First Quality to Install New Tissue Machines at Anderson, S.C., Lock Haven, Pa.

Company will expand ultra-premium towel and tissue products capacity as part of long-term growth plan. Two new machines will bring company total to seven, creating hundreds of additional jobs to Anderson and Lock Haven communities.

First Quality Tissue, Great Neck, N.Y., USA, a manufacturer of ultra-premium towel and tissue products and part of the First Quality family of companies, this week announced a series of expansion initiatives for its manufacturing and distribution capabilities, as part of its long-term growth plan. 

The expansion includes the construction of two new state-of-the-art tissue machines. One will be located in the company’s Anderson, S.C., facility (photo below) and is expected to be completed and begin production in the second half of 2018. 

The second new tissue machine will be located in the company’s Lock Haven, Pa., facility (photo below) and is expected to be completed and begin production in the first half of 2019. This expansion follows the successful May 2016 launch of First Quality’s fifth paper machine, which is located at the Anderson, S.C. facility. The launch of these additional machines will add hundreds of jobs in both Anderson and Lock Haven. 

First Quality said that "our company is honored to be a part of the Anderson and Lock Haven communities and extremely proud of the operations we have built together. We have witnessed the positive impact our company has had on these U.S. towns—transforming dormant factories into state-of-the-art facilities, which have created more than 1,000 jobs that have provided exceptional employment opportunities to local community residents. We greatly appreciate our valuable team members and each of these communities, including the local and state representatives, for welcoming us with open arms and standing side-by-side with us as we developed these facilities. Our success is their success. First Quality Tissue’s additional investment reaffirms our commitment to our customers’ long-term objectives and will strengthen our company and these communities for decades."

In January 2003, First Quality Tissue purchased a long-abandoned paper manufacturing site in Lock Haven. In just five short years, First Quality deconstructed this 100-year-old plant and its approximately one million sq. ft. of antiquated buildings and built two state-of-the-art TAD towel and tissue facilities. First Quality’s Lock Haven operation now spans approximately 2 million sq. ft. and employs approximately 500 team members. 

In July 2010, First Quality Tissue replicated its success in Lock Haven when it identified and purchased an old and idled nylon fiber manufacturing plant in Anderson. In less than six years, First Quality Tissue deconstructed the nylon fiber mill and built three state-of-the-art tissue mills in its place, where it now operates three machines, including the one launched in May of this year. Today, First Quality Tissue employs more than 625 team members on its 3.5 million-plus sq. ft. state-of-the-art campus in Anderson. 

First Quality Tissue’s commitment to the ultra-premium tissue and towel market, its retail customers, and consumers is unmatched. The strategic initiatives announced this week will bring First Quality’s total number of tissue machines to seven and reaffirms the company’s commitment to its customers’ growing demands for First Quality’s ultra-premium and innovative products.