One of the country’s largest roofing manufacturers will open a new facility near the Georgia-Florida line.
GAF Materials will open its fourth — and largest — Georgia location in Lowndes County, according to a Wednesday news release by Gov. Brian Kemp’s office. It will create 135 jobs and amount to a $146 million investment over the next six years.
The facility will help expand the company’s commercial roofing and thermoplastic polyolefin operations. Commonly known as TPO, thermoplastic polyolefin is a waterproof roofing sealant usually applied in a single-ply layer under a roof’s exterior.
Potential incentives offered to GAF Materials were not immediately disclosed.
The New Jersey-based roofing company operates manufacturing plants in Cumming, Savannah and Statesboro, and the three locations combined have more than 225 employees. Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson said GAF Materials’ expansion in Georgia continues the state’s manufacturing growth.
“Manufacturing continues to grow at an incredible rate across Georgia — creating 166% more new jobs from economic development projects last year compared to the previous year,” he said in the release.
GAF Materials’ new plant will be located at Buster Bassford Industrial Park, a 226-acre site at Old Statenville and Clay roads in Valdosta. GAF Materials told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution it chose Valdosta because of its close proximity to its other Georgia locations and the site’s rail and highway connections.
The company said it will purchase 130 acres of the industrial park at an undisclosed price. The property is owned by the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority and consists of three parcels, which have a combined estimated value of $3.6 million, according to county records. A state advertisement for the business park from 2015 listed the asking sale price at $40,000 an acre.
The plant will begin construction this fall, and manufacturing is expected to begin by the first quarter of 2024.
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