Flooring company to expand in Cartersville

The exterior of the Shaw manufacturing plant 15 in Cartersville, April 3, 2020. (ALYSSA POINTER / ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM)

The exterior of the Shaw manufacturing plant 15 in Cartersville, April 3, 2020. (ALYSSA POINTER / ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM)

Another flooring company plans to expand production in northwest Georgia, as the economy slowly recovers from the effects of the pandemic.

Wellmade Flooring will build a $35 million, 328,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Cartersville, the state Department of Economic Development said Friday. The project will create 240 new jobs in management, engineering, machining operation and production.

Wellmade, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, makes hardwood, vinyl and tile products for Home Depot, Costco, Floor & Décor and other retailers.

The expansion comes as metro Atlanta added 35,200 jobs last month, the second-largest monthly rate of growth on record, according to state officials. The statewide unemployment rate improved to 9.7% in May from 12.6% in April.

The Chinese company Creative Flooring Solutions on Wednesday announced plans to build a manufacturing plant in Calhoun, creating 300 jobs through a $70 million investment. In February, Mannington Mills said it would expand a vinyl tile production facility, creating 286 jobs in Calhoun.

About 70% of the world’s carpet supply is manufactured in northwest Georgia, according to the trade association Carpet and Rug Institute. Shaw Industries, based in the Dalton, is the world’s largest flooring company.