the Pilot and the Ridgeline).

“It’s pleasantly surpris-ing: everyone in central Alabama knows of us now.”

HMA will celebrate 10 years of production in November 2011 at a plant that encompasses more than 3.5 million square feet, employs more than 4,000 people and repre-sents a capital investment of more than $1.4 billion.

In 2010, the plant cel-ebrated a decade since breaking ground. That celebration is expected to continue.

“Last year we had a little taste of how the com-munity and Honda have grown together over the past decade,” Pratt said. “There were some very kind words said about


Honda Manufacturing of Alabama ‘officially’ celebrates its 10th year in Lincoln in November.

us, and we expressed our appreciation for the sup-port of our operations.

“You will see more of that over the coming months as we approach our ‘official’ anniversary.”

The plant produced more than 272,000 vehi-cles in 2010. That number includes 119,580 Odyssey minivans; 121,330 Pilot sport utility vehicles; 20,180 Ridgeline pickup trucks; and 10,992 Accord V-6 sedans.

“Honda Manufacturing of Alabama has been for-tunate to experience con-tinued stability in our workforce … through-

out 2010,” said Mark Morrison, another HMA spokesman. “Additionally, in order to meet customer demands for our products, HMA increased output through the addition of Saturday overtime produc-tion, particularly into the third and fourth quarters of the calendar year.”

Associates at the plant oversaw what Pratt called a “complete full model change” in the concept of the Odyssey in 2010, from a third-generation design to a fourth-generation, that changed “95 percent” of the vehicle.

“We were able to make

the transition through a lot of planning and a lot of commitment from our workforce,” said Pratt. “They were committed to making sure the vehicle is produced at the same qual-ity level (as before). That’s a challenge we face ever year, and this year was no exception.”

The concept was offi-cially revealed in February 2010.

“The response to the concept was incredible,” Pratt said. “We knew (the new model) was going to be a fitting replacement.

“When the wraps were pulled off, the response

from the public was extremely positive. We’ve seen that in the past few months: consumers and customers just like the vehicle, and that’s good for us on a number of levels.”

Honda also announced a partnership with Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds as the title sponsor for the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, which is slated to take place in April. It is the second such race to take place at Barber, the only Indycar event in the Southeastern United States.

“Honda has been involved with the Indy

series 12-15 years,” Pratt said. “(The Barber race) is a really great opportunity for our associates who are so familiar with racing to be able to have something right in our backyard, to see our product put to the test on a track, to see drivers put Honda engines through a performance. There’s a lot of pride for our associates.”

HMA continues to involve itself with the com-munity as well, offering incentives for its associ-ates to participate in com-munity service activities. Some associates will also be involved with January’s Restore Coastal Alabama, an opportunity to help restore coastlines devastat-ed by Gulf storms and the recent oil spill.

“We’ve been really excit-ed about the response,” Pratt said.

Like many other cor-porations, Honda contin-ues to press forward in a difficult economic climate. They are optimistic as 2011 dawns, however.

“It is good to see the market rebounding from a difficult economic period in 2008-2009,” Pratt said. “As the economy is slowly rebounding, we can see it in slowly rising sales.

“We’re seeing things come back and that is encouraging. It’s a tough time, but we all made it through.”

Contact Will Heath at [email protected].

By GARY HANNERHome staff writer

WKW Erbsloeh North America Inc. has been in operation in Pell City about two and a half years.

It was June 18, 2008, that the company officially opened its new produc-tion facility in the Pell City Industrial Park with a rib-bon cutting ceremony.

The American subsid-iary of WKW automotive covers an area of 130,000 square feet. With almost 1 million square feet of property, the company has plenty of room for future expansion.

CEO Tim Horn man-ages WKW Erbsloeh North America Inc. The company produces decora-tive and functional compo-nents made of aluminum and steel for the North American market.

“This is being done in response to a request by car manufacturers to pro-duce the required car com-ponents locally for their plants in America,” Horn said. “The main custom-ers are Daimler (MBUSI), BMW, General Motors and Volkswagen.”

The manufacturing pro-gram of the facility includes almost the entire product range of WKW automo-tive, such as roof moldings, drip rails, B and C pillar covers, outer belt moldings and roof rack systems.

WKW automotive is the group of Walter Klein GmbH & Co. KG (WKW), an automotive supplier from Wuppertal/North Rhine-Westphalia. In addition to manufac-turing and finishing of extruded aluminum pro-files and processing of sheet steel, the company’s know-how includes plastic injection moldings, as well as plastic extrusion. Almost all known European car manufacturers are custom-ers of WKW.

The managing partner of WKW automotive, Gert Mayer, is the son-in-law of the founder and namesake of the company. He has suc-cessfully directed the affairs of the family business for the past 55 years. In this function he is supported by his son, Christian Mayer, and another managing director, Peter Kruft.

Since its foundation, the company grew rapid-ly. At the present, WKW Erbsloeh North America Inc. has more than 250

employees and about 120 temporary workers.

Horn said as the auto-motive business has recov-ered from the deep crisis in 2009, the growth of the company is following up.

The internationally active facilities of WKW automotive produce deco-rative and functional parts, hood components, as well as engine components and heat exchanger pro-files. WKW automotive has almost 6,000 employ-ees worldwide, and annual sales for 2010 are expected to reach about 600 million Euro.

WKW automotive has the following subsidiaries and affiliated companies:

• Walter Klein GmbH

& Co. KG, Wuppertal and Bad Laasphe.

• WKW-SUMA GmbH, Wuppertal.

• Erbsloh Aluminum GmbH, Velbbert.

• Erbsloh Relingsystem GmbH, Velbert.

• PEAK Werkstoff GmbH, Velbert.

• PEAK France S.A.S., St. Avold/France.

• PEAKNorth America Inc., Detroit/MI/USA

• Erbsloh Hungaria KFT., Gyor/Hungary.

• Hillebrand Erbsloh Oberflachen GmbH, Wickede.

• Silvatrim S.A.M., Monaco.

• WKW Erbsloeth North America, Inc., Pell City, Alabama.

WKW Erbsloeh North America has grown rapidly• WKW Erbsloh

Automotive GmbH, Wuppertal.

• Beijing WKW Automotive Inc., Beijing, China.

Contact Gary Hanner at [email protected].


Quality keeps Blue Bell in competition

• Extensive Packaging, Sequencing, Shipping & Storage Experience• Labeling / RF Scanning / Inventory Control / EDI• Continuous Improvement Quality Management System• Local, Short & Long Haul Transportation Services in North America• Yard Spotting Services• Expedite Services Provided• Minutes from I-20, 55 miles from Birmingham, 107 miles from Atlanta, 90 miles from Montgomery

• Established: September 13th, 2000• “Just In Time” Consolidation Center for Honda• Returnable Container Management Center for Honda• Over 600 Associates including contract associates• 500,000 sq. ft. of warehousing space at the Talladega Complex

200,000 sq. ft. Available for Lease, with offi ce space All climate controlled with security and maintenance available

(Talladega Site) NSE200 Homer Road

Talladega, Alabama 35160(256) 362-1202

New South Express, LLC(Lincoln Site) Honda249-B Clover Road

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Mailing AddressP.O. Box 824, Lincoln, AL 35096 Main Phone Number:

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Blue Bell is a privately owned company and is 104 years old. The company has had a manufacturing plant in Sylacauga since 1996.

By LINDSEYHOLLANDHome staff writer

Blue Bell Creamery employs 205 residents from the area. That num-ber could soon grow.

Kevin Wood, plant manager for Blue Bell, said he has seen the com-pany grow quite a bit.

“It’s very possible,” he said when asked if new job opportunities would soon be available. “We’ve grown. We’re at 205 right now so it’s very possible we’ll continue to grow. I’m sure there will be job opportunities.”

Blue Bell has had a manufacturing facility in Sylacauga since 1996. The company was founded in 1907 as the Brenham Creamery Company.

“We are a privately owned company and we’re 104 years old and we continue to grow,” Wood said. “We’re in 17 states right now and we are about to be in 18. The economy hasn’t affected us a whole lot. The costs have gone up but people still continue to eat ice cream because it’s a com-fort food.”

Blue Bell is only avail-able in about 26 percent of the nation’s supermar-kets, yet it still ranks as one of the top three best selling ice creams in the nation. According to a 2009 survey, Blue Bell

held a 34 percent mar-ket share of ice cream sold in supermarkets in the Birmingham and Montgomery areas.

“Blue Bell Ice Cream has had an enthusias-tic reception across the South, Southwest and Midwest,” said Ricky Dickson, vice president of sales and marketing for Blue Bell.

Blue Bell is sold in the Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

“We have three plants and Sylacauga is one of the three plants that our company has,” Wood said. “Our plant services mainly the Southeast so we service eight states, including Florida. Florida has been one of our big-gest growing markets. We moved to the Miami mar-ket a couple of years ago and it continues to go really well there.”

Wood said one of the reasons Blue Bell has con-tinued to excel is because it constantly produces a quality product.

“We’re growing mainly because of the quality of our product and that’s how we compete — with the quality,” he said.

Wood said last year

Blue Bell in Sylacauga saw about 20,000 visitors. He said they see a lot of locals and a lot of school groups and other organizations.

“We see different pro-grams from surrounding areas,” he said. “We actu-ally get some from the Birmingham area, some from the Montgomery area and some from Auburn/Opelika area. We even get some from Georgia, but the majority of them are from the local area.”

Wood said he feels Blue Bell has helped Sylacauga’s economy because the company employs a lot of residents in the area. But he also said Blue Bell contributes to local orga-nizations.

“We’re also contribut-ing a lot to the local econ-omy with school districts and with a lot of nonprof-it organizations,” he said. “We contribute quite a bit of money to the school districts. We support a lot of their programs.”

Blue Bell helps sponsor Relay for Life, the Animal Rescue Foundation, and the local library, to which it gave a grant for sup-port. Wood also said they support the Sylacauga Chamber of Commerce.

For 2011, Wood hopes to see Blue Bell continue to grow.

“We continue to expand our area and mar-

ket our area,” he said. “We are already in Indianapolis right now and all that is serviced from this location. So we serve eight states and as our market contin-ues to grow we’ll continue to support it and support ourselves.”

Contact Lindsey Holland at [email protected].


Last year Blue Bell in Sylacauga saw about 20,000 visitors. In addition to area residents visiting, the company has visitors from Birmingham, Montgomery and some from the Auburn/Opelika area. There have even been visitors from Georgia.

‘The economy hasn’t affected us a whole lot. The costs have gone up but people still con-tinue to eat ice cream because it’s a comfort food.’

— Kevin Wood, Blue Bell plant manager

THE DAILY HOME, Talladega and St. Clair counties, Ala., Sunday, February 13, 2011 — 9A

69220 Alabama Highway 77 • P.O. Box 837 • Talladega, Alabama 35161 (256) 362-4180 • 1-800-273-7210

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Bowater exits2010 intactand stronger


AbitibiBowater has shifted from its production of newsprint to other products, such as recycled packaging grades, including brown bag paper and lightweight packaging and container grades.

By WILL HEATHHome staff writer

2010 was a year of uncertainty and great change for the people at AbitibiBowater.

But at the end of the year, the company emerged intact, and much the stronger.

In December, the com-pany — whose Coosa Pines plant is in Childersburg — announced it was emerging from “creditor protection,” or bankrupt-cy, both in the United States (Chapter 11) and Canada (the Companies’ Credit Protection Act). The announcement came more than a year after the company filed for protec-tion in both countries, owing to a difficult econ-omy.

“Through our restruc-turing efforts, we have transformed this orga-nization and given AbitibiBowater a new future — one driven by a companywide commit-ment to profitability and sustainability,” said David J. Paterson, president and chief executive officer. “By strengthening our compet-itiveness and dramatically improving our financial position, AbitibiBowater has become one of the lowest cost forest prod-ucts companies in North America.

“We are now a leaner, more flexible organization with a balanced product portfolio, better able to create value for our stake-holders while respond-ing to the challenges of a tough industry with ongo-

ing market viability.”That statement from

Paterson followed more than a year of “reorga-nization” within the cor-poration, which included a historic transition in Childersburg: the Coosa Pines plant shifted from its longtime production of newsprint, and on to other products, such as recycled packaging grades, such as brown bag paper, and lightweight packaging and container grades.

The plant continues to employ around 450 peo-ple, according to corpo-rate spokesperson Debbie Johnston.

“Over a period of sev-eral years, the newsprint industry has experienced a consistent decline in consumption, driven by a combination of factors, but certainly by the grow-ing shift in consumer pref-erence to electronic news media,” Johnston said. “However, over the past several years, the compa-ny has been transitioning from the manufacture of newsprint to other paper grades that demonstrate growing demand, at facili-ties where this conversion is most attractive.”

Marketing its products in more than 70 countries, AbitibiBowater is also among the largest recy-clers of old newspapers and magazines in North America, and has third-party certified 100 per-cent of its managed wood-lands to sustainable forest management standards, according to Johnston.

That diversity is what the company hopes will

serve it will as 2011 dawns.

“Moving forward, AbitibiBowater will con-tinue to diversify its prod-ucts, and capitalize on seg-ments of paper manufac-turing that show growth in demand, both domestical-ly and in opportunities to export to growing markets abroad,” Johnston said.

AbitibiBowater owns or operates 18 pulp and paper mills and 24 wood prod-ucts facilities located in the United States, Canada and South Korea. It acquired the plant in Childersburg in 2007.

Contact Will Heath at [email protected].


David J. Paterson, president and chief executive officer of AbitibiBowater, says the company is now a leaner, more flexible organization with a bal-anced product portfolio.

By AZIZA JACKSONHome staff writer

Munford City Councilman Lee Garrison has been at Southeastern Machine Inc. since he was “knee-high”.

In fact, one of his earli-est memories of being there at work with his father, Johnny Garrison, was at about the age of 7 when he tried to help out by pushing a solid piece of steel that was almost as big as he was.

He didn’t get very far by pushing.

But Garrison, who is now 39, has found a different way to help out and is now co-owner with his father of Southeastern Machine Inc.

The manufacturing company makes everything from large nuts, bolts and washers to drills and saws for large machines.

All these come from solid pieces of steel and large spare parts.

“Nowadays, there’s no such thing as scrap. You use what you got,” Garrison chuckled.

Many of their products


Terry Lackey at Southeastern Machine Inc. welds a piece of steel that will soon be used for a large machine.

From large nuts to bolts to washers,Southeastern Machine makes it all

go through a middleman and then to large compa-nies like Georgia-Pacific and Talladega Machine.

In addition to larger companies, local farmers make up a lot of their cus-tomer base.

“You get a handful of farmers where something might break or a disc on their tractor might need to be replaced,” Garrett said.

The company has grown from a shop in the back of Johnny Garrison’s house on Campbell Road to where

it is located now on 1st Avenue.

Since the early 1970s, Southeastern Machine Inc. has manufactured parts for large companies in the wood and textile indus-tries.

“We’ve just been doing the same thing for 30-something years,” Garrison said.

The textile industry, however, had been going downhill for a while, but when the economy took a nosedive, business with

wood industry started to decline as well.

“When it bottomed-out, it bottomed-out on everybody,” Garrison said.

“Things are kinda pick-ing up this month but you never know what’s going to happen next month.”

And although business has slowed down over the past year, the company kept busy with orders that would roll over into a much slower week.

Garrison said there were no major layoffs at the company even during the economic downturn.

He owes a lot of the company’s success to the city of Munford, and the other local small town busi-nesses that have helped sup-port each other.

“Around here in a small town you’re more trying to help each other out instead of trying to compete with each other,” Garrison said.

“I’ve lived here my whole life and I know everybody and when you know everybody you don’t mind helping them out.”

RAGLANDTELEPHONE CO.

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205-472-2141

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HAWK PLASTICS14447 Plant Rd., Alpine AL, 35014800-467-4295 Fax: 256-378-3079

Hawk Plastics was organized 27 years ago in January of 1984. Production start-ed in the former Beaunit building on Plant Road in October of 1985, and by the grace of God, the Hawk is still fl ying 26 years later. Hawk is now one of the oldest PVC pipe producers in the USA that is American owned and has had the same name for its total existence. Hawk has employed as many as 40 employees to man the 3 shift operation and has maintained a steady workforce of 24 during the last 2 years of the economic slowdown and has not experienced a lost time accident in over 5 years; again by the grace of God. Manufacturers of PVC plastic sewer pipe with Integral Bell Gasketed joints and specializing in standard and custom PVC perforated pipe. Hawk produces other PVC extrusions, custom cylinders, core tubes and they are the exclusive U.S. Manufacturer of patented molded plastic Ragglesticks , marketed and sold by RAGGLESTICK Packaging. Ragglesticks are used for creating compactness and stability to the packaging and storing of cylin-der objects such as pipe, tubes rolls, drums and barrels and was invention of the founders of Hawk Plastics. 279980

TALLADEGA COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

AUTHORITYP.O. Box 867

Sylacauga, Alabama 35150256-245-8332

Fax 256-245-8336www.tceda.com

L. Calvin Miller, C.I.D.Executive Director

[email protected]

2579

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1301 Gene Stewart Blvd. Sylacauga, AL

256/249-4901257894

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Automobile suppliersprovide hundreds ofjobs for area countiesBy DAVID ATCHISONHome staff writer

In 1999 the automobile industry was unheard of in Central Alabama, but that all changed when Honda Manufacturing of Alabama rolled off its first Odyssey van in Lincoln Nov. 14, 2001.

Today, automobile suppliers are scattered throughout Talladega and St. Clair counties, provid-ing jobs and revenues for local economies.

“In 1999, Honda Motors announced it would build an automotive assembly plant in Lincoln and Teksid Aluminum Components announced it would build a found-ry for engine blocks and heads near Sylacauga,” said Calvin Miller, executive director for the Talladega County Economic Development Authority. “During the next five years Talladega County had the largest annual per capita increase of any county in Alabama, a total of 33.7 percent.”

Miller said Honda and Teksid Aluminum Components helped start a flood of automobile suppliers into Talladega County, providing hun-dreds of jobs and pumping needed revenues into the local economy.

Miller said the car industry brought jobs with higher wages. It also helped ease the county’s decline of textile jobs.

“It helped reduce unem-ployment,” Miller said. “It

(the car industry) had a big economic impact for Talladega County.”

Initially, the focus of automobile suppliers was Honda, but that has changed some, especially in the past two years.

“We are seeing more companies that are auto-motive related, including Kia and Hyundai suppli-ers, …” Miller said.

Some of the automo-tive suppliers in Talladega County that provide an economic boost and jobs for local residents include Pittsburg Glass Works or PGW, formerly PPA, in Talladega, which employs about 90 people; Fleetwood Metal Industry in Sylacauga, which employs about 160 work-ers and produces automo-bile parts; Precision Strip in Talladega, which provides cut steel for the automo-bile industry and employs about 100 people; New South Express in Talladega, which employs more than 450 people and provides logistics for the automo-bile industry; Nippon Oil in Childersburg, which employs 28 people and provides lubricants for new vehicles for the automo-bile industry; Nemak in Sylacauga, which manu-factures engine blocks and engine heads and employs about 600 workers.

Miller said Bates Enterprises washes and repairs gloves for HMA and employs about 56 workers, while Gulf Shores Assembly in Lincoln

employs about 44 workers who put tires on rims for HMA.

Don Smith, director of the St. Clair County Economic Development Council, said there are two Honda Manufacturing of Alabama suppliers that have located in St. Clair County, one in Moody and another in Steele.

He said St. Clair County has attracted sev-eral German automotive suppliers, which have provided needed jobs and pumped millions of dollars into the local economy.

Smith said the Mercedes plant is only about 60 miles from Pell City, and the BMW plant is in South Carolina along the same interstate system.

He said St. Clair County is also located between two large metropolitan cities, Birmingham and Atlanta.

“The Germans really like the lake,” Smith said. “Not only is Pell City strategically located, the cultural and geographical location is very appeal-ing.”

Pell City landed its first German automotive com-pany in 2005. Eissmann Automotive Group, which was founded in 1964 and produces 51,000 different interior parts for automo-biles and has operations worldwide, opened its first North American opera-tions in Pell City.

St. Clair County offi-cials say the company provided Pell City and St. Clair County instant cred-ibility.


Eissmann Automotive Group was the first German, as well as the first German automobile suppler, to locate in Pell City.

Smith said Eissman employs about 100 work-ers.

“They are just a good, well-run company,” Smith said. “They provide a good place to work.”

Verscheiss Schutz Technick, or VST Keller Inc., of Shopfheim, Germany, came next, bringing its high-tech Pulse Plasma Diffusion machine, which hardens stamping tools three times harder than steel.

Smith said Oerlikon bought VST Keller and took over the North American operations about two years ago.

The last German auto-motive supplier to locate in St. Clair County was WKW Erbsloeh, which opened its first North American operations in

Pell City in 2006.WKW Erbsloeh is a

worldwide automotive supplier of steel, alumi-num and plastic automo-bile parts.

“WKW has about a $10 million payroll going into the community,” Smith said. “That’s significant.”

Dr. UWE Gohrbandt, chairman of the board of WKW Erbsloeh North American Inc., said at the groundbreaking of the plant in Pell City that WKW Erbsloeh officials believed there would be a shift in the automobile industry in North American and their company wanted to be a part of it.

“Factories are closing in the North and new, mod-ern ones are setting up here in the heart of the automotive industry of the future,” Gohrbandt said.

Smith said automo-bile suppliers attract other automobile suppliers.

“The number one recruiting tool to bring in new automotive suppli-ers is existing automotive industries,” Smith said.

He said St. Clair County officials want to attract quality companies that will provide well-paying jobs for local residents.

“We’re a right-to-work state,” Smith said, add-ing that labor unions do not currently play a role in Alabama’s car indus-try. “We go after quality companies that pay their employees well, so the need is not really there (for unions).”

Contact David Atchison at [email protected].

FarmLinks is morethan just a golf course By LINDSEYHOLLANDHome staff writer

FarmLinks at Pursell Farms has become more than just a golf course, it has become more than a research and education facility. As CEO David Pursell said, it is now a destination.

Pursell’s great-grand-father, DeWitt Alexander Parker, was the first gen-eral manager of the fam-ily company, known then as Sylacauga Fertilizer Company, which began in 1904. In 2001, Pursell initiated construction on FarmLinks Golf Club, which would become a research and demonstra-tion course. In 2003, the course officially opened. FarmLinks sits on 3,500 acres and is an 18-hole, 7,444-yard championship golf course open to the public.

“But there has also been untapped potential,” said Erle Fairly, president of FarmLinks. “Guests of the farm have always been treated to amazing golf, food and to second-to-none hospitality, but there’s so much more now. Just to name a few, we have new, high-tech meeting rooms, a presen-tation theater, focus group capabilities and seven new buildings that offer luxury accommodations.”

Destination, Indeed. New activities such as cooking classes, spa treat-ments, fishing, hunting and even a five-stand clay shooting range are now being offered. FarmLinks is also home to three cot-tages and four cabins.

“When this golf course was built in 2003 it was pretty much what it is — a golf course,” said Beth Alcazar, communications manager for FarmLinks. “It’s become more of a destination where people can stay. “We’ve been able

‘When this golf course was built in 2003 it was pretty much what it is — a golf course. It’s become more of a destination where people can stay.’

— Beth Alcazar, communicationsmanager for FarmLinks

to offer more weddings for those who are look-ing for something unique like a destination wed-ding and that usually does require lodging for people in the wedding and for people who are coming as guests.”

A new executive chef is scheduled to start at FarmLinks Grille this month. The Grille, said Alcazar, is known for the high-end Southern food it offers. She also said she hopes the chef will bring “a whole new flavor.” He has experience in the Chicago culinary industry and has roots in Louisiana. If you play a round of golf, a golfer’s lunch is automati-cally included.

But even with the addition and expansions, FarmLinks has been hit by the downturn of the economy.

“People are holding onto their wallets very tightly and really it’s only been in the last few months that people are starting to free that up a little bit,” Alcazar said. “We have wishful think-ing that things are getting better but, oh, it’s been tough.”

And besides branching out on the leisure side, the research and demonstra-tion side of things have been expanding as well.

“We are an education facility but we branched out from just a golf relat-ed educational program,” Alcazar said. “We used to focus on the golf course superintendents but now we’re branching out to even pest control opera-tors or lawn care opera-

tors who could still utilize the property to see how products would work, but not necessarily golf. We’ve opened the doors to other things so we’re not stuck in one industry or one audience.”

Alcazar said that’s what Pursell’s vision has been from the beginning.

“He didn’t want anoth-er golf course,” she said. “There are plenty of golf courses. He wanted to be completely different and unique. It’s almost like a living magazine or a living infomercial — you get to step right in, see it, try it, feel it, you like it or you don’t, it’s up to you.”

Alcazar said with FarmLinks you are always going to get a step above. The vision, she said, is for FarmLinks to be a destina-tion/educational facility.

“Practically everything we’ve always done has been somehow related to education, whether it’s us putting together the pro-gram or us opening the door to allow other people to come in and utilize the property,” she said. “Again, it is a golf course and we’re hoping locals will come and use it and learn and enjoy and soak in the beauty that’s Sylacauga. We want to grow the destination but we never want to lose sight of the fact that this golf course is here because we wanted to make a difference. We wanted to make an impact on the way people do their jobs and succeed in their own lives.”

Contact Lindsey Holland at [email protected]


years go by quickly whenyou look forward to every day.There’s certainly a great deal of pride to be shared in the production of a single new

Honda vehicle, to say nothing of the pride in building more than 2 million new Hondas

in less than 10 years. Numbers and milestones represent results, but it is our people—

the 4,000 associates of Honda Manufacturing of Alabama—who are the driving

force in Honda’s many accomplishments over the past decade. Yes, there’s a lot of

pride in each Alabama-built Honda—pride in our products, our associates and the

partnerships and friendships that have developed between Honda and the citizens of

Alabama. Thanks for the memories…and the future we’ll continue to share, together.

Honda Manufacturing of Alabama, LLCwww.HondaAlabama.com

update: government & industry

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