IVC’s Jill Schubert, purchasing mgr.; Heidi De Greve, cfo; Peter Boschmans, coo; Xavier Steyaert, IVC US ceo; Stefaan Debusschere, vp sales/marketing; Filip Balcaen, group chairman; Jan Vergote, group ceo; Andrew Kearton, vp mfg.; Micah Riggle, HR dir.; Geert Van De Velde, sr. product mgr.; and Derek Kozlowski, quality dir.
IVC US welcomed more than 200 people to the grand opening of its new 520,000 sq. ft. cushioned vinyl flooring plant recently. The plant, located at 101 IVC Drive in Dalton, Ga., sits on a 44-acre plot about five miles from the I-75 corridor. The building features a quarter-mile long production line – the longest vinyl flooring line in the world, according to IVC – and an additional 500,000 sq. ft. for future expansions.
“Only 18 months ago we had our ground-breaking ceremony [with construction completed in 15 months]. Today we’re standing here with the most advanced cushion vinyl plant up and running,” said Filip Balcaen, IVC Group chairman, in an address to the crowd.
Xavier Steyaert, IVC US ceo, noted that more than 150 jobs have been created as a result of the plant, and said he was impressed that it only took 15 months to complete construction despite numerous challenges like bad weather. “This [plant] is the start of much more to come from the IVC Group,” he said.
Guests were given tours of the new plant, followed by dinner and an evening of music. Mark Souther, president of Carpet Display Inc. in Dalton, was impressed by the new plant. “The new machines and equipment in the plant are awesome,” he said.
–Michael Chmielecki
