CertainTeed to reopen Meridian plant in 2014

MERIDIAN, Miss.CertainTeed Corp. says work is on track for a July reopening of its Meridian ceiling tile plant the company closed in 2009.

And Graham Thayer, vice president and general manager for CertainTeed Ceilings, tells the Mississippi Business Journal (http://bit.ly/1bU6Hfd) that the settlement of a defective products case will not jeopardize plans to reopen the ceiling materials plant in 2014.

"The settlement regarding our fiber cement siding received preliminary approval after our decision was made to re-open the Meridian facility and in no way will impact the progress we are making to reach our targeted July 1, 2014 re-opening date," Thayer said.

The Valley Forge-Pa. based company says the reopened plant will include $24 million in upgrades and will put more than 100 people to work in the next three years.

The company announced in early November that it would settle a federal class action lawsuit relating to fiber cement siding it manufactured and installed over the last decade. The settlement will cost the company $103 million.

CertainTeed, a subsidiary of French building supply conglomerate Saint-Gobain, stopped its Meridian production in 2009 during a market downturn, laying off 120 workers at the time. The company cited sluggish commercial building in choosing to close one of its two ceiling tile plants. CertainTeed selected Meridian for the shutdown because the plant there is older than the sister plant in L'Anse, Mich.

Thayer said the Meridian structure remained in good condition after its closing.

"So we are focused on installing new equipment and calibrating the production lines and to be fully operationalmanufacturing and shipping our ceiling panel products to customersby July 1."

Ceiling tiles have been manufactured in the Meridian facility since 1941 throughout various stages of ownership. CertainTeed took over the plant in 2005.

Go here to read the rest:
CertainTeed to reopen Meridian plant in 2014