A textile manufacturer is expanding its plant in Kings Mountain and expects to create 62 jobs over the next three years.

Kings Plush, which does business in the state as Specialty Textiles, will spend $4.9 million expanding its Kings Mountain plant, which makes upholstery fabrics for residential furniture.

The company currently has 170 employees at the Cleveland County facility, located about 30 miles west of Charlotte.

Kings Plus received a $56,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.

The company said in a release that salaries for the new jobs will have an average annual payroll of $1.4 million, which works out to $22,580 per worker.

That's below the Cleveland County average of $30,710.

An Iowa company that makes athletic clothing is going out of business and will shut a factory in Clinton, N.C., with more than 80 workers.

Dodger Industries will take another six weeks to fill its last orders and sell its assets to repay suppliers and creditors, CEO Stephen Throssel told the Des Moines Register.

He blamed the demise of the company, founded in 1940 as Dodger Gym Co., on foreign competition, shrinking market share and declining clothing prices.

"It's a sad time. We're a family. There's been a lot of crying, a lot of anger, a lot of resentment," he said. "We're grieving."

The company employs 10 people in Iowa, so the bulk of the layoffs will hit the Clinton facility, which Dodger bought in 1994. The factory is located about 65 miles southeast of Raleigh.

Tuscarora Yarns said today that it would open a new facility in Rowan County and create 124 jobs over the next three years.

The yarn manufacturer will invest $6.3 million moving its existing operations in China Grove to a larger facility in China Grove, about 35 miles northeast of Charlotte. 

The company received a $146,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.

The average annual wage for the new jobs will be $27,334, not including benefits.  That's below the Rowan County average of $36,036.

Textile firm Sattler AG said today that it would create 76 jobs and invest $4.56 million over the next three years in Caldwell County.

The company, which is based in Austria, is acquiring the Outdura brand from Shuford Mills and creating a new company called Outdura Corp.

The company plans to hire Shuford Mills’ current 60 employees at its Hudson plant and expand the workforce to 76 within three years.

The average annual wage for the new jobs will be $39,934 not including benefits, above the Caldwell County average annual wage of $28,340.

Sattler is receiving a $150,000 grant from the One North Carolina fund.

Sattler is a leading supplier of sun protection fabrics used in umbrellas, awnings, tents and other products.
 
“We are planning to invest in the Outdura facility in Hudson and expand production capability to support Outdura brand development and growth across all major performance fabric segments,” said Alexander Tessmar-Pfohl, COO of Sattler, in a release.

Textile firm Sattler AG said today that it would create 76 jobs and invest $4.56 million over the next three years in Caldwell County.

The company, which is based in Austria, is acquiring the Outdura brand from Shuford Mills and creating a new company called Outdura Corp.

The company plans to hire Shuford Mills’ current 60 employees and expand to 76 within three years.

The average annual wage for the new jobs will be $39,934 not including benefits, above the Caldwell County average annual wage of $28,340.

Sattler is receiving a $150,000 grant from the One North Carolina fund.

Sattler is a leading supplier of sun protection fabrics used in umbrellas, awnings, tents and other products.
 
“We are planning to invest in the Outdura facility in Hudson and expand production capability to support Outdura brand development and growth across all major performance fabric segments,” said Alexander Tessmar-Pfohl, COO of Sattler, in a release.

Roger Gant Jr., a former president of the Alamance County textile company Glen Raven, died Monday. He was 86.

Gant, who lived in Burlington, was president of the company from 1972 to 1989.  Glen Raven was started by his grandfather in the community of the same name in 1880.

Gant served in World War II, and then attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After graduating, he returned to Alamance County with his wife Rose Ann and began working for Glen Raven in 1948.

Under his direction, Glen Raven introduced synthetic awning fabrics and created the Sunbrella brand, making the company a major player in the global fabric market.

After retiring from management, Gant served on the Glen Raven board of directors for 55 years. He retired from the board in 2001 and then served as Director Emeritus.

His daughter Anne Gant told the Burlington Times-News that her father enjoyed his work so much that after he retired he kept his office and convinced his secretary to come out of retirement.  

The paper reported that visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Rich and Thompson Funeral and Cremation Service in Burlington. A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at the Church of the Holy Comforter in Burlington.
 

A Sanford-based yarn company plans to expand its local factory and add 45 jobs over five years, a rare bit of positive news for Lee County.

Frontier Spinning Mills' plans for the $15.5 million expansion include installing new equipment that spins cotton into yarn faster. The company, which was founded in 1996, employs more than 1,100 people in North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama, including more than 300 in Sanford.

City and county officials promised Frontier a grant worth more than $300,000 if it meets its hiring goals, said Lee County Economic Development director Bob Heuts.

A Canadian company that makes T-shirts, underwear, socks and other clothing plans to spend $20 million to expand a distribution center in Eden, N.C.

But the expansion is contingent on Gildan Activewear receiving economic incentives to help offset the cost, said Genevieve Gosselin, a spokeswoman for the Montreal-based company.

She declined to discuss details of potential incentives, but added: "We're very positive that incentives will be approved."

Charles Winkler, a spokesman with the N.C. Department of Commerce, declined to comment on possible incentives for Gildan.

Gildan's plans call for increasing capacity about 40 percent at the 650,000 square-foot facility in Rockingham County, about 100 miles northwest of Raleigh. The operation distributes T-shirts, polo shirts and other products to wholesale customers, and employs about 280 people.

Another textile company plans to expand its Richmond County operations, offering some measure of economic relief for a region with a jobless rate above the state average.

Knit-Rite will modernize and expand its factory in Ellerbe that makes specialty socks for diabetics and other medial hosiery products, Gov. Bev Perdue's office announced this morning. The company will receive a $24,000 state grant if it creates 24 new jobs paying average annual wages of $22,533.

The Kansas-based company already employs 44 at its operations in Ellerbe, about 90 miles southwest of Raleigh.

Last week, Richmond Specialty Yarns announced plans to expand its Ellerbe facility and add 135 jobs during the next three years. That company already employs 140 at the factory, which produces specialized yarn for the military, medical and furniture markets.

Richmond County's jobless rate was 13.2 percent in September, the N.C. Employment Security Commission reported. That's higher than the latest state rate of 10.8 percent.

A yarn company based in Richmond County plans to expand its operations and add 135 jobs during the next three years.

Richmond Specialty Yarns will produce specialized yarn for the military, medical and furniture markets. The company already employs 140 people at its operations in Ellerbe, about 90 miles southwest of Raleigh.

The company is eligible to receive a $150,000 state grant if it creates the new jobs and retains the existing ones, Gov. Bev Perdue's office announced today.

The news is a rare example of a textile company expanding in this state during the recession. The company's manufacturing capacity and the stability of its workforce were among the factors that led to the planned expansion, said Jean Parenteau, president of FilSpec. The Canadian yarn company recently bought a controlling interest in Richmond Specialty Yarns.

The new jobs will pay average annual wages of $25,931.