Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 5, 1993 TAG: 9301050159
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: MICHAEL STOWE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
CORNING EXPANSION TO ADD 30 JOBS
Corning Inc. announced plans Monday for a $12 million expansion that will create 30 new jobs by 1995.Robert Hoover, plant manager for Corning in Christiansburg, said the company will build a third production line to meet a growing demand for catalytic converters in Mexico, Brazil and Korea.
"As everyone in the world concentrates on cleaner air, the demand for our product increases," he said.
Corning now has about 200 workers and the average salary is about $30,000 a year.
The plant makes substrates used in catalytic converters - part of an automobile exhaust system that contains a chemical catalyst to reduce polluting emissions.
Many Latin American and Asian countries are requiring catalytic converters on cars for the first time and the United States continues to toughen its environmental standards for cars.
Don Moore, executive director of the Montgomery Regional Economic Development Commission, said the plant expansion shows Corning's commitment to remain in the New River Valley.
"Corning is a quality employer and it's great to see a company like that be successful and expand," he said.
This will be the company's first major expansion since the local factory reopened in 1988 after sitting dormant for almost three years.
Previously, the Corning plant produced flat glass for industrial uses like oven windows and ceramic stove-top cooking surfaces. Because of a declining glass market, Corning closed the plant and laid off more than 250 workers in 1984.
Hoover said the new production line will be built in existing buildings. About half of the plant's 312,000 square feet is used now for production; the expansion will increase that to about 75 percent.
While the added production line could increase Corning's production by 50 percent, advanced technology means only a limited number of additional workers are needed, Hoover said.
"We are going to be doing everything we can to make sure it's as efficient and automated as possible," he said. "This expansion may not have a massive impact on employment levels, but the jobs we do provide are very stable."
The local Corning plant produces more than 5 million catalytic substrates a year. Nearly 90 percent of those are sold in Japan and Korea, Hoover said.
Corning also has plants in New York and Germany that produce substrates.