Japanese Auto Textile Co. Cuts Ribbon On New Plant

GAFFNEY, S.C. -- Unemployed upstate textile workers had reason for cautious optimism Tuesday as Suminoe, a Japanese-based textile manufacturer, cut the ribbon on a new plant in Gaffney.

The company is a leading producer of automotive fabrics in Japan, according to Sam Konduros, of the Upstate Alliance. At its American subsidiary (photos left and below, right) it will manufacture seat covers, headliners and carpeting.

The new plant is on Commerce Drive, near Interstate 85, in the former Paragon Brands building. About 36 people will be employed there by the end of the year. As the company ramps up production, as 130 could be working by 2006, when the company said it will reach operating capacity.

Cherokee County resident Tammy Hall, who had been unemployed for three years, is among those who welcomed a new job at Suminoe.

She said she was happy to be back working at what she knows best.

"Textiles -- that's where I came from and that's what I know," she told Marla Cichowski of WYFF News 4.

"Its hard to find a job around here, really hard," she said.

"This is a part of South Carolina that has been very hard-hit with change in the textile worlds. As a consequence, many have gone to other parts of the world," Konduros said. "What we see here is a reversing of that trend."

Gov. Mark Sanford signed the $30 million Suminoe deal last year in Osaka, Japan.

Suminoe selected the Gaffney site from among others in Georgia and North Carolina because of the area's strong manufacturing business climate and the presence of other Japanese companies, according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce.