KM Herald - Progress 2010

It’s been a rough couple of years for

our local economy. Jobs have been

shed in almost every sector. Entire

factories have shuttered. Our towns

and cities are scrambling for the

means to sustain payroll and services.

Some of our families have been cold

and hungry. Many have gone without

things they previously considered

necessities. But we are learning how

to cope with the wounding of our

dominant industry and new jobs are

coming (some are already here) to

offer us paychecks instead of meager

unemployment checks. It is a light at

the end of a long, dark tunnel. And

this time it isn’t a freight train bear-

ing down on us.

We’re makingProgressMilltown is nowour history; tech,service our future

Once we made yarn forAmerica. Our parents andgrandparents spun fiber intothe gold that fueled our econ-omy.

Small family-owned mills allthe way up to internationally-owned megafirms providedpaychecks, and, in-turn, foodfor our tables, clothes for ourbacks, heat for our homes andeducation for our children.

It was literally a way of life.But a global economy stoked

the fires of change and muchof what we knew was nolonger relevant. There is nopaycheck for those who knowhow to produce yarn when the

yarn is being produced by for-eign hands.

Other employers in ourmidst evaporated for other rea-sons, leaving just as deep awound for their newly-jobless.

Carolina Freight employedthousands until a smaller com-pany saw the benefit to begained from acquiring thecompany’s decades of experi-ence, contacts and contracts,and, yes even it’s vision.

Freightliner shed employeesby the hundreds as it sought abetter way to operate in thecurrent economic light.

Another companywas sowell-positioned in the marketit caught the attention of enter-tainment giant Sony. The re-sult was the moving ofproduction from here toBritain and the loss of hun-

dreds of jobs.Other firms are still here, but

have been forced to trim backas a wicked economy took itstoll on those things we pro-duce here.

That’s our past. So what’sour future?

Probably lithium battery-powered cars.

And military defense.And transportation.And electricity.And medicine.And technologyAnd education.And Charlotte. After all we

all know how wonderful ourcommunities are and we knowwhy we prefer to live here.

Well, many more people arediscovering that very thingevery year and leaving Char-lotte just to be able to enjoy

our lifestyle.And, oddly, a rejuvenation

and a re-thinking of our yarnheritage.

Jobs are coming back to thevery mills that closed. Some ofthem will be doing the verysame thing they did before butprobably with updated prac-tices.

And some of those millshave found ways to stay at thetop of their game and actuallygained market share, devel-oped new products and ex-panded their views of themarketplace.

The following pages will ex-amine how our local compa-nies, our governments, ourschools and others are...Repairing the Tear in theFabric of Our Economy.

As old jobs go away, what’s coming next?

of our

in the

theRepairing

TearFABRICEconomy

RepairingTear

FABRICEconomy

April 28, 2010 Progress Page 1A

Page 2A Progress April 28, 2010

Chemetall FooteKings Mountain, North Carolina

We have been a proud Kings Mountain employer and corporate citizen for over 50 years, and salute all

of our neighbors who faithfully support our community.

We’re Making Progress...Together!

By THOMAS [email protected]

McADENVILLE—It’s agreat place to work.

McAdenville folks will tellyou that about Pharr Yarns.For generations, local peoplehave worked for the textilecompany, forming a kind offamily tradition.

Unlike most American tex-tile manufacturers, now sadlygone thanks to what RossPerot once accurately called“the economic suicide ofNAFTA,” this company isgoing the distance with inno-vation and positively thriving,even in these harsh economictimes.

And according to companyspokesman Mel Collins, PharrYarns isn’t going anywhereexcept onward and upward.

Collins recently talkedabout the company and itsleaders, men of vision andforesight with a genuine con-cern for their workers. Everyyear, Pharr Yarns is an inte-gral and indispensable part ofmaking a highly decoratedMcAdenville into ChristmasTown, USA.

Collins said Pharr Yarnswas established in 1939. Ithas about 1,300 local employ-ees as well as operations inCalifornia and Georgia.

“Gaston County and McA-denville have been home forPharr Yarns for more than 70years,” said Collins. “For thepast seven decades, PharrYarns families have played avital role in local businesses,churches and our educationalsystem through hard work,volunteer efforts and charita-ble giving. The people atPharr Yarns have proven to bededicated, resourceful and in-novative. Our people, mostborn and raised in GastonCounty, remain our greatestasset.

“Additionally,” he contin-

ued, “Gaston County and itslocal leaders clearly under-stand and value the impor-tance of maintaining asupportive climate to allowbusinesses to grow, prosperand create jobs for its people.A great example has been theleadership and support tobusiness provided for manyyears by State Senator DavidHoyle of Gaston County.”

A bright futurePharr Yarns is a company

that values its traditions.“For more than 50 years,”

said Collins, “Pharr has beenproud to sponsor the McA-denville Christmas lights thatbring joy and the magic ofChristmas to approximately600,000 visitors to this smalltown each year. The McA-denville Christmas lights havean annual regionaleconomic impact ofnearly $12 mil-lion.”

Change is aneconomic in-evitability. AndCollins said Pharrknows just how toadapt.

“Pharr Yarns rec-ognizes that it mustcontinually evolveand re-invent itselfto meet the chang-ing needs of ourcustomers and toremain successful in fiercelycompetitive markets,” he said.“Our company motto is ‘a tra-dition of innovation.’ Thisblend of keeping true to ourtraditions while fostering in-novation throughout all levelsof our company has been—and will be—the key to oursuccess. Our future will be en-sured by all of us at PharrYarns continuing to focus onand work hard to meet theneeds of our customers, whilecontinuing to embrace newtechnologies, new ideas and

innovations.

Small town, big plans

“McAdenville is a vi-brant small town with atremendous future,” saidCollins. “The new YMCAin McAdenville is provid-ing a gathering place forarea residents while pro-moting healthy lifestylesand expanded recre-ational opportunities.McAdenville continues tosee development of newhousing in family-friendly neighborhoods.These neighborhoodshave welcomed an influx ofnew residents who havequickly embraced the tradi-tions and values of this warm

and friendly small town.While McAdenville sees ex-citing new development, itcontinues to deeply value itshistorical structures and itsrich history.”

Last year, McAdenville’sHistoric District was placedon the National Register ofHistoric Places.

Collins added that PharrYarns is continuing a partner-ship with the Catawba LandsConservancy to expand recre-ational use of the South ForkCatawba River corridor that

runs through McAdenville.Recently, canoe and kayaklandings have been opened inSpencer Mountain and McA-denville.

“And this fallwill see the dedi-cation and open-ing of theCarolina ThreadTrail at McA-denville,” hec o n t i n u e d ,“which will pro-vide miles ofscenic hiking op-portunities whileconserving ournatural re-sources.”

How do yousucceed intoday’s econ-omy? Collins

said you’ve got to stay on thecutting edge, and Pharr isdoing just that.

“At Pharr Yarns,” he said,“one of the most important in-vestments in our future hasbeen the building of a state-of-the-art BCF extrusion plantand the purchase of support-ing yarn manufacturing equip-ment. This $40 million capitalproject is allowing us to createnew and exciting products,many of which are manufac-tured from environmentallyfriendly materials such as re-

cycled polymers and advancedpolymers made in part fromcorn—instead of petrochemi-cals—to reduce dependencyon oil. These investmentshave created more than 100new jobs thus far.”

Around the world, PharrYarns’ advanced yarn systemsare used in home furnishings,automotive applications, in-dustrial protective productsand life-saving high perform-ance applications, such as fire-fighter protective apparel andflame-resistant garments toprotect American soldiers incombat.

Looking to the next decade,Collins said Pharr is morethan ready for the challenges.

“The evolving needs of ourcustomers will continue todrive innovation and newproduct development at PharrYarns now and in the future,”he said. “Pharr Yarns is com-mitted to make the necessaryinvestments in machinery andnew technologies to ensuresuccess. Additionally, PharrYarns is committed to ongoinginvestments in the trainingand development of its workforce to ensure that it has theskills needed to continue toproduce products made inAmerica that can compete andwin in worldwide markets.”

This textile business is still going strong Pharr Yarns innovates, thrives, even in bad economy

Photographs by Steve RankinThe offices of Pharr Yarns are seen here. Thebustling textile complex takes up a huge chunk ofMcAdenville, both literally and historically.

The cavernous confines of the interior of this Pharr Yarns facil-ity form a beehive of activity. Pharr Yarns has been in businessmore than 70 years.


http://www.southerncompany.com/careerinfo/home/aspx

By EMILY WEAVEREditor, Kings Mountain Herald

Patrick Yarns–the last family-owned textile mill in Kings Moun-tain, credited with never having laidoff a single employee–is hiring.

“We are expanding our capabilityto manufacture yarns for technical,performance and protective apparel,”said president of Patrick Yarns,Gilbert Patrick.

The expansion, he continues, willinvolve installing more machineryand hiring more operators, support-ing managers and engineers.

Patrick Yarns is set to receive asmall industrial incentive grant fromthe City of Kings Mountain to helpcover its capital investments. Thecompany applied for a North Car-olina state grant for a substantial ma-chinery investment. Afterdiscovering that the business-reten-tion grant would only help if thecompany was serious about movingto another state, Patrick said they de-cided to drop the application.

He notes that they want to expandbecause “Kings Mountain is home.”

Kings Mountain has been home tomany family-owned textile mills. Ofthose, Patrick Yarns is the sole sur-vivor and seems to be hitting a

growth spurt at the age of 45.Gilbert Patrick took over the com-

pany his father H. Lawrence Patrickstarted from scratch in 1964 as pres-ident in 1993. The operation had 50workers manning one location alongRailroad Avenue. Patrick Yarns nowhas two state-of-the-art plants, onboth sides of town, with 170 em-ployees and is still hiring.

But times haven’t been easy. Thedecaying shells of textile mills,which now litter the region, prove it.

Gastonia once proclaimed itself tobe the “Spindle City”, with more tex-tile spindles per capita than any othercity in the world. Not anymore.

Charlotte bragged about havingmore textile manufacturing indus-tries within a 75-mile radius than anyother metropolis in the world. Notanymore.

“To remember and list the textileplants that were once here and thriv-ing in Kings Mountain is like walk-ing through a cemetery,” Patrick tolda group of Rotarians this year.

There was the Margrace, the ParkYarn, the Pauline and the Bonnie.There was the Mauney Mill, theCraftspun, the Oxford, and thePhenix (Burlington), the Schneider,the Old Mill (at plant 19), the Shan-non Duplex, the Enterprise Mill and

the Lula Mill. All were cotton-pro-cessing facilities…now deceased.These industries were the lifebloodof the community.

“They supplied our troops, sentchildren to college, helped improveour community and provided (in-come), health benefits and retirementfor their employees,” Patrick said.“Recent textile plant closures withinthe last eight to nine years have beenmostly due to the change in interna-tional trade agreements and theUnited States’ unwillingness to en-force trade laws.”

Spectrum Dyed Yarns is one ofthe latest “casualties in the globaltrade war,” Patrick said.

Another one is R.L. Stowe, a tex-tile firm that had operated in Bel-mont for 108 years.

Thirty-six-year-old Spectrumclosed two years ago in the throes ofthe “Great Recession” to whichmany plants have succumbed. EvenPatrick has felt the pinch.

“We did experience some shorttime last year, but both plants are(now) running a full five-to-six dayschedule,” Patrick said.

Still…no layoffs. Diversificationand ingenuity may have been keys toPatrick Yarns’ survival.

PatrickYarns

goes high

tech to

grow in a

no-growth

industry

Where do

these high

tech fibers go?

•hospital mops

•water filters

•Kevlar vests

•Firefighters

turnout suits

•Air Force One

•The Space Station

•Fiber Optic Cable

•And U2 concert

tee shirts

An employee checks the machine as it spins thefiber. All photos contributed by Patrick Yarns

The “mean, green machines” at Patrick Yarnshelp the company stay competitive.

See PATRICK on Page A9



Congratulations to Kings Mountain on achieving status as a 2009 NC Main Street Community!

Being awarded Main Street designation is a significant mile-stone for the Kings Mountain’s Downtown Business Districtand an acknowledgement that we are on our way towardrestoring it as the center for community life for residents andvisitors alike.The Mountaineer Partnership, Inc.

Kings Mountain Main Street ProgramEconomic Development Report

2009 Private-Public Partnership Investment made$31,000 MSD Private Property Tax$30,000 City Matching Funds$61,000 Total 2009 Revenue

Grants Amount Jobs StatusCDBG Small Business & Entrepreneurial Assistance $250,000 10 SecuredRural Reuse Grant - Body Junction $12,000 1 SecuredRural Reuse Grant - Steakhouse Project $252,000 27 AppliedNC Small Town Economic Prosperity Program $125,000 NA AppliedMain Street Solutions Grant $300,000 20 Applied

Potential OpportunitiesMain Street Energy Grant $250,000 NA NA

Return on InvestmentSecured $262,000 2009 Grants Secured to date = 429% return on investment

$61,000 Main Street Program Investment

Applied $577,000 2010 Grants Secured to date = 946% return on investment$61,000 Main Street Program Investment

Potential $250,000 Main Street Solutions/Energy Grants = 410% return on investment$61,000 Main Street Program Investment

By ELIZABETH [email protected]

GROVER–Site clear-ing for the transmissionright-of-way and gen-eral site preparation isunderway at the 275-acre site of SouthernPower's proposed $400million ClevelandCounty Generating Fa-cility. Plant officials sayall systems are "go"' asfour combustion turbineunits are scheduled tobe on line in early 2012.

Stephanie Swindlewill serve as plant man-ager.

General site work isongoing for the powerblock, according toSouthern Power officialG. Steve Higginbotham.“We feel that North Car-olina is a good marketfor us and we have hadpositive experiencesworking with local lead-

ers,” he said at ground-breaking on the site.Southern Power Presi-dent Ronnie Bates alsosaid at the groundbreak-ing ceremony that “weare excited”.

“It’s a big boost tothe local economy,” saidKings Mountain MayorRick Murphrey.

The City of KingsMountain will be con-necting a 12-inch line tothe water main at USHighway 29. ClevelandCounty will run the rawwater line from MossLake to the BuffaloCreek Dam on LongBranch Road to theplant location.

Ground was brokenlast October for the nat-ural gas-fueled, simplecycle combustion tur-bine electric generatingplant expected to pro-duce millions of dollarsin economic benefitsthrough job creation andproperty taxes forCleveland County andthe surrounding grow-

ing market of the Car-olinas.

The early Christmas2008 present that South-ern Power, a subsidiaryof Southern Company,was coming to theKings Mountain-Groverarea was good news fora struggling economy.The City of KingsMountain made historywith the signing of a 20-year contract to supplyraw water for the newindustry. In full produc-tion it could become thecounty's second largest

taxpayer with what offi-cials predict will be abillion dollar business.

With 4.4 million cus-tomers and more than42,000 megawatts ofgenerating capacity, At-lanta-based SouthernCompany is the premierenergy company serv-ing the Southeast and aleading U.S. producerof electricity.

Southern Power isamong the larger whole-sale energy providers inthe Southeast.

Officials said in ear-

lier announcements thatthe plant could employhundreds of construc-tion workers but can op-erate commercially withsix people. State permit-ting and other prelimi-

nary work takes timebut plant officials saythey are looking for-ward to beginning con-struction and becominga good neighbor to thearea.

Rendering photo of the proposed Cleveland County generating project near Grover.

LIB STEWART photoMayor Rick Murphrey, left, is shown as he welcomed Southern Power President RonnieBates last October to the site of the ClevelandCounty Generating Facility near Grover.

Southern Power:All systems go

Southern Power:All systems go

“It’s a big boostto the localeconomy.”

- Mayor Rick Murphrey


Pepsi Beverages Company152 Commerce Drive, Cherryville

Cherryville’s PepsiCo is one part of a big company, saidMark Begley, Unit Sales Manager for Pepsi BeveragesCompany.

Said Begley, “Pepsi Beverages Company (PBC) is Pep-siCo’s beverage manufacturing, sales and distribution op-erating unit in the United States, Canada and Mexico. PBChandles approximately 75 percent of PepsiCo’s NorthAmerica beverage volume.”

Its diverse portfolio includes some of the world’s mostwidely recognized beverage brands including Pepsi, Moun-tain Dew, Sierra Mist, Aquafina, Gatorade, SoBe, Lipton,and Amp Energy.

“In many markets, PBC also manufactures and distrib-utes non-Pepsi brands including Dr Pepper, Crush, ROCK-STAR, and Muscle Milk,” he said.

The operating unit is headquartered in WestchesterCounty, New York and employs approximately 70,000 peo-ple. Locally, PBC at 152 Commerce Drive, in Cherryville,employs 61 people.

You can learn more about PBC atwww.pepsico.com/pbc.

Blachford RP Corporation707 Broadview Dr., Kings Mountain

Blachford RP Corporation was established in KingsMountain in the year 2002. Blachford is an industry leaderin manufacturing rubber/carpet OEM flooring for the heavytruck, bus, and automotive after-markets. Our customersinclude companies such as Peterbilt, Kenworth, Daimler,Volvo, International, Thomas Bus, Blue Bird Bus, andmany others.

Blachford has grown from approximately 20 employeesat inception to 49 employees in 2010 and now consists oftwo shifts.

This growth has come from Blachford securing numer-ous pieces of new business. In turn, this new business hasallowed us to hire many new employees, in spite of a down-turned economy.

Over the next year we will be implementing new pro-grams that will further expand our footprint here in Cleve-land County. This new business will bring more jobs andopportunities to the community. In addition to the newbusiness, analysts are predicting the heavy truck marketwill drastically increase by the end of the fourth quarter,which will also bring many opportunities to those who areseeking employment.

We anticipate continuing our growth within the nextdecade and look forward to doing it here in ClevelandCounty. Blachford enjoys being in Cleveland County be-cause of its centralized location to Charlotte Douglas Air-port and other industries in the area. These are a few addedbonuses along with the county’s willingness to help its in-dustry become and remain successful.

Cleveland Vocational Industries,Inc. & HarvestWorks, Inc.

650 N. Post Rd., Shelby

Cleveland Vocational Industries, Inc. (CVII) opened itsdoors in 1985 providing employment and training oppor-tunities to 10 individuals with barriers to employment.From the beginning, CVII has set the standard for sup-ported employment services and meeting the needs of thepeople they serve.

CVII provides human services within its 57,000 sq. ft.outsourcing and fulfillment center. Other businesses locallyand from all over the nation outsource their work to CVIIand our staff assist those we serve with doing the work.

In November 2001, CVII started LifeSkills to meet theneeds of individuals who are not able to work but are stillin need of daily activities. LifeSkills provides a rich arrayof activities from arts and crafts to community volunteerwork.

In May 2003, a company called HarvestWorks, Inc.began providing services in proximity to CVII with a vi-sion to provide an agricultural farm-based program.

In March 2006, CVII and HarvestWorks merged tostrengthen their missions. CVII then moved its LifeSkillsprogram into HarvestWorks.

In addition to human services, HarvestWorks offers chil-dren and adults with special needs various public services.HarvestWorks offers a place for birthday parties, specialevents and educational or school farm tours.

HarvestWorks has a miniature petting zoo, gemstonemining flume, banquet hall/reception area, serves lunchthroughout the week and provides meals for events. Theseservices give the individuals we assist rich learning oppor-tunities and community integration experiences. And, thesepublic services help fund the programs for individuals withspecial needs.

CVII continues to seek new businesses to partner withfor fulfillment and outsourcing work. HarvestWorks is cur-rently developing a large and unique therapeutic and recre-ational park.

For more information about CVII visit WeWork.org orFulfillmentOutsource.com. For more information aboutHarvestWorks visit HarvestWorksInc.org

Evonik Energy Services LLC304 Linwood Rd., Kings Mountain

Evonik Industries (headquartered in Germany) is a largeorganization with 58 manufacturing facilities that employsover 3,000 workers in North America. The energy focus ofEvonik in North America is Evonik Energy Services LLCwhich provides engineering and consulting services to theutility sector.

Evonik Energy Services began operation in the early1990’s in Washington, D.C. The offices moved to Durham,NC in 1999 and then to the Charlotte area in 2005. In 2006when Evonik Energy Services decided to move a portion ofEvonik’s service business, SCR catalyst regeneration busi-ness, from Germany to the U.S. market, a manufacturingfacility was needed.

In late 2006, Evonik Energy Services decided to locatein Kings Mountain at the former site of the Anvil KnitwearCompany that had shut down in 2000. Evonik Energy Serv-ices remodeled the facility and began operation in Sep-tember 2007. Since then, the facility has grown to over200,000 square feet of space and more than 40 employees.

When looking for a facility, we received outstandingsupport from the Cleveland County Chamber of CommerceEconomic Development group to secure the former AnvilKnitwear facility. Unlike most business moving into anarea, Evonik did not ask for or receive any tax breaks orgrants.

We were and are able to utilize a lot of local contractorsfor the build out and maintenance of the facility. In addi-tion, Evonik has worked to secure our workforce from thelocal Cleveland County area.

The Evonik facility houses our engineering staff whoalong with the production, lab and bench scale facility areall under one roof including our administrative and man-agement staff. This promotes our R&D activities and con-tinues improvements and information exchange tostreamline operations, products and services.

In 2008 Evonik Energy Services LLC was awarded theMayors International Community Award, which is a clearsign that the company not only integrated itself in thepower industry but also in the local community. We areproud to be part of Cleveland County’s economic land-scape.

Evonik Energy Services is another organization in theCharlotte region which supports the “Charlotte USA – TheNew Energy Capital” initiative. In the world market,Evonik Energy Services is operating 11 biomass units, in-vested in solar and wind and is the largest geothermal en-ergy producer in the world!

FAS Controls Inc.1100 Airport Rd., Shelby

FAS Controls Inc. is a diversified manufacturer of elec-tro-mechanical components primarily for vehicle markets,located in Shelby. Our business was founded originally in1911 and moved to Cleveland County in 1973. Our primaryfocus is on pressure switches, flow control valves, circuitbreakers, mechanical switches and coils.

Applications for our products include fluid pressuremonitoring, air pressure monitoring, hydraulic flow con-trol, and pneumatic flow control. We serve the passengervehicle, heavy truck, motorcycle, military, off-road andconstruction, agricultural, industrial and commercial mar-kets.

In addition to organic growth from diversification tonew customers and new markets, FAS Controls is activelyseeking global growth via acquisition of similar and com-plementary product lines. We will celebrate our 100th an-niversary since our original founding during 2011 and areproud to be a long-term resident employer in ClevelandCounty.

The company employs 121 workers. When asked someof the things they enjoy most about doing business inCleveland County, the company noted the area’s “strongwork ethic” and the “overall favorable weather conditions”and “location” of the county.

FirestoneAnand retired, Dunn in

Firestone Diversified Products, LLC (FSDP) has an-nounced that Tim Dunn, most recently Project Manager,New Business Development for Bridgestone Australia, hasaccepted the position of president of Firestone Fibers &Textiles Company, LLC (FSFT), effective April 1, 2010.He succeeds Jaggy Anand, who elected to retire after 40years with Bridgestone Americas and Firestone companies.

“Jaggy is an important part of our team, and he has hada great career,” said Ken Weaver, chairman, CEO and pres-ident of FSDP, the parent company of FSFT. “He hasserved FSFT well, leading the company for 18 years aspresident. We will certainly miss him.”

Anand joined the Bridgestone Americas family in 1970as an industrial engineer at the company’s tire facility inBloomington, Ill. He was promoted to Industrial Engineer-ing Manager in 1974. In 1983, Anand accepted the title ofPlant Production Manager for the consumer tire facility inAlbany, Ga. When the Albany plant closed in 1986, Jaggyjoined the FSFT plant in Kings Mountain as Plant Manu-facturing Engineering Manager. He was promoted to KingsMountain/Gastonia Plant Manager in 1988 and was namedPresident of FSFT in 1992. Anand and his wife, Nancy,plan to remain in Gastonia, during retirement.

Dunn assumes his new role as FSFT president after hav-ing previously held several positions within the Bridge-stone Americas family of companies. Dunn was hired asNortheast Territory Manager for the company’s consumertire organization in 1986. In 1992, Dunn was promoted toNortheast Regional Marketing Manager, and in 1993 hewas named Northeast Regional General Manager for theBridgestone Firestone consumer replacement tire business.In 2002, Dunn relocated to Nashville, Tenn., to accept therole of Operations Manager for consumer replacement tiresales.

He was promoted to director of the North AmericanConsumer Replacement Tire National Marketing & Sup-ply Chain Management in 2006, and to executive directorof North American Consumer Replacement Tire Market-ing in 2008. Last year, Dunn accepted an international as-signment as project manager for New BusinessDevelopment – Retail with Bridgestone Australia.

Dunn holds a bachelor’s degree in business managementfrom Bucknell University. As president of FSFT, Dunn willreport directly to Weaver.

“We are excited that Tim will be joining the DiversifiedProducts team as president of FSFT. His experience withthe tire side of the Bridgestone Americas family will servehim well in this new position,” Weaver said. “We look for-ward to a bright future for FSFT under Tim’s leadership.”

Headquartered in Kings Mountain, Firestone Fibers &Textiles Company, LLC (FSFT) has three locations in theUnited States and Canada. FSFT manufactures nylon andpolyester tire cord for Bridgestone Americas tire plants andother non-tire product manufacturers, and manufacturesother industrial fabrics and nylon resins. In the recent past,FSFT has supplied fabrics used for military tenting for theliving quarters of our troops in the Middle East. Otherunique products include the heavy industrial fabric used onthe Landing Craft Air Cushion, more commonly termed thehovercraft. FSFT also produces all the reinforcement ma-terials used in Firestone EPDM and TPO roofing systems.FSFT is a subsidiary of Firestone Diversified Products,LLC (FSDP).

Firestone Diversified Products, LLC (FSDP) is based inIndianapolis, Ind., and is a subsidiary of Bridgestone Amer-icas, Inc. (BSAM). FSDP is responsible for BSAM’s non-tire businesses, including building and industrial products,natural rubber, and industrial fibers and textiles.

Martin Marietta - Kings Mountain Quarry

262 Holiday Inn Drive, Kings Mountain

The Kings Mountain Quarry is Martin Marietta’s sec-ond oldest quarry, having begun mining in 1940. In a nor-mal economy the operation produces between 600,000 and800,000 tons of crushed stone annually.

The crushed stone we produce is an essential raw mate-rial utilized in the construction of the roads, bridges, rail-roads, homes, and other buildings which make up ourcommunities. It is these roads, bridges, and railways thatprovide the infrastructure that all commerce requires. Astrong and large national infrastructure is essential in main-taining and also improving the economy.

Martin Marietta believes in the future of the KingsMountain and Cleveland County market and economy. Thisis evident in the current plant relocation and expansionproject on the Kings Mountain Quarry property. The proj-ect is a multimillion dollar endeavor that will increase pro-duction capacity and extend the longevity of this quarry byseveral decades.

The project is expected to be completed by December2011.

Cleveland County is home to a large mining industry.The many local companies that engage in mining have cre-ated a plentiful and experienced work pool of miners fromwhich a company like Martin Marietta can hire. Low rela-tive tax rates and business-friendly politics are extremelyhelpful, too.

The company employs 20 workers in Cleveland County.

McNeilly’s Inc. & Quality Hardwood Frames Inc.

229 & 231 Carpenter Grove Church Rd., Lawndale

The last furniture plant in Cleveland Co.

We started a furniture frame plant in 1987. We buildframes for such companies as Ethan Allen, Broyhill,Drexel, Century, Bernhardt Furniture and many more. Atone time we employed 58 wonderful people. As businessstarted to drop off in the frame plant, we started a middleto high end leather upholstery furniture plant.

We employ about 35 wonderful people in the upholsteryplant. We build all the frames for McNeilly Inc. in ourframe plant and send them next door to be upholstered andshipped out the door.

We have salesmen in almost every state.Not many people know about our plant and seem sur-

prised when they learn about us. We are the only remainingfurniture plant in Cleveland County. We have no imports.What we produce is an ALL AMERICAN upholstered sofa,loveseat, stationary chair, recliner chairs, theater seating forthe home entertainment room, cocktail ottomans, storageottomans, manual or motorized recliners, swivel rocker re-cliners, and incliners (wall huggers) that only need to beabout 4” from the wall.

Purolator EFP1022 Industry Dr., Shelby

Purolator EFP in Shelby is a member of the PurolatorAdvanced Filtration Group of CLARCOR. What began in1978 in Cleveland County as a small family-owned busi-ness known as Southern Screen has grown to become themarket leader of polymer filtration products.

Together with another manufacturing plant located inHouston, TX, and warehouses in St. Catharines, Ontario,Canada, and Dalton, GA, we are also a leader in the design,engineering, and manufacturing of specialty wire clothparts for the automotive, electronics, and consumer mar-kets.

In today’s marketplace, the demand for quality has neverbeen greater. Our Shelby facility is ISO 9001:2008 certi-fied, offering the quality assurance that is critical to ourcustomers.

We are dedicated to providing a safe work environmentfor all our employees. In December, 2009 we received ourSHARP re-certification with OSHA.

As a small facility, we consider ourselves to be a bigfamily; thus, people oriented, yet business minded.

One of the biggest advantages of operating a businessin Cleveland County is its location. The county is centeredbetween Gaston, Lincoln and Rutherford counties whichgives us access to a large diverse labor force. It also allowsfor easy access to the main interstate highways which as-sures that products flow easier and quicker to our customerbase. Cleveland County also offers that small town charmand friendly atmosphere that makes it a pleasant place tolive, work and play.

Purolator EFP, in Shelby, currently employs 57 work-ers.

Sloan Graphic Arts816 Cherryville Rd., Shelby

Sloan Graphic Arts was established in 1987 with threepartners: Clay Sloan, and Becky and Terry Sloan. We haveexpanded our print shop to offer vinyl lettering and signs toresidents of Shelby and surrounding areas.

Currently we employ two full-time partners and onepart-time employee. Due to the explosion of computers andprinters in all businesses and most homes, our printing cus-tomers have dwindled. This is the main reason we offer sig-nage to help us stay in business.

We have a wide variety of clients–from young brides inneed of invitations for the big date to physician offices thatuse envelopes like there’s no tomorrow. Fortunately, wordof mouth from our customers has been a tremendous assetto our business. We aim to please and our customers knowthat to be true!

Industrial profiles...Where we work in Cleveland and Gaston Counties


Announcing Weekend Hours

CaroMont Pediatric PartnersLocated in BELMONT

Beginning June 1st we will be open on Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Also come join in the fun for our annual Kinderdays when we will celebrate your soon to be kinder-gartner by giving away prizes, school supplies and playing games while completing the requiredphysical for kindergarten. Call the clinic for details.

CaroMont Pediatric Partners - Belmont209 Park St., Belmont, NC • 704-829-0025

Pictured above: Dr. Owensby, Jeff Wright, Sherry Spargo, Dr. Brugman and Allison Hux

STI/Specialty Textiles, Inc.

515 Marie St., Kings Mountain

STI manufactures and distributesupholstery fabrics sold to the resi-dential furniture market. STI has oneplant, established in 1964 and lo-cated at 515 Marie Street, KingsMountain. The North Carolina plantweaves and finishes fabric used inthe United States, Canada and Mex-ico.

STI owns and operates a distribu-tion warehouse in Mississippi. Thewarehouse purchases fabric wovenin North Carolina and sells theyardage to furniture manufacturerslocated in Mississippi.

The North Carolina plant em-ploys 140 skilled workers operatingthree shifts, five days a week. Theplant is a safe and air conditionedworking environment. Many of thenewer associates are learning valu-able skills from more senior em-ployees. Turnover is low but foranyone lucky enough to land a job,they will be treated with respect andopportunities to advance. This is aplace where senior management andowners are on the floor and knowmany employees by name.

STI is fortunate to be part of a sta-ble manufacturing base in ClevelandCounty. Located close to KingsMountain and Crowders Mountainthere are plenty of outdoor activitiesto take advantage of. The city ofKings Mountain has continued toimprove restaurants and other serv-ices offered to companies and citi-zens located within its boundaries.

Assets like Moss Lake, GatewayTrails and the Kings MountainTriathlon are regional draws thatbring people to Cleveland County.Kings Mountain High School is onlyone of the fantastic schools thatCleveland County has to offer. Theseare only a few reasons why manu-facturing companies thrive in Cleve-land County.

The future is bright at STI. STI iswinning the battle with foreign im-ports from China. STI has been man-ufacturing yarn to be used in theweaving process and plans to expandthis effort. With the support ofCleveland County and the City ofKings Mountain, STI will continueto grow and employ many morequality people from ClevelandCounty in the future.

By EMILY WEAVEREditor

Ellis Lumber Company, nowin its 63rd year of operation inShelby, began as many brave en-trepreneurial endeavors do–withan idea and chance.

William Yancey Ellis, 88,grew up on a farm in the Mt.Sinai Church community. He at-tended school up through the ageof 15 when he quit just threemonths into his studies at the oldNo. 3 High School. He was itch-ing to work and found a job athis father’s sawmill.

Before he quit school, his fa-ther challenged his plan to workat the mill, saying he would notbe able to do the job. But thetenacious teen took a day off,went to a mill, learned the ropesand later joined his father on thejob.

“I worked there five years andwhen I was 20 years old I savedup $56 and left home,” Ellis said.

After a five-year hiatus,working at a shipyard inCharleston, a job in Winston-Salem, and meeting and marry-ing his wife, Ellis returned home.On his 25th birthday, July 30,1946, he began a job at theThompson Lumber Co. inShelby.

“I liked the job. I was making$25 for 50 hours, so about 50-cents an hour,” he said.

But while he worked he no-ticed the customers that wouldleave with truck-beds full ofrough-sawed lumber, who, headded, seemed to be turned awayfrom having their pieces“dressed” once cut.

“One morning about 10o’clock I was walking down theroad to the (lumber) yard andsaw another truck driving away,”he said.

And then he had an idea. “If Ijust had a little machine that Icould work and dress the lumberthat he’s (the ‘bossman’) turningdown, I believe I can make a liv-ing,” Ellis said. “I knew where a

little machine was down inBlacksburg that I could buy so inthe afternoon I told my boss, Mr.Thompson, ‘If I could dress thelumber you’re turning down Ithink I could make some money,but I’d hate to quit.’ He told menot to quit and that he’d doublemy salary.

“That was hard to turndown,” Ellis added.

But still that idea of dressinglumber stayed in his mind. Hepicked up his wife and they wentto his parents.

“I told Daddy about it. Dadsaid, don’t give up $50 a week,you might try this and spend therest of your life paying off yourdebts.”

His father told him to go on tocollege and become a successfullawyer or a doctor. “I told him,‘No. I wanted to work with lum-ber,’” he recalled.

“Mama was in the kitchencooking on the wood stove.”

He went in and told her abouthis dilemma.

“I’ll never forget what shesaid. Mom said, ‘Go on son.You’ll make it.’

“I went to work and told Mr.Thompson, ‘I hate to quit, but Ibelieve I can make a living onmy own,’” Ellis said.

He and his wife counted upall of their assets and with the$1,200 between them he got herpermission and set off to buy themachine. He bought what heneeded for $1,135, leaving himand his wife $65 to run on untilhe could earn their living.

Ellis started his machine andbusiness up in a rented parcel ofa cotton patch in Shelby. It wasa one-man operation that firstyear–just Ellis and the machinebraving the weather and the ele-ments without any shelter.

“I was so afraid I would gobroke and I wanted to make mydaddy wrong. For the first yearmy wife got me up at 4 or 5 eachmorning and I worked from 6a.m. until 10 o’clock at night,”he said.

After that first year, he usedmaterials from an old barn andsheets of tin to build a shed overhis operation. “So I could workin the rain a little better,” he said.

Then, he started buying lum-ber to sell in his business andlater he moved into the buildingmaterial market, selling suppliesfrom flooring to ceiling andeverything between, until, hesaid, big box competition camein and undercut their prices.Then, Ellis Lumber Co. easedout of the building material busi-ness and into the log home ma-terial market–a move thecompany continues to profitfrom today.

With 18 employees, they nowship logs to over 10 differentstates east of the Mississippi and

operate a lumber yard that hasgrown from one acre, on the firstsite, to span 12 acres today.

Ellis’ two sons are workingwith him in the business and arelearning and training to one daytake over. But even though hiscompany continues to operateand, at times, thrive 60 yearsafter that first shift on the cottonfield, Ellis shuns the word “suc-cess”.

“If I had sense enough to dolike my daddy said and gone onto college, I might have beensuccessful,” he laughed.

But he has been successfuland he credits the county’s goodlabor force for where he is today.“If it hadn’t been for good em-ployees, I couldn’t have donewhat I’ve done,” he said.

His momma said he’d make it!Ellis spends 63 years in the lumber business


MOUNT HOLLY—American& Efird has the world on a string.

The yarn plant is showing nosigns of coming unraveled in thiscurrent recession. And it appearsto have just the right yarn neededto knit up the tear in the economy’sfabric.

It’s one of the biggest taxpay-ers in Mount Holly and indeed inall of Gaston County.

According to spokeswomanMildred Hurd, A&E is an interna-tional company with some 1,100employees in this country—about900 of them right here in GastonCounty. In other nations aroundthe globe, the company employsabout 7,900 people.

Hurd recently talked about hercompany and the secret of its suc-cess.

“A&E began in 1891,” she

said, “on what was known asDutchman’s Creek. It was firstcalled the Nims ManufacturingCompany. After a consolidationwith other textile companies, thenew corporation was known as theAmerican Yarn and ProcessingCompany. In 1952, the companymerged with Efird Manufacturing,and the company name waschanged to American & Efird.”

Hurd said A&E likes doingbusiness here.

“Mount Holly and GastonCounty are great places to callhome,” she said. “The reasonablewater and power rates that wehave here allow us to successfullycompete with countries that havelower labor rates.

“The area work force is repre-sented by many hardworking anddedicated individuals. We havegenerations of families who cometo work at A&E.

A&E has theworld on a string

See A&E on Page 11A


By EMILY WEAVEREditor

Ron France, presidentof Chemetall Foote Corp.,unfolds the map and placesit on the table in his office.It’s a map of the world’ssupply of lithium withsmall red dots, each target-ing current and expectedlithium reserves, scatteredamong the countries.

One of those tiny reddots is over Kings Moun-tain–the U.S. headquartersto the world’s largestlithium company.

As the electrification ofthe automobile industryshifts into high gear acrossthe globe, this KingsMountain plant will playan important role in thetransportation revolutionby mass-producing a keyelement in this drive–lithium hydroxide.

Lithium-ion batteriescan’t run without it. Al-though electric cars canrun on different powerpacks, lithium-ion batterieshave become the optimum“fuel” of choice for the carmanufacturers.

In 2008, as gasolineprices sloshed over $4 agallon, then-presidentialcandidate Barack Obamaannounced he would “pushto have one million plug-inhybrid and electric vehi-cles on America’s roads by2015,” according to PBS(Public Broadcast Station).

And in August 2009,money talked. ChemetallFoote was awarded stimu-lus funds of $28.4 millionfrom the U.S. Departmentof Energy to expand itsSilver Peak, Nev., lithiumcarbonate operations andinstall geothermal power tothat plant. Nearly half ofthe award will also be usedto build a new lithium hy-droxide plant here in KingsMountain.

The new line of produc-tion will add 20 full-timelaborers to Chemetall’scurrent payroll of 120highly skilled employees.France said that they willbe taking bids for construc-tion of the new plant bylate summer “and we ex-pect between 100 and 150construction workers on-site over the next year-and-a-half”.

The grant is part of amulti-billion dollar federalinvestment aimed at mak-ing America one of theleading electric car batteryproducers in the worldover the next five years.According to TIME maga-zine, the U.S. was barelymaking 2% of the world’selectric vehicle batteries afew years ago, but with thehelp of federal investments“American companies arepositioned to increase pro-duction tenfold - and po-tentially control 40% of theglobal lithium-ion-batterymarket by 2015” (“WhyStart-ups are Charging IntoLithium”, TIME, April 5,2010).

President Obamaechoed this statement re-cently during a visit to theCelgard Plant in Charlotte.

Warnings of global

warming, the rumoredthreat of dwindling oil sup-plies, tensions among theMiddle East, and unstableoil prices have revampedthe support for electric carsamong government offi-cials.

“Chemetall Foote is atthe forefront of advancedbattery technology,” saidU.S. Sen. Kay Hagan (D-North Carolina), at the an-nouncement of the grantaward. “The Recovery Actgrant will give the com-pany the resources to in-crease the quality oflithium for next-generationbatteries, which will createhigh-tech manufacturingjobs in our state. Thisfunding is an investment inbatteries that will helppower electric cars and re-duce America’s depend-ence on foreign oil.”

The global market forlithium-ion batteries is es-timated to grow from $877million this year to $8 bil-lion by 2015, according toPike Research, a consult-ing firm; and, in NorthAmerica alone the market

is expected to swell from$287 million to $2.2 bil-lion in five years.

The tempting aroma ofgrowing demand has leftmany mouths wateringover the dream of getting abite of the lithium pie. Sev-eral entrepreneurs havestudied the map of poten-tial lithium reserves, sur-veying the chance ofjoining the market. About adozen start-up companieshave popped up in theUnited States and Canadaand the competition seemsto be getting fierce.

But Chemetall Foote, asubsidiary of its parent-company Rockwood Hold-ings, operates a lithiumbrine plant in Nevada, thatis the only present sourceof lithium raw material inthe United States. Along

with the company’sChilean plant, Salar de At-acama–which also pro-duces lithium carbonateand lithium chloride–andother operating sites inLangelsheim, Germany,Tennesee and Texas, theyare the largest global pro-ducer of lithium andlithium compounds, likethe ones needed for electriccar batteries - putting theKM plant on the map in abig way.

History of the electric car

Hybrid and electric ve-hicles have been aroundfor some time now. Ac-cording to PBS, “Scottishinventor Robert Andersoncreated the first crude elec-tric carriage powered bynon-rechargeable primary

cells in the 1830s.”Battery-powered vehi-

cles drove onto the scenein the late 1800s, inspiringeven Thomas Alva Edisonto begin a quest for a bat-tery powerful enough toenergize commercial auto-mobiles. His researchwould later yield to thecreation of the alkaline bat-tery.

By 1900, nearly one-third of all cars travelingon the roads of New YorkCity, Boston and Chicagowere electric, according toPBS.

But there were issues.Traveling longer distanceswas a chore. Horsepowerin electric cars was a joke.

With the readily avail-able source of gasoline,Henry Ford came to theconsumer’s rescue with the

mass-produced, gasoline-propelled Model T in 1908.These cars were cheaper.They could go longer dis-tances and their “get upand go” really got up andwent. It seemed to be anice, long affair.

But then came air pollu-tion, soaring oil prices andthe Arab Oil Embargo of1973. The popularity ofelectric cars returned as didthe quest to make them gothe distance and go faster.

The quest continuestoday with promising re-sults seen in the use oflithium-ion batteries. In-stead of puttering around attop speeds of 30 mph,some of these new electriccars driving off the assem-bly line can go from 0-60in seconds, can go fasterthan 90 mph and certain

cars like Nissan’s Leaf cantravel up to 100 miles on afull charge before needinga boost.

The price of oil independence

New designs havetransformed these onceboxy, tiny cars into sleek,sporty and sexy roadsters,leaving many buyers wait-ing for the day they can af-ford one. That day may notbe too far off. Some of thehybrids and electric cars afew years ago were pricedat $60,000-plus, but Nissanrecently reported that itsLeaf will sell for around$25,000.

As the demand forlithium-ion batteries growsand more investment isfunneled into the market astechnology improves,many suspect prices willcontinue to drop.

“The battery is the mostexpensive component ofthat vehicle,” France said.“But it’s not the lithium,”he added, that packs thepunch.

Lithium costs less than$3 per pound and with 20-30 lbs. to a battery onemight think it should cost$60, instead of the esti-mated $10,000-plus pricetag it currently wears.

But there is a lot thatgoes into these batteries tomake them safe for theconsumer, while fittingperformance standards.The power-packs have tohandle countless partialcharge-discharge cyclesover a preferred eight-to-10-year life span withenough power range totravel longer distances(100-plus miles) betweencharges, while being ableto absorb energy frombraking and create surgesof power for acceleration.

Lithium-ion batteriesseem to fit the bill betterthan other rechargeablebatteries and Chemetallproduces, at its Lan-gelsheim plant in central

The new oil?A worker in the Chemetall Foote lab checkshis work. A round flask gives him the appear-ance of being in a space suit, alluding to thehigh tech nature of his work.

Chemetall FooteKings Mountain plant is the leader in

making the stuff electric cars run on

photo by LIB STEWARTNEW KILO LAB–Chemist Jeff McCall, left, and Chemetall Foote President Ronald A. France in the newkilo lab at the Kings Mountain Foote operation. Chemetall Foote has received a $28.4 million grant tobuild a lithium hydroxide plant in Kings Mountain to produce next generation transportation batteries.

Germany, a special in-gredient for these power-packs to make them safer.The KM plant makes asubstance called LiBOB,which the company de-scribes as a “patented addi-tive for the electrolyte inlithium ion batteries, whichenhances thermal stabilityand prevents overheatingin large battery packs”.

With the new plant theywill also produce lithiumhydroxide.

“If there’s no lithiumcarbonate or lithium hy-droxide, there’s no lithium-ion batteries,” France said.

In addition to the grantmoney awarded toChemetall, the company’sRockwood plant in Nevadahas received funding to ex-pand production of lithiumcarbonate. The money willalso help make the com-pany even more competi-tive by allowing it to createits own “green” electricityto power the plant.

Oil dependencevs. lithium dependence

But France has heardsome question whether ornot we are trading one de-pendence for another. If weare, what’s the worst thatcan happen?

“Cars right now are de-pendent on oil. If some-thing were to happen in theMiddle East today and theycut off your supply of oilhow long could you driveyour car? Maybe about an-other week before you ranout,” France said. “Withina month we would proba-bly all be having our carsparked wondering what arewe going to get around in.”

But if we all drove elec-tric cars that were all pow-ered by lithium-ionrechargeable batteries andour supply of lithium waslimited, most would haveyears, not a month, beforeneeding alternate trans-portation.

“Some batteries can last10 years so even if you’rehalfway through it, you’vegot five years...for the na-tional security of Americaand all of the great mindswe’ve got to come up withthe next battery,” Francesaid.

The beginningsof a world-leader

Chemetall Foote Corpo-ration traces its origins toDr. A.E. Foote whofounded the Foote MineralCompany in 1876 as a pur-veyor of rare minerals. Itbecame a major producerof lithium chemicals whenit acquired the right tomine spodumene at KingsMountain in the early1950s.

Lithium was extractedfrom the spodumene oreusing traditional hard-rockmining methodology–hy-draulic shovels and dumptrucks. Ore was ground,milled and run throughflotation cells and reactedwith sodium carbonate tomake lithium carbonate.

In the 1960s Foote pio-neered the production oflithium carbonate fromsolar evaporation brineponds with the opening ofthe Silver Peak, Nev. plant.In 1984, Foote developedthe world’s richest com-mercial brine deposit at theSalar de Atacama locatedin the desert of northernChile. The spodumenemining operation at theKings Mountain plantended in the early 1990s,but is still listed as a poten-tial source of lithium car-bonate, should the marketdemand require it to bebrought back into produc-tion.

Today, Chemetall pro-duces lithium metal andlithium foil for the primarylithium battery market, aswell as lithium aluminate,lithium bromide, lithiumchloride and pharmaceuti-cal grade lithium carbonatein the Kings Mountain

plant. Lithium aluminate isused in the production offuel cells, another greenenergy alternative.

Lithium bromide isused in dehumidificationsystems, and lithium chlo-ride is used as a scrubberin carbon dioxide absorp-tion. Pharmaceutical-gradelithium carbonate is usedto treat bipolar disorder.

In addition to theirproducts sold around theworld, Chemetall FooteCorp. has proved to be agood steward to its homecommunity. In 2007, thecompany donated 12square miles of its acreageto the Kings MountainGateway Trails, turningland once mined forlithium into a scenic goldmine for healthy recre-ation.

Ron France con-tributed to this report.


Extended Hours7AM - 7PM

CaroMont Family Medicine

of Cherryville

Elizabeth Scism, NP • Dr. Charles Young, MD

• X-Ray • Spirometry

• Holter Monitors • Dopplers

704.445.0442120 South Mountain Street

Cherryville, NC

CONTRIBUTED PHOTOAn employee at Chemetall Foote inspects a ring of lithium foil at the Kings Mountain plant.

By the numbers:•$28.4 million stimulus grant

•Nearly $15 million new plant

•20 new permanent jobs

•200 construction jobs

•$877 million market now

•$8 BILLION market by 2015

•$25,000 - price of the new

Nissan Leaf electric car

PatrickContinued from Page A3

“By continually evolving and reinventingourselves, we focus our collective vision sothat what we make today is different thanwhat we made three years ago and our mind-set is that what we make three years fromtoday will be different than what we are mak-ing today.”

The company’s yarns are “key compo-nents in a wide spectrum of products,” hesaid.

Patrick’s performance yarns can be foundin everything from the anti-microbial mopsused at hospitals to the water filters used inhomes or at the municipal water treatmentplant. Patrick’s fibers have been woven intothe fire-restrictive carpeting underlay used inAir Force One.

The company spins materials used inKevlar (bullet-resistant) vests worn by lawenforcement and the high temperature heat-protection fibers found in a firefighter’sturnout suit.

Patrick Yarns creates water-swelling tex-tiles used in fiber-optic cables and the com-pany’s fibers can be found in devices used byNASA at the space station.

“Our recycled yarns were even chosenlast summer for the U-2 concert t-shirts,”Patrick said.

Patrick Yarns has 11 patents and six trade-marks to its name. The company’s most ac-tive trademarks are: Aquatrust(anti-microbial fibers for water filtration),Earthspun (earth-friendly yarns), Espun(yarns made from 51 percent or greater re-cycled or renewable fibers), FiberTac, andMicroPower (a patented process).

From cotton blends to polyesters andTeflon to stainless steel, Patrick Yarns spinsevery fiber globally available at either 100percent or in blends.

“We also spin yarns produced from plantstalks, called bast fibers,” Patrick said. “If it’sa fiber, we spin it.”

“The biggest reason for our success is ourexperienced and knowledgeable team of as-sociates and our ‘can do’ attitude. This cou-pled with our world-class manufacturingfacilities enable us to be a success driven,unique textile solution provider to each ofour customers.”

Because Patrick Yarns’ customers vary aswidely as the textiles they produce there isno standard sales sheet with items and prices.The company simply asks, “How can wehelp your business?”

“These days you can’t afford to just sit onyour past successes. You have to be flexible,engage your customers and work closely toengineer solutions to increase their prof-itability and future market share,” Patricksaid.

Patrick’s need to be innovative and flexi-

ble may be inherited traits. His grandfather,Gilbert Dixon Hambright, founded KingsMountain Cotton Oil Company in 1904 at700 S. Railroad Avenue. But the operationwasn’t limited to a cotton gin and an oil mill.Hambright also ran a coal yard and an iceplant at the factory to keep business steadythroughout the year.

Patrick’s father, H. Lawrence Patrick,whom the senior center was named after,bought KM Cotton Oil Co. from Patrick’suncle when he returned from his second tourof duty with the Marines in the Korean War.

“With the market segments served by theoil mill waning, he started a yarn mill at thatlocation and incorporated Patrick Yarn Millin 1964,” Gilbert Patrick said.

Whether through competitive pay andbenefits to its workers, or continually up-grading and improving its facilities (whichcreate jobs in the construction sector) or sim-ply by paying taxes and utility bills on time,Patrick Yarns continues to support the com-munity, just like the mills of old.

Did you know?

According to Gilbert Patrick, president of Patrick Yarns:• In 1985 the U.S. manufactured95% of all the garments in thiscountry. Now that percentage isless than 5.• As recent as 2001 the textile industry spent more money for improvements and capitalizationthan any other manufacturing segment in the U.S.• Just eight years ago, the U.S.grew 18-19 million bales of cottona year with the U.S. textileindustry, alone, consuming over12 million a year. Now, U.S. industry consumption per year isless than four million bales.• Textile operations are still one ofthe largest manufacturing employers in the nation. The overall sector employed morethan 675,000 workers in 2008. Textile mills employed 298,000.


By MICHAEL E. POWELLEditormichael.cherryvilleeagle@g

mail.com

Salesman Ricky Cor-nelius said Cherryville Dis-tributing and MatthewDellinger may just be one ofthe best kept business se-crets in Cherryville.

Cornelius, 48, said he hasknown Dellinger since the80s and has worked for him,on and off, for at least thatlong. “He’s a great guy towork for and really knowshis stuff about a great manythings. He knows cleaningsupplies and such, as is apretty fair history buff, too!”

Dellinger, 100 percentowner (as he puts it) ofCherryville DistributingCompany, said his companywas founded in the late1940s, and incorporated in1968 as a supplier of auto-motive and industrial chem-icals. “I bought it in 1968from the Kerr-Beam estateand we just built on it fromthere.

“CDC has grown to en-compass over 200 specialtyand general cleaning prod-ucts,” said Dellinger, “andwe can claim a global cus-tomer base.

“Using guidelines setforth by federal, state, andlocal authorities, we strive tomarket environmentally safeproducts at the lowest possi-ble price. And we have re-cently renovated ourshowroom to make ourproducts available to thegeneral public.”

One of those products isthe Karcher line of powerwashers, which Corneliussaid move out the door at asurprising rate. “Thosethings sell like crazy, espe-

cially in the warmerweather,” he added.

Cornelius said CDC haswhat he termed a “buffet” ofproducts, ranging from carwash supplies to disinfec-tants, and “...many, manytypes of household cleanserssuch as are used in everyhome and business in Cher-ryville and around the area.”

Said Dellinger, “Weenjoy the relationships wehave developed with the

people of Cherryville overthe past 42 years and enjoya great camaraderie with acustomer base of 300-plus.”

Dellinger said he, likemany other local businessowners, knows how toughtimes are. He also knowsthat many say times arestarting to look up.

“Despite uncertain eco-nomic times my companyhas expanded to double insize in the last five years. We

have entered internationalmarkets with our enzyme-based products and haveseen promising results andsales in the aquaculture andsoil stabilization industry.”

Dellinger added thatthere are certain universitystudies that have been com-pleted on CDC’s bio-pesti-cide products.

“Field testing will beginin Vietnam later this year formosquito abatement we

have,” Dellinger said.“With faith, good friends,

loyal customers, and a lot ofhard work, we foresee abright future and we hope tocontinue to expand our mar-kets at home and abroad.”

Dellinger and his loyalcrew have been listening tosuggestions from vendorsand patrons in order to makethe company and its prod-ucts even more viable anddesirable to its growing

client base.“To that end,” said

Dellinger, “we have becomeaccessible at our web site,www.cherryvilledistribut-ing.com. We hope folks willcheck us out on the web andsee what we have to offer.”

By doing business theold-fashioned way with anew bit of a twist, Dellingersaid he and CDC hope tostick around another 40years and more.

(photos by MEP/The Eagle)Checking out one of the 200-plus items in the showroom, CDC salesman Rick Cornelius talks about how useful the productsare to businesses and homeowners as well.

Cherryville Distributing Company:keeping Cherryville clean for 70 years

Who makes what in Cherryville?Bradington-Young, Inc.

Mr. Alan Cole920 East First StreetPO Box 487Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-5881Fax: 704-435-4276

Product: FurnitureEmployment: E (100-249)Year Established: 1978Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Carolina Custom Metal FinishingMr. Terry Lovell617 East Main StreetCherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-445-1710Product: Chromium PlatingEmployment: G (1-49)Year Established: 2005 Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Cherryville Distributing Mr. Matthew Dellinger322 East Main StreetPO Box 250Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-9692Product: Janitorial/Printing ChemicalsEmployment: G (1-49)Year Established: 1968Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Cherryville Public Warehouse, Inc.Ms. Debra Brown1000 West Academy StreetPO Box 400Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-5465Fax: 704-435-1924Product: Warehousing, FulfillmentEmployment: G (1-49)Year Established:Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

FleetNet America, Inc.Mr. Oren Summer300 Commerce DrivePO Box 970Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-3897Product: Truck Fleet Breakdown Serv.Employment: E (100-249) Year Established: 1997Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Gatza Marble ProductsMr. Robert Gatza121 R & S Access RoadCherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-445-1660Fax: 704-445-1690Product: Cultured MarbleEmployment: G (1-49)Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Keystone Powdered Metal Mr. Randy Dacanal100 Commerce DrivePO Box 189Cherryville, NC, 28021-0189Phone: 704-435-4036Fax: 704-435-8132Product:Powdered metal bearings/ partsEmployment: E (100-249)

Year Established: 1984Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Modern Polymers, Inc.Mr. Rich Hilliard901 West Academy StreetPO Box 398Cherryville, NC, 28021-0398Phone: 704-435-5825Fax: 704-435-2063 Product: Plastic foam packagingEmployment: F (50-99)Year Established: 1977 Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Pepsi Cola Bottling Mr. Mark Begley152 Commerce DrivePO Box 626Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-8801Product: Soft Drink BottlingEmployment: F (50-99)Year Established: 1992Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Pizza Equipment Supply Mr. Marcus Bramhall100 Sweetree St., Cherryville, NC 280211437 E. Franklin Blvd.(mailing address)Gastonia, NC, 28054 (mailing address)Phone: 704-445-1121Employment: F (50-99)Year Established: 2005Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

R-Anell Housing GroupMr. Dennis Jones235 Anthony Grove RoadCherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-445-9610Employment: D (250-249) Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

South Pine NeedlesMr. David MusickEast Church StreetPO Box 156Cherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-445-9000Employment: G (1-49)Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

Southern Shavings Mr. Bill Culp254 Tot Dellinger RoadCherryville, NC, 28021Phone: 704-435-8159Employment: G (1-49) Public/Private: PrivateDomestic/Foreign: Domestic

A&E is one of the world’slargest global manufacturersand distributors of industrialsewing thread, embroidery

thread and technical textiles.

We’re proud to be a part ofthe community since 1891

American &Efird, Inc.

P.O. Box 507Mount Holly, NC 28120


Kings Mountain City Council

“Nestled in the foothills of the majestic Blue Ridge Mountains, Kings Mountain is acaring community, a vibrant, growing city witha rich, proud history and a promising future.

Kings Mountain offers you the serenity of asmall-town with close proximity to all theconveniences of some of the largest cities inthe Carolinas. Kings Mountain’s sense of ridein its history is evident as is the community’sfocus on economic development... embracingthe past, planning for the future.”

Rick MurphreyMayor

Kings Mountain...

Howard ShippWard 1

Mike ButlerWard 2

Tommy HawkinsWard 3

Rodney GordonWard 4

Ric MooreWard 5

Marilyn SellersCity Manager

Houston CornAt Large

Dean SpearsAt Large

City of Kings Mountain101 W. Gold Street, Kings Mountain, NC

704-734-0333

www.cityofkm.com

By MICHAEL E. [email protected]

Cherryville businessman PeteLovell said he started his CarolinaCustom Metal Finishing business at617 East Main Street in Cherryville onApril 1, 2005, with just three employ-ees. "Presently I have six employees,"Lovell said simply.

He currently lives in Lincolntonand originally wanted to have his busi-ness there. "I felt that the (Cherryville)Chamber and mayor in Cherryvilleshowed more interest in having mehere, so that’s where I am. I reallyenjoy the quiet atmosphere and slowpace here."

Lovell's company is a metal finish-ing operation, he said. "We polish alltypes of metal parts and items and canapply decorative electroplated finishes,such as copper, nickel and chrome. Weprocess furniture and lamp parts, auto-

mobile and motorcycle parts forrestorations and upgrades, as well asmachinery and electronic compo-nents," he said.

Lovell said his business is basicallya one stop shop for all plating needs."We use a triple chrome platingprocess (copper, nickel, chrome) onsteel, cast iron, stainless steel, alu-minum, copper and brass. We can stripold chrome finish from most parts andrestore them to look like new. We plateparts for automobiles, boats, motorcy-cles, musical instruments, appliances,old games and juke boxes. We also doindustrial copper and nickel plating,"he said.

Lovell's business background did-n't start out in what he is currentlydoing, he said.

Said Mr. Lovell, "I spent most ofmy life in textile sales and marketing.As our representatives in Washingtonwere destroying the textile industry by

encouraging it to move off-shore, Iwas looking for a different and morestable environment in which to end mycareer."

"I saw a chrome plating shop forsale in a classified ad, and then setabout doing a good bit of research. Itappeared to me through my researchthat metal finishing could be a growthbusiness even in tough times," he said.

Lovell said his business startedslow and the learning curve has been"quite steep".

"But we’ve grown substantially,each of the five years we’ve been inbusiness." For Lovell, that beats anyrecession "learning curve".

Lovell said his company can bereached at (704) 445-1710, or by fax at(704) 445-1715. They also have a website: www.carolinachrome.biz, and ane-mail address at:[email protected].

Former textile worker findsgrowth in Metal Finishing

MAN OF STEEL

A&EContinued from Page A7

“We are proud of our employees. We are also proud of our community. A&E has alwaysbeen a good community citizen.”

Hurd said that A&E and its workers give of their time and money to support local chari-ties and civic organizations, such as the American Red Cross, the United Way and the Boysand Girls Clubs of America, and others.

“We also take a leadership role in the ‘Clean Air Works’ program every year,” she said.“A&E and our parent corporation, Ruddick, have donated generously to the Mount HollyCommunity Foundation in support of Mount Holly and its greenway project.”

And unlike most American companies during these dark economic times, A&E is look-ing to expand.

“We plan to continue to strengthen and expand our Asian markets and grow our productlines in the U.S.,” said Hurd, “to enable us to continue to be a major producer of industrialsewing thread, supporting global markets in retail clothing, non-apparel products and spe-cialty yarns. In addition, our long-standing commitment to environmental, health and safetyand social responsibility will continue to be a top priority at all of our operations worldwide.We believe that enhancing environmental sustainability in operations and in the supply chainis the right thing to do.

“We want to continue to be a premier employer and a good place to work,” she contin-ued, adding that the company offers its employees “dependable work, good benefits and sat-isfying careers. We will continue our efforts to support our local community by giving ofour resources to charitable causes and protecting our environment though our evolving sus-tainability programs.”

You can count on Your Hometown Newspapers...

Banner NewsThe newspapers that proudly present this special sec-tion. Read more about your community every week.

(photos submitted by Carolina Custom Metal Finishing)Custom choppers showcasing some of Lovell'sCCMF chrome work


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Those “talking heads” on tele-vision love to talk about the de-cline in newspaper paid circulationnumbers. But the truth is thosestatements apply to the top 200 orso metropolitan newspapers in theUS. And the same thing can besaid about their own industry (butthey never mention that).

In fact readership at communitynewspapers (like ours) of 15,000or less is VERY strong. And thosenewspapers comprise 80% of allnewspapers in the US.

And they love to talk about de-clining advertising spending withnewspapers. Again, that applies tothose same top 200 or so metro pa-pers...and their own TV industry.

Actually advertising sales atthose same smaller communitynewspapers is down less than halfof those bigger daily newspapersand, in fact, any other major in-dustry in the US! In other words,your community newspaper isweathering the economic stormbetter than television, radio, auto-motive, real estate, retail and mostother sectors.

Why is that? Probably becauseadvertising in your communitynewspaper works and is cost-ef-fective.

Quoting Brian Steffans of the

National Newspaper Associationon the results of a recent survey byReynolds Journalism Institute atthe Missouri School of Journalismof residents of those small com-munities served by community pa-pers and not large daily papers:

“Will the auto industry (orhousing or retail or (_) industry)disappear because sales fell 25%?No. Neither will newspapers.

If readership is not a problem,or not the problem, then it must beadvertising. Wrong.

Pick a quarter or year over year,and you’ll read that ad revenue fornewspapers is down about 25 per-cent. Certainly not great. But theOct. 12 edition of the Wall StreetJournal said that following the“cash for clunkers” program, “autosales have continued to plummet,falling 23 percent in Septemberfrom a year earlier.”

Did the headline say “Auto in-dustry to disappear”? Nope. It saidsomething about automakers being“restless” and Cadillac droppingits ad firm. Sure, GM will shedSaturn and Pontiac, but mosteveryone figures GM, Ford, Toy-ota, Honda, Hyundai, BMW, Mer-cedes and the rest of the autoindustry-will be around for quitesome time. We’re a long way off

from a Jetson’s-like transportationrevolution that will replace cars inthe way that cars replaced thehorse and buggy.

Look at the housing industry,the retail industry, just about anyindustry you’d care to mention.Sales are off 20 percent or more inalmost every one of them. Are weseeing the end of the housing in-dustry? The retail industry? It’s theRECESSION ... DUH!”

The survey says...Even more people are reading

newspaper ads today! Yes, that’sright...readership of ads in smallcommunity newspapers is UP, notdown.

What the survey shows thisyear:

-80 percent of people read thesupermarket ads or ad inserts intheir local newspaper (up 7 percentfrom a year ago).

-75 percent read the departmentstore ads or ad inserts in their localnewspaper (up 9 percent from ayear ago).

-72 percent read the home im-provement or hardware ads or adinserts in their local newspaper(same as a year ago).

-67 percent read the discountstore ads or ad inserts in their local

newspaper (up slightly from a yearago).

-78 percent read the classifiedads in their local newspaper (sameas a year ago).

-63 percent read the public no-tice ads in their local newspaper(same as a year ago).

In fact, they look for it and useit to make buying decisions!Again, quoting Steffan...

Skeptics might say: reading anad doesn’t make it valuable. I’dpersonally argue that exposure isvaluable. But we have stronger in-formation:

-69 percent of respondents saidthey use newspaper advertising in-serts to make purchasing decisions.

-70 percent say they often golooking for, or seek out, newspa-per advertising to find informationon the latest offerings and salesavailable in their area.

Do you think the majority ofAmericans would say they oftenturn on the TV or radio to view orlisten to ads? They turn those on towatch entertainment or listen tomusic or talk. And if they watchedand listened to every station in themarket, it’s unlikely they wouldfind all the ads that are in one con-venient place, such as the localnewspaper.

Do you think the majority ofAmericans can find sales and spe-cials from local community retail-ers and services on the Web? Mostof those ads are national, andyou’d have to visit dozens or hun-dreds or thousands of websites totrack them all down. Or you couldturn to one convenient local news-paper or its website.

They prefer papersto web or TV.

-79 percent say that if they hada choice, they’d rather lookthrough the ads in the newspaperthan watch advertisements on TV.

-70 percent say that if they hada choice, they’d look through theads in the newspaper than view ad-vertisements on the Internet.

Finally, nearly half (47 percent)say there are some days when theyread the newspaper as much forthe ads as for the other content inthe paper. Do you think anyoneturns on the TV or radio as muchfor the commercials as for the en-tertainment or music.

Our dirty little secret...Morepeople are reading our newspapersthan ever before, and using ads inthose papers to make buying deci-sions.

April 28, 2010 Progress Page 1B

by MICHAEL E. POWELLEditormichael.cherryvilleeagle@gmail

.com

Judy Beam is a firm be-liever in the old saying,“Nothing succeeds like suc-cess.”

She proved that with herfamily’s business, CarolinaCare Center of Cherryville,which has grown exponen-tially with its $1.9 millionCarolina Cottages expansionas one more success story forher family, and for Cher-

ryville too, she said.Beam said the cottages

are a Phase One plan andhave come a long way fromthe December 2009 ground-breaking when there wasn’tmuch to look at but a set ofplans and some freshly

moved earth.As she laid out a new set

of plans for the clubhouseBeam said, “As you can see,we have expanded it (theclubhouse). It will have abasement, a health center, anextended gathering area, and

we have added a patio.”The plans were drawn up

by Cherryville native JackWhitworth.

“There will be state-of-the-art equipment in thehealth center, as well as inthe apartments themselves,”she added.

With 14 units now underroof, and one completed andjust about ready for its firstresident, Beam said thingsare progressing nicely. “Weare in the process of framingin the last unit this week,”said Beam.

“We have seven units andeach one has a little some-thing different about it. Thebrick may be different on theoutside, and of course, wefinish the interiors to theclient’s satisfaction.” Theunits have the same floorplan with something“tweaked” or a little differ-ent about each facade.

The small communitywill be a gated one, Beamsaid, and a card will be re-quired in order to get in.

Beam is especially proudof keeping with her and herbrother Michael’s originalpromise at the groundbreak-ing to stick with local andCherryville contractors andsubcontractors “...as much aswas possible.”

“The framing work isbeing done by Vic Hoyle andEddie Heavner and hisbrother Kevin, all of Cher-ryville, are doing the brickwork.”

Gary Dellinger Electricof Cherryville is doing thewiring and electrical work,she added.

Inside work, such astiling and such is being com-

pleted by Taylor Boyer ofTaylor Tile Company,” Judysaid. “His brother Chuck,who has a separate company,is doing some of the insidework as well. They’re fromCherryville.”

Gwen Putnam has thedistinction of being one ofthe first residents of CarolinaCottages, and is closely fol-lowed by their second resi-dent, Jean Lohr, in a cottagenext to Putnam’s in the firstcompleted cottages. Putnamsaid she is “...looking for-ward to” moving in as soonas she could.

In addition to all the con-struction jobs that have ben-efitted the area from theconstruction of CarolinaCottages, Beam noted thefull and part-time jobs thatwould be added when it is alldone.

Beam stands by her orig-inal motto, or statement,when ground was broken inthe cold December of 2009;“It is the beginning of gra-cious retirement for theCherryville people.

“And we have furtherplans for Carolina Care andCarolina Cottages,” she saidwith a smile, as she pointedto an area that will one dayboast a walking trail and thespace beneath a huge old treethat will serve as a smallmanicured lawn and park.“We may have some type ofoutside tables or spots therewhere residents can sit onwarm days and relax.”

“All in all, we’re very ex-cited about seeing this allcome to pass and get fin-ished. I can’t wait to seewhat’s next,” she said, takingit all in.

(photos by MEP/The Eagle)Carolina Care Center owner Judy Beam talks about one of the seven nearly complete cottages beingconstructed behind the Carolina Care Center campus. With her is son-in-law Michael Hopper. The twowere out looking over the progress of the builders, and liking what they saw.

Nothing succeeds like success for

Carolina Cottages

Some last minute earth moving doesnʼt get in the way of the roofers as they get about their business. The weather has cooperated well, said Judy Beam,owner of Carolina Care Center and Carolina Cottages.

Want to know a dirty little secretabout your community newspaper?

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Page 2B Progress April 28, 2010

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by ELIZABETH STEWARTStaff writer

The Joy has been called the Joy for overa half century and now the Joy of the KingsMountain Little Theatre is shaping up to beone of the biggest draws for downtown re-vitalization.

“There’s a lot of history here,” says vet-eran officer, director, actor and Jim of alltrades Jim Champion, L-T president. Hewill be handing over the gavel to TeresaWilliams as he heads up efforts to raisenearly $100,000 for 270-plus new seats in abig refurbishing project of a 60-year-oldbuilding “reborn” by the non-profit volun-teer group.

The progressive movement spurred byhundreds of volunteers is seen in the hun-dreds of talented people who perform onstage and behind the scenes, and in the newinterest and caliber of shows now being of-fered and enjoyed by the public.

“And it’s going to get better,” saysChampion.

Recent crowd pleasers brought thelargest attendance in the theatre’s history.Over 550 people turned out in January fortwo shows in one day featuring humoristJames Gregory. The children’s play “Char-lotte’s Web” was also a sell-out attracting1800 theatre-goers.

Charlie and David Cash opened the JoyTheatre June 1, 1949 and operated continu-ously until the late 1980s, selling to GospelAssembly Church for a sanctuary.

KMLT raised the money and bought theS. Railroad Ave. building in April 2001.They removed the pulpit and added to theexisting vaudeville stage by removing fourrows of seats, added a dressing room, ahandicap accessible bathroom and a handi-cap lift.

New lighting and sound systems wereinstalled. A new roof and renovation of pub-lic restrooms were other big projects. Re-cently Boy Scout Dylan Painter painted thelobby area as his Eagle project which in-cluded refurbishing and hanging of theoriginal doors.

A master plan calls for new seats, newcarpet, different wall treatments and cur-tains, acoustical tile and a new facade.

Other needs include an additional dressingroom and bathroom back stage.

Then-and-now photos of KMLT gracethe lobby walls. The original concessionstand has converted into a refreshment areaand the old ticket window reopened. “Wedecided on a redesigned sign with a moreart deco style but plans are to remove thefacade as money becomes available, tobring out some of the original features,Champion said.

Remembering the history is part of whatled to the naming of the theatre as the JoyPerformance Center.

Now the building offers snappy cooldigs for a group that has been pretty no-madic throughout its existence.

Teresa Williams, incoming presidentof KMLT, shows off a chair to pointout a big fundraiser for 270 newseats, a project which kicks offmajor refurbishing of the 60-year-oldformer movie house.

photo by EMILY WEAVERThe Joy of the Kings Mountain Little Theatre on S. Railroad Ave. in down-town Kings Mountain is emerging as the place to be for top-notch enter-tainment. Above, President Jim Champion changes the marquee.

Joy •A new look for an old icon��

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See JOY on Page 7B


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BELMONT–Belmont Abbey College isprobably the single most important part ofall of eastern Gaston College.

And according to college spokesmanEdward Jones, Belmont Abbey is experi-encing the greatest growth in its entire 134-year history. Enrollment is at an all-timehigh, and the college, like the Barque ofPeter, is weathering the world’s current fi-nancial stormy waters just fine, thank-you-very-much.

Young people always need to furthertheir educations. To that end, colleges offersome of the most recession-proof jobs inthe country. And what could be a better ed-ucation than the classic liberal arts curric-ula offered at one of the country’sbest-known Roman Catholic colleges?

The Abbey made it through the depres-sions of the 1890’s and the 1930’s. And itwill sail through this recession, too.

Jones recently talked about BelmontAbbey, its history and its future.

Get BAC“The college was founded by Benedic-

tine monks in 1876,” said Jones. “It wasoriginally known as St. Mary’s College. In1913, the name was changed to BelmontAbbey College.”

Today, BAC employs some 270 people.Jones said that he and the college enjoy

doing business in Belmont and GastonCounty.

“The current tough economy notwith-standing,” he said, “the City of Belmontand Gaston County provide a beautiful set-ting and a dynamic business environmentin which our college has every opportunityto flourish. Mayor Dr. Richard Boyce andhis staff, councilman Charlie Martin andother council leaders, Ted Hall and theMontcross Chamber of Commerce, theleadership and members of the GastonCounty Chamber of Commerce, local busi-nesspeople, townspeople, you great peopleat ‘The Belmont Banner’ and other folkstoo countless to name are incredibly helpfuland supportive of the Abbey.

“The local population has alwaysblessed the Abbey with a diverse workforce comprised of people who possess arock-solid work ethic,” Jones continued.“Down through the decades, we havelearned a great deal from working alongsidethe kind, generous, hard-working people ofthis area. And we hope they’ve learned afew things by working alongside us.”

Green-BACs: A big impacton the local economy

He cited a recent independent study con-ducted by the Hanover Research Council ofWashington, D.C. It estimates that BelmontAbbey College and the monastery of Bel-mont Abbey had a combined impact of$31.2 million on Gaston County’s economyduring the period of June of 2007 throughMay of 2008.

That $31.2 million figure does not takeinto account the impact on the Belmonteconomy made by the arrival of such com-panies as Wal-Mart, Lowe’s, the HamptonInn and Chick-Fil-A.

“Nor does it take into account the recordgrowth we experienced in 2009 and thus far

in 2010,” said Jones. “This kind of positiveeconomic impact would not be possiblewere it not for the healthy synergy that ex-ists in our community between town andgown.”

Abbot Placid Solari, O.S.B. recentlystated the overarching vision for the col-lege’s future quite succinctly:

“Our hope is that Belmont Abbey Col-lege will come to be one of the premierCatholic colleges in the country.”

Jones noted that BAC’s mission state-ment summarizes its aspirations this way:

“Our mission is to educate students inthe liberal arts and sciences so that in allthings God may be glorified. In this en-deavour, we are guided by the Catholic in-tellectual tradition and the Benedictinespirit of prayer and learning. ExemplifyingBenedictine hospitality, we welcome a di-verse body of students and provide themwith an education that will enable them tolead lives of integrity, to succeed profes-sionally, to become responsible citizens andto be a blessing to themselves and to oth-ers.”

If the present is any indication, theAbbey’s future is quite bright.

Jones said that during the autumn of2009, the Abbey’s total enrollment reachedan all-time high of 1,638 students. From2005 to 2009, total enrollment increased byan astonishing 84.6 percent (from 887 to1,638).

The average SAT scores of first-year tra-ditional students have also risen by 25points since 2005. Today, students from 40states and 25 countries are benefiting fromthe kind of liberal arts education that onlythe Abbey can provide.

“To accommodate our growing numberof students and faculty our new campus onthe grounds of the former Sacred Heart Col-lege in the heart of Belmont has undergonesignificant renovations and expansions.And more expansions are planned. So far,15 classrooms and 16 offices have beenrenovated. Plans are also in the works to ex-pand the parking lot, as well as to resurfacethe tennis courts.”

And he added that BAC opened its newCharlotte campus on Aug. 25, 2009, with77 new adult students. The Charlotte cam-pus offers degrees in business management,elementary education and educational stud-ies.

“We added the liberal studies major inJanuary,” said Jones, “and we expect to addthe criminal justice major in the fall.”

Currently, there are 87 adult-degree pro-gram (ADP) students registered at the Char-lotte campus for the spring 2010 semester.The goal for the fall semester there is 200ADP students.

Jones also mentioned how the recent ad-ditions of the new tennis and track-and-field teams have brought the total numberof teams on the Abbey Athletics fields to anall-time high of 21.

“This is a time when exciting new pro-fessors and administrators are joining us,”he said, “top-notch people with advanceddegrees from Harvard Law School, Oxford,Johns Hopkins, Notre Dame, Duke, Berke-ley and the University of Cambridge.

“And if our fund-raising this year is anyindication our alumni and other supportershave been energized by the positive mo-mentum they’re seeing. For example, we

recently successfully met ‘the $350,000Challenge,’ where alums offered $350,000in matching gifts if the college could raise$350,000 from local businesses, alums andnon-alums by a certain deadline.

“That means that over $700,000 ofmuch-needed cash has been infused into theAbbey’s financial operations to help pay forsuch things as scholarships for students,professors’ salaries, repairs to our historicbuildings and more.”

At last count, he said, Gaston Countybusinesses had donated $5,400 to help theAbbey meet the $350,000 Challenge. And462 Gaston County non-alums had given$120,000 toward the effort. Alumni dona-tions are up about 28 percent, and total do-nations to the school are up about 27percent so far this year.

BAC to the futureThe Abbey’s plans for the next decade

and beyond are pretty ambitious, saidJones.

“We want to grow the Honors Instituteof Belmont Abbey College which is help-ing us steal away top-notch students fromsuch competitors as Notre Dame, George-town, Duke, Davidson and the Universityof North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Belmont Abbey College

Gaston County’s educationaljewel experiencing biggestgrowth in its storied history

Photographs contributed by Renae HeustessInside the Basilica of Mary, Help ofChristians, Abbot Placid Solari isseen with one of the cathedralʼs dis-tinctive stained-glass windows inthe background.See ABBEY on Page B7

Walking near the monastery, Fr. Chris listens to a pair of students. Bel-mont Abbeyʼs many students are fortunate to have the monks as teach-ers and advisers.


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by MICHAEL E. [email protected]

As its name implies, PhoenixCorporate Services, Inc., has liter-ally risen, not from any ashes likethe mythical bird of old, but fromone of Cherryville's most belovedand remembered businesses–Car-olina Freight.

Phoenix occupies about 2,900square feet in a facility located indowntown Cherryville, said JohnWilliam Rudasill, Jr., the com-pany's president. "We can do justabout anything anyone needs as faras computer set-ups are concerned,from installing them, to designingprograms for the systems we in-stall, and keeping them in topshape. We also work on personalcomputers, too."

Rudasill said the company canprovide expertise on integratingnew technologies into what hecalled "legacy" systems, clientserver systems, or into new systemscurrently being developed. "Wehave successfully integrated digitalimaging into legacy systems thatrequire Internet access, and haveprovided business-to-business so-lutions using established electronicdata standards."

In addition, Rudasill said theircompany also offers a full array ofconsulting services for businessesin many areas. "We offer consult-ing on system workflow analysis,documentation and procedures, andsystems and applications reviewand enhancements and more," hesaid. "Our services can be tailoredto meet any of our customers'needs."

Rudasill said the company willwork directly with any business'staff to understand its particularbusiness requirements in order toprepare appropriate solutions.

This can be done, he said, be-

cause each of Phoenix's staff mem-bers has a comprehensive knowl-edge of database design as well asvarious programming languages in-cluding but not limited to COBOL,Visual Basic, CICS, TP8, Access,IDS2, and IDMS. "We also haveassociates who are Microsoft Cer-tified systems engineers and Mi-crosoft Certified ProfessionalInternet Experts as well.

"The actual Phoenix facilityconsists of a raised floor computerroom that houses a large main-frame computer, multiple large-end servers and all the associatedsupport equipment and peripher-als."

There is also a large tape libraryfor storage of archival and backupdata files housed in the building,added Rudasill, who said he got hisstart with computers at CarolinaFreight. "It's the same story withjust about everybody who lives inCherryville. We all got our startsomewhere, somehow, at CarolinaFreight!"

Rudasill said the facility's com-puter equipment is protected frompower spikes or drops by a 100 kvauninterruptible power supply(UPS) and its continuous powerneeds are supported by a 150 kvadiesel generator that automaticallystarts in the event of an extendedpower interruption.

The three employees atPhoenix–Rudasill, Ron Sigmon,and Martel Sigmon–formed thecompany along with HowardRoberts, who is no longer with thecompany, in 1995 shortly afterABF (Arkansas Best Freight)bought out Carolina Freight.

Rudasill has a Bachelor's inComputer Electronics and startedout at CF in 1975 as a computerprogrammer. "Ron and I basicallymoved up the ladder at CarolinaFreight."

For Rudasill and the Sigmons,being at Carolina Freight in its hey-day was "a different time" and onehe remembers fondly.

"At the end (of CF)," saidRudasill, "I was president of Car-rier Computer Services, which wasa spin-off of Carolina Freight. Ronand Howard were both directors."

Now, they draw from theirwealth of experience gained inthose various computer depart-ments as they work their computermagic for clients in Cherryville andthe nearby counties.

"The three of us had 20 years

each of service with CarolinaFreight, and we remember itfondly," Rudasill said. "But when itcame time for things to fold, we allknew we had to do something."

Enter Phoenix Corporate Serv-ices.

"We talked about what to nameour business and it just seemed ap-propriate to call it Phoenix, as itwas like a phoenix rising from theashes of CF," although he said hehesitates to liken it to that eventoday. "We had thought about thatname since before we formed thecompany in September of 1996.

"We're proud of what we havebeen able to accomplish as PhoenixCorporate Services. We countamong our customer base many re-ligious institutions, credit unionservices, textile manufacturingcompanies, city governments andmany others too numerous to namehere.

"Any success we have today isdue to our ability to creatively ad-dress the highly complex and criti-cal areas of businesses, both largeand small, which we learnedthrough the years of doing what welove to do," he concluded.

photo by MEP/The EaglePhoenix Corporate Services President John W. Rudasill, Jr. (left), gets hands-on workdone as Ron Sigmon, VP of operations, looks over and a client's computer. Along withMartel Sigmon the men have more than 75 years of computer service work among them.

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LIKE A PHOENIX


by ELIZABETH [email protected]

Sixty years - a milestonefor service organizations,and Kings Mountain Hospi-tal has emerged stronger,continues to progress andby all accounts is a busyplace. The hospital admitted46,333 patients in 2009.

Service, quality andcompassionate care is itstrademark, say three veteranemployees with over 100years of experience amongthem.

That "can do" attitude ofmany people helped a hos-pital in the business of heal-ing to heal itself.

Phyllis Phillips, Directorof Radiology, Ron Costner,Director of Patient Access,and Nadine Harris, Assis-tant Vice President of Inpa-tient Services, have been avital part of the facilityalong with many others inthe history of the hospital'spast, present and future.They got into the medicalprofession and stayed, andthey love it.

Phillips graduated in thefirst radiology graduatingclass at Cleveland Commu-nity College in 1976 andearned her MBA fromBaker College in Michigan.Her interest in radiologywas piqued witht her firstglimpse of a radiology de-partment as a youngster;she was fascinated by thetechnician giving her achest xray. "I wanted to do

that," she said."Thirty four years ago

when I went to work at thehospital there were three ofus in radiology, four chairsin the waiting room and twoxray rooms. None of usknew what a 'mouse' was ona computer and we usedfilm," she laughed.

Today 20 people work ina beautiful MRI/CTI suiteequipped with the latest ad-vancements in state-of-theart technology.

"We all remember whenthe hospital struggled forsurvival, but everyonepitched in and helped. AndI think the family feeling inthis hospital shows the unityof our people here and thecommunity." She said thehard-working staff wearsmultiple hats. "If I had tomop floors, I would," shesaid.

Phyllis and FeltonPhillips have theechildren: JevongelaWilson, CartisaLackey, and Deceder-ick Phillips, and fourgrandchildren. Theyare active in St. PeterBaptist Church inGrover.

Ron Costnershares Phillips' enthu-siasm for the hospitaland his busy depart-ment, which registersall patients whocome through thehospital doors. Cost-ner, a Ranlo resi-dent, will celebrate

his 38th year with the localhospital in July. He startedhospital work at GastonMemorial Hospital inthe admitting officefor two years, wentto night school atGaston College toearn his Associate de-gree and cameto KingsMountainHospitalin 1972.

He is a USAF veteranwho served in Vietnam and

is active in Ranlo Bap-tist Church.

"Once a persongets admitting intheir blood they can'trub it out," says Cost-

ner. A registerednurse, Na-

dine Har-ris joinedthe hos-p i t a ls t a f f3 2

years ago. "My brother be-came sick when he was an8th grader and I admirednurses who looked afterhim and found my calling,"she said. Harris graduatedfrom Charlotte PresbyterianHospital School of Nursingand worked two years forWatauga Medical Centerbefore moving to Shelby.She is married to RogerHarris and they have twochildren: Michael andSuzette Harris and Amandaand Chris Kees, and fourgrandchildren. They are ac-tive in Poplar BaptistChurch.

It was nearly five yearsago that Kings MountainHospital debuted its $12million renovation andmajor expansion. The two-

story addition is one ofthe most functionaland handsome in thearea, with an expresscare emergency de-partment that dou-bles the number ofpatients who can beserved. A new physi-cal therapy depart-ment was built at thefront of the hospitalin what formerlyhoused administra-tion, and additionalradiology waitingspace was added.There is also a com-munity room. Themain entrance is en-hanced by big win-dows, curving walls,a fountain, a circular

drive and a clear glass-cov-ered drop off point.

The two new operatingrooms are probably themost modern in the statewith high tech Strykervideo and computer equip-ment suspended from theceiling to create a saferwork environment. The10,495 square foot surgerydepartment includes a wait-ing area with curved glasswalls and a children's playspace. The nine post- andpre-operative rooms havewindows near the ceiling toallow in natural light.

Looking back to 1951when the hospital was a 24-bed facility and a privateroom cost $11 per day, thecommunity can appreciatethe struggles that led to thetremendous growth of thisnow expanded hometownhospital which partnerswith Cleveland RegionalMedical Center in Shelbyand Carolinas Health CareSystems. Integration of thetwo Cleveland County insti-tutions into a single Cleve-land County hospitalsystem Jan. 1, 2003 enabledboth Shelby and KingsMountain facilities to re-taining its name. Each wasalready a part of the Char-lotte hospital system.

"We've come a long waybut aren't we glad we had apart in it," said Phillips. AndCostner added, "We were apart of its past, present andnow its future."

Photo by LIB STEWARTPhyllis Phillips, Ron Costner and Nadine Harris are among alarge number of veteran employees with a "can do" attitude atKings Mountain Hospital.

Medical BreakthroughKM Hospital notes 60 years of service

Photo by EMILY WEAVER KINGS MOUNTAIN HOSPITAL has reached a milestone in service to the community.

FleetNet America keeps Cherryville truckingby MICHAEL E. [email protected]

Sometimes when one door closes, an-other one opens, or so the saying goes.

Such is the case with the shutting downof one of Cherryville's most venerable ofbusinesses: Carolina Freight. And it is nowthe case that many current businesses inCherryville got their starts being a part of

the old Carolina Freight business legacy,then staying alive and going strong after thefact of its closing, thus somehow continu-ing, in a fashion, CF's, and the late, great C.Grier Beam's, legacy.

That is certainly true of FleetNet Amer-ica, which started out in 1953 as the inter-nal breakdown department for CarolinaFreight Corporation, according to HeatherHolt, Director of Marketing for FleetNetAmerica.

Holt said as far as the the history of thecompany goes, it is vast and diverse.

"In 1993 the department was incorpo-rated to allow the opportunity for othertrucking companies to take advantage ofour established nationwide breakdownservice, which had already proven itself inthe industry by providing meaningful dataalong with timely repairs."

However, in 1995 Carolina Freight waspurchased by Arkansas Best Corporation(ABFS) which is still FleetNet's parentcompany today.

"The majority of our coordinators werepreviously employed by Carolina Freightand were secured by FleetNet America afterthe company merger," she said. "Our coor-dinators represent an average of over 25years in maintenance ranging from shopmanagement to floor mechanic, as well astire and recapping venues."

Holt said the capstone of the merger wasa name change, which came about in 1997."That's when we experienced a namechange to FleetNet America, Inc."

Many people speculate about what FNAis and what it is not, Holt said.

"FleetNet America, Inc., is a third-party,vendor management company that coordi-nates emergency roadside service andmaintenance management service for com-mercial equipment. FleetNet services pri-marily Class 3 through Class 8 segments ofthe commercial trucking industry, histori-cally concentrating on unscheduled emer-gency fleet repair needs."

Late in 2005, Holt said the companybegan concentrating on fleet contract main-

tenance needs with its "TMcare" program."This division includes our Material

Handling Maintenance Management pro-gram; a program in which FleetNet Amer-ica provides maintenance management bymanaging vendors and the maintenanceprocess through specific customer require-ments in our Roadside and TMcare pro-grams 24 hours-per-day, 365days-per-year," Holt said. And while thatmay sound like a mouthful of a job de-scription, it is music to the ears of anytrucker stranded or in need of emergencyroadside assistance.

"FleetNet’s Roadside coordinators uti-lize a network of over 60,000 truck repairvendors to assist in providing vehicle repairand emergency road service throughout thecontinental United States, and Canada," sheadded.

In addition to providing for the "...me-chanical and tire service needs" of its cus-tomers, FleetNet has a targeted serviceprogram called the “FleetNet Select Tow-ing and Recovery Program”.

"This addresses non-consensual towingand incident management," said Holt, "andby using the same select towing vendors,we developed a new program which we callFleetNet Vehicle Securement." Holt saidthis program promptly secures a fleet’sabandoned equipment which minimizes therisks as well as the cost of undeliveredfreight and uncontrolled equipment.

"To handle non-emergency towingneeds, FleetNet developed the Transportand Tow Quote program as well," sheadded. When all is said and done, FleetNetis responsible for the management of over200,000 events annually.

The company currently employs about130 people, and does 99 percent of its busi-ness outside the Cherryville/Gaston Countyarea, she said.

The company is also the recipient ofmany awards and accolades for its contri-butions to the industry since its inception.The supervisor's desk is a very busy place, said Heather Holt, Director of

Marketing for FleetNet America. "Most of our work is routed through there." See TRUCKING, B7


“A great place to live, work, play, worship and learn”

McAdenville’s Pharr Family YMCAMcAdenville’s Family-friendlyNeighborhoods

Kayaks on the South Fork

First Presbyterian ChurchBelmont, NC

Daniel Stowe

Belmont Abbey CollegeBelmont, NC

Daniel Stowe Botanical GardenBelmont, NC

Gastonia Memorial HospitalGastonia, NC

Gaston CollegeDallas, NC

Salutes Gaston County

McAdenville Christmas Lights

JoyContinued from Page 2B

The new seats will be morecomfortable, made of plushfoam with fabric upholstery andwooden backs and arm rests.Additional rows of seats areplanned. Pledges of $350 perseat are invited from the publicand each seat will be markedwith a plaque with informationon the donor and the person orpersons honored or memorial-ized.

The Joy, as a modern picturehouse, used to seat 772 peopleat one showing and there wasalso a balcony and projectionroom. The seats were over-stuffed models covered in ma-

roon cowhide with light tanarms, later replaced by lightblue models and light bluedrapes and carpet.

But among the unique fea-tures of the Joy were two mainfloor soundproof crying roomsfor parents to take children whosuddenly decided they were dis-pleased with the situation. Therewas also an off-balcony smok-ing room.

The Cash Brothers receivedcongratulations on their openingfrom Hollywood stars ClarkGable, Greer Garson, BettyGrable, Ginger Rogers and oth-ers on their opening June 1,1949.

Kings Mountain Little The-atre was founded as a play-read-ing group in the 1940s. Itincorporated in the early 1950s

and, after a few years of doingplays on area stages, membersgot involved in the summer bat-tle dramas produced at KM Na-tional Military Park.

Champion says one goal is topresent a drama about the Battleof Kings Mountain on stage atJoy Theatre.

In 1969 KMLT reorganizedand held performances over theyears at Central School, severalchurches, Park Grace School,and KM Woman’s Club.

“Forever,” a barbershopquartet composed of Tim Miller,Scott Neisler, Andy Neisler andRandy Patterson, inauguratedthe official opening of KMLT’sfirst home at the Joy on Thanks-giving weekend 2001. KMLTwas in its own space and able toreach many more people.

As involvement increased,KMLT has offered four produc-tions a year plus a summerdrama camp for children. Itrents to groups for meetings,business seminars and pianorecitals; hosts school groups,class reunions, birthday parties,etc. Two weddings and recep-tions have been held at the Joyas have community-wide Veter-ans Day and Martin Luther Kingservices in inclement weather.

Free movies, plus popcorn,are courtesy of KMLT and Cen-tral United Methodist Churchthe fourth Saturday monthly at10 a.m. Reel to Reel, a four dayevent in July, has been a popu-lar attraction for nine years.Champion says KMLT rents thefacilities to help pay for upkeep,such as utilities and mainte-

nance.The current season shows

will include “Funny Money” onMay 7-8 and 14-15 at 7:30 p.m.with a matinee at 3 p.m. on May9 and directed by Stan Logan;and “Play On” in August, acomedy directed by Dan Pre-harn, drama teacher at KMHS.

The 2010-2011 season willfeature the children’s play “Wiz-ard of Oz”, “Swingtime Can-teen”, a musical comedy set inWorld War II; the drama “TheDining Room” and the popular“Harvey.”

Seat contributions may beforwarded to PO Box 1022,Kings Mountain, NC 28086 orcontact any Little Theatre mem-ber.

AbbeyContinued from Page B3

“We also want to continue growing our exciting newentrepreneurship program led by Harvard Law School gradJeff Thomas, who has brought in such teachers as theEmmy Award-winning inventor and entrepreneur LouisForeman to offer real-world lessons in business to both ourtraditional and adult students. We plan to continue aggres-sively growing our adult degree program at both our Bel-mont and Charlotte campuses, which are helping so manyadult students change their careers and lives for the bet-ter.”

Jones also extolled the work of BAC President Dr.William Thierfelder.

“We plan to stay faithful to our president’s desire tobring sportsmanship back to college sports and thus to en-sure that sport at the Abbey is a means for developingvirtue in our student-athletes,” he said.

Jones added that the Abbey hopes to continue its na-tionwide outreach through the Envoy Institute of BelmontAbbey College (check out the Website at www.envoyin-stitute.net) and the ‘One-Minute Monk’ (consult www.one-minutemonk.com), both of which have won the Abbeyhours of free air time on radio stations, both Catholic andProtestant alike, nationwide.

“Through available grants,” he said, “we hope to buildbeautiful new athletic facilities that can be enjoyed by ourstudent-athletes and local citizens alike. We plan to helpbuild a new facility for ‘Room at the Inn’ on our land herein Belmont, which will make us the first college campus inAmerica to host such a facility for unwed mothers and theirbabies.

“In the not-too-distant future,” Jones added, “we hopeto embark on a capital campaign that will garner multi-million-dollar gifts from donors for such projects as a newlibrary, new dormitories, a new or renovated science build-ing and more. And we hope to do all of these things in thespirit of our college motto, so ‘that in all things, God maybe glorified.’ ”

TRUCKINGFrom B6

(See Timeline Breakdown box)“As the largest independent emergency roadside serv-

ice provider, FleetNet has traditionally coordinated truckmaintenance services including tire replacements, vehicletowing, and other mechanical repairs for fleets in the

United States and Canada," FleetNet America Presidentand CEO Oren Summer said.

"With a long history in the transportation industry, Fleet-Net has established trusted, contractual relationships withvendors nationwide. These long-time vendor relationships,combined with FleetNet’s industry experience and expert-ise, provide the natural foundation for introduction of newservice offerings,” added Summer.

The headquarters of FleetNet America, located in Cherryville, NC. The truck breakdown business,started in 1953 as a part of Carolina Freight Carriers Corporation, does 99 percent of its business out-side Cherryville and Gaston County.

1953 -Established as the breakdown de-partment for Carolina Freight Carriers1993 -Incorporated as Carolina Break-down Service, Inc.1995 -Purchased by Arkansas Best Cor-poration1997 -Name changed to FleetNet Amer-ica, Inc.1999 -Account Activity Email Notifica-tions; handle road failures via satellite2002 -Interface with maintenance soft-

ware2003 -Select Towing & Recovery pro-gram; awarded 2002 Quality ServicePartner by FedEx Ground2004 -Handled 500,000th event since in-corporating in 19932005 -Oren Summer awarded Technol-ogy & Maintenance Career LeadershipAward by CCJ Magazine2005 -Preventive Maintenance program,TMcare, added

2006 -Vehicle Securement programadded 2007 -Handled 1,000,000th event2008 -Non-emergency towing programadded, Transport & Tow2008 -Employee total doubled since20042009 -Material Handling EquipmentMaintenance Management Programadded

Timeline Summary


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